'Our way of life': Mt. Juliet farm lies in middle of road construction plans

Andy Humbles, Nashville Tennessean
·3 min read

David and Terri Minton's cattle farm is caught between progress and preservation in the rapidly growing community of Mt. Juliet.

The city wants to widen Pleasant Grove Road from two lanes to four, with a median divide between Old Pleasant Grove Road and Central Pike. The plans run along a portion of the Mintons' farm, threatening the 155-acre business, which is tucked in a rural hideaway minutes away from big-box businesses, high volume roads and large residential neighborhoods.

Terri Minton is the daughter of Sonny Tillman, who began operating the farm in 1968.

“Fifty-five years and a lot of blood, sweat and tears,” said David Minton, 58, a 1988 Lipscomb University graduate who describes the farm as a way of life for his family, which now includes four grandchildren.

He believes the right-of-way options he’s reviewed will diminish his operation.

David Minton looks out at cows on the Tillman family farm, which he operates in Mt. Juliet.
David Minton looks out at cows on the Tillman family farm, which he operates in Mt. Juliet.

The project is needed in anticipation of increased traffic expected when construction of the Central Pike interchange is completed. Even now, Pleasant Grove Road is described as “an already unsafe roadway” by Andy Barlow, Mt. Juliet's director of Public Works and Engineering.

The latest resolution, which city commissioners could hear Monday, contains language proposing a new roadway to “align as close as possible to the existing alignment,” which officials describe as an attempt to avoid significant right-of-way acquisition going through the farm. A resolution to move ahead on one of the options to widen Pleasant Grove Road was deferred in February.

“There are no guarantees in that,” Minton said. “I want to see something on paper more than, 'We’ll try and do our best.' When they do this … there may be a different mayor and commissioners. They may not even be in office."

Pleasant Grove Road in Mt. Juliet runs alongside David and Terri Minton's 155-acre cattle farm. The city wants to widen the road from two lanes to four.
Pleasant Grove Road in Mt. Juliet runs alongside David and Terri Minton's 155-acre cattle farm. The city wants to widen the road from two lanes to four.

The farm currently has 44 cows and can support as many as 60. The Mintons also have chickens and harvest hay.

There are other concerns about what right-of-way the Tennessee Department of Transportation may need from the farm for the Central Pike interchange.

“The city is piling on,” said Mt. Juliet City Commissioner Ray Justice, who does not support taking right-of-way from the farm. “I think there are other ways to accomplish our goals without devastating this man’s life.”

Cattle graze at the Tillman family farm in Mt. Juliet. There are currently 44 cows on the property.
Cattle graze at the Tillman family farm in Mt. Juliet. There are currently 44 cows on the property.

Are there other options?

Justice said he wants to see a plan to widen Pleasant Grove Road that would significantly involve only one property, which the commissioner says is a rental home across from the Mintons’ property.

The house is just off a sharp curve. Minton said fencing and railing there have been hit by vehicles multiple times.

Justice said he believes using the rental home's property would straighten the road and improve safety, while being less impactful to the Minton farm.

"When you widen a road it requires more land, there's no getting around that," Mt. Juliet Mayor James Maness said. "We want to minimize the impact on any one person,"

The Central Pike tie-in

The preliminary design phase for the state-managed Central Pike interchange has been funded, but a timeline for completion is still tentative.

A cow with a calf at the Minton farm in Mt. Juliet. The Mintons also have chickens and harvest hay.
A cow with a calf at the Minton farm in Mt. Juliet. The Mintons also have chickens and harvest hay.

The city hopes to accelerate plans for the Central Pike interchange as fast as possible, which includes moving forward on road projects that could be a catalyst for the future interchange. Mt. Juliet has also committed to funding $25 million toward the future Central Pike interchange in hopes of expediting the process.

The timeline for the Pleasant Grove Road widening project is also uncertain, Barlow said, but the goal is to start construction around the same time that construction begins on the Central Pike interchange.

More:Mt. Juliet votes to take family farm off table for a future road, but will it stand up?

Earlier this year, Mt. Juliet commissioners considered another road project that would cut through a farm owned and operated by the Ligon family on the city’s west side.

Commissioners ultimately approved a resolution to support South Greenhill Road as the option to pursue, although the vote isn't binding.

Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @ AndyHumbles.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tillman farm in Mt. Juliet threatened by road-widening project