KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knoxville is celebrating a new milestone for the city's most recognizable landmark: The Sunsphere.
Thomas Shepard, from Norris, celebrated his fourth birthday by visiting Knoxville's biggest landmark. He's a toddler and he didn't know that a day of picnic with his parents would turn into a tour of The Sunsphere.
"It was a surprise," Thomas said.
His father, Justin Shepard, said they planned this with his wife for his birthday.
"Big surprise, he didn't know we were coming up here," Shepard said. "But now that he's up here, he's, well, you see him running around here. He's really excited."
The president of Visit Knoxville said The Sunsphere also had a special day.
The Sunsphere's observation deck recently saw 100,000 visitors from around the world in less than two years since it reopened. It welcomed visitors from all 50 states and 54 different countries, according to Visit Knoxville.
"We're really excited that we hit 100,000 visitors in less than two years," Kim Bumpas, president of Visit Knoxville said.
Back in the early 1980s, the World's Fair spearheaded a lot of development in Knoxville.
In Sept. 2023, The Sunsphere's base began getting a new coat of paint. Crews finished repainting the structure back to its original blue color in November, and Visit Knoxville said it was part of a revamp that would eventually include the construction of a visitor center on the third level of the Sunsphere.
"I think the reason blue was chosen in 1982 is because it represented the sky, and The Sunsphere represents the sun," Bumpas said. "And all of that went into kind of the energy message that was all about the 1992 World's Fair."
The second phase of the revamp is set to begin in 2024 and wrap up by the end of that year.
“We are thrilled to reach this impressive milestone in less than two years of reopening,” said Bumpas. “This speaks to The Sunsphere’s status as an attraction and highlights its power to attract visitors from across the country and beyond.”
Visit Knoxville created a time-lapse of the repainting project, which you can watch below:
The city reopened the Sunsphere to visitors in February 2022 after closing it in 2020 due to COVID-19. When it reopened, Visit Knoxville also began charging people 12 years old and older $5 for admission, when it had formerly been free to enter.
Visit Knoxville said the money from tickets and its Sunsphere Fund would go toward improving and maintaining the iconic structure.
“What an amazing milestone for our city’s iconic landmark,” said City of Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon. “Thanks to Visit Knoxville, The Sunsphere is getting a much-needed facelift and will go on to welcome visitors and locals for years to come.”
"You can't go to Knoxville and not go to the sunsphere," Shepard said. "What are you even coming in Knoxville for."