The Devil Is In the Details
The vast majority of people who have expressed an opinion to me about the City's purchase of Harlinsdale Farm to create a public park have been very excited about the concept of having that landmark open to the public and preserved as green space. Support for the notion of Harlinsdale as a park is overwhelming when Harlinsdale as a 2.2 units/acre PUD as an alternative is contemplated.
Last night, the City hosted a forum for the public to see a preliminary concept plan rendered by the consultants. Almost 200 people showed up for a meeting that lasted nearly three hours. Again, most people present really liked the idea of the property becoming a park.
However, there are numerous legitimate concerns. Foremost among the concerns expressed last night were the sentiments of neighbors in Chestnut Bend and Harpeth Meadows regarding the idea of pedestrian trails through their neighborhoods linking, via pedestrian bridges, to Harlinsdale. See the map below from the Harlinsdale Master Concept Plan.
For the complete Master Concept Plan, visit this link: http://www.franklin-gov.com/.
A couple of points are in order. First, the Master Concept Plan is just that, a concept. There have been no commitments, express or implied, to any of the results that are presented as concepts. There is no funding in place for the pedestrian walkways or bridges, or any of the rest of the concept plan. From my perspective, I wanted the planners to think big, ignore the potential politics of the deal, and render a hypothetical, perfect-world concept of what could be done.
With that in mind, I think we must acknowledge that pedestrian access to Harlinsdale Park is paramount. We would be doing a disservice to the users of the Park if they all had to drive on site to enjoy the park. So the planners, I presume, contemplated as many ways to deliver pedestrians to Harlinsdale as possible.
Now we have the concept plan in hand. Now the real world intersects with the hypothetical world. Residents of Chestnut Bend were quick to point out, and fairly so, that the trails in Chestnut Bend are privately owned by the homeowners' association there and many Chestnut Bend residents are not ready to embrace public trail linkages to their private trails, particularly not with the potential volume of pedestrians that Harlinsdale could bring. Parking, too, is a problem. Likewise, the residents of Harpeth Meadows were fairly unanimous in their opposition to a trail cutting through their neighborhood to link the Bicentennial Park to Harlinsdale. They, too, are not amenable to becoming a parking area for users of Harlinsdale Park. All of these points are fair and reasonable.
The concept plan now begins to be revised. I would imagine that the numerous and very strongly held opinions registered last night will have an impact. I, as the alderman in which Chestnut Bend, Harpeth Meadows and Harlinsdale are all found, and the chairman of the committee that oversees the Parks Department took note of the opinions expressed.
I believe the concept plan should be revised to accomodate pedestrian access to Harlinsdale in a way that does not unduly burden the residents of the neighborhoods adjacent to the park. Specifically, I believe the trail through Harpeth Meadows is very problematic and perhaps even unnecessary. I would far rather spend that same money creating a nice sidewalk link from downtown to Harlinsdale by way of Franklin Road. This would be an amenity to the neighborhood, a benefit to downtown and the Factory, and serve people who might have no interest in Harlinsdale.
I also believe that the Chestnut Bend trail system should be respected as private property and that any trail linkages from the west side of the Harpeth River into Harlinsdale should be done, if at all, with minimal intrusion into Chestnut Bend. Various suggestions for moving the pedestrian bridge on the west side of the park were given, and I think in some fashion the property rights and concerns of Chestnut Bend homeowners can be addressed while still creating a pedestrian link to the west side of the river.
In sum, I was very pleased to see so many residents interested in the plan and participating constructively in the process. I am optimistic that the revisions to the concept plan will improve the plan and mitigate the legitimate concerns of the nearby residents.
Last night, the City hosted a forum for the public to see a preliminary concept plan rendered by the consultants. Almost 200 people showed up for a meeting that lasted nearly three hours. Again, most people present really liked the idea of the property becoming a park.
However, there are numerous legitimate concerns. Foremost among the concerns expressed last night were the sentiments of neighbors in Chestnut Bend and Harpeth Meadows regarding the idea of pedestrian trails through their neighborhoods linking, via pedestrian bridges, to Harlinsdale. See the map below from the Harlinsdale Master Concept Plan.
For the complete Master Concept Plan, visit this link: http://www.franklin-gov.com/.
A couple of points are in order. First, the Master Concept Plan is just that, a concept. There have been no commitments, express or implied, to any of the results that are presented as concepts. There is no funding in place for the pedestrian walkways or bridges, or any of the rest of the concept plan. From my perspective, I wanted the planners to think big, ignore the potential politics of the deal, and render a hypothetical, perfect-world concept of what could be done.
With that in mind, I think we must acknowledge that pedestrian access to Harlinsdale Park is paramount. We would be doing a disservice to the users of the Park if they all had to drive on site to enjoy the park. So the planners, I presume, contemplated as many ways to deliver pedestrians to Harlinsdale as possible.
Now we have the concept plan in hand. Now the real world intersects with the hypothetical world. Residents of Chestnut Bend were quick to point out, and fairly so, that the trails in Chestnut Bend are privately owned by the homeowners' association there and many Chestnut Bend residents are not ready to embrace public trail linkages to their private trails, particularly not with the potential volume of pedestrians that Harlinsdale could bring. Parking, too, is a problem. Likewise, the residents of Harpeth Meadows were fairly unanimous in their opposition to a trail cutting through their neighborhood to link the Bicentennial Park to Harlinsdale. They, too, are not amenable to becoming a parking area for users of Harlinsdale Park. All of these points are fair and reasonable.
The concept plan now begins to be revised. I would imagine that the numerous and very strongly held opinions registered last night will have an impact. I, as the alderman in which Chestnut Bend, Harpeth Meadows and Harlinsdale are all found, and the chairman of the committee that oversees the Parks Department took note of the opinions expressed.
I believe the concept plan should be revised to accomodate pedestrian access to Harlinsdale in a way that does not unduly burden the residents of the neighborhoods adjacent to the park. Specifically, I believe the trail through Harpeth Meadows is very problematic and perhaps even unnecessary. I would far rather spend that same money creating a nice sidewalk link from downtown to Harlinsdale by way of Franklin Road. This would be an amenity to the neighborhood, a benefit to downtown and the Factory, and serve people who might have no interest in Harlinsdale.
I also believe that the Chestnut Bend trail system should be respected as private property and that any trail linkages from the west side of the Harpeth River into Harlinsdale should be done, if at all, with minimal intrusion into Chestnut Bend. Various suggestions for moving the pedestrian bridge on the west side of the park were given, and I think in some fashion the property rights and concerns of Chestnut Bend homeowners can be addressed while still creating a pedestrian link to the west side of the river.
In sum, I was very pleased to see so many residents interested in the plan and participating constructively in the process. I am optimistic that the revisions to the concept plan will improve the plan and mitigate the legitimate concerns of the nearby residents.
posted by Alderman Dana McLendon at 10:56 AM
3 Comments:
Hey Dana!
What comes next after the evidence was brought out by Dennis? You said with proper proof you would ask for Johnson's resignation. It's obvious he lied to ALL of you.
I have said that if Mr. Johnson lied to the BOMA that I would ask for his resignation. For that reason, I am carefully studying the documents Mr. Phillips provided to me last night. I imagine I will have some questions as a result of my review of those documents. Stay tuned.
Good for you, Dana! I appreciate your honesty!
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