Parks Board Chair George Anderson and country music star Kix Brooks today announced members of the new Fort Negley Greer Stadium Advisory Committee. The announcement comes as the deconstruction of Greer Stadium nears. The group will operate as an advocacy group for the Civil War-era fort.
“Preserving and creating greenspace in our city has been a focus of my administration since day one,” said Mayor David Briley. “In fact, one of the first – if not the very first – things I did when I became Mayor was to designate this historic land a park and allocate the money needed to take down Greer. I’m proud to be a member of this Advisory Committee and look forward to seeing the final vision for this park.”
Parks Board Chair George Anderson said “Thanks to the city and Mayor, we’ve just about reached the first goal, which is tearing down the old stadium. The paperwork is just about complete and the entire area will be cleared soon which paves the way for long-term planning, fundraising and programming efforts that benefit the entire city.”
Mayor Briley allocated $1million last April for the deconstruction of the old baseball stadium. Mobilization and site preparation is underway now and abatement and the dismantling process of the facility begin next week. The project is expected to be completed by October 2019.
“As advocates for Fort Negley Park, we want to make sure that this land has all the resources needed to help it reach its full potential,” said country music superstar Kix Brooks. “That means fundraising from both public and private sources and this group is passionate about making sure we get the job done!”
The Parks Department will solicit public input to determine community needs, expectations and potential programs for the site, helping the department to formulate a community-wide master plan for the site. The master planning process will start in the fall/winter of this year. The 21-member Advisory Committee is charged with raising funds and securing resources to help make programming and improvements possible.
Committee members include:
- George Anderson, Chair Metropolitan Board of Parks and Recreation; President, Anderson Benson
- Kix Brooks, Chair Fort Negley Greer Stadium Advisory Committee; Brooks & Dunn
- Monique Odom, Director Metro Parks and Recreation Department
- David Briley, Mayor Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County
- Clay Bailey, History Department Chair at Montgomery Bell Academy
- Kathryn Carell Brown, Trustee Ensworth School
- Chris Cotton, Counsel and Vice President of Business Affairs for Heart Bridge Media
- Marty Dickens, Board of Trustees Chair Belmont University
- Vince Durnan, Director University School of Nashville
- Bill Frist, Physician and former U. S. Senate Majority Leader
- Eddie George, Former Tennessee Titan; Heisman Trophy winner; NFL Rookie of the Year; Actor
- Carl Haley, Founder, President and CEO of Grand Avenue
- Robert Hicks, Founding Chairman Emeritus of Franklin’s Charge: A Vision and Campaign for the Preservation of Historic Open Space
- Kent Kirby, Managing Director Family Office Partners at UBS Private Wealth Management
- Reavis Mitchell, Jr., Historian; Professor of History at Fisk University
- Ann Roberts, Board member Greenways for Nashville,
- Ron Samuels, Vice Chairman Pinnacle Financial Partners Board of Directors
- Joyce Espy Searcy, Director Community Relations at Belmont University
- John Seigenthaler, Partner at DVL Seigenthaler
- Tim Walker, Executive Director Metro Historical Commission
- Carroll Van West, Director and Professor Center for Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University