Clinton’s Newest Destination—A Park for the People
Spanning more than 400 acres of reclaimed post-industrial land along the Clinch River, Aspire Park is a bold reimagining of what a public park can be. With 20-plus miles of trails, an epic playground, and an upscale restaurant, Aspire is a thoughtfully designed landscape that merges nature, recreation, and community. And it’s just minutes away.
I’d been hearing about Aspire Park in Clinton for a while, but admittedly had to overcome that too-far-away mindset. In reality, Clinton’s just a 20 minute jaunt from Knoxville. So I took the drive, and since then, I’ve been four times in about a month.
This multi-use space is the inspiration of Clinton native and real estate developer Joe Hollingsworth Jr. For years, he passed a small tract of six acres, thinking it would make a good city park. He bought that tract, then a little more here and there until it was 178 acres, then 370 — thanks to an agreement with TVA to use land on the back side of the mountains for hiking.
I was sort of prepared for what we found, but I have to admit, as we pulled into the parking lot for the first time, my mouth fell open. I couldn’t believe how robust this space was. It was much grander than I imagined it.
Joe, through the Hollingsworth Foundation, wasn’t alone in his vision to develop an inspiring space. His life partner, Brenda Starwalt, and his children, Trey and Nicci, were behind him all the way.
“Our kids encouraged me to get started on this instead of just leaving the money and letting someone else do it,” he says, “knowing that I would bring more attention to detail. We want Aspire to be an unforgettable experience. We want people to leave here uplifted.”
Getting Started
The Aspire team consulted experts at every turn: for the wildflower meadow, the playground, the trails — even the culture they wanted to develop.
“Michelle Baker, a retired Disney consultant, teaches all of our culture classes,” Joe says. “She taught at Disney Institute. First, we send employees to culture class. Not everybody graduates. If they do, they start position training the next week. We’ve been able to build an incredible team here with an awful lot of effort.”
At the center of the property is the main building, The Onward and Upward—housing a restaurant and variety of event spaces—overlooking the wildflower meadow and the enormous front lawn crisscrossed with paved walking and biking paths. To the right of this building is a huge playground for kids of all ages, a pump track for cyclists, and a path along the river to the woods where there are many different trails.
Hiking and Biking
Aspire has approximately 20 miles of wooded hiking and mountain biking trails with 17 different trails that vary in difficulty.
“These trails serve as an opportunity for beginners looking for leisurely strolls or experienced adventurers craving more rugged terrain challenges,” says landscape director Justin Coffey. “Signposted routes guide our trail-goers towards appropriate options based on their preferences and skills. Aspire’s trail system also boasts stories of aspirational people at the trail intersections, so you can familiarize yourself with our local history.”
“Our blue and black trails tend to navigate you into the thick of the woods,” says Andrew Goodman, director of operations. “Our trails were all built by different trail designers, which is a very interesting concept. You’ve got a trail designer who’s a big rock person and imports rock, and then you might have a dirt jump person.”
On our second visit, we brought friends. It was May, and we were ready to hike. As we walked out past the playground and into the woods, suddenly the Clinch River was close on our right. The sun lit up the daisies sprinkled down the bank, making it the prettiest walk I’d ever done. After a while, the pavement ended and we picked a trail that circled through the woods to the Pearl’s patio.
The Pearl
We’ve been to many parks over the years, and when you hear of a park restaurant, you might think of a rustic log building with down-home food. Not so at The Pearl, with appetizers like Smoked Salmon Dip and Bake Brie and entrees like Sesame-Cruster Ahi Tuna and Grilled Ribeye.
Did you know Clinton was once called “City of Pearls”? According to a December 2013 article from the Crossville Chronicle, from the late 1800s to 1930s Clinton was a center of freshwater pearl mining, with buyers coming regularly from New York. One of the largest freshwater pearls was found here, said to be the second largest in the world at the time. Clinton’s pearls are the namesake for the restaurant where diners can request rooftop seating with a view of the river or choose the pet-friendly patio.
“Our menu is all about quality and value,” says Amanda Miller, director of food, beverage, and training. “We bring in the freshest products and hand cut everything. Our most popular items have been our cheeseburgers, steaks, ribeyes and blackened chicken pasta that outsells everything else.”
Taneeka Copeland, with 20 years in the restaurant business, is the front-of-house manager. “We have great menu items with so many selections. We have great mocktails, specifically a Razzle Dazzle that is perfected with a cotton candy glitter bomb. If you are into cocktails, the Red Maple Smoked Old Fashioned is absolutely delicious.”
“Culinarily, this is a dream job. What we are doing in the kitchen is about as organic a growth as you can have,” says sous chef Sean Demarest. “Daily we are working on our menu and saying, ‘How can we make it better, more efficient and also give a dining experience to our guests that makes them want to come back?’ The other team members in The Pearl are, bar none, some of the best
I have ever worked with. Lastly, Joe Hollingsworth is the one that made this all come true, and he is still committed to working on these things with us. Aspire is a place that will make Clinton proud and put us more on the map than we were before.”
Out on the Water
Nearly out of sight of the Pearl is the dock building called The Launch, which is available to rent for special events. The riverside deck looks like something out of a resort catalogue. There’s a bit of tranquility to this space.
Alongside it is a ramp to help people put in kayaks, canoes, and stand-up paddle boards. There’s also three fishing piers. Aspire doesn’t sell fishing licenses, but they’re available at the TWRA website and other local spots. You can also get them online at the Go Outdoors Tennessee website.
Among the Wildflowers
When Justin moved back here from Kentucky to work at Aspire, there was hardly any grass and just a skeleton of a building on the property. There was a long way to go, but things look quite different today.
“Aspire has about 10 acres of native wildflowers and native warm-season grasses,” he says. “These areas were included to provide tremendous aesthetics at Aspire, but also to provide incredible pollinator habitat. With over 50 species of native wildflowers and grasses, passersby can observe a suite of pollinating insects, birds and other wildlife.
Justin grew up in Clinton; he went to school here, too, he says. And there wasn’t a place like this. “It’s nice to have a space for the community to embrace and call their own.” Even if you aren’t from Clinton directly, I can understand that sentiment. It feels as if all of East Tennessee can call this park its own.
“Joe had the vision and brought in all sorts of ideas,” Justin says. “Some of the early folks visited all kinds of state parks and national parks. In those exploratory trips they came across native plant people, landscape design-type folks. They were able to bring them in. I think having that exploration and being open to ideas spawned all this. We’re still absorbing ideas to see how they would benefit our guests.”
Play for all Ages
The German-designed playground is colorful with large, magnificent play structures you don’t see at local parks. There’s even an ice cream truck. So that first visit with three of our granddaughters was amazing.
The kids’ wonderland includes four designated areas for toddlers up to older kids offering tons of slides, climbing areas, even a zipline. The bike pump park is good for kids both young and old.
“The pump track has a gravity jump line, a large downhill jump track built by Velo Solutions, a world-renowned German brand,” Andrew says.
Service and Sacrifice
Near the entrance to the park is an area called Service and Sacrifice with a large spire sculpture that memorializes both the 13 colonies and 9/11. Displays featuring the 50 states, the six branches of the military, and an exact replica of the Liberty Bell are also there.
“Welles Crowther, who was in the World Trade Center when it was attacked, had no ties to Clinton but made the ultimate sacrifice for others, and Joe learned of his story,” Amanda says.
The spires mimic the staircases Welles ran up and down to rescue people. Over Memorial Day weekend, his mother, Allison Crowther, spoke at Webb School and then came to Aspire for a ceremony. She was so touched that she kissed the sculpture.
“The Liberty Bell has a remnant from 9/11 in the bell’s housing,” Amanda says. “In the top of the memorial is a laser that goes all the way to space. That memorial is for our heroes and unsung heroes, ordinary people doing extraordinary things.”
Aspiration Mountain
Joe’s idea is that if Clinton’s first settlers and America’s pioneers could achieve their goals, so can we. Brenda agrees. One of her special contributions is Aspiration Mountain, a large room in the main building used for field trips.
“In Aspiration Mountain kids learn about hitches and glitches in their lives,” Amanda says. “They write about what holds them back. If they want to, they can record an aspiration. It can go to their mom’s or dad’s phone or they can send it to their home computer.”
With Aspire’s NASA-authorized ability to transmit sound on a light beam, the kids’ messages, or even wedding vows recorded at the park, can be sent to space, Joe says.
On Tuesday nights, while the aspirations are being launched into space, guests can enjoy a Hungarian engineered laser light show. Then from November 15 to January 2 is Aspirational Lights, “the largest walking holiday light display in the Southeast,” Joe adds.
Tying the Knot at the Park
Aspire recently hosted their first wedding, but several more are already on the books. A range of indoor and outdoor spaces can accommodate up to 400 guests.
“From our rooftop terrace with sweeping views to the waterfront launch, every corner is designed to impress and inspire,” says Brooke Carper, marketing director. “Each space is a blank canvas ready to reflect your vision, offering flexibility and sophistication in equal measure.”
Pride and Opportunity
Joe Hollingsworth, Jr. is as colorful as the space he’s created. He was in a rock band called The Pastels in high school and was the first person in Tennessee to register to vote when the age was changed. He is currently ticket 179 for the Virgin Space Ride. (“I’m hoping that will be next year,” he says.)
And this park that he’s brought to life for the community? That’s just another thing that East Tennessee now has to offer both its community members and its visitors.
“Part of this is to make Clinton cool, so ‘It’s cool to live in Clinton’ — a sense of pride for the people who live here,” Joe says. “I’ve lived here 74 years, and we’ve changed remarkedly little. In the last five years, some change, but the next five years will be awesome. We want to change the economic destiny of this region. Give young people a reason to stay and not move off, and young people and retired people a reason to move here.”
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