Back in August, ULI Nashville had the opportunity to host a workshop with Nashville Metro Planning Department. The 21 Metro Planning participants, which included staff members across six different divisions, were divided into three teams and randomly assigned their team role. The different teams provided Metro Planning participants with a new perspective on the challenging demands and trade-offs required to build a site plan that adhered to their vision and was financially feasible.

“As a municipal city planner, I am often in the position of evaluating project proposals against adopted standards and regulations. Participating in Urban Plan was a great opportunity to think through projects from the private side, taking into consideration all of the factors that go into a project to achieve a result that is successful for the city and developer.” – Lisa Milligan with Metro Planning

“The workshop provided a risk-free environment for tackling city planning challenges. It was a great opportunity to dive into the complexities of large-scale plans, juggling social and financial factors. Insightful and invaluable!” – Kelsey Gaude with Metro Planning 

Regardless of the outcome, all the teams strived to incorporate logic and creativity into their site plans while striving for correct metrics that would impress the mock city council member volunteers. 

Outside of the specific issues and challenges that the workshop teaches the participants, ULI Nashville Executive Director and former Metro Planning employee, Jennifer Carlat, weighed in about the positive impact of undertaking the simulation activity with Metro Planning staff.

“Metro Planning staff have a unique and challenging role in the city – balancing Metro Nashville’s goals and the community’s vision with what is financially viable to make the most of development in Nashville. The UrbanPlan workshop gave Metro Planners an opportunity to see development from the development community’s perspective. The exercise revealed that all participants in development – public and private sector – are weighing trade-offs and seeking compromise. 

It was fun to see ULI Nashville private and public sector members come together at UrbanPlan and have a space to wrestle with an exercise that, while fictional, reflects the decisions facing developers and the Metro Planners in Nashville.” 

And Hannah Davis with Metro Planning sums up the activity “it was a fun time for team bonding.” The workshop was a successful and engaging learning exercise for the planners who deal with these situations in everyday life.