NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — South Nashville neighbors are demanding answers after a voter-approved expansion of the Seven Mile Creek Greenway stalled — and federal funding meant for the project was redirected elsewhere.
In 2024, Nashvillians voted to expand the greenway through a participatory budgeting program, where neighbors decided how to spend a portion of city money. Around $800,000 was allocated — more than half for the greenway extension and the rest for playground improvements at Whitfield Park.
"This greenway was a promise. It was funded. It was supposed to be built," said 2024 participatory budget delegate Mark Schlicher.
Two years later, the playground is complete, but the greenway remains unchanged.
"We don't have enough parks in this part of town. And we don't have enough greenways and other kinds of amenities for walkability," Schlicher said.
The roughly half-mile greenway has become a gathering place for the community.
"All the time there are people walking and biking here," community advocate Robin Lovett-Owen said. "It's a space to be with our neighbors, to be moving our bodies, to be in community with one another."
But neighbors say they were never told the project ran into trouble.
"It feels really disappointing to think that my neighborhood doesn't have enough parks, it doesn't have enough greenway, it doesn't have enough green space, and that Metro Parks feels pretty complacent about expanding our access to those things," Lovett-Owen said.
A Metro Parks spokesperson provided a statement explaining what happened. Metro Parks received approximately $823,000 in ARPA funding for improvements at Whitfield Park in April 2024. Of that amount, approximately $463,135 was allocated toward the design and construction of the greenway extension.
During design, several significant constraints emerged, including floodway permitting requirements, TVA coordination, utility conflicts, and the need for NES coordination related to the Edmondson Pike connection and utility pole relocation. An engineering consultant spent several months attempting to secure the necessary coordination, and approximately $41,000 had already been billed for engineering services before Metro Parks determined the project could not meet the ARPA deadline of June 30, 2026.
Because ARPA funding is time-limited federal funding, the remaining funds were redirected to other eligible improvements that could be completed within the required timeframe, including restroom renovations at Whitfield Park.
Metro Parks said in its statement that it has "been very transparent with the constituents" who contacted the department about the project, and that the project "has not been abandoned." The department said it intends to pursue future funding opportunities to move the project forward.
Neighbors say that transparency has not been felt on their end.
"To not even follow up with us when they came into issues with it does feel like a betrayal," Lovett-Owen said.
"We just want them to continue to work in good faith and give us real answers, a real timeline and a real solution. And we've been waiting long enough," Schlicher said.
Neighbors are urging anyone who cares about the greenway to attend the June 10 Greenways and Open Space Commission meeting to share their concerns during public comment. The meeting will be held at 2565 Park Plaza from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The effort to look into these concerns began after one neighbor spoke up in Patsy's "Your Voice, Your South Nashville" Facebook group. Click here to join.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Patsy.Montesinos@NewsChannel5.com
As we honor those who have served our country and made the ultimate sacrifice, it is also heartening to see the military right a wrong. Chris Davis brings us the moving story of a Purple Heart ceremony two decades in the making. It's worth a watch.
A heartfelt thanks to all who bravely serve.
- Carrie Sharp
