Wedgewood Houston Study

Nashville Civic Design Center

W EDGEWOOD H OUSTON N EIGHBORHOOD FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 2008

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

TABLE

The following document was produced by the Nashville Civic Design Center (NCDC), at the request of the South Nashville Action People (SNAP). The work was produced by the following NCDC design staff: TK Davis, Stephanie McCullough, Gary Gaston and Dane Forlines. In addition, the NCDC would like to thank Mike Hodge, with the Neighborhood Resource Center, for contributions to this study. The NCDC staff also expresses their gratitude to the Wedgewood Houston community members for the significant time and effort they put into this process.

Area of Study

3

Executive Summary

4

Findings

5

Recommendations

5

Overview History of Wedgewood-Houston Comparison of Aerial Photographs

9 11

Diagrams Identifying Issues Points of Interest Sidewalks and Alleys Entry Gateways Bus Routes

12 13 14 15

Community Input Meetings Survey Results Neighborhood Vision Workshop

16 17 18

Recommendations Building Quality Infill Development Chestnut Square Vision Plan SNAP Headquarters Vision Plan

20 21 22 23

Metro Codes Contact Info

24

CEPTED Principles

25

Questions and comments may be directed to: WEDGEWOOD HOUSTON NEIGHBORHOOD STUDY

Nashville Civic Design Center 138 2nd Avenue North, Suite 106 Nashville, Tennessee 37201 (615) 248 - 4280 voice (615) 248 - 4282 fax info@civicdesigncenter.org www.civicdesigncenter.org

The Nashville Civic Design Center is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with funding from the Frist Foundation, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, the University of Tennessee, and Vanderbilt University.

©2008 Nashville Civic Design Center

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 2

OF

CONTENTS

AREA

OF

STUDY

Overview of Wedgewood-Houston neighborhood and surroundings

I-40

Chestnut Hill Fort Negley

Edgehill

Wedgewood Houston

CSX

I-65 State Fairgrounds Vine Hill

I-440

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 3

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Aerial of Wedgewood Houston Neighborhood - the historical boundary extended to the west beyond I-65

At the request of the South Nashville Action People (SNAP) the Nashville Civic Design Center conducted a study of the Wedgewood Houston Neighborhood. The study area is bounded by Chestnut Street to the north, 4th Avenue South to the east, Wedgewood Avenue to the south, and 8th Avenue South to the west. Certain areas adjacent to this boundary are also of particular importance to the neighborhood.

Extensive attention has been given to adjacent neighborhoods, but the Wedgewood Houston neighborhood hasn’t acheived the same recognition.

Recent commitment of a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) has encouraged the successful SNAP neighborhood Organization to seek comprehensive development goals for their community. SNAP specifically requested the Civic Design Center to suggest ideas to improve the quality of the neighborhood and usher it through the changes and struggles it faces, as an urban neighborhood, by: • establishing common space • clearly defining neighborhood boundaries • structuring traffic flow to accommodate all neighborhood traffic • moderating growth in a mutually beneficial way for businesses and residents • establishing standards for revitalization and redevelopment efforts • aiding the neighborhood in working with the Metro Planning Department as they reassess the area • creating a vision for street and general neighborhood beautification • addressing the possibilities of the built environment providing affordable housing and slowing gentrification Beginning in September 2006, the Civic Design Center organized monthly community meetings in conjunction with SNAP’s regularly scheduled meetings Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 4

to identify what the neighborhood perceived as the goals for the present and future of Wedgewood Houston. Five public meetings were held at the SNAP Headquarters located at the corner of Humphreys and Martin Streets. In addition, the Civic Design Center conducted interviews and organized a driving tour through the neighborhood to gather information to supplement the public meetings.

The Nashville Civic Design Center makes the following recommendations for the Wedgewood Houston Neighborhood: • Enhance the functional and aesthetic quality of the State Fairgrounds through reprogramming and the addition of landscaping • Gather community input regarding the future of Greer Stadium • Identify locations for a variety of outdoor community spaces throughout the neighborhood • Encourage commercial and mixed-use development around Chestnut Square and along Wedgewood Avenue • Encourage the construction of affordable housing and work space for artists and others • Reestablish the network of streets, alleys and paths within the neighborhood to create a more pedestrian friendly experience and improve vehicular traffic flow • Define gateways for entrance into the neighborhood by incorporating local landmarks • Create a higher quality residential environment by managing Fairgrounds racetrack use, prosecuting code violations, and addressing crime problems

This booklet contains detailed information explaining and illustrating these recommendations. The following pages outline each issue that was raised during the community meetings, explaining information that was obtained through research by the Civic Design Center, and expands upon the recommendations given to the neighborhood.

FINDINGS

1. The State Fairgrounds is currently underutilized.

• The design of the Fairgrounds does not facilitate use by the local community beyond a few programmed events • The landscape of the Fairgrounds has been dramatically altered since its creation • The abundance of surface parking lots and sparse landscaping gives an unflattering presence to the area • Activities such as the State Fair and Flea Market are embraced by the neighborhood as valuable entertainment 2. The potential relocation of the Nashville Sounds baseball team presents an opportunity for adaptive reuse of Greer Stadium.

• Greer Stadium is considered by residents to be a positive feature of the neighborhood • There are no current plans for redeveloping the ballpark site following the Sounds relocation • The entire stadium area sits on 26.1 acres • The Sounds scoreboard is an identifiable landmark of the neighborhood • The current ballpark is located at a symbolic entry point from Chestnut Avenue 3. The neighborhood lacks easily accessible outdoor public spaces.

• No public open space exists within the neighborhood boundary • Residents generally perceive open space adjacent to the neighborhood to be beyond comfortable walking distance • The Fall-Hamilton school property consists of limited-access greenspace

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 5

• A centrally located public greenspace is a priority with residents • The historic Old City Cemetery is located within close proximity to the neighborhood 4. The neighborhood lacks minimum necessary retail and commercial facilities.

• A growing number of art-related businesses are moving to the area.

• The neighborhood has lost several commercial and retail services in recent years.

• Residents consider commercial facilities such as coffee shops and restaurants to be a much needed service for the neighborhood [grocery store].

5. Affordable housing and gentrification are important issues for the community.

• The SNAP Housing Corporation has constructed five affordable housing units in the neighborhood • MDHA has administered $300,000 for the construction of affordable housing • An up-and-coming Arts District between Humphreys and Chestnut Streets provides opportunities for innovative affordable housing solutions for artists.

6. The network of streets and paths is discontinuous and confusing in certain areas.

• Residents have a sense that the services of 8th Avenue are far removed and inaccessible • Few pedestrian and vehicular connections exist to the west of the neighborhood

• Code violations have rendered some alleys inaccessible • High volume truck traffic is an ongoing problem along residential streets • Existing sidewalk conditions are poor or nonexistent in certain areas • Many Fall-Hamilton students walk to school along streets with no sidewalks 7. There are no signs indicating entrance into the Wedgewood Houston neighborhood.

• The water tower in the northeast corner and the CSX railroad bridge in the southwest corner of the neighborhood represent the history of the area as a railroad and industrial center • Greer Stadium is located at a symbolic entry point from Edgehill Avenue 8. Residents are concerned about maintaining the character of the area as a residential neighborhood.

• More screening from the railroad tracks along I-65 and north of Chestnut Street would provide a physical and visual buffer to separate incompatible, yet adjacent uses • Residents are concerned about encroachment of the industrial areas along I-65 into the neighborhood • Nearby industry creates undesirable truck traffic on residential streets • Rains, Martin, Nolensville, and Pillow Streets are cited as problem locations for drug crimes and prostitution • Crime associated with homeless people in the northern sector of the neighborhood is increasingly a problem

RECOMMENDATIONS SHORT TERM

After conducting public input and consulting with the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, the Office of the Mayor, transportation engineers, the Metro Planning Department, Metro Public Works, Affordable Housing Resources, and Bank of America CDC, the Nashville Civic Design Center makes the following recommendations:

4. Partner with Fall-Hamilton School to eliminate use of the State Fairgrounds racetrack during school hours, due to the decibel count and the acoustic distraction of teachers and students, on the basis of educational and health welfare.

Department of Codes and Building Safety Metro Howard Building 800 Second Avenue South Nashville, TN 37210 (615) 862-6590

1. Complete existing lighting and signage plan for the neighborhood with approximately $100,000 of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) administered by MDHA.

7. Work with MTA to provide covered bus stops to help encourage more participation with public transit.

2. Encourage the construction of affordable housing for artists and others in the neighborhood by utilizing the remaining $300,000 of the CDBG funds to assist in designing and building affordable housing on SNAP owned property.

• Utilize the income generated by the sales of the units to significantly improve the SNAP Center meeting and childcare facility • Identify other potential sites for private sector building of affordable housing in the neighborhood, seeking to promote a more vibrant Art and Commercial District as the “Main Street” for the neighborhood 3. Identify the water tower as the northeast entrance to the neighborhood, and the CSX railroad bridge as the southwest entrance of the neighborhood.

• Paint these two structures silver, similar to the Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge (located Downtown) • Install low intensity up lighting on both landmarks to enhance them at night as Public Art

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 6

6. Identify industrial and housing sites that appear to be in violation of code restrictions and urge Metro Codes to aggressively enforce compliance.

(See Index A for additional info. on codes) http://www.nashville.gov/codes/public_docs.htm

Fall-Hamilton adjacency to racetrack makes it vulneralbe to noise-related issues during class time

5. Discuss with the Metro Police Department ways to slow down traffic, provide more police presence and lower response time, addressing crime problems associated with homeless people in the northern sector of the neighborhood, and dealing with crack houses and prostitution (Rains, Martin, Nolensville and Pillow Streets are cited as having problem locations).

Covered bus shelters improve the quality of passenger comfort, thus helping increase use; incorporating public art into the design can help to strengthen the community’s identity

8. Insist that Animal Control find “good homes” for the roving packs of dogs currently wandering throughout the neighborhood.

Metro Public Health Department - Animal Control 311 23rd Avenue North Nashville, TN 37203 (615) 862-7928

FINDINGS

AND

RECOMMENDATIONS

LONG TERM Wedgewood Houston residents identified the Greer Stadium sign as a neighborhood icon to be preserved

1. Enhance the functional and aesthetic quality of the State Fairgrounds by redesigning the landscaping and reexamining the facility’s programming needs.

(Currently there is a study being done concerning the Fairgrounds site).

All in all, the State Fairgrounds is considered to be an asset to the community. Many popular events such as the Tennessee State Fair (in September) and the monthly Flea Market are enjoyed by both neighborhood

residents and people from across the region. The Civic Design Center makes the following recommendations to better utilize the Fairgrounds as a resource for the neighborhood.

• Install additional landscaping for a more visually appealing character and to conceal the surface parking lots • Restore the historic pond to the Fairgrounds, creating a unique water feature • Integrate with the neighborhood by offering more activities for the community • Incorporate a walking trail to conect Bransford Avenue with Nolensville Pike • Designate a portion of the property for use as a public park • Minimize the impact of the noise from the racetrack on the community by installing trees or other sound barriers • The historic racetrack began as a site for horse racing and transformed over time into its current configuration. This urban site is not appropriate for car racing because of the loud noise, which impedes neighborhood quality of life. Long term plans should relocate the race track outside of residential areas

2. Gather community input regarding the future of Greer Stadium.

• Preserve the existing stadium scoreboard as a historic memory of Greer Stadium and as a gateway marking the entrance to the Wedgewood-Houston neighborhood from Edgehill Avenue • Restore the surface parking lot to the north of the stadium back to a wooded area as part of Fort Negley Park • Involve neighborhood citizen input on any future adaptive reuse or redevelopment of the stadium and site 3. Identify locations for a variety of outdoor community spaces throughout the neighborhood.

• Explore opportunities to use the FallHamilton school grounds for community use • Develop the vacant lot at Moore Street for use as a centrally located neighborhood park.

Most of the 117 acre State Fair Grounds site consists of asphalt

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 7

Historic State Fairgrounds Building, destroyed by fire in 1965

FINDINGS

AND

RECOMMENDATIONS

LONG TERM Existing SNAP Community Center could be redeveloped as a mixed-use building, offering affordable housing, commercial space and community meeting facilities

• Integrate public space into the Chestnut Square Arts District in the form of a plaza (see page 22) 4. Encourage commercial and mixed-use development around Chestnut Square, the intersection of Martin and Houston Streets, and along Wedgewood Avenue.

• Redevelop the SNAP Headquarters site to include affordable housing, commercial space, community meeting space, and parking • Create design guidelines for building types and placement in the area bounded by Nolensville Pike, Chestnut Street, and Humphreys Street to promote a more vibrant Arts and Commercial District • Review zoning codes around Chestnut Square to allow for more mixed-use development and adaptive reuse of industrial sites • Upgrade Wedgewood Avenue as a viable “Main Street” by lighting and landscaping improvements 5. Encourage the construction of affordable housing for artists and others, within the neighborhood.

• Incorporate five affordable housing units into the SNAP Headquarters redevelopment • Develop infill housing that is affordable, of good quality, and has an architectural style that is compatible with the neighborhood 6. Identify alternative routing of trucks through the neighborhood to avoid residential streets; and implement “truck free” streets.

7. Prepare and advocate an incremental plan to make the neighborhood more pedestrian friendly through consistent sidewalks, signage, lighting and trees along streets. Clean up derelict alleys.

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 8

8. Provide a visual buffer of trees to screen the railroad tracks and yard north of Chestnut Street.

9. Encourage connections to link Chestnut Street to the Old City Cemetery as a park-like historic site that is part of the neighborhood.

10. Limit the expansion of industrial areas into the neighborhood. As industrial uses relocate, redevelop property according to the community vision.

Industrial sites could be redeveloped over time if industry moves out of neighborhood

OVERVIEW HISTORY

The Wedgewood Houston Neighborhood is considered a part of the larger South Nashville Community, which has a rich collection of historic resources spanning Nashville’s history. The neighborhood’s proximity to Downtown made it attractive for residential development beginning in the post war era, while the presence of rail lines, major turnpikes and the interstates brought commercial development to the area. Development pressures over the past several decades have caused many older historic resources to be lost or hidden among newer heavy-commercial developments.

Merritts’ daughter married Alfred Hagan and inherited the house. The Hagans built the brick Italianate addition to the front and slightly to the left of the old house around 1870. The roof on the exposed part of the original house was modified to a Mansard and the front doors of the old house, now walled over by the brick addition, were nailed shut. The house remained in the family until it was sold to the Hargroves by the estate of Anna Tate in the 1920s. The current owners purchased the home in 2004 from Elizabeth Crawford, granddaughter of the Hargroves.

forces after Nashville fell in 1862. It occupied the center of the Federal defensive line, which stretched in a wide circle around the southern part of the city. Built primarily by slaves and free black workers conscripted into service, Fort Negley, the largest inland stone fortification constructed durin gthe Civil War, incorporates a complex polygonal design. Purchased by the city in 1928, the fort has recently undergone renovations and now houses a visitor’s center.

FORT NEGLEY On Christmas Day, 1779, Captain John Rains reached Nashville with James Robertson during one of the coldest winters on record for the Middle Tennessee Region. The group famously crossed the frozen Cumberland River with over a dozen cows and horses to found Fort Nashboro.

Rains purchased a 640 acre farm in the Wedgewood Houston area in 1784 and built a fort/home at the intersection of Rains Avenue and Merritt Street. Rains died in 1834 at the age of 91, and is buried in Mt. Olivet Cemetery.

Wedgewood Houston’s most historic remaining structure is the Merritt Mansion, located on Houston Street. The home was built around 1840 for Gibson and Sally Merritt. Sally was the youngest daughter of Capt. John Rains. The original Federal-style house began as a dog-trot log cabin structure that was sided over and expanded with a raised roof to allow for additional space above the first story. The breezeway was enclosed with the addition of double doors at the front and back openings. After the Civil War, the

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 9

One of Nashville’s premier Civil War resources, Fort Neley is located on Chestnut Street. It is listed in the National Register of istoric Places and has Local Landmark status. Fort Negley was the largest and most important of the fortifications built by Union

History Sources: Metro Historical Commission; Nashville Public Library

Historic Merritt Mansion located on Houston Street

Historical Marker located at Rains Avenue and Merritt Street

OVERVIEW HISTORY Historic photograph of workers at the May Hoisery Mill

MAY HOSIERY MILL

CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL

The May Hosiery Mill, located in the heart of Wedgewood Houston, was founded in 1908 by a German-born Jew, Jacob May (1861-1946). May came to America in 1879 with virtually no money or knowledge of the English language. He moved to Nashville, opening the Hoisery Mill in 1908. The complex is made up of eleven buildings totalling more than 198,00 s.f. on six-and-a-half acres. The mill supplied socks for companies such as Marshall Field, Montgomery Ward, Spiegel, Woolworth and Kress.

The family sold the company in 1965, which then passed through several owners until finally closing its doors in 1985 because of slow sales. The building still stands today, as a home for art studios and various small businesses.

Founded in 1917 as the first public high school in the county system, Central High School stood from 1921 -1971 in the heart of the Wedgewood Houston Neighborhood. Many graduates became city and county political leaders. The last mayor of the old Nashville City Government, Ben West, and the first Metro Government mayor, Beverly Briley, were classmates together. The last graduating class was 1971, after which the school was torn down. The site is currently home to Nashville Public Television (NPT).

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 10

Current view of the former May Hoisery Mill, now home to artist studios and various small businesses

OVERVIEW COMPARISON

OF

AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS Wedgewood Houston, 1959: Note the street grid before the interstates

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 11

Wedgewood Houston, 2006

DIAGRAMS IDENTIFYING ISSUES POINTS

OF INTEREST

KEY Adventure Science Center Fort Negley Sounds Stadium Sounds Scoreboard City Cemetery SNAP Headquarters Merritt Mansion Water Tower Chestnut Square (former May Hosiery Mill) Railroad Bridge White Trash Cafe Vine Hill/ Vine Hill Community Center Tennessee State Fairgrounds Racetrack Nashville Public Television (NPT) Fall Hamilton School Knowles Senior Center

t

tnu

es Ch

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svi e

Pik

Martin

Merritt Hamilton

Southgate

I-65 Wedgewoo d

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 12

len

Houston

No

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

DIAGRAMS IDENTIFYING ISSUES SIDEWALKS

AND

ALLEYS

KEY Neighborhood Boundary Existing Sidewalk Network Existing Alley Network

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 13

DIAGRAMS IDENTIFYING ISSUES ENTRY GATEWAYS

C

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t hes

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svi len No e

Pik

Houston

KEY Gateways into Neighborhood Neighborhood Boundary

Martin

Merritt Hamilton

Southgate

I-65 Wedgewoo d

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 14

DIAGRAMS IDENTIFYING ISSUES BUS ROUTES

KEY

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 15

COMMUNITY INPUT MEETINGS Wedgewood Houston Community Meetings

The first community meeting with the SNAP organization and Wedgewood Houston residents organization took place at the SNAP Headquarters at September 18, 2006. Design Director TK Davis led approximately 20 residents in a neighborhood assessment workshop. The workshop focused on the history and existing conditions within the Wedgewood Houston neighborhood study area. A series of six questions were asked for which representatives of the Design Center led small group discussions.

A follow-up neighborhood visioning workshop was held on September 25, 2006. This meeting, referred to as a “neighborhood visioning workshop” focused on the community’s vision for the future.

On October 16, the Design Center presented findings from the previous meetings and asked the residents to prioritize their ideas into a collective vision. The results of this meeting were reported during a final November 21 meeting. The issues discussed during these meetings have been listed here.

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 16

CIVIC/PUBLIC SPACES

INFRASTRUCTURE

• Rehab old depot/Wedgewood substation • Increase accessibility of Fall-Hamilton playground • Encourage more artist spaces • Improve the design of the State Fairgrounds to create a more park-like quality • A greenspace in the middle of the neighborhood • Relocate police substation back in the area • Connections to Fort Negley and Old City Cemetery • Renovate or rebuild SNAP Headquarters

• Consider areas for new greenways and pedestrian paths • Connect Pillow Street • More street connections over railroad • Pedestrian bridges over I-65 • Reinforce connections to reservoir • New sidewalks and better lighting • Open Southgate to Fort Negley Boulevard • Restore water tower and railroad bridge

HOUSING • Maintain neighborhood as primarily single family residences.

• More affordable housing by SNAP Housing Corporation and private entities • Encourage more owner-occupied housing • Improve condition of existing housing by more stringent codes enforcement

COMMUNITY RELATIONS / DEVELOPMENT • Involve Nashville Public Television (NPT) with neighborhood and Fall-Hamilton School • Develop Chestnut Street as a commercial/ retail center • Encourage more artist spaces • More stores, coffee shops, restaurants

COMMUNITY INPUT SURVEY RESULTS

Attendees of the community meeting participated in a neighborhood issues survey which was conducted in December, 2006. Participants were asked to prioritize the issues which were most important to them from the list of all ideas received. The following list represents the twenty items with the highest frequency of number one priority:

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 17

# of votes

Item Description

28

Providing affordable housing

27

Youth program

26

Drug houses in neighborhood

25

Devising a comprehensive economic development plan

22

Tackle gang problem

22

Renovate or build new SNAP community center

22

New playground equipment

21

Establish neighborhood watch

19

Organize block party

19

Round up roving dogs

19

Improve safety for elderly

19

TrafďŹ c issues

18

Prosecute illegal dumping

16

More clean-up days

15

Revisit zoning laws and enforce

12

Bad sidewalks

11

Develop vacant land

11

Install more public art

11

Enforce codes and prosecute violations

8

Create a neighborhood curfew

COMMUNITY INPUT NEIGHBORHOOD VISION WORKSHOP — QUESTIONS Wedgewood Houston Community Visioning Map

The community visioning workshop were conducted to ask residents to consider Wedgewood Houston’s future. The session began with team leaders presenting a summary of the process to date and the observations from the previous assessment meeting.

The groups were then led through a series of questions about their dreams and aspirations for their neighborhood: • If you could have three or more attractions in your community to take out-of-town visitors to, what and where would they be? (examples: restaurants, parks museums, stores, churches, public art, a great street, etc.). List and indicate on maps.

• List three or more sites that could be significant public spaces.

• List three or more natural and man-made physical features that could be improved to make your community unique.

• List three or more streets, paths (e.g. greenway, trail, bridge, etc.) and edges (e.g. creek, tree line, railroad, etc.) that could be improved to make your community better.

• List areas of your neighborhood you want to change (and what kind of change you would like to see), and what areas you want to keep the same.

• List ten things that would bring the greatest improvements to the neighborhood in the future.

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 18

COMMUNITY INPUT NEIGHBORHOOD VISION WORKSHOP— RESPONSES

If you could have three or more attractions in your community to take out-of-town visitors, what and where would they be? (examples: restaurants, parks museums, stores, churches, public art, a great street, etc.)

• Fort Negley and Civil War Interpretive Center • A green space in the middle of the neighborhood • Stores, restaurants, and tourist attractions • Fairgrounds: have it interface with neighborhood—with more activities for the community • City Cemetery – Celebration once a year • Develop an Art District • Walking Trails • Bike trails List three or more sites that could be significant public spaces.

• Rehab old depot / Wedgewood Substation • Vine Hill-- connect to Wedgewood Houston • More artist spaces (Chestnut Square / Fugitive Center) • Neighborhood center at Merritt and Martha Streets • Park at Stachhan with recreational sports • Play ground at SNAP • Empty lot of Wedgewood • School and grounds at Fall-Hamilton List three or more natural and man-made physical features that could be improved to make your community unique.

• May Hosiery Building • Fort Negley • Merritt Mansion

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 19

• • • • • • • • •

Flea Market Connect Pillow Street Sidewalks, trees and lights for safety Views from Brown at Humphreys Streets Historic warehouse structures Hotel 4th and Humphreys Mansion at “Old Travelers House” Put power lines underground

List three or more streets, paths (e.g. greenway, trail, bridge, etc.) and edges (e.g. creek, tree line, railroad, etc.) that could be improved to make your community better.

• • • • •

Signage for entry points Chestnut Street at railroad and Hagan Street Water tower at 4th and Chestnut Streets Railroad bridge at Wedgewood Path on Pillow St. between Hamilton and Moore St. • Bike path (extend it from Edgehill) • Ways to slow down traffic • Covered bus stops List areas of your neighborhood you want to change (and what kind of change you would like to see), and what areas you want to keep the same.

• Industrial areas-- buildings and lots used as storage • Address homeless issue • Put police substation back in area • Humphrey Area-- help deal with crime • Extend City Cemetery into green space-make it part of the neighborhood • More streets connections over the railroad • Connect Southgate to Fort Negley & improve

• • • • • • • • • •

connections over railroad & interstate on the west side Relocate industry to the area between the railroad and the I-65 buffer Bring in “Finer Things.”

Improve the alleyways Trains block streets Buffer the railroad with landscape Screen ugly buildings Re-route trucks to avoid residential streets Bring NPT into the neighborhood (get them involved in Fall-Hamilton School) Keep Fall-Hamilton Keep diversity

List ten things that would bring the greatest improvements to the neighborhood in the future.

• Turn renters into homeowners (especially between Pillow Street and Nolensville Roads) • Deal with crack houses and prostitution (Rains, Martin, Nolensville, Pillow Streets) • Recruit a grocery store-- Merritt, or Pillow Streets • Deal with racetrack noise • Make Chestnut Street a commercial / retail center with restaurants, entertainment, gathering space, community center, etc.

• Community space / green space • Add playground(s) and meeting place(s) • More (affordable) residential options • Improve MDHA property • More police presence and lower response time • Address slumlords!

• Slow down traffic (Speed bumps?)

• Library • Provide a gym and other recreational options • Find good homes for roving dogs

RECOMMENDATIONS BUILDING QUALITY Uncovering boarded up doors and windows presents an opportunity for activating the street edge - note the difference between the two structures below

It is important for the ultimate success of Chestnut Square to establish high-quality design standards that help create an aesthetically pleasing, walkable neighborhood center. Preserving the industrial architecture will enhance the unique character of the area.

Design that will enhance the pedestrian experience for Chestnut Square should generally follow the following guidelines: • Building facades should offer punctuated features such as transparent windows and doors that open the building to the street and suggest human activity • Building materials should be of high quality and should be consistent with well built structures in the same area • Points of access into and out of the building should be clearly defined and accessible from the street • Signage should be appropriately scaled for pedestrians, and awnings should be large enough to provide protection to the sidewalk • Buildings should be built up to the sidewalk in a way that defines a sense of space at the street. Ground level space should include uses that activate the street as much as posible (e.g. cafe, art gallery, etc.)

• New buildings should be sized similar to the existing scale of buildings in the area.

• Whenever possible, parking areas should be located to the rear or sides of the building.

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 20

RECOMMENDATIONS INFILL REDEVELOPMENT

The two buildings below (found within the neighborhood) offer a good example of scale and quality of materials for future infill development.

Other examples of infill housing and mixed-use buildings in redeveloping neighborhoods throughout Nashville. (Above: Row 8.9 in Hope Gardens; Below: Martin’s Corner in East Nashville)

Note the variation in building materials, balconies, window and door placement, and roof line gives interest to the facade and provide “eyes on the street”

Then entrance to this building is set apart by the pilasters running the height of the facade

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 21

Two recent examples of affordable infill development in the Wedgewood Houston Neighborhood (above)

RECOMMENDATIONS CHESTNUT SQUARE VISION PLAN Chestnut Square plaza concept

The Chestnut Square area is bounded by Humphreys Street, Chestnut Street, and 4th Avenue. Most of the existing buildings were part of the historic May Hosiery Mill complex dating back to 1908. Recommendations are that steps be taken to encourage the development of this area as an Arts District. The plan shown here illustrates suggested changes near the intersection of Chestnut and Martin Streets intended to establish an identifiable center as Chestnut Square.

The main concepts for this plan are: • Design of a plaza incorporating public art, outdoor dining, and open space • Infill vacant sites with buildings positioned to define the plaza and zoned to encourage uses to activate it • Adapt existing buildings to accommodate art gallery space, restaurants, and entertainment venues • Improve the streetscape by installing trees along one side of Chestnut, designating outside travel lanes on both sides as onstreet parking, and adding crosswalks for safer pedestrian access to the plaza

The drawing above illustrates many of the suggested improvements to the area near the intersection of Chestnut Street and Martin Street. Notice the addition of crosswalks, street trees, on-street parking, infill buildings, and a public plaza. The surface parking lot Proposed location of the plaza.

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 22

across Chestnut Street from the plaza is retained to continue to serve the needs of the existing businesses; however, consideration should be given to developing the lot with mixed-use facilities as the area’s needs change.

RECOMMENDATIONS SNAP HEADQUARTERS VISION PLAN Conceptual Ground Floor Plan

Existing SNAP Community Center

Example of mixed-use located in the Germantown Neighborhood. The ground floor provides space for a restaurant and offices, while the upstairs houses six loft-style residential units

Martin St.

Redevelopment of the SNAP Headquarters site would create a highly visible mixed-use corner in the neighborhood.

Redevelopment ideas include a proposal of ďŹ ve affordable housing units above commercial and community space. The income produced from rents or the sale of units could be used to develop more affordable housing options throughout the neighborhood.

Houston

St.

Martin St.

Conceptual Second Floor Plan

Houston

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 23

St.

INDEX A METRO CODES CONTACT INFO.

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 24

APPENDIX B CPTED PRINCIPLES

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED \sep-ted\) is a branch of situational crime prevention which has as its basic premise that the physical environment can be changed or managed to produce behavioral effects that will reduce the incidence and fear of crime, thereby improving in the quality of life, and enhancing proďŹ tability for business.

CPTED is a multi-professional approach to reducing crime and the fear of crime by having planners, designers, architects, landscapers, and law enforcement professionals working together to create a safe climate within a built environment.

The proper design and effective use of the built environment can lead to a reduction in the incidence and fear of crime and thus increase the quality of life.

Key CPTED Principles 1. Natural Surveillance: CPTED focuses on the placement of physical features, activities, and people in such way as to maximize visibility. This includes the lighting of public spaces and walkways at night.

2. Natural Access Control: CPTED features the physical guidance of people coming and going from a space by the judicial placement of entrances, exits, fencing, landscaping, and lighting.

3. Territorial Reinforcement: CPTED encourages the use of physical attributes that express ownership, such as fences pavement treatment, art signage, and landscaping.

4. Maintenance: CPTED allows for the continued use of space for its intended purpose and serves as an additional expression of ownership It prevents any reduction of visibility from landscaping overgrowth and obstructed or inoperative lighting.

While traditional law enforcement and crime prevention has focused on target hardening (locks and lights), many neighborhoods have gone a step past this old style of thinking and adopted the CPTED concepts of crime prevention.

Crime and the fear of crime can be greatly reduced by having neighborhoods, schools, and businesses implement the CPTED principles in the early planning stages of community design.

Source: http://www.cpted.com.au/

Nashville Civic Design Center Report: Wedgewood Houston page 25