(WBIR) The University of Tennessee's former president's home, which has been for sale since 2010, now has a new owner.
The Magnolia Trust with co-trustees Joe Fielden, Jr. and Ruth Fielden purchased the west Knoxville house for $2 million.
Back in 2010, two deadlines for sealed bids on the Cherokee Boulevard home passed without any offers. During that period, the Sequoyah Hills home was listed for more than $4 million. UT's Executive and Compensation Committee on the Board of Trustees approved the sale of the house for $2 million in September. The Magnolia Trust's purchase was finalized on Friday, Dec. 27.
The 11,000 square-food home sits on a nearly 3.5 acre lot along Fort Loudoun Lake. The resident has a tennis court, boat house, deck and garden.
Dr. and Mrs. Walter Starnes Nash built the home in the 1930s. Their daughter, Eva, and her husband, Ray Jenkins, later lived in the home, and eventually entered into a gift purchase agreement with UT in 1960. The university's president, Andy Holt, then moved into the residence.
Over the years, four more presidents and two chancellors called 940 Cherokee Boulevard home. Eventually, university leaders decided to end the practice of using the home for a president's residence. The university offered a housing stipend instead, which follows suit with most universities across the country.
