Brian Wilson, The Daily News Journal, March 15, 2015
Smokin’ Ed’s has been a staple in the Leanna community for eight years. (Photo: HELEN COMER/DNJ)
LEANNA – Few people will argue about about the size of Leanna.
But where this tiny community northwest of Murfreesboro actually lies is another question entirely.
“We’re not even sure where Leanna stops and starts, to be honest,” said Will Jordan, a lifelong resident who represents the area on the Rutherford County Commission.
Many Leanna residents aren’t particular about the area’s definition beyond its central landmarks like Smokin’ Ed’s market and the Walter Hill Volunteer Fire Department station that doubles as a community center. For them, the people who make up Leanna are more important to its characters than its boundaries.
“It’s the feeling that everybody knows everybody,” said Bonnie Russell, who also said she was a lifelong resident in the area. “Everyone goes to the same churches. Everyone’s from here. You feel safe leaving your kids at the ballfield here.”
Leanna retained that sense of rural community as developments started to build around it, according to some of its residents.
Jordan said the variety of those developments, whether the Siegel Park soccer complex, the Siegel school complex or several subdivisions near Sulphur Springs Road, have kept the area from avoiding a housing boom and the vehicle traffic that other parts of the county have seen.
“This area has been fairly lucky not to be overwhelmed by subdivisions,” Jordan said.
“You can still drive down the road and know half the people you pass.”
The outlying growth, however, has largely avoided central Leanna and some of its outlying areas. But like the divide over its boundaries, residents are split on how much this development has affected the community and whether future growth should be embraced.
After a Dollar General opened on Leanna Road next door to the old Tri-Way Market building and several new subdivisions, Russell said the community isn’t as secluded as it once was.
“You can just tell a big difference,” Russell said. “I’d want it to stay small.”
The surrounding development, however, hasn’t directly damaged the community or its character, said Stan Reed. He returned to the town he grew up in to start LeAnna Barber Shop and Style inside in family’s old home on Allen Road.
“A lot more houses have been built,” Reed said. “And I’m glad it’s growing. It’s better for business.”
While he carried some of his regular traffic with him from his decades in the business, he said the small-town nature of Leanna provided some challenges and benefits as his small business got off the ground.
He reached out to residents individually and made an effort to attract local clients he hoped would become return customers.
“It’s one of the smallest communities in the area,” Reed said. “It’s still kind of close-knit.”
That neighborly feel is what residents want to keep in Leanna no matter what growth they think the community can handle or what they think is in or out of town.
Contact Brian Wilson at 615-278-5165 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @brianwilson17.
About Around Rutherford
This story is part of an occasional series profiling the cities, towns and communities of Rutherford County. If you know where The DNJ should go next, email Brian Wilson at [email protected].