A major East Nashville corridor's not-so-distant days as a prostitution and drug haven are in the rear view, and a carefully planned map for its future is poised to jump-start a new era.

Now, Dickerson Pike is lined with aging auto repair shops and small low-cost markets.

But a new Metro plan envisions a dense collection of modern offices, shops and multifamily housing along the run-down strip.

Plans also include widened streets and added transit hubs, greenways, crosswalks, sidewalks and bike lanes.

"In a rapidly growing city, Dickerson South has embraced this moment of its history and readied itself for a renaissance," the plan states. "We are presented with a unique opportunity to create one of Nashville's safest and most attractive streets."

The neighborhoods surrounding the southern end of Dickerson Pike are brimming with new construction that has largely side-stepped the thoroughfare.

Planning officials hope that changing the street's zoning from low-intensity manufacturing, storage and small commercial footprints to a denser urban mixed-use district will spur change.

The two-mile southern stretch of south Dickerson Pike runs parallel with the Cumberland River through East Nashville. But the changes will impact the corridor all the way up to TriStar Skyline Medical Center.

On June 13, Metro Planning Commission will hold a public hearing before considering approval of the plan. Then, Metro Council members will have to sign off on the zoning changes.

'As long as they don't kick us out'

Metro Planning is coordinating its vision with WeGo Transit, parks and greenway managers, and public works officials to restructure the street.

Residents said they would welcome more sidewalks, greenway access and bike lanes, in community meetings in January to develop the plan.

But the increased investment is expected to send property values soaring in one of the few areas where relatively affordable housing can still be found near downtown.

Already, hundreds of low-income units at RiverChase Apartments are expected to be lost on Joseph Avenue. The 212-unit complex was purchased by 37Urban in 2017.

The company has not yet presented its redevelopment plans, but has asked to build more than 1,000 dense apartments and a commercial complex.

Myron Dowell, a developer with several properties along the strip, is waiting for the RIverChase project to begin work before he starts building 100 apartments at 900 Dickerson Pike.

He's currently altering his architectural plans to increase the size of the project, in response to the planning study.

"The future is very bright for Dickerson Pike," Dowell said. "We need a lot of mixed-use development because we need to get the retail side of the corridor going."

Della Edwards, longtime community manager of Shady Hills Mobile Home Park – another affordable housing complex off Dickerson – said she appreciates the changes.

"They're going to put a sidewalk in," Edwards said. "That's fantastic. I have a lot of people here who walk and take the bus. Crosswalks are needed."

Edwards said that improvements in recent years have made the quality of life better for residents and made the area safer.

Not long ago, truckers used to use a parking pad in front of the mobile home park to meet with prostitutes, she said. The park removed the parking pad and added landscaping to stop the behavior.

Reyna Perez Gallardo, a resident at the park, said she also appreciates the safety improvements in recent years.

"Everything looks way better than it looked back then," Perez Gallardo said. "I like all the changes, as long as they don't kick us out."

Plan details

If approved, dense buildings up to 15 stories tall would be slated for intersections at Spring and 1st streets, where the buffalo statues stand in the median.

The gateway with the buffalo statues would also be upgraded with added features reflecting the area's history.

The same 15-story-tall heights and densities would be allowed at Trinity Lane.

Zoning allowances would decrease gradually these freeway-adjacent intersections, dropping to four stories where the pike faces neighborhoods along Douglas Avenue, Cleveland and Grace streets.

Official hope to widen the street to cope with added traffic, and add new sidewalks and bike lanes.

Metro's "Great Streets Planning Study" to explore expanded transit options highlighted the Dickerson Pike corridor as a priority for more bus rapid transit. A new transit center at TriStar Skyline Medical Center would anchor the expansion.

A new greenway emerging near Lock One Park, following the Pages Branch stream is also planned.

"A greenway along the natural corridor of Pages Branch that extends from Lock One Park along the banks of the Cumberland River east to its crossing under Dickerson Pike ... will ultimately link with the Riverfront Greenway planned along the Cumberland River's north bank," the plan states.

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Sandy Mazza can be reached via email at smazza@tennessean.com, by calling 615-726-5962, or on Twitter @SandyMazza.