Helping Weave the TransitOriented Development Story in Lebanon, TN
AUGUST 2014
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HELPING WEAVE THE TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT STORY IN LEBANON, TN The mission of the Nashville Civic Design Center is to elevate the quality of Nashville’s built environment and to promote public participation in the creation of a more beautiful and functional city for all. Towards this end, the Nashville Civic Design Center:
PROMOTES the Ten Principles of The Plan of
Nashville, a vision for growth and development, created and endorsed by the citizens of Nashville;
EDUCATES the public about civic design through lectures by prominent speakers and workshops;
PROVIDES professional staff and highly-qualified design interns to consult on civic and other community development projects;
FACILITATES public dialogue about civic design and its impact
through the Urban Design Forum. The Forum meets monthly at the Civic Design Center, provides events, lectures and an open forum for the debate of ideas and issues of interest to its members;
RESEARCHES and PUBLISHES reports on various civic design issues.
Written by Kelsey Kaline In collaboration with Gary Gaston, Eric Hoke, and Ron Yearwood Thank you to Joseph Mayes and Susan Steffenhagen for textual, image, and layout edits, and to Chelsea Velaga for layout design and edits. civicdesigncenter.org August 2014
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If you happen to be standing near the Riverfront in Downtown Nashville on any given morning or evening, you may hear the distinctive, sharp sound of a train whistle. While it is not uncommon to hear trains in Nashville, which serves as a hub for freight lines, this train is different. It is the Music City Star, the commuter train that connects Lebanon, Martha, Mt. Juliet, Hermitage, and Donelson to the Riverfront Park Station at the foot of Broadway, in downtown Nashville. The Star is comprised of two passenger cars (a double decker) and a locomotive, and makes six round trip excursions from Lebanon to Nashville daily. The train makes an attractive and bold statement as far as mass transit goes, with its loud horn proclaiming arrival to the downtown district.
Regional mass transit will enable an environment to exist where we remain competitive for jobs and economic growth.” The city has been working to accommodate the growing Nashville community, incorporating the desire for healthy communities and an efficient economy. One design concept to encourage sustainable growth is Transit - Oriented Development (TOD). TODs are mixed-use communities (meaning residential, commercial, and office space) built within approximately a half-mile walking radius of a transit station, usually a train or a subway stop.
In recent years, as population and traffic congestion in the Nashville area have increased, there has been growing support for the expansion of mass transit options. Ed Cole of the Middle Tennessee Transit Alliance offered a glimpse into the transportation struggles, “We’re at a crossroads. Inflation and energy costs will begin to shrink people’s disposable income and [increase] density. Charlotte TOD station, Charlotte, NC. Image Source: Charlotte Area Transit System
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A vision created by architects and community members at the AIA 150 Blueprint for America Assessment and Visioning Workshop for Lebanon Image Source: Final Report
On the forefront of work to make Nashville a more livable city is the NCDC, coincidentally located just down the street from the Riverfront Station. Founded in 2000, the NCDC is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to elevate the quality of Nashville’s built environment, and to promote public participation in the creation of a more beautiful and functional city. They offer residents a variety of housing choices, retail options, offices, and open spaces in an easily walkable area. TODs are successful because everthing a neighborhood community needs is within walking distance, including their home and daily transportation to work. Concentrating development near transit stations is hardly a novel concept. At the turn of the 20th century, streetcar systems drove the development of new neighborhoods and business districts along various routes in nearly every large U.S. city. The modernday version of the concept — transit -oriented development — isn’t much different.
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Much of the NCDC’s work focuses on research of best practices in planning and civic design, and the ways that these practices can be implemented in Nashville. The NCDC has published The Plan of Nashville: Avenues to a Great City, a vision plan, which was created and endorsed by the citizens of Nashville, for the growth and development of the city. During the visioning process, which created The Plan, consensus emerged regarding the Ten Principles to guide public policy, development practice, urban planning, and design in Nashville.
WHY LEBANON? The Middle Tennessee chapter of the AIA partnered with the NCDC and CRT to hold the workshops and later received The Blueprint for America Grant, a nationwide community service initiative. Bridget Jones, the director of Cumberland Region Tomorrow, expressed her excitement about the workshop and TOD research, “An increasing number of people are moving closer to city centers to be near restaurants, entertainment venues, and offices. We need to welcome this shift; if we are to accommodate a growing population, we will need more dense development and a stronger reliance on public transportation.” She continued saying that “Lebanon was a perfect fit, due to citizen support and the location with the Music City Star”.
Lebanon, located east of Nashville, is the final stop on Nashville’s Music City Star commuter rail line. Although TOD developments can be envisioned at each of the six Music City Star stops, Lebanon’s historic public square and location made it a prime candidate to be the first. One of the interesting characteristics of the Lebanon site is that the half- mile radius encompasses its historic town square, which is the intersection of two state highways at a courthouse town square. A large mill complex, which is being redeveloped as a conference center, and a greenway system links the square and the mill to the transit stop, and ultimately to a popular town park. There is considerable potential for infill development and structured parking in the downtown core’s historic square.
Music City Star Route Image Source: musiccitystar.org
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Although the challenges of a 100-year flood zone, as well as existing neighborhoods of modest scale and density existed, it was still seen as a promising candidate for the workshop.
THE AIA WORKSHOP The workshop was held in August 2007, with more than 100 people in attendance. The I50 Blueprint workshop was the first step in what became a comprehensive growth strategy for core areas of Lebanon.
at the visioning workshop. This committee was tasked with providing a report that would serve as a sort of action guide for decisionmaking and future spending priorities in the areas around the town square and the commuter rail station. In addition to the report, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Architecture and Design (UT CAD) became a partner, allowing students the opportunity to create a design project focused on the commuter rail station in Lebanon.
The two-day workshop included: a showing of a public television documentary, “Save our Land, Save our Towns,” a presentation on the concepts of TOD, small group discussions of the community’s strengths and weaknesses, and small group visioning, or “brainstorming sessions,” and finally, a ranking of ideas for further study and implementation. A spokesman for the Lebanon planning department expressed that “the workshop instilled in us (the City of Lebanon) a desire to work and become a livable city. There was a tangible sense of pride in our community’s uniqueness and character.” In early 2008, an advisory committee was formed to further refine the ideas presented
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Aerial view of the Lebanon Business District and Historic Town Square in 1947 Image Source: Tennessee State Library and Archives
NCDC/ UT DESIGN WORKSHOP: Moving forward, the NCDC and UT CAD began working to propose both location and design strategies for a TOD in the Nashville area. The initial research was focused on possibilities in the Lebanon area, but additional studies focused on areas such as Gallatin, Hendersonville, Mt Juliet, and Clarksville as possible TOD developments. Sixteen graduate and advanced undergraduate UT CAD students, under the guidance of faculty member and former NCDC design director, TK Davis, worked on design proposals for TOD on eight sites in Lebanon. Twelve Vanderbilt University Owen School of Management students in real estate development analyzed the market conditions in Lebanon, investigated government incentives and tax credits that might be applicable, and conducted in-depth financial pro forma analysis of four of the projects as well. The students presented their work to design professionals and developers at the NCDC. Elevation drawing of proposed mixed-use TOD design at Town Creek Park South Image By: UTCoAD
In conjunction with the student’s work, an Urban Design Forum (UDF) was hosted by the NCDC in 2009. The UDF was founded in 1995, and meets monthly to discuss the role design plays in the city and around the world. The NCDC focused on the topic of TOD in Lebanon. Led by TK Davis, the student designs for the Lebanon Station were presented, and the possibility of TOD projects at other MCS stops were discussed.
WHAT THE NCDC FOUND:
By the end of the UT CAD semester, it became apparent to Davis and the students that TOD was a viable option to help build healthy communities centered on high quality design. Through the student projects and UDF, along with the citizen input in the AIA workshop, the key takeaway was to help enhance the quality of life for its residents and improve public health by encouraging means of transportation other than the personal automobile.
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Additionally, TOD can lead to economic growth and development, while contributing to community character, through the design of public space. Furthermore, TODs are inherently environmentally sustainable, and helps increases public transit ridership. The NCDC and UT CAD Students were able to recognize the strengths of Lebanon’s location, historic architecture, strong sense of community, university, good roads, access to interstate and state highways, and infrastructure. The opportunities that the community offers are the commuter rail, revitalization of historic town square, downtown living, and potentially government incentives.
Bird’s-eye perspective of the Historic Town Square after UT CAD students’ findings Image By: UTCoAD
MOVING TENNESSEE FORWARD: The research from the UT CAD students and TK Davis was recorded in NCDC’s book, Moving Tennessee Forward (MTF): Models for Connecting Communities. This book illustrates many of the ways that the NCDC is working to implement the “sustainable community initiatives” on the local level. The work complements that of the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) to improve transportation-related projects in NashvilleFinal plan of the proposed Mt. Juliet TOD Image source: UTCoAD
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Davidson County, the Middle Tennessee region, and across the entire State of Tennessee.
MTF began as a public-private partnership between the NCDC, TDOT, and the MPO to provide a reinterpretation of the Nashville Area 2035 Regional Transportation Plan from the perspective of an urban designer, in order to serve as an “ideas” book for Nashville and other urban areas in Tennessee, or in the nation. It evolved into an “ideas” book for both professionals and the public to learn how complementing good urban design with transportation and land use policies can create a better Tennessee. MTF emphasizes Lebanon as a successful TOD because of the Music City Star connection to downtown, the potential
THE DESIGN CONCEPTS: With the information that the workshop and design studio work had brought to light, a TODcentered community in Lebanon became a tangible concept. The Lebanon Planning Department worked with the information that had been gathered, and agreed that it was the best step forward for the city.
infill in Lebanon, and the historic downtown square. The proposed TOD development was offered in multiple phases for development in order to encourage a more gradual and successful transition for the overall community, while also bringing new elements that the community wanted and needed. Mayor Philip Craighaid was on board from the beginning, expressing that, “it is now time to push Lebanon forward with a progressive approach that will create jobs, and give Lebanon, as well as Wilson County, a new identity, which will result in a solid foundation for our future.” He then continued to express that he fully planned on doing all he could to “continue to support the Music City Star in the development of our transit oriented community. This will attract new residents, businesses, and produce savings for the ridership. Other cities should be and are envious of our opportunities with the availability of a mass transit system. We need to take advantage of the opportunity that has been presented to us.”
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HAMILTON SPRINGS, DESIGNED BY LOSE & ASSOCIATES
Rendering of the pending Hamilton Springs transit station in Lebanon, TN Image Source: Lose & Associates, Inc.
The Lebanon City Council members approved a plan for Hamilton Springs, the official name of the TOD. The vote was unanimous in favor of all aspects of the overall plan, according to the clerk’s office. All of the work that had been put into the research and development phase of a TOD community in Nashville was beginning to come to fruition.
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Hamilton Springs is the first community in Middle Tennessee that was planned as a TOD. It’s designed and constructed as a traditional neighborhood village with residences and businesses planned around the Music City Star train station. It will emphasize the use of transportation modes other than cars, focusing specifically on the Music City Star commuter rail, as well as biking, and walking. Hamilton Springs is located in West Lebanon on property along Highway 70, and extending to Old Horn Springs Road. Hamilton Springs is the project of custom home builder Jack Bell and his brother, Rick Bell. The plan for Hamilton Springs has been commended by transportation and planning officials throughout the region, noting that the project will encourage community and economic development efforts while enhancing transportation infrastructure in a sustainable way. Hamilton Springs received the Outstanding Planning: Green Development for a Small Community Award from the Tennessee chapter of the American Planning Association (TNAPA) at its annual statewide conference in Nashville in 2011.
REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY’S (RTA) SUPPORT: RTA, which is the operator of the Music City Star, was asked to partner with Jack Bell and Lose & Associates as a supporter of Hamilton Springs. RTA has collaborated and worked closely with Lose & Associates, as well as Bell, to ensure that one day, Music City Star will definitely be stopping at Hamilton Springs. In 2013, RTA received federal funding for Hamilton Springs through the MPO’s Transportation Improvement Program. This complex design is still being finalized, and construction is anticipated to begin in 2015.
This first phase will be followed by mixed-use construction, including commercial property and a train station. This mixed-use development will feature apartments, businesses, single-family homes, and condos. Everything will be built around the Music City Star commuter train that runs through the development, with a new stop to be constructed in the near future. “The train stop was approved, but we ultimately are responsible for building it,” Bell said, “and I’m excited to see how the community absorbs it into their everyday routines”.
MOVING FORWARD The first phase of the Hamilton Springs project broke ground in May 2012 and consists of 396 residential units, the Hamilton Springs Apartments. The first buildings within the site opened during Summer 2013, and the village square, which was designed to mimic Lebanon’s own historic center, is currently taking shape. Masterplan of Hamilton Springs TOD in Lebanon, TNImage Source: Lose & Associates, Inc.
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The MCS station will be located just off the village square, surrounded by mixed-use land that can accommodate retail, restaurants, and apartments. Bell said that they would like for people to be able to live there and have everything they need. “This is something Lebanon hasn’t seen before,” he said. “We’d like for it to be a place for people to do everything.”
Amenities on the site, such as a green roof garden, community swimming pool, quarter-mile walking trail, and dog park, offer opportunities for socializing and active living. While it’s not certain when this project will be officially completed, what can be certain is that the NCDC, the surrounding communities, and Middle Tennessee, are eagerly waiting to see their ideas become reality.
As this project, which started as an idea within the NCDC, begins to take shape, it’s important to remember the best practices in urban design and planning, and why they exist. They exist because they help communities and cities forge stronger and more resilient places. Connecting the diverse groups of people in Lebanon will give everyone a greater sense of identity and community. The Hamilton Springs Transit - Oriented Development offers a range of housing types to accommodate every budget, and encourages walkability through a green corridor surrounding the communities.
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Hamilton Springs Ground-breaking Image Source: Lose & Associates, Inc.