Downtown and Gateway Corridor Improvements
Franklin, Tennessee
CT worked closely with key stakeholders in designing and implementing comprehensive downtown district street corridor capital improvements and streetscape enhancements.
The Franklin downtown district had a first-floor vacancy rate of more than thirty-five percent. Its deteriorating physical condition had an adverse impact on the value and quality of life in adjacent neighborhoods. Economic development in the city was at a standstill due to the negative image stemming from the downtown district’s worn-out condition.
CT worked closely with the City of Franklin, Downtown Franklin, Inc., business and property owners, historic preservation groups, and other key stakeholders in designing and implementing comprehensive capital improvements and streetscape enhancements for the downtown district.
The initial five-block project entailed burying utility wires and installing new storm drainage; concrete sidewalks highlighted with brick; historic-style streetlight and traffic signal poles; landscaping; and furnishings. Additionally, the project increased downtown’s supply of on-street parking and renovated the historic town square monument area. The Franklin Main Street and Public Square District were distinguished with a Great American Main Street award for excellence in downtown revitalization by the Main Street Center of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Following the Main Street project’s success, Franklin retained CT to develop concepts, design, and engineering for the streets within the historic downtown district and the gateway corridors connecting into the historic downtown district.
Within the historic downtown residential streets, brick sidewalks and pedestrian historic style street lighting unified the many historic buildings. Along the gateway corridors, sidewalks, bike lanes, and decorative street lighting were incorporated to provide complete streets that better connected the surrounding neighborhoods.
Along the corridors, low historic-style brick walls were constructed within landscaped areas to buffer and separate pedestrian sidewalks from adjacent parking and service yards. Business signs mounted on poles were removed and replaced with ground-level signs on brick bases, and overhead utilities were replaced with underground service, eliminating the visual clutter along the corridors.
Photo credit: Andrew Keithly Photography Nashville, Tennessee