Commissioners discuss ambiguous ownership of downtown alley between Wabash and Village Antiques; staff to research surveys

Commissioner Carpenter raised a longstanding issue about an alley or narrow road in downtown Nolensville between Wabash and Village Antiques, asking whether the town owns the right-of-way and whether it might be feasible to close the narrow road and convert it to a pedestrian area.

Town staff said county-era maps and older tax maps show a “County Road” in that location on historic documents, but that dimensions and modern deed descriptions are often missing. Staff and the town engineer said resolving ownership would likely require survey-grade work; one staffer estimated that surveying much of downtown could be costly and that prior streetscape work might contain useful survey information.

Commissioners discussed possible next steps: (1) search the historic streetscape design and right-of-way files to see if survey-grade information already exists, (2) contact the property owners on both sides for input, and (3) obtain cost estimates for a formal survey if needed. Several commissioners suggested that a closure could create a pedestrian plaza and benefit adjacent businesses if the town determines it owns or can obtain the needed interests.

Staff cautioned that legal and safety questions (eg, whether the town would be obligated to bring a non-code road up to modern standards) would have to be resolved and that closing a public way could require formal steps. The board asked staff to report back with any existing survey or streetscape documents and cost estimates for further study.