FRANKLIN, Tenn. (WTVF) — Williamson County is taking a look at its Growth Plan for the first time in 22 years.
The county and each of the six municipalities within the county are assessing which areas are best for development over the next 20 years.
Planners outline this process online.
Some county residents are nervous that if planners aren't careful, revisions could lead to development that won't add to their community.
"It's a beautiful safe haven where everyone wants to support everyone else — except a few," said Dana Frick who lives in the West Harpeth neighborhood. "We've come together to say let's keep Williamson beautiful, and the rural character that we came here for let's protect that."
Frick and several others are in a grassroots group called CARE which stands for Citizens Against Reckless Expansion.
"The infrastructure needs to be there before the building comes. The septic systems need to come before you [have] more cars and more students," Frick said.
Residents argue that by preserving land, people are protected, too.
"If you have a fire out here, where are you all going to go to escape?" asked Tennille Melcher, who lives close to Lewisburg Pike. "You can't get the fire trucks down the roads if we're all blocking it because there are no shoulders. On both sides of the roads are huge ditches. There is no way for a fire truck to get around or an ambulance if someone has a heart attack of a life-threatening situation."
Urban growth boundaries and planned growth areas are several steps away from being redrawn. The next meeting about this is Sept. 19.
