Metro Council to propose resolution that would make area where Riley Strain was last seen safer
A council member plans to propose a new resolution to clean up litter, house the homeless, install better streetlights, and add more cameras.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - More concrete plans are being made for changes the City of Nashville wants to make along the Cumberland River.
The specific area they are targeting is where University of Missouri student, Riley Strain, was last seen before his body was found last week. For two weeks, crews went through the rough patch of foliage in search of Strain.
Last week, in that same area, crews also found an injured man along the river embankment.
“I hear about what happened with Riley and you come down here and are like, ‘Well, why wouldn’t this happen more often,’” asked Kenneth Bonomi.
He said he could tell Gay Street needed better infrastructure to keep people safe.
“I think there should be some kind of barrier or something to keep people away from the river,” Bonomi said. “Like it is wide open.”
It’s a problem Metro Nashville Council Member Jacob Kupin of District 19 agrees needs to be fixed.
“There are areas with no fencing or limited fencing multiple steps away from a steep drop-off,” Kupin said.
Kupin said he’s had conversations for months with the Nashville Department of Transportation (NDOT) and Metro Nashville Parks for safety improvements. He plans to propose a new Metro Council resolution next week to clean up litter, house the homeless, install better streetlights, and add more cameras — which he said could have tracked where or how Strain ended up in the river.
“It became apparent through Riley’s disappearance that there were sections of that area that maybe had some blind spots or there were different entities that controlled different cameras,” Kupin said.
He said he wants to transform this area of the river in years to come.
“My goal is that the riverfront area becomes that place to do something,” he said. “ To have a walk, maybe grab a bite to eat, to enjoy some music, but really enjoy our riverfront.”
But for now, in the short term, he wants to address issues everyone sees — like the litter.
“You look over the bank and all you see is just trash,” Bonomi said. “Like if everybody on Broadway had seen that I think it would be a big difference.”
The next Metro Council meeting is on April 2 at 6:30 p.m.
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