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EBDA sustainability report cites 120 acres of new/protected green space, 130 acres for brownfield remediation
Summary
Kerry Hayes presented a sustainability matrix prepared by HDR that catalogs sustainability work across the East Bank, highlights ~120 acres of parks/greenways and a voluntary brownfield remediation plan covering about 130 acres in partnership with TDEC, and notes ongoing flood‑mitigation planning.
Kerry Hayes presented an East Bank sustainability report prepared by HDR that staff said would be posted online. Hayes said the report organizes projects across five categories — quality of life, leadership, resource allocation, respect for the natural world and adaptation strategies — and summarizes more than 70 items underway across the district.
Hayes highlighted roughly 120 acres of new or protected parks, open space and greenways and said the RiverNorth Greenway easement between Oracle and Metro is expected to come before Metro Council for a vote in early September. He also described brownfield remediation work: Metro entered a voluntary oversight and assistance program with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) in 2004 and the authority expects a brownfield voluntary agreement that will commit to remediating about 130 acres in the Central Waterfront.
"Parks are the lungs of cities," Hayes said, arguing that parks contribute to air quality, multimodal connections and stormwater management. He also emphasized that, because the East Bank sits on the river edge, most projects include flood‑mitigation measures and strategies to elevate critical infrastructure above base flood elevations.
Next steps: the sustainability report will be posted online; staff and the authority will continue to coordinate on easements (including the RiverNorth Greenway) and TDEC-related remediation work.
