BELLEVUE

Greener Pastures

Bellevue is huge now. Gone are the days of good ole’ boys and local business owners sitting in the meat department of The Bellevue Market, drinking beer and swapping stories. And, the Westview newspaper now rivals dailies in size and revenues.

The sense of community remains and flows as steadily as the Harpeth. Bellevue now has big-city amenities – a real mall and a swanky Italian restaurant (Antonio’s), which is located where the Cockeyed Camel once stood – which, in turn, was built over where Fine Foods By George once set, where "Punkin" told larger-than-life stories much to George’s chagrin.

Here are a few notable subdivisions in the Bellevue area.

Harpeth Trace

"GATLINBURG-LIKE SETTING" appears almost as often as "park-like setting" in real estate ads. When I think of Gatlinburg, the first things that come to mind are tacky little trinket stands and trashily attired tourists. A Fan Fair in the mountains, if you will.

In reality, Gatlinburg sits atop some of the most beautiful property in the state, and for open-minded people, the "Gatlinburg-like setting" conjures luscious, green mountainscapes full of vegetation and wildlife. Harpeth Trace could have been carved from that setting and placed on the hills along Highway 100 near Bellevue.

It has expanded greatly over the past several years, and now boasts its own traffic light at the entrance between Vaughn’s Gap Road and Old Hickory Boulevard on Highway 100.

If you have an appreciation for contemporary home design (a style that’s not exactly in abundance in Nashville), Harpeth Trace is one of your last frontiers. With many of the interior designs in deep contrast, using traditional style and décor.

Harpeth Valley

Not long ago, this was rich farm land. Today, the Harpeth Valley subdivision, located between Highway 100 and Old Harding Road, has at least maintained the lawns to reflect the greener pastures they once were.

It is a delightful community that is bordered by the Little Harpeth River. One of Bellevue’s many family-friendly communities, the kids can play with the crawdads, tadpoles, fish, newts, snakes and beaver. Deer occasionally frolic in the yard, though there are no antelopes. But seldom is heard a discouraging word.

The neighborhood looks like one seen in a Martha Stewart commercial (before all that grand jury stuff). The lawns are manicured in putting green-like fashion, and there is a four-acre park located smack dab in the middle of the development. It has a kiddy konstruction similar to what McDonald’s and Burger King build in front of their restaurants these days. Playgrounds at restaurants, filing cabinets in bathrooms, computers and video cameras in courtrooms. Ain’t life grand?

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