Nothing Is Over

2 Responses to “Nothing Is Over”

1. local resident writes
   April 1st, 2009 10:27 am

   Here we are in the middle of the Great Recession. A local family is ready to pump millions of dollars into our economy, to create an expanded tax base and thousands of jobs without asking for any public money,

   Their plan will include the largest private land conservation IN THE CITY’S HISTORY, forever setting aside nearly 1000 acres for conversation.

   And, more than that, they are putting almost 1000 acres surrounding their 485 acre development,

   It is an economic stimulus package paid for with PRIVATE, not tax payer, dollars.

2. S-townMike writes
   April 1st, 2009 11:38 am

   Calling a Nashville development “the largest private land conservation” is not saying much given the development community’s poor history of conservation.

   Concepts are always, recession or not, sold as benefits that “pump millions of dollars” in, without regard to the costs or strings attached. In reality, some deliver, some don’t.

   It is a lie to say that no public dollars will be spent on this. Public dollars will be spent on the infrastructure placements and upgrades beyond the bridge, and then maintenance of both the bridge and infrastructure grid will be paid for with tax dollars.

   The May Family’s gesture to protect through conservation is nothing but gesture. Much of the acreage going to conservation is floodplain that would not be building viable. There are no guarantees that setting aside for zoning will guarantee conservation in perpetuity. Conserved properties can easily be nibbled to death by exceptions, spot zoning, and SPs.

   Once development gets going at May Town Center, there will only be increasingly more pressure to build and sprawl more across the Bend without any restrictions whatsoever. You can claim conservation all you want. Repeating it over and over again does not make it real. What will keep it real is protecting the current topography of the Bend by denying a bridge. Difficult access is the best environmental protector Bells Bend has.