Ten Principles

During the visioning process of The Plan of Nashville, consensus emerged regarding ten principles to guide public policy, development practice,urban planning, and design.

Respect Nashville's natural and built environment.

Treat the Cumberland River as central to Nashville's identity -- an asset to be treasured and enjoyed.

Reestablish the streets as the principle public space of community and connectivity.

Develop a convenient and efficient transportation infrastructure.

Provide for a comprehensive, interconnected greenway and park system.

Develop an economically viable downtown district as the heart of the region.

Raise the quality of the public realm with civic structures and spaces.


Integrate public art into the design of the city, its buildings, public works and parks.

Strengthen the unique identity of neighborhoods.

Infuse visual order into the city by strengthening sightlines to and from civic landmarks and natural features.

In the downloadable document below, The Ten Principles correlate with recent accomplishments and current projects listed in bold. Projects with involvement of the Nashville Civic Design Center asterisked*.

Click below to download the PDF document:

The Plan of Nashville's 10 Principles with Related Goals