New downtown apartments planned for the former MAC Auto Loans site will incorporate the business' iconic sign so it can live on.
Crews broke ground Aug. 5 on the MAC on Fifth apartments, a 144-unit complex with a unique touch: 10 ground-level units reserved for local entrepreneurs to live, work and sell their products. Rhode Island development firm Bluedog Capital Partners is partnering with Knoxville-based Dominion Development Group to bring its vision to life.
Bluedog told Knox News in 2022 it was looking for a way to incorporate the sign from MAC Auto Loans, whose building was demolished due to structural concerns to make room for the apartments. New renderings for the apartments show what appears to be the original sign jutting out from the building.
Sarah Harris, chief investment officer for Bluedog, told Knox News the company plans to open the new building at 200 W. Fifth Ave. by summer 2028. The apartments will be rented at market rate, according to developers, and the complex will include a coworking lounge and space for makers.
Bluedog is the same firm working on Vital at Springbrook Farm, a 300-unit multifamily complex near McGhee Tyson Airport. Dominion is developing the Riella on 5th workforce housing complex down the street from MAC at Fifth near the Old Gray Cemetery and is behind the affordable housing project at the former St. Mary’s Hospital site.
Sophia Tiedge is the growth and transformation reporter for Knox News. Email: sophia.tiedge@knoxnews.com.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: See how iconic MAC Auto sign may return with new Knoxville apartments
