Elegant Townhomes and Apartments
Hardwood-style floors, granite countertops, resort-style swimming pools, dog parks, playgrounds … these are just some of the perks for the residents of two multifamily communities in West Knoxville.
Maybe that’s why The Williams Company has taken home two out of the top three Cityview Best of the Best 2018 awards for their two communities: The Villas of Emerald Woods at 9400 Havenbrooke Way and Fox Lake Apartment Homes at 505 Fox Crossing Blvd.
“We continually upgrade and reinvest in the properties we own and manage,” said Steve Williams, owner. “In a four-and-a-half-year period, we’ve committed to spending
3.5 million dollars.”
“We’re doing a major upgrade at Emerald Woods, putting in granite, LED track lighting in the kitchens and hardwood-style flooring,” Steve said. “We want our residents to feel like they’re getting the best value in Knoxville.” The townhome community offers two- and three-level townhomes with one- and two-car attached garages.
At Fox Lake, The Williams Company has added a dog park and two large outdoor grilling areas with stone fireplaces. The apartments were also recently upgraded with granite countertops, maple cabinets and new appliances.
“The award is an honor,” he said. “I think it’s a reflection of our staff’s devotion to our residents. If you think about it, someone looking for a place to live is looking for a safe, worry-free place at a fair price. That’s our job. We provide a 24-hour maintenance service. We walk dogs if the resident is in a bind. The residents trust us to do that.”
Williams began his construction career in Blount County at 14 when he started helping his dad remodel houses for rent and sale.
“I guess I was reasonably priced labor at that time,” he laughed. “My dad, Bud Williams, gave me the opportunity to see what I could really do. We cleaned up, painted, did yard work, general labor. In college I began to figure out how to schedule a project from beginning to end. I got to do a lot of things early that helped me understand what I wanted to do later.”
In college, he built his first house on Clayton Court in Blount County. He built three more houses in three years and later branched out to property development with River Plantation, also in Blount County, before starting The Williams Company, LLC, in 1981.
Like his dad, he has involved his own kids along the way. Daughter, Caitrin, and son, Michael, joined the business in the last two years.
“My dad built these properties from the ground up,” Caitrin said. “My brother and I are very lucky to get to be a part of it. It’s really important to us that everyone feels like family. The Fox Lake property manager, Susan Correro, has been here for 25 years. Our maintenance supervisor, Richard Irwin, has been with us for 37 years. The average employee tenure is 11 years. That translates to our residents. It’s important to us that anybody who lives here feels welcome, feels special and feels taken care of. One thing Dad’s taught us is to not take shortcuts and to take care of people.”
“One thing that I think we do differently as a local family-run business is that we don’t have to focus on corporate,” Steve said. “We don’t have to focus on Wall Street. We just make sure our employees and residents are taken care of.”