Greer Stadium site/Fort Negley expansion/redevelopment

[markhollin]

At the monthly Urban Planet Nashville Meet-Up last Saturday, there was some discussion about the future plans for the Greer Baseball Stadium site, which has been empty since Sept. of 2014. Here are some suggestions that have been bandied about:

-Raze the stadium and ig up the asphalt parking lots , do some grading and landscaping, and turn it into a large park, including a few softball fields, tennis courts, a soccer field, dog park, playground, some picnic pavilions, etc..

-Turn the facility into a soccer stadium.

-Create a soccer complex with 3 or 4 large fields.

-Create a tennis complex with numerous courts and an outdoor arena for hosting pro matches.

-Turn it into an extension of the Ft. Negley Park for Civil War battle re-enactments, etc.

With the continued population density that is happening in the Wedgwood/Houston area, along with the nearby Gulch and lower SoBro, there is going to be increased demand for public green space.  The proposed 13-acre Boathouse Park just east of Rolling Mill Hill along the Cumberland River will help with some of that, but is not the full answer.

Thoughts?

 

[bmkTN]

As a history buff I wouldn't mind the Fort Negley extension but I don't know if that would be the best use of the land for the city.  If we had a shot to get a big pro tennis tournament with a new mega tennis complex that would be pretty cool too.  So I guess being located in the landmark district means it's not open for mixed-use development for Wedgewood Houston?

[rookzie]

The Fort Negley park site actually could be amenable to both a stadium and an authentically restored fort, since historically (before "most" of us were hatched") a form of both co-existed during the early 1940s.  Notice also the then-presence of pre-interstate highway surface connectivity, even though many streets typically were short and badly misaligned.

 

Edited October 11, 2016 by rookzie

[LA_TN]

If they would trim enough trees, to allow for an unobstructed view of downtown, this could be the city's number 1 tourist attraction and photo opportunity

[Neigeville2]

I doubt if most tourists come to Nashville to take skyline pictures.  I'd rather have the trees.

[volsfanwill]

um, they all take skyline pictures, from the Shelby street bridge.

[markhollin]

Mayor Barry proposes a combo of park space space, affordable housing, and mixed-use for the 21 acres that make up the current Greer Stadium and adjacent parking lots.  It would provide a focal point and connection to  to greenways and other parks. They want whoever submits the best design bid to have a sensitivity to Fort Negley, which borders the site on the north. The bidding process closes on March 1st for this private-public partnership.

http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/24/metro-eyes-open-space-affordable-housing-anchor-greer-stadium-site/97007406/

http://www.nashvillepost.com/sports/sports-business/blog/20850037/metro-to-field-proposals-for-greer-stadium-site-this-week

 

[smeagolsfree]

Guess this means no soccer stadium at this location.

[PaulChinetti]

With sports fields proposed for here and for the fairgrounds we could have access to a lot of fields/green space within 440, that would be super nice!

[NashvilleObserver]

This may be an unpopular opinion but I think restaurants/apartments/shops, or a sports arena with mixed-use development nearby, are a far more appealing idea than 'green space.' If you want 'green space' head on over to Fort Negley/Centennial Park/Percy Warner/Radnor Lake. Seems like we should focus on the economic development of that area, making it something that would boost the city, rather than another 'substantial open space'...... what a waste.

Mayor Barry also said  "you’ve got this huge piece of land and it’s a great chance to talk about creatives and income disparities" ...What does that even mean??

[titanhog]

I have no problem with building affordable housing there...just make sure it includes a vision to make the community better, with walkability, retail options, etc.  Don't just go in and plop down government housing and turn it into another 1950's army-barracks style place for "poor people" to be sent, like a concentration camp where your dreams go to die. (yes...I realize I'm being overly dramatic).

[NashvilleObserver]

57 minutes ago, titanhog said:

I have no problem with building affordable housing there...just make sure it includes a vision to make the community better, with walkability, retail options, etc.  Don't just go in and plop down government housing and turn it into another 1950's army-barracks style place for "poor people" to be sent, like a concentration camp where your dreams go to die. (yes...I realize I'm being overly dramatic).

Like the John Henry Hale apartments. They disguised it as a pretty suburban neighborhood, and plopped it down in a PRIME development area. The area is completely unusable except for the people who live there. I hope this site is far different from that one.

[SoundScan]

2 hours ago, NashvilleObserver said:

This may be an unpopular opinion but I think restaurants/apartments/shops, or a sports arena with mixed-use development nearby, are a far more appealing idea than 'green space.' If you want 'green space' head on over to Fort Negley/Centennial Park/Percy Warner/Radnor Lake. Seems like we should focus on the economic development of that area, making it something that would boost the city, rather than another 'substantial open space'...... what a waste.

Mayor Barry also said  "you’ve got this huge piece of land and it’s a great chance to talk about creatives and income disparities" ...What does that even mean??

I agree that the area shouldn't be underutilized, but as Nashville's population and population density continue to increase you're going to have to plan/build open spaces for recreation. Come on down to Centennial Park on a weekend and try to relax--it's a complete zoo of people. I shouldn't have to drive 30 minutes to Edwin/Percy Warner just to find an open patch of grass and hear a bird chirp.

[Neigeville2]

6 hours ago, NashvilleObserver said:

This may be an unpopular opinion but I think restaurants/apartments/shops, or a sports arena with mixed-use development nearby, are a far more appealing idea than 'green space.' If you want 'green space' head on over to Fort Negley/Centennial Park/Percy Warner/Radnor Lake. Seems like we should focus on the economic development of that area, making it something that would boost the city, rather than another 'substantial open space'...... what a waste.

Mayor Barry also said  "you’ve got this huge piece of land and it’s a great chance to talk about creatives and income disparities" ...What does that even mean??

Everybody on this thread seems to be reacting as though this large tract can only hold one thing, affordable housing, green space or restaurants.  This is the exact opposite of what Barry is saying.  

"creatives and income disparities" I take to refer to the phenomenon here and in other cities, where artists/musicians/people that create small quirky shops, etc. colonize cheap urban areas, contribute to their development and then get priced out because of increase in property values that they themselves helped trigger.  Ashville NC is said  to be losing creative types in droves.  In a mixed use development we should be able to develop neighborhoods that work for everybody. 

[markhollin]

T-Bone Burnett talks about his redevelopment plans that have been approved by the Mayor for the Greer Stadium site.  Includes a good video interview with him.  I'm getting excited about his vision. He has a love for Nashville and the music legacy, as well as the historical nature of Ft. Negley that he would like to see preserved and honored. 

http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/davidson/2017/06/14/t-bone-burnett-eyes-legacy-project-greer-stadium-this-my-baby/389354001/

A lot of the renderings, etc. for the Burnette group's proposal got posted elsewhere, but I thought they should be placed in this specific thread as well:

 

[volsfanwill]

id prefer a Nashville Civil War Museum, keep the baseball diamond with small stands, and use the rest of the area as a park, maybe a soccer field but the rest green space with more trails

[PruneTracy]

4 hours ago, volsfanwill said:

id prefer a Nashville Civil War Museum, keep the baseball diamond with small stands, and use the rest of the area as a park, maybe a soccer field but the rest green space with more trails

Agreed on the Civil War museum (or at least preserving the area as part of Fort Negley) but now I have this idea of constructing a Civil War-era baseball diamond stuck in my head.

[rookzie]

Likewise sentiment on preserving most of the fort-proper and a Civil War Museum AND a baseball diamond, since one existed during 1940, as shown in the photo I posted early last year or so.  The star-like stone projections, or "Redans", forming the basis of the fortification really could be emphasized as an underlying theme in the design of other details, in much the manner that has been creatively accomplished with some institutional structure projects, such as at UVA-Charlottesville.

[markhollin]

Residents, business owners praise, criticize Greer development plan:

http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/davidson/2017/06/18/residents-business-owners-praise-criticize-greer-development-plan/392694001/

 

[BnaBreaker]

Of course there is criticism.  Because who would want a vibrant neighborhood full of park space, artists and young families taking the place of some old warehouses, dirt lots, and a crusty abandoned baseball diamond?

[markhollin]

Wow---here's a ridiculous piece by a guy who lives in Knoxville about how the plans for the Greer Stadium site are all wrong.  He has a lot of his history correct, but completely misses the point: all of the acreage of the ballpark and adjoining asphalt parking lots have been there for over 40 years. Where was the outrage during those 4 decades? This new plan calls for retaining green space in the footprint of the ballpark, as well as creating a meaningful mixed-use development that will bring increased benefit to the neighborhood and honor the legacy of the site as well as Nashville's artistic heritage. This would be quite an improvement over to 20+ acres of asphalt wasteland and an abandoned, crumbling, weed-filled shell of a stadium. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nashvillians-fight-to-save-national-landmark_us_5941e705e4b03e17eee08942?ncid=engmodushpmg00000003

[japan]

1 hour ago, markhollin said:

Wow---here's a ridiculous piece by a guy who lives in Knoxville about how the plans for the Greer Stadium site are all wrong.  He has a lot of his history correct, but completely misses the point: all of the acreage of the ballpark and adjoining asphalt parking lots have been there for over 40 years. Where was the outrage during those 4 decades? This new plan calls for retaining green space in the footprint of the ballpark, as well as creating a meaningful mixed-use development that will bring increased benefit to the neighborhood and honor the legacy of the site as well as Nashville's artistic heritage. This would be quite an improvement over to 20+ acres of asphalt wasteland and an abandoned, crumbling, weed-filled shell of a stadium. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nashvillians-fight-to-save-national-landmark_us_5941e705e4b03e17eee08942?ncid=engmodushpmg00000003

Wow.  Its just wrong.

[fieldmarshaldj]

14 hours ago, markhollin said:

Wow---here's a ridiculous piece by a guy who lives in Knoxville about how the plans for the Greer Stadium site are all wrong.  He has a lot of his history correct, but completely misses the point: all of the acreage of the ballpark and adjoining asphalt parking lots have been there for over 40 years. Where was the outrage during those 4 decades? This new plan calls for retaining green space in the footprint of the ballpark, as well as creating a meaningful mixed-use development that will bring increased benefit to the neighborhood and honor the legacy of the site as well as Nashville's artistic heritage. This would be quite an improvement over to 20+ acres of asphalt wasteland and an abandoned, crumbling, weed-filled shell of a stadium. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nashvillians-fight-to-save-national-landmark_us_5941e705e4b03e17eee08942?ncid=engmodushpmg00000003

Wow is right. He's made it seem like the Fort itself is endangered of being turned into condos.

[markhollin]

A proposed lease deal to redevelop Nashville's Greer Stadium property is facing scrutiny from a top Metro Council critic of Mayor Megan Barry's administration who says the city's financial return wouldn't come close to matching the market value of Greer's 20-plus acres (recently appraised at $31.8 million).

But the mayor's office is firing back, saying the intent has never been to sell the city-owned land to the highest bidder, but rather to find the most appropriate uses for the neighborhood.

http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2017/07/06/greer-stadium-nashville-cloud-hill-parternship-megan-barry-t-bone-burnett/451280001/

[Guest]

IMO, The city has an obligation to return the property to the tax roles by allowing the market to instruct the value of the land.