Our Evolution

Over 44 Years Young

Following up on Dr. TeSelles, Early History of the Nashville Neighborhood Alliance, we commend this short description of what was an amazing time for the Neighborhoods and the NNA.

As the neighborhood movement continued to take hold in our city, so did the NNA. While the initial membership was compromised mostly of urban and historic neighborhoods, as time passed suburban and rural areas became more involved with the NNA.

In 1990, the Board of Directors decided to turn the NNA into a formal Tennessee state corporation, the mission of which is to improve or maintain the quality of life in residential Nashville.

As the NNA spoke loudly, sincerely and honestly neighbors from all over Davidson County paid attention. By 1995 the NNA received so many requests for support and assistance from a wide range of communities in Nashville they needed help. NNA officers Billy Fields and John Stern drafted a framework for a charitable organization to support the work of NNA. In 1997, Mr. Stern procured the funding to start the Neighborhoods Resource Center (NRC).

The Neighborhoods Resource Center was established to support the NNA by providing professional neighborhood organizing, leadership training and state-of-the-art neighborhood data and information services. That support was provided until somewhere around 2015. 

While this has certainly provided us with a significant hardship, we are trying to find a way to get the support that we still need. It is hoped that the NRC board will provide us with the services for which it was created. We still strive to keep a wide range of neighborhoods involved as it shapes its policies and responds to specific issues. A varied and active membership is the best guarantee that the NNA will continue to represent Nashville’s neighborhoods, as a whole.

As the countywide representative of neighborhood groups in the 20th and 21st centuries, the NNA continues to be a strong voice of neighborhood life in Nashville.  In recent years, more than 200 neighborhood groups have worked together with us to protect our quality of life and move corporately toward our goals. Over the years, we have worked with over 400 neighborhood associations, homeowner associations, neighborhood watches and other community-based citizen groups.

Your membership and participation in the NNA are essential.  We must be able to speak with one voice and move in one motion in order to reach our goals.

In 2006, the NNA & NRC set out to create a vision for the future of neighborhoods. We hoped we could bring 100 individuals from 50 neighborhood groups together to accomplish this endeavor. In the end, over 200 individuals from 130 neighborhood groups participated in the creation of “The Future of Neighborhoods.”

The NNA is the best avenue to advance issues critical to the long-term success of the neighborhood movement. It is important that our 44 years of experience continues to inform community-based decision making. We always work to advance the causes and interests of all the neighborhoods in our city! No other organization does that!

The continuing focus on neighborhoods can only happen with our continuing vigilance and action! With your assistance, the Nashville Neighborhood Alliance will continue to make Nashville an even better place to live, work and play.

Over 44 Years Strong