KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The owner of a planned $40 million development has announced who will be the resort's Chief Executive Officer.
Local businessman Tom Boyd said Matthew Cross, of Knoxville, will be the CEO of Boyd Hollow Resorts, Inc.
Boyd Hollow Resorts, Inc. is the business that will oversee the development and management of the planned $40 million Ancient Lore Village at Boyd Hollow® in South Knoxville.
According to a release, Cross was born and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee.
“It is an amazing opportunity to join such a visionary project. The world needs a property like this, and I’m so proud to have it in Knoxville,” Cross said.
Cross has worked in the financial services industry as a consultant, a release said. He has also worked with a real estate developer in Boston, Mass., and in hospitality in Cherokee, N.C.
According to the release, Cross is no stranger to Boyd's story.
“This village represents the culmination of Bokee’s journey. Our guests are literally staying in the homes owned by the families in the book. You will see their family portraits on the wall," Cross said. "The village is now inhabited harmoniously by the nine character races which previously were independent. When they were separated, each family thought they represented the best possible qualities, but when they are together, they benefit from each other."
Current plans for the resort include more than 150 period homes and tree houses, a 150-seat restaurant, a 500-person meeting and event center, and a 1,000-seat outdoor amphitheater on land off of Nixon Road and Old Sevierville Pike.
“A project like this needs a varied background. I’m very fortunate to have been exposed to so many industries in my career. I’ve also been able to work with hundreds of executive teams, and I hope to apply my observations to building a unique culture that can support world-class hospitality. It’s all about working hard to instill the vision in each and every person involved with the organization. It’s the only way this works," Cross said.
Boyd had previously said he planned to open the resort in spring 2020 and expected to draw 200,000 annual visitors.
But those plans may be pushed back.
