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A resolution requesting the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure and the Department of Parks and Recreation establish and implement a wildflower program to plant indigenous wildflowers and perennial and annual plants native to Middle Tennessee in Nashville and Davidson County.
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WHEREAS, the planting of wildflowers in public areas can improve the floral landscape, reduce littering, maintain and improve soil health, manage and filter stormwater, and reduce the effects of droughts; and
WHEREAS, a wildflower program should be implemented by the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure and the Department of Parks and Recreation with the goal of planning indigenous wildflowers along with perennial and annual plants that are native to the Middle Tennessee region; and
WHEREAS, such program would involve the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure planting seeds in hard to maintain rights of way and selected high traffic medians, making them easier to maintain and more environmentally-friendly; and
WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Department of Parks and Recreation would plant wildflower seeds in select areas of established parks, such as Ravenwood Park, Bells Bend and the Shelby Bottoms Greenway and Natural Area; and
WHEREAS, the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure and the Metropolitan Department of Parks and Recreation have indicated that establishing such a program would cost as little as $100,000 each year; and
WHEREAS, funds from select budgets of the Metropolitan Beautification and Environment Commission could be allocated to establish the program as a pilot project in select areas of Nashville and Davidson County in the current fiscal year; and
WHEREAS, establishing a wildflower program in Nashville and Davidson County would promote the overall beauty of Nashville and Davidson County, reduce the needed maintenance in rights of ways and parks, and improve soil and water quality and an effort to prepare for a changing climate.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT OF NASHVILLE AND DAVIDSON COUNTY:
Section 1. The Metropolitan Council hereby goes on record as requesting that the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure and the Department of Parks and Recreation create a wildflower program to plant wildflowers and other perennial and native plants along certain rights of way, high-traffic medians, and established parks.
Section 2. The Metropolitan Council further requests a pilot program be established for implementation in Spring 2024. The Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure, in coordination with the Beautification and Environment Commission is requested to establish a program to plant seeds as well as annual and perennial plants indigenous to the Southeastern United States in rights of ways and high-traffic medians in selected areas. The Department of Parks and Recreation is requested to plant seeds as well as annual and perennial plants indigenous to the Southeastern United States in selected areas of Ravenwood Park, Bells Bend Park, and Shelby Bottoms Park. This pilot program should be used to determine the cost and feasibility of a county-wide a wildflower program for the upcoming fiscal year.
Section 2. This resolution shall take effect from and after its adoption, the welfare of the public requiring it.