Friends, District 17 resident Alice Ganier Rolli writing here.... Thank you for caring and sharing about this important cause. The outpouring has been amazing. A few updates: 1. ALL 5 At-Large City Council Members have now come out against the plan to provide a 99 year "lease" to a private developer for the park. The entire minority caucus on the Metro Council has voiced the opinion that a comprehensive study must be done to find the graves of fallen African Americans who worked to preserve our union. Link to the newest article from the Tennessean is here: https://tinyurl.com/y8qaf6m8 2. I've heard people say "development is the only way" - I don't believe that. We spend millions of dollars "acquiring" green space for our city. Here we have the land, we just need to return it to parkland. 3. I've heard people say the park is underutilized. Last weekend we had our 20 year Hume Fogg reunion at Centennial Park. We reflected how decades ago our cross country team trained at Centennial Park - and NO ONE was there. The then 'underutilized' park now has dog parks, musician corner, walking paths - the "unneeded" corner...is filled every day with residents playing with babies, dogs, jogging. Really? Have a little vision. We are about to triple the number of residents in Edgehill Homes, thousands of units have come online in Midtown, 8th Avenue, the Gulch - this is Centennial Park waiting for a little vision. 4. I've heard people ask "what's next" & how can we help? --> Donate to the Legal Defense Fund to Save Ft. Negley Park. As the history of saving the Ryman and Radnor teaches us - this will be a fight, but one we can win! Donate to “FOFN Legal Fund” at P.O. Box 41855, Nashville, TN 37204 - & read more here: https://savenashvilleparks.org/aboutus/ --> Attend the September Parks Board Meeting. They haven't officially moved the meeting, but due to Labor Day, it is our understanding this will be held Tuesday September 12 at Noon - I will send an update next Tuesday about the date/time for the September meeting so that we can show our support for our community parkland. 5. Faith means believing sometimes in what we cannot see. Now, it may seem silly to compare faith to this endeavor - but we can believe in what's possible, even if we can't see it. Look at the downtown library - beautiful right? If you grew up in Nashville, you remember that was the Church Street Mall - a food court with pizza and bad chinese food, Claire's accessories, Express, The Limited - yes, the 90s was a time of malls and escalators in that space. Today? Wow. That library is beautiful. So yes, Greer is a dump right now. Does that mean it should stay that way? No. Have faith. Believe in better. Demand better. Alice Ganier Rolli District 17 Resident Full Link to Story is here: http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2017/07/26/greer-stadium-redevelopment-faces-mounting-pushback-metro-council/514091001/