This is the first in a new weekly interview series. Williamson County is developing and changing at a fast pace. Like any developing area, the highs come with lows- challenges and issues that need to be addressed. Each week we will interview a leader in the community, someone who is right in the thick of things, who has some kind of power over how the county- public or private sector- is facing the future.
Matt Largen is the CEO of Williamson Inc, the county’s chamber of commerce. He is responsible for helping bring business and development to our area, and making sure the county makes the right moves economically.
What do you think is the biggest issue facing Williamson County today?
I think one of the biggest challenges we have is around traffic congestion. And i think it is the by product of our success. This a place where people want to be, a place where people want to move here, they want to move their kids here and move their grandparents here. So we have to make sure that we stay a step of ahead of development. With traffic we need to be planning our growth in a way that maintains the character and charm of Williamson County.
How do you address the traffic problem?
Part of this is going to be behavior change. Part of solution of congestion and circulation is looking at alternative means of getting to places. That could be carpooling. That could be employers’ willingness to do flexible scheduling. I know some companies already do that. It could be remote working. Could be parents carpooling kids to school. We know during the summer there is not really a traffic issue. It is only when you add in school traffic that it becomes a challenge.
The first issue is extending Mack Hatcher, looking at congestion pain-points, and extending those particular intersections, that is phase one.
Could public transportation be an option?
I think that we had the urban railway 50 to 60 years ago. I think that the way Williamson County is is in relation to the density of say Davidson County, which has public transportation, that that would be a challenge. Let me say, that I think we will have a transit system- at one point- that has to connect the two, no three, counties of Davidson, Williamson and Rutherford.
When it comes to commuter traffic, one of benefits we sell to potential companies is you can access a large labor pool, by having access to people who live in Davidson, Williamson and Rutherford counties.
What do you think of the growth the county has been experiencing?
Let me say something about growth; this is really important: growth is going to happen in Williamson County, whether we like it or not. What is important is that the public sector in coordination with the private sector makes sure that it is the kind of growth that maintains, I said before, the quality and character and charm that we want. But the more companies that come to town, the more employment opportunities there are for people’s kids and grandkids. You can go to high school go to college, and come back home and have a job in Williamson County. That is what we want, and that is why growth is good for the community. Especially the kind of growth we have enjoyed, like Nissan, Hardees, moving headquarters here- they provide great aspirational jobs that every parent would want for their kids.
The population is projected to double by 2040. Is there a peak to our development and growth, and how do we prevent over-development?
Nobody wants to be Atlanta. So we learn from the mistakes that they made, where you didn’t have anyone in charge of or responsible for making sure this development or that fits the character you want to maintain. So you work hard planning for these sort of things. I know we are good at it in Franklin, Brentwood, and the other parts of the county. We are lucky in that we can be selective and attract employers who help us grow in a sustainable way.
So, what is the end game, then?
I think the end game is likely we end up redeveloping some of the areas in Williamson County that were developed, maybe, 20 to 30 years ago. People forget that we have been the fastest growing county in Tennessee since the 1970s. I recently went and pulled some info from 1978, and we were dealing with the same issues then as we are now: traffic, crowding. We have been on this track for quite a while, because we have had really good leaders to bring us here. Ultimately, people vote with their feet, and people have voted year-after-year that they want to have families here, that companies want to have their headquarters here.
Who is Matt Largen, anyway, and how did he get here?
Well I moved to the area 13 years ago, from Little Rock, Arkansas where I was involved with politics and later their chamber of commerce. I went to the University of New Hampshire- I played tennis there on the school team. I also skiied there- the White Mountain. I love downhill skiiing.It is one of my favorite things to do in the winter- love skiing out in Colorado, Coppers, Vale, Beaver Creek.
I actually have my Master’s Degree in Sports Psychology. How I got where I am was just pure serendipity. I was involved in politics in New Hampshire, then involved in politics in Arkansas. Then the Little Rock chamber. I moved here and was involved with the Nashville Chamber. I came to Williamson, Inc about six years ago.
Would you like to plug anything while you have the chance?
I will say, from a Chamber standpoint, we are concerned about these kinds of things, very much. We have mobility week coming up in September, and it is all about how we move people around and about trying to start to change some of the habits and behaviors that will help us solve the congestion problem.
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