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KOSSIE GARDNER SR. PARK

LOCATION: Nashville, TN
DATE COMPLETED: 2019
CLIENT: Metro Parks & Recreation

In 2018, HDLA was commissioned to design a pocket park on the historic Jefferson Street corridor in Nashville, TN. The program and design philosophy for the park was determined by an intense public engagement along with stakeholder interviews. Working directly alongside the community, three main goals were established for this space; to activate the street, to provide real amenities for user groups within walking distance of the park (young families, students and an growing elderly population), and to design a space that honored the history of Jefferson Street while also providing opportunities for new community stories to be told. The park program included an interactive water feature, modern playground, stage and shade structure, gathering lawn, game tables, seat walls, movable furniture, new landscaping and an “expression” wall that would tell the story of how Interstate I-40 disconnected Jefferson Street from its adjacent neighborhood, while also providing a place for community artists to showcase their work on a rotating basis. The park stage was sited in a way to serve both the gathering lawn as well as Jefferson Street itself. Together with the expression wall and other interactive features of the site, the Kossie Gardner Sr. Park creates a dynamic and flexible new gathering space that reflects the character, both historic and new, of its neighborhood in an authentic and beautiful way.