Teenagers have been some of the first to weigh in on a new community plan for Antioch. Planners say Southeast Davidson County has the city’s highest concentration of young people.

Census data reveals more than a quarter of Antioch’s residents are under the age of 20. So the Metro Planning Department has been organizing student focus groups on future development needs.

The area has been walloped by the closure of restaurants and retail chains. Planner Tifinie Capehart says teens feel like they have no place to hang out.

“The major issue is they needed a rec center, somewhere where they could go and congregate as young people. There’s really no place for them to do that right now.”

Adults are invited into the process starting this week with a meeting Thursday night.

The process is meant to determine where the community wants new businesses or parks. Of the city’s 14 planning districts, plans for Bellevue and North Nashville have been updated most recently.

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From Metro Planning:

Open community meetings will begin in April and continue through the spring and summer. Each one will offer an opportunity to discuss specific parts of the Plan Update with Metro planners; a draft will be posted online for public comment in late August, and the final draft will be posted in late September.

All meetings except the April 19 design workshop will be held from 6-8 pm at Lakeshore Christian Church, 5434 Bell Forge Lane East.

• April 5 – Kickoff. Planners will explain the update process and hear initial public comments.
• April 16 – Economic Development & Retail Centers
• April 19 – Hands-On Design Workshop. 3-7 pm at the Southeast Branch Library, 2325 Hickory Highlands Drive.
• May 3 – Transportation
• May 17 – Housing & Open Space
• June 26 – Draft Policy Recommendations & Implementation
• August 30 – Final Policy Recommendations

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Send questions and comments here.