Cheekwood Seeks Dismissal of Parking Lawsuit Claims
The Nashville botanical garden asks a Davidson County court to throw out several counts over traffic and zoning concerns tied to its planned parking pavilion.
Updated on Nov. 12, 2026 in Botany
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Cheekwood Botanical Garden has asked the Davidson County Chancery Court to dismiss several claims in a lawsuit brought by Neighbors for Safety and nearby residents over its soon-to-be parking pavilion. The garden also asks the court to remove several plaintiffs it says are not property owners.
Why it matters
The filing challenges whether nearby residents have standing to bring traffic and zoning claims against the garden. The outcome could shape how neighborhood disputes over traffic from Nashville institutions are resolved in court.
Cheekwood's motion to dismiss is pending in Davidson County Chancery Court, with a hearing set for December 2026. Whether the court will dismiss the traffic nuisance and construction claims or the non-owner plaintiffs has not been determined.
The players
Cheekwood Botanical Garden
A botanical garden in Nashville, Tennessee, known for its gardens, museum and event grounds, which is the defendant in the zoning and traffic lawsuit.
The details
The lawsuit targets Cheekwood's planned parking pavilion. Count 1 alleges zoning violations from uses the garden operates, Counts 5 and 6 allege traffic is a public nuisance the pavilion will worsen, and Count 8 alleges construction traffic violates a 1996 order requiring specific roadways. Cheekwood argues the traffic harm is no greater to the plaintiffs than to the general public and points to Percy Warner Park as a nearby traffic source.
Timeline
November 11, 2026: Cheekwood filed court documents seeking dismissal of several counts.
December 2026: Hearing scheduled on the motion to dismiss.
Legal Context
The lawsuit alleges that Cheekwood's current construction traffic violates a 1996 court order requiring use of specific roadways, placing the new dispute within an existing legal framework governing the garden's property. Whether that decades-old order still binds the parking pavilion project will be central to the case.
Nearby residents face the outcome of whether their traffic and zoning claims can proceed against the garden's parking pavilion. The December hearing will determine which claims and plaintiffs remain in the case.
The takeaway
Neighborhood disputes over large institutions often turn on procedural questions of who can sue and which harms qualify. The December ruling will show how the court treats traffic claims from nearby residents.
Further reading
For more on the garden's plant collections and grounds, explore Botany coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by WKRN News 2.
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