Closing the Loop
🚘 Boring Co. answers the questions · Armed park guards · Throwing money at the homeless · Infrastructure and parking · Much more!
Good afternoon, everyone. The Boring Co. answers Mayor O'Connell's questions... There are armed guards in the parks now... The Office of Homeless Services is probably getting audited... And much more!
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“Boring” Through Freddie’s Music City Loop Questions
From Megan Podsiedlik
Mayor Freddie O'Connell's administration received the replies to its 78 questions about the Music City Loop from The Boring Company late last week. The document goes into a bit more detail about the 19-mile underground loop set to connect Nashville’s airport to downtown.
Starting with the safety, construction, and design of the project, the “twin unidirectional” tunnels—which will take about a year and a half to dig—will be 30 feet below ground, 12 feet in diameter, and completely watertight. There will also be emergency exits every 2,500 feet.
“If water does enter the system, the tunnels have redundant high-power sump pumps to exit any water,” reads the document. “And in the unlikely event that the tunnels do experience large amounts of water, this does not present an electrical hazard, as it would in a subway or tram system with an electrified third rail.”
When it comes to road closures, detours, and surface disruption, The Boring Company says that they don’t expect any, “as advanced tunnel boring machines minimize surface disruption.” The document also addressed the geotechnical lay of the land, and expresses confidence they can handle Tennessee’s limestone and all other “existing infrastructure challenges.”
As for the money, though the state granted The Boring Company a free land lease to build the tunnel, the project—which “is expected to be a few hundred million dollars”—will be 100 percent privately funded.
The upkeep and maintenance of the loop will also be privately funded under a lease agreement that has yet to be finalized. As for the long-term ownership of the structure, that agreement is also still “under review and will be publicly released once finalized.”
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🖋️ Edited by Megan Podsiedlik and Davis Hunt.
🚨 Off the Cuff We’re in the “armed security in public parks” phase of urban decline after a number of highly publicized violent incidents have made citizens leery of frollicking in Nashville’s public spaces. The effort comes nearly a year after the murder of 34-year-old Alyssa Lokits last fall, who was sexually assaulted and shot while running a greenway in Antioch.
The security officers are employed by Archangel Security and Allied Universal, but will work closely with both Metro Parks Police and Metro Nashville Police.
💸 Throwing Money At The Homeless Problem Last week, Councilmember Ginny Welsch requested a Metro audit of the Office of Homeless Services. According to reports by the Scene, public scrutiny over the department’s finances has boiled over. Despite massive funding increases, the homeless population continues to increase. Here’s a quick breakdown of the outlandish numbers shared in the audit request.
Welsch highlighted more than $3.2 million in “suspected irregularities,” including improper payments made to Depaul USA, which operates Strobel House. The council member also highlighted the “$2 million in temporary ARPA funds used for permanent positions/housing, risking a ‘funding cliff’ and circumventing civil service rules.”
Other financial concerns included $11 million in miscoded payments and about 3,500 ledger edits totaling $8.9 million over the last two years. Welsch also pointed out that “$26.2 million in extra annual spending yielded zero verified permanent housing gains” between 2021 and 2024. Additionally, Welsch draws attention to $1,800 billed to Cooley’s Jook Junt, a restaurant operated by OHS Director April Calvin’s sister.
The Audit Committee is set to meet on September 23. Welsch is also seeking details on a fire, a stabbing, and an employee injury that allegedly occurred at the Strobel House over the ten months that Metro may not have had an active contract with Depaul.
🅿️ Infrastructure, Parking & Music Row’s Last Stand During yesterday’s Metro Traffic & Parking Commission meeting, the Nashville Department of Transportation & Multimodal Infrastructure Assistant Director and Chief Engineer, Hal Balthrop, said the quiet part about Nashville’s densification out loud.
“We're all very proud of Nashville, but Nashville has realized a lot of density and growth before the infrastructure has been in place to support it,” said Balthrop, who comes highly credentialed, having worked in Metro Water Services under nine different mayors. “We're in constant catch-up mode, and with that comes a lot of challenges in trying to meet everyone's expectations.”
The main order of business had to do with Music Row. Businesses and residents from Music Square East to 19th Avenue South are unhappy that a number of previously free parking spaces are being converted to paid parking.
Though the change would convert all of the city’s paid parking spots in the area to economy pay—which is $1 per hour—representatives of the Nashville Musicians Association, SAE Institute of Technology Nashville, and other Music Row staples aren’t pleased.
“This is what's left of Music Row,” explained NMA, AFM Local 257 President Dave Pomeroy. “We're not selling any clothes…we're working. And some people work for a long time. We need the spaces.”
The committee agreed to defer the decision for a month while NDOT engages with the community. NDOT Operations Manager Emanuel Matyas explained that while the 37 previously free parking spots would require an economy zone fee under the new agreement, 162 spaces in the area that used to cost $35/10 hour parking session would also be reduced to the same $1/hr economy price.
DEVELOPMENT
- RadiusDC Breaks Ground On Urban Data Center In Nashville (Now Next)
- Dog Haus To Open At Canteen On Carothers In Cool Springs (Now Next)
- For-sale recording studio property sees asking price dropped (Post)
- Four Seasons restaurant lands $2.4M permit (NBJ)
- Black Abbey Brewing returns to roots with rebrand (NBJ)
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THINGS TO DO
View our calendar for the week here.
📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.
🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.
👨🏻🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide.
TONIGHT
🎸 Frankie Cosmos @ The Blue Room, 7p, $32.51, Info
🎸 Christian Slader's Chambered Orchestra @ Then Underdog, 9p, $10, Info
🎸 Josh Hedley Happy Hour @ Dee's Lounge, 3:30p, Free, Info
🎸 Dwight Yoakam @ Ascend Amphitheater, 8p, $59+, Info
🎸 The Secret Sisters @ Schermerhorn Symphony Center, 7p, $56+, Info
🎸 AMERICANAFEST @ Multiple Venues, $125, Info
🎸 Honky Tonk Tuesday @ Eastside Bowl, 8p, $10, Info
+ two-step lessons @ 7p, The Cowpokes @ 8p
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Today's newsletter is brought to you by Megan Podsiedlik, Camelia Brennan, and Davis Hunt.