This column from the Memphis Commercial Appeal describes the CSS process for a major roadway through a large urban park. "Don't Split the Farms." Shelby Farms Park, that is. We all remember the green-and-white bumper sticker that served as a rallying cry from the '70s to the '90s. Some of the old bumper stickers can still be spotted today. They express the sentiments of a generation of conservationists and recreationalists intent on protecting the oasis in the geographic center of Shelby County from obtrusive, destructive and unwanted roads.

So what in the world has changed and why does everybody seem to be celebrating the unthinkable: a new north-south road through Shelby Farms Park?

Decades of controversial and divisive road plans for Shelby Farms Park led in 2002 to a proposal (Plan F) to remove Walnut Grove Road from its current alignment and relocate it to the northern perimeter of the park. It was an interesting and ambitious plan that would have removed any roads from the interior of the park and allowed for a large contiguous "road free" park zone.

But close examination revealed fatal flaws. To accommodate the projected traffic counts, "F" would have had massive grade-separated interchanges at Whitten, Sycamore View and Appling roads and would have sprawled to 10 or 12 lanes in some locations.

The second flaw was the $45 million price tag.

To read the full text of this article, open the PDF file below.

Further Reading:

Shelby Farms Parkway Plan is Park-sensitive