Residents, advocates clash over proposed Big Branch Greenway route through Anderson Forest

Dozens of residents and greenway supporters urged City Council to take or reject the proposed Streamside West alignment for the Big Branch Greenway Connector—known in staff materials as Segment 1B—during the meeting’s public comment period.

The issue drew sustained comment because the route would run adjacent to or through backyards in the Anderson Forest neighborhood and close to the Big Branch creek. Speakers raised legal, environmental and safety concerns as well as competing public-benefit arguments.

Elizabeth Scott, an Anderson Forest resident, told the council: "This Greenway Connector project has not been a 50 year city priority. The 1976 and '89 Greenway master plans don't mention it. If anyone claims otherwise, I challenge you to read these documents." She also said an "1986 easement focuses on protecting nature rather than paving over it" and warned that building "a 10 foot wide asphalt trail through a 30 foot riparian buffer is not leading by example and could jeopardize a vital natural resource." (Elizabeth Scott, public commenter.)

Opponents catalogued related objections. Several speakers cited a…