Farragut, Tennessee, got its first look at what a new park on McFee Road could hold. About 60 residents and Town officials came to McFee Park on Tuesday, Oct. 20, to see a concept plan for the Town-owned land at the corner of McFee and Boyd Station roads, the Farragut Press reported.
The Town's design consultant, TSW, presented the plan. The property covers 70 acres. The Scott family sold 55 acres to the Town and donated another 15, and a $2.75 million federal grant reimbursed the Town for about half of the purchase.
What's in the concept
The first draft drew from resident surveys and the Town's Parks & Athletics Council. Mayor Alex Cain said it tried to do too much. "In my opinion, it went way overboard," Cain said, listing a Frisbee golf course, a gathering space, and an event center with a stage.
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Alderman Joey Ruffalo was more upbeat. "I'm happy to see the direction and community input," he said, and he urged residents to keep asking questions.
Vice Mayor Greg Wiberley said traffic on McFee Road should come first in the design. He also wants the tree line kept as a buffer from railroad noise for nearby neighborhoods. He said more workshops with the board and the park steering committee are likely.
The access road
The biggest debate is a road. As part of the land deal, the Scotts kept an easement so their remaining land to the west can reach McFee Road. The Town would build the road to the family's property, and the family would pay to connect to it.
The concept runs that road as two lanes through the middle of the park. Cain said the easement has to be honored, but not necessarily there. "That doesn't mean it has to go through the middle of the park," he said at the Oct. 22 board meeting.
At that meeting, resident Kimberlie Parks argued the federal grant covered land only and that granting private road rights on grant land may need federal approval, according to a second Farragut Press report. Town attorney Tom Hale answered that the easement was part of the deal the board approved from the start, and that the grant was awarded with full knowledge of it. "It's just a concept," Hale said of the road layout. "We're just studying it at the moment."
Is there a deadline?
Sources differ. When the grant was announced, the Town said construction of recreational facilities "must begin by 2027," according to a Farragut Press report at the time. At the Oct. 22 meeting, Alderman Drew Burnette said he had not heard anyone from the Town set a project deadline.
What's next
No design has been approved. Expect more workshops with the board and the steering committee before the Town settles on a final park plan.
Sources
- Concept unveiled for new Town park, Farragut Press
- Park access road raises questions, Farragut Press
- Parks-Rec director shares Town goals for 2025, Farragut Press
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