NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A national panel presented its recommendations to Metro on preserving the history of Second Avenue following the Christmas Day bombing.
Friday’s meeting with the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Advisory Services Panel unveiled the findings from seven national industry experts with expertise in urban and landscape design, economic policy and development.
The panel compiled a number of recommendations in five key areas, which included renaming the smaller area around Second Avenue to The Market District – in addition to returning to the original founding names of the streets in the area.
For example, that would change First Avenue to Front Street, while Second Avenue would be Market Street and Third Avenue would be College Street.
While they recommended keeping the original exterior designs of the buildings, they suggested making changes to the interiors to make them more modern and functional. They also advised against adding any height to the existing buildings.
Second Avenue is being restored after the Christmas Day bombing damaged dozens of buildings and displaced residents and business owners.
“I am very grateful to ULI for their time, expertise, and attention to our community,” Mayor John Cooper said via a release. “Second Avenue and the surrounding area is an historic gem to Nashville, and we appreciate the panel’s thoughtful recommendations as we work to preserve Nashville’s history.”
Metro said the Project Management Team for Second Avenue is now evaluating all of the recommendations from public listening sessions and ULI. Once that's done, they will discuss the recommendations with owners, community members and Metro Government.
After that, they will prepare an action plan that includes recommendations for phased project investment and area improvements.
According to a release, ULI is a “nonprofit that establishes best practices in design fields, and one of its core services is providing expert advice to communities that have experienced natural and manmade disasters.”
Click the following links to view the slideshow or watch the presentation in full.
