North
Nashville Design Plan Calls for Long-term Improvements
The City Paper
By Megan Moriarty
February 06, 2002
A detailed plan to enhance the look and feel of North Nashville over the next
25 years includes improving community centers, reconnecting streets and creating
additional residential and commercial opportunities.
The Nashville Civic Design Center has held public meetings for the past four
months, working with residents of Germantown, Salemtown and Buena Vista, North
Nashville business owners and various Metro officials.
Throughout the project, Design Center officials have spent approximately 600 hours researching, analyzing and drawing plans for the community, in addition to holding meetings and workshops to better the neighboring downtown area.
The center wants
the plan to go to anyone with an interest in the area. " I think
we'll actually hand it over to anyone who wants it," said John
Houghton, acting executive director of the Nashville Civic Design Center. "We'll
hand it over to planning, we'll hand it to the neighborhood groups
that have participated in the process and really any other interested
entity or individual who wants to be part of what's happening there."
Design Intern Blythe Bailey said he thinks the Planning Department, which has
been involved in the project since the beginning, will benefit greatly. " They've
already gotten some community input and they've gotten a lot of our input so
it gives them kind of a head start on their work," Bailey explained. "If
we hadn't been doing the work that we have been doing then they would have
to start at ground zero. They would have to get in touch with everyone, get
them to come to meetings … learn everything … about the neighborhoods
from the ground up. They already know a lot of things just from the work that
we've done."
According to Planner Marty Sewell, with the Metro Planning Department, it has
been wonderful working the Design Center and the various concepts the center
has created are going to be extremely helpful.
" They've got a vision now," Sewell said of the plans. "It helps
give us direction as we move forward on what we have to do and that's always
good."
Bailey said the Design Center was excited about taking on the project because Historic Germantown, which submitted a proposal asking for assistance, expressed an interest in linking and connecting themselves to other neighborhoods in the area, which is one of the Center's purposes. " It was the fact that this neighborhood of Germantown, which had already seen a pretty a good deal of revitalization in the past 20 years was interested in its surrounding neighborhoods and instilling that same kind of revitalization in them and getting all of them involved," Bailey said.
Bailey said the short-term plans, which can be implemented within the next five years, are realistic. " The long-term plans have a lot of ideas that have so many other factors … political and economical," Bailey said of the plans, which can take up to 25 years to complete. "It's hard to say whether they actually can do any of those things … it's just a matter of everything falling into place."
Houghton said the Design Center will continue to be part of the North Nashville project.
North Nashville Neighborhoods Projects. Shown is the five year plan. The Design Center has also researched and evaluated plans for the next 25 years.
Centers
* Morgan Park Ball field Improvements
* Morgan Park Sign Design Competition
* Re-Open 9th Avenue through Kroger parking lot
* Residential and commercial at Werthan/Neuhoff
Entrance,
Threshold and Boundary
* Jefferson (West and East end) and 8th (south and north end) entrance signs.
* Sign Design Competition for all neighborhoods
Natural Conditions
* Emphasize views to Capitol Hill
* Develop and encourage use of greenways and French Lick connector
* Develop Riverside greenway
Reclamation
* Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) Overlooks Education Center
* Highway Buffer Trees
* End-streets Parks
* Residential out-building construction (reclaim alleys)
* Institute parking sharing plan with WWTP
Civic Space
* Germantown Neighborhood Greenway
* Parking Plan with WWTP
* Infill Construction
* Reconnect Streets
* Straighten Streets at Jefferson Street Bridge
* 5th Avenue Arts Mosaics
* Encourage on-street parallel parking
* Develop residential with industrial, where possible