City Cast Nashville logo
March 18, 2026

Who Put Benches at Nashville Bus Stops — and Why Did the City Remove Them?

City Cast Nashville

Who Put Benches at Nashville Bus Stops — and Why Did the City Remove Them?

00:00:00
View all City Cast Nashville episodes

Late last summer, the Nashville Department of Transportation removed the benches lining Korean Vets Boulevard … but Pastor Robin L. Owen just happened to have one in her car. Since then, she and a team of volunteers have built dozens of benches to place at bus stops across the city, part of a nationwide movement; locally, the project is called “To Nashville, With Love.” She joins host Marie Cecile Anderson to talk about why these community-built benches matter, and share her reaction to last week’s news that NDOT was removing their benches, too.

The next bench building party is this Saturday, March 21, at Riverside Commons in East Nashville. Volunteers are invited to join at 9 a.m. to build benches, or around noon if they’d like to drive a rescued bench back to its home.

If you’d like to donate to the bench building project, you can do so here.

If you enjoyed this interview with Cheekwood's Senior VP of Museum Affairs, Sarah Sperling, and artist Karen LaMonte, learn more here.

Get more from City Cast Nashville when you become a City Cast Nashville Neighbor. You’ll enjoy perks like ad-free listening, invitations to members only events and more. Join now at membership.citycast.fm/nashville

Want some more City Cast Nashville news? Then make sure to sign up for our City Cast Nashville newsletter. 

Follow us @citycastnashville

You can also text us or leave a voicemail at: 615-200-6392

Interested in advertising with City Cast? Find more info HERE.

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Hey Nashville

Stay connected to City Cast Nashville and get ready to join the local conversation.

Can't subscribe? Turn off your ad blocker and try again.

Latest Episodes

See all
July 3

'Your City Could Be Better': The Ultimate USA Trivia Battle. How Much Do You Know? — Presented By City Cast Nashville

See if your Nashville knowledge serves you well! In the first-ever Your City Could Be Better trivia episode, City Cast CEO David Plotz go...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
July 2

What Nashville Kids Actually Want To Do This Summer

We can make lists all day of things WE think would be fun for kids to do this summer, but we are old and clueless. So we invited two loca...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
July 1

Your Guide to July 2026 in Nashville

America is turning 250 years old, and we’ve got your ultimate guide to July in Nashville! Join creative producer Marie Cecile Anderson, n...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 30

How Hot Chicken Became Nashville’s Most Iconic Food

Once upon a time, then-Mayor Bill Purcell decided to spread the good news of hot chicken to the masses, via a festival in East Park as pa...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 29

The Enslaved People Who Built Nashville

Here's a piece of history you probably didn't learn in school: The city of Nashville once owned enslaved people. Historian and contributo...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 28

'Your City Could Be Better': How Denver Is Fixing Its Sidewalks — Presented By City Cast Nashville

Just how good are the sidewalks in Nashville? The state of a city’s sidewalks can be a good indicator of how healthy that city is — and p...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 26

Why Are Cheekwood’s Neighbors Trying To Shut It Down? Plus, Pride Preview

We can’t get enough of the news that a man who lives literally next door to Cheekwood is trying to get the Board of Zoning Appeals to giv...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 25

The Endangered Species in Our Own Nashville Backyard

With all the hubbub swirling around the proposed data center next to the Nashville Zoo, we’re revisiting our conversation with the zoo’s...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 24

How To Start Birdwatching in Nashville

The hottest hobby for this summer might be birding, whether you’re watching, listening to, drawing, or simply appreciating our feathered...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art
June 23

Is Donelson Really As ‘Hip’ As It Claims?

This month in our recurring series of neighborhood guides, we're heading to “Hip” Donelson to see if it lives up to the name. Max and Kay...

City Cast Nashville podcast episode art