MEMPHIS, Tenn. — There are still a lot of talking about the future of the Greensward in Overton Park and who controls it.
Nearly 400 People were expected to come to a 2nd public hearing at First Baptist Church Broad in Binghampton.
The last meeting was at Memphis Brooks Museum of Art.
Directly after that meeting, they realized they needed more space.
Overton Park Conservancy’s executive director Tina Sullivan says 250 people were at the last meeting they held, and they had to turn at least 100 people away because there wasn’t enough space.
“There’s a lot of attention given to traffic and parking challenges at Overton Park for quite some time now, and we’re helping to address that by bringing in our planning team to look at possible solutions,” she said.
There’s a lot of controversy over who controls the Greensward; Overton Park or the Memphis Zoo?
Sullivan says the Conservancy’s 2012 contract with the city makes it clear the Greensward is in their managed area.
The Memphis Zoo argues it has the right to use the Greensward for overflow parking.
Representatives from the Memphis Zoo plan to sit in on the meeting Thursday.
Sullivan says a design team hired by the Conservancy will discuss ideas to help address the traffic problem.
“It could be anything ranging from how we communicate, maybe improving our website communications for available resources to how and when people get to the park, where they’re supposed to go to find parking.
Sullivan says the issue will be resolved in court but in the meantime, it’s important to talk about solutions.
Sullivan said more than 2,000 people responded to the first survey.
Memphis Zoo released the following statement:
The Memphis Zoo is currently in mediation with Overton Park Conservancy regarding the parking challenges at hand. While we are located within the park, the Memphis Zoo is not an official sponsor or partner of this plan because we believe our specific parking needs will not be addressed by their study. And it is important to note that we didn’t have a role in drafting this study. We have commissioned our own studies in the past, and those have left us with alternatives to grass parking that aren’t deemed viable from budgetary, sound use, convenience and conservation perspectives. Please know that as an Overton Park neighbor, we have provided study consultants with the information they need so they truly have our perspective and a universal look at the issues at hand.
We will continue to work with the city and all others involved to address the issues at hand and come to what is a viable solution that provides access to not only our world-class zoo for all people in our community, but also to the wonderful assets Overton Park has to offer.