MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WKRN) — In the midst of revitalizing downtown Mt. Juliet, neighbors are now expressing concerns over their city’s future.

Nearly 400 people have signed an online petition rejecting an apartment complex to move into their neighborhood.

“I picked out this area because I felt like it needed to be redeveloped,” said Mark Lineberry, developer of the Downtown Mt. Juliet City Block Plan.

Lineberry is one of the developers who is working to revitalize downtown Mt. Juliet, which is considered to be around City Hall. “What we are trying to do is create a walkable district where there are people that live there, go to dinner there, shop there, and it’s all walkable.”

He said the 8-acre area is going to be transformed into a new city hall, filled with green spaces, offices, retail, and restaurants.

On top of that, there will be an apartment complex with around 245 units. “If this apartment complex is approved, it will be about 600 feet from my house,” Jessica Sweet said.

Sweet lives off E Caldwell Street, right behind City Hall. She said an apartment complex in her neighborhood isn’t welcome, so she created a change.org petition, with nearly 400 signatures.

“This is a way to spread awareness to our local neighborhood and really our community,” Sweet said.

However, Lineberry said this is the price of growth when it comes to living in a suburb outside of Nashville.  

“Even though everyone says we are building too many houses, there is not enough to keep up with the demand. Housing prices in Mt. Juliet are just astronomical,” Lineberry said.

However, Sweet said she’s worried the additional housing will create congestion and decrease quality of life. It’s something she and others recently brought up to Mt. Juliet city commissioners.

“In seeing these plans, I think they lost their way, and I pray to God you will all find your way back and vote for better plans for the future of this town,” one resident said during last month’s city commissioner meeting.

Lineberry told News 2 that the new downtown will hopefully be completed in the next three to five years. He said it will be built in phases with the focus first on the new City Hall.

Next Monday, the project will be in front of city commissioners once again.