Franklin Celebrates Reopening of Renovated Main Barn at Park at Harlinsdale Farm

The City of Franklin celebrated the reopening of a historic landmark, the Park at Harlinsdale Farm's Main Barn, on Tuesday after years of planning and renovations.

The Williamson Scene previewed the barn's reopening earlier this year, which now features a new roof and exterior siding, warming kitchen, flooring, paved road and ADA parking.

The city partnered with the State Historic Preservation Office and Friends of Franklin Parks to ensure that the barn retained it’s historic character, with Friends of Franklin Parks Co-Founder Monty McTurff, who worked at the former family farm, saying, “this is the promise kept,” in reference to the park’s preservation of green space and historic structures.

“We're in the quality of life business; we're building a place that people call home, and you can't do that without investing in special places like this,” Franklin City Administrator Eric Stuckey said.

“Parks play an incredibly important role in building a community. They connect us together, unlike anything else, and Harlinsdale uniquely does that. It connects us to our past, but it creates this great space for generations to come, to gather and to build new memories as well.”

Other speakers included Franklin Mayor Ken Moore, Ward 2 Alderman Matt Brown, Director of Engineering Shahad Abdulrahman and City Engineer Suzanne Carter, all of whom were joined by more than 100 community members during the ribbon-cutting ceremony and on a tour of the revamped landmark.