Developing Guiding Tenets for Cumberland Region Tomorrow

A Report to the Region, pg 12-13 – View the “Report to the Region”, PDF

Following the basic philosophy of CRT, that we can guide our growth by working together to develop new ideas, CRT held a series of public workshops in October 2001. More than 350 citizens worked together to capture ideas on how to grow while maintaining excellent quality of life standards in the Cumberland Region. Part of the workshops’ activity was to bring to light and discuss shared values of the region’s residents which would come to represent a set of guiding tenets for CRT’s future work and activities. When we discuss the future, we will try to consistently use these tenets to evaluate growth choices and consequences of decisions. Working together we can help decide whether our values can be retained or enhanced in the future. The tenets are intended to identify the reasons people enjoy living here, the things they would like to see changed, and the aspects they would like to retain as the region grows and develops.

Determining the Alternate Case Scenario

A Report to the Region, pg 14 – View the “Report to the Region”, PDF

During the workshops in October 2001, we asked residents to help in developing different growth scenarios based on current trends and desirable alternatives. Participants used large-scale maps of the region to redistribute such factors as population, development and housing across the region while maintaining the numbers of forecasted growth. This second set of workshops produced three distinct growth scenarios. Each contained alternate growth patterns we would prefer to see in the future to avoid the problems associated with the Base Case scenario.

Comparison of the Base and Alternate Case Scenarios

A Report to the Region, pg 15 – View the “Report to the Region”, PDF

After the May and October 2001 workshops were completed, the resulting maps were digitized and the map images you see in this report were created. Using computer- imaging software developed for CRT we are able to graphically represent the Base Case scenario and Alternative Case scenario. Base Case represents what would happen in the region over the next 20 years without any changes to current growth management practices. Alternative Case represents what can happen in the region over the next 20 years if different growth patterns and strategies in keeping with the CRT guiding tenets are realized.

Growth Develoment Strategies for Our Future

A Report to the Region, pg 16-19 – View the “Report to the Region”, PDF

Through participant input during the workshop sessions, CRT has developed a set of concepts or strategies that encourage the types of growth we would like to see in our region. The concepts embrace the guiding tenets while applying real-world growth planning tools. They also represent CRT’s three areas of emphasis: land use, transportation, and preservation of open space and the distinctive character of the region’s communities.

The workshop concepts include reinvesting in towns and city centers; promoting placement of imminent growth into already developed areas; encouraging concentric growth around existing cities while discouraging leapfrog development; developing a diversity of housing; investing in smart arterial street systems, such as green arterials, boulevards, main roads and couplets; exploring mass transit alternatives such as bus rapid transit; preserving open space; rewarding conservation rural development; and keeping our heritage of agriculture viable in our region. It should be noted that the strategies are interrelated as they weave together CRT’s three areas of emphasis ensuring desired managed-growth outcomes throughout the region.

Recommendations for Future Action

A Report to the Region, pg 20-21 – View the “Report to the Region”, PDF

Cumberland Region Tomorrow’s activities have resulted in a great deal of individual
and regional thinking. It is clear that we are linked together in our future as a single region. In addition, most people involved in the process have rejected the Base Case scenario as an acceptable future. With ongoing research and public input, we will continue to validate regional values, confirm our guiding tenets, and advocate for smart growth and development that are in keeping with preferred patterns.

CRT will continue its work to find answers to complex questions about the region’s future. We foresee the following as ways to further advance the region toward consensus and desired growth and development outcomes:

• Continue the Discussion
• Build Consensus
• Provide Resources and Tools
• Recognize and Support Early and Successful Projects

The Cumberland Region Challenge

The friends of the Cumberland River Bicentennial Trail are celebrating the 12th anniversary of the Cumberland River Challenge. On October 15, 2011 come ride the hills and valleys of the Cumberland River Basin in Cheatham and Montgomery Counties while enjoying this challenging ride in the beautiful autumn weather.

The 62, 31, and 11 mile courses will take you from the bluffs of the Cumberland River through the “hills and hollers” up to the Highland Rim. The paved routes follow lightly traveled rural roads through Cheatham and Montgomery Counties. This is hill country, so expect a few good climbs while you enjoy the early fall foliage. In other words, these are tough routes.

A.I.A. 150- Community Assessment and Visioning Report for Kingston Springs

Revitalizing the Town Center(s) and Conserving Open Land in Kingston Springs

On Friday and Saturday, March 4 and 5, 2008, citizens of Kingston Springs, Tennessee convened at Harpeth High School for Community Assessment and Visioning Workshops on “Revitalizing the Town Center(s) and Conserving Open Land in Kingston Springs.” This was the third of three such sets of workshops being convened in Middle Tennessee as part of the American Institute of Architects 50 Blueprint for America Middle Tennessee Initiative, which celebrates through community interaction the AIA’s 150th birthday. In Middle Tennessee, this program focuses of the challenges communities face under going rapid growth. The other two communities involved have been Robertson County, a historically rural agrarian landscape, and Lebanon, a commuter rail terminus with transit-oriented development potential. Kingston Springs could be characterized as a rural hamlet. There are two essential elements in the AIA Middle Tennessee Initiative. The first is to address the interrelated challenges of revitalizing town centers and conserving open land through the AIA’s Ten Principles of Livable Communities, and second to get AIA architects intensively engaged for a two day period with the citizens of the three selected communities- as grassroots outreach, public awareness, and cultural connectivity

Leiper’s Fork 20-year Plan Protects Idyllic Rural Way of Life

When Williamson County completed their comprehensive plan in 2007 one of the main objectives was to protect rural communities and preserve open spaces. As part of this plan, Williamson County targeted what they call rural hamlets and villages. Not too long ago a district plan was developed for the village of College Grove and in October of 2011 Leiper’s Fork residents will vote to adopt a 20 year growth plan that will help protect its rural character and charm.

Quality Growth Development in Middle Tennessee

Land use is an issue that most citizens do not think about, but that affects everyone, every day. From how long it takes to get to school or work to where we decide to live, these decisions are all made through a systematic process which decides where certain types of buildings and uses are suitable and where they are not. However, more often than not, these decisions are not made with a comprehensive plan in place, which can lead to poorly citied or poorly planned neighborhoods or public spaces. Land use decisions determine where our roads, sewers, public buildings, and infrastructures are placed and can have a major impact on the region’s economic, community, and environmental health.

What is Quality Growth?