Guerrilla Urbanization in Nashville

Guerrilla Urbanization in Nashville

The Nations Neighborhood

Before…

After….

A lot of exciting change can occur with a few hours of well thought out volunteer work.

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Shade Parade Nashville and The Sidewalk Foundation are committed to increasing access to more high quality, well designed sidewalks in Nashville.  

We want all Nashvillians to be able to get out on foot…safely!

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Please consider making a donation to THE SIDEWALK FOUNDATION.  

 1 SQ FT of Sidewalk = $50

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If you are a developer or know a developer -> you are strongly encouraged to PUT IN THE SIDEWALK when developing Nashville properties  instead of paying into the sidewalk in-lieu fee.  Let's work on creating a million 'sidewalks to nowhere' then stitch all those little pieces into a complete and lively SIDEWALK NETWORK!

You're So Nashville - Sidewalks

An annual tradition in Nashville, the You're so Nashville if…

Just a few sidewalk references this year but I think they highlight our situation as being ranked the 2nd worst walking city in the US.  Compared to sister cities, in regards to population and miles of roadways, Nashville has some infrastructure to catch up on!

  Please support sidewalks & encourage your elected officials to support sidewalks, too!

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Mayoral Candidate Coffee at Ruby October 8th, 745a.

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You're so Nashville if…

You slow-clapped the Nashville Metro Council killing a $16 million Gulch Pedestrian Bridge project from your sidewalk-less street in south Nashville. —Wesley Hartline

Getting a sidewalk on your street counts as gentrification. —Robin Brown

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http://www.nashvillescene.com/imager/b/magnum/4239883/6443/mag.jpg

Volunteer Opportunity to Promote Walkabilty, Based on Better Blocks!

Volunteer Opportunity to Promote Walkabilty, Based on Better Blocks!

Originally, I had high hopes of volunteering for the organization in Nashville that promoted walkability. I searched and searched but what I could find was pedestrianism focused primarily on biking. I like biking fine but what I was passionate about was walking…putting on a pair of shoes and going…no equipment needed!

October 2014 is Walk Month in Nashville. Currently, I am working on some fun ideas - mainly a Pop-Up Walking District to hopefully happen along Bowling Av ending in Elmington Park & The Mayoral Candidates Coffee on Walkabilty (October 8th, 745a, at Ruby).  I hope you come out and join us. 

Last night, I heard about a group, here in town, working on a project based on the Better Blocks idea…

Here is their information…you may want to volunteer here as they have a big project coming up in August!

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Better Blocks volunteers still needed...

We're off to a fantastic start!!! We had merry band of volunteers on Saturday collecting and sourcing materials that will be used to build our sets for our Better Blocks campaign on 51st Ave. It was a hugely successful day out. An enormous thank you to or all our new friends who came out to help!!! It's not to late to join in and help be a part of this event. Anyone who is interested in helping us transform 51st Ave on Saturday Aug 23rd please email us @ nashville.nations@gmail.com.

We will continue to meet for a couple of hours each Saturday to build, paint, and more importantly have a little fun. It's a great way to meet your neighbors and an even better way to get involved in the transformation of the Nations.

How awesome is it going to be to get to see 51st Ave between Indiana and Georgia, narrowed down to 2 lanes of traffic, painted pedestrian walkways and bike lanes. Pop-up street markets and cafés, even temporary art installations, and landscaping.

Volunteer, be a rock star, and get involved it's that easy. Who's in?

1) Building & Sourcing
Weekends leading up to event
o Constructing street ‘scaping components (planters, etc.)
o Source items needed for street ‘scaping (bike frames, pallet wood, etc.)

2) Street 'Scaping (08/22-23)
Friday afternoon/evening & Saturday early morning
o Painting cross walks, bike paths, etc.
o Additional signage (mounting bike frames to lamp posts, etc.)
o Prep street for morning set up

3) Set Up/Clean Up (08/23-23)
Friday evening, Saturday morning, afternoon, and evening
o Transporting constructed pieces to 51st & Indiana/Georgia
o Positioning landscaping, outdoor seating, signage, etc.
o Tear down and removal of street ‘scaping
o General end of event clean up

Sources:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Nations-Neighborhood-Association/147341245314388?fref=nf

The New Sound of Young Nashville

I am not a country music fan historically but I am a fan of Nashville & have a big goal of creating a Nashville with a rich and lively walking scene.  

Any chance I have to highlight unique things going on in Nashville helps this cause…so, when I heard this report on NPR recently (July 11th, 2014) I wanted to share it with Shade Parade Nashville readers.

The New Sound Of Young Nashville: 3 Country Artists To Watch

NPR, July 11, 2014

By NPR staff

Though its legacy as Music City is unshakable, Nashville might be ready for a new nickname: the Portlandia of the South.

"It's absolutely exploding culturally: There is an amazing food scene, there's all these young entrepreneurs who are opening tons of little shops, the city is pouring money into the arts," says NPR Music critic Ann Powers, who recently spent several weeks there. "It's a really great, bohemian scene."

That might be one reason why, alongside the glitz of mainstream country, the alternative side of American roots music is booming in Nashville as well. Powers was in town to attend the CMA Music Festival, but she also hit the local clubs to hear and see what's been happening on the ground. She spoke with NPR's Renee Montagne about a few of the artists she encountered; read her thoughts on each below, and hear the radio version at the audio link.

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Shade Parade Nashville & The Sidewalk Foundation both hope that some of the funding for the arts goes into PUBLIC ART.  Walking should be safe, convenient, comfortable and FUN for all ages.  Public Art helps make walking much more FUN!

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Sources:

http://interlochenpublicradio.org/post/new-sound-young-nashville-three-country-artists-watch

Where You Live Directly Affects Your Waistline?

Having, as a primary goal, walkability could directly affect the health of the population in your community.  According to a recent study by Gillian Booth, 'the more 'walkable' the neighborhood you live in, the less likely you are to become obese or develop diabetes'.  

The study looked at neighborhoods in southern Ontario over a 10 year period.  In walkable neighborhoods, the obesity rate was 9% lower than average and the incidence of diabetes was 7% less.  In less walkable neighborhoods, the rate of obesity was 13% higher.     

According to the Bloomberg report on this study, 'as a society we've kind of engineered physical activity out of our lives' - apparently to our own detriment.  

As Nashvillians know - we have an obesity problem.  Biscuits, sweet tea, BBQ plus driving everywhere leads to a heavier set commonly seen.  Our population is greater than 30% obese - slightly higher than the 30% obesity level across the US.  These statistics do not seem to be going down anytime soon as the trend identified in the maps below show.

Obesity is now described as an epidemic.  This is a significant drag on resources including health care dollars, quality of life, loss of productivity, etc.  As Nashville moves forward, we need to focus hard on creating more walkable environments.  

The cost of these health care needs, and I would argue quality of life issues, need to be considered when city planning takes into account the cost to create improved walkability.    

In deed, it is very expensive to build sidewalks - but, consider the cost of not building them?  According to Roger Miller, vice-president to Smart Growth America & Director of the National Complete Streets Coalition, 'if you can do things with your built environment that allows people to be healthy there's a financial benefit - think of the cost of obesity'.  

In 2005, the health-care costs of related to obesity cost Americans 21% of total health care dollars according to a 2012 study completed by Cornell researches. 

The cost of basic sidewalk production in Nashville is $250 per linear foot (1' long x 5' wide).  

Donate to The Sidewalk Foundation.  Let's build a more walkable Nashville.

See us Saturday, July 19th at the Farmer's Market.

Sources:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-17/city-dwellers-who-walk-less-likely-to-get-fat-or-diabetes.html

Pop-Up Cross Walks (Could also be Used for Walking Paths and Bike Lanes)!

As not every city is pedestrian friendly, there are solutions that could be effected quickly and inexpensively all be it temporarily. 

If the barrier to infrastructure that would improve walkability is cost - in addition to donating to a sidewalk fund such as The Sidewalk Foundation - this piece offers a creative solution.   

Do it yourself!

The neat thing about this idea is that it could help visualize the project.  In Nashville, for example, we could run an 'instant / pop-up' walking path along Bowling Av, equipped with crosswalks, to show neighbors how great it would be to have a sidewalk on this street.

The application of spray chalk are numerous.  You could set up a temporary cross walk to your local school.  You could identify a great place for a green way style path and invite neighbors to check it out.    You could show where trees would be a highly prized asset to your walking path.  You could put in a bike lane - literally the day you wished for one!

These temporary spray chalk infrastructures - such as cross walks and bike/pedestrian paths could significantly enliven your city street…drawing interest and alerting drivers to the presence of walkers & bikers.

Professionals use duct tape, craft paper and a string that they lay on the ground, held taught (one man steps on one side of the string, the other on the other end) to create straight lines.

Buy or make your own spray chalk….

Instructions on making spray chalk:  

http://www.stylemepretty.com/living/2013/06/28/diy-spray-sidewalk-chalk/

Important Survey From Walk / Bike Nashville - Please take a few minutes to fill out (& share this with your friends)

Please take a few minutes to fill out this important survey from Walk / Bike Nashville (WBN) on bicycle and walking issues…

From Adams Carroll, of WBN:

We are distributing a survey to potential trainees to help us refine our curriculum. So far we have gotten good response from self-identified avid cyclists and pedestrians, but we hope to hear from a broader group of Nashvillians. 

Could you take a few minutes to fill out the survey?  

Could you help share our survey with your networks on social media? 

Here is a link to the survey: 

https://redcap.vanderbilt.edu/surveys/?s=xTGmjyVyJs

Thank you!  Every little bit helps when it comes to making Nashville more walkable!