No. 358: The Next Titans' Stadium Deal

Good morning, everyone.

It's 2050. The Mayor of Nashville, Jimmy Cooper the fifth, has just completed a deal with the Nashville Visitors Bureau to redistrict and rename downtown—otherwise known as the Tourist District—Nashvegas. They've just finished mounting a giant, Googie, glowing sign that arcs over Broadway, beckoning thirsting tourists down into the district—now complete with its own bus service, trash pickup, police force, and all the standard accouterment of a city within a city.

The border of Nashvegas spans the river, encompassing the entirety of the East Bank, including a recently-completed stadium built on the same site as the old one that can seat 200,000 people and host global e-sport tournaments in addition to drone races; the international baseball championship, the yearly OnlyFans Extravaganza, and more. The tourists who come to town to frequent these events adoringly call the stadium the Bale of Hay, because the yellow coat of paint on the outside gives it the color and texture of, well, hay. Not to mention, the smell of stinking sewage—Nashvegas has its own sewer system—seeping into the Cumberland River lends it the smell of a barnyard, to proffer a charitable description.

Beyond the border of Nashvegas lies Nashville, where all the workers who service the tourists live. Stacked a mile high in one and two bedroom apartments, this part of town has little going for it: no neighborhood bars—only liquor stores, parking decks, and gas stations to provide fuel for the tourists. Restaurants once catering to a trendy local crowd have all moved into the tourist district, where lax tax codes due to the glut of sales generated from the tourists afford easier and more affordable accommodations in addition to more attentive utility workers and police officers.

"Nashville is a city built for and by tourists," Cooper the fifth proclaims, standing atop four cases of Budweiser so he can see over the podium. "Once a sleepy nowhere town, we can now be confident that Nashville means something to the world." There's a plasma board to his side, which notes the city will now be able to host even more iconic events. He steps off the stage. Rumors have been swirling that Cooper the fifth is using taxpayer funds for one of those new, trendy leg-lengthening operations because studies show that taller mayors generate more tax revenue for their city. He will not be taking questions

Behind the stage, a giant switch gets thrown. The bzzz of electricity rings down the street. The eyes of the crowd turn heavenward towards the sign which snaps to life in a radiant shower of sparks. Gasps ripple through the small audience, the smoke settles, and in a crystalline, glimmering arc over the newly closed-to-motor traffic Broadway, a choir of ten thousand angels sings out, "Howdy, y'all! Welcome to Nashvegggggas!"

There’s a crash to the South coming from somewhere in Nashville. A native stumbles out into the street after wrecking into a pedal tavern that’s illegally outside the Tourist District. Wild-eyed with unkempt hair, he staggers out into the middle of Broadway towards the small crowd. Drawn by the glowing lights of the benediction and enthralled by the angels' voices, he believes he’s made it to the Pearly Gates. He gets down on his knees and cries to the heavens, “Beam me up, Lord! I'm ready!”

Mayor Cooper V smiles up at his little creation. He trades hugs and handshakes with the developers towering over him and showering him with compliments. He blushes.

A brigade of tourist cops tackle the native, spit on him, and throw him into the Cumberland River where a giant catfish feeding on all the sewage swallows him whole and spits him out at Fort Nashborough, which is now an open-air drunk tank for rowdy tourists. Another day in Music City draws to a close.

Onward.

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Thanks for reading.

❍ TONIGHT AT THE METRO COUNCIL

As you all know, we usually take time the morning before Metro Council meetings to give a brief rundown of their agenda. Since we already provided a preview of the docket last week, today we’ll touch on one late-filed amendment before briefly looking at the Titans’ stadium deal.

RESOLUTION X

A late-filed resolution sponsored by Council Member Cash and others will “urge Nashville registered voters to vote NO on Tennessee Constitutional Amendment #1 in the upcoming November state and federal election.” As you may recall, Amendment 1 is the Right To Work amendment. Why are council members urging Nashvillians to vote no?

A “yes” vote on the amendment would make it “illegal for any person, corporation, association, or the State of Tennessee or its political subdivisions to deny or attempt to deny employment to any person because of the person’s membership in, affiliation with, resignation from, or refusal to join or affiliate with any labor union or employee organization.” In short, urging Nashvillians to vote “no” on the amendment would allow for forced unionization.

Since Council is publicly endorsing a “no” vote on Amendment 1, we at The Pamphleteer would like to go on the record and publicly endorse voting “yes”. It’s also important to recognize that declining to vote at all for amendment– or for any of the amendments on the ballot this year– is essentially voting “no.” Why? By rule, not only do constitutional amendments require more “yes” votes than “no” votes to pass, they also require the number of “yes” votes to exceed more than half of the total votes in the gubernatorial election. In other words, an amendment can receive more “yes” votes than “no” votes but still not have enough “yes” votes to pass if a sizable number of voters abstain from voting on the amendments.

Four Tennessee constitutional amendments will be up for vote in November. Make sure to brush up on the ballot before heading to the polls. (More Info)

✺ TITANS' STADIUM DEAL

In a press conference yesterday, Mayor Cooper, alongside President and CEO of the Tennessee Titans Burke Nihill, announced the agreed-upon terms for the new stadium build. The price tag? $2.1B. The aging Nissan stadium, a fixture in the city since 1999, will be demolished, and a new, covered stadium will be built nearby; the layout of which can be reviewed in the Imagine East Bank vision plan. According to the Mayor’s office, Nashville was facing a $1.75B-1.95B unfunded liability on the current stadium.

Let’s take a look at how they’ll fund the new one:

• $500M in bonds from the state
• $760M in bonds issued by the Metro Sports Authority
• $860M investment promised by Titans ownership (including PSL sales)
• $30M in bonds owed on Nissan Stadium paid by Tennessee Titans
• $32M of outstanding bills owed by the city for construction and maintenance performed on Nissan Stadium waived by the Titans
• 1% increase in hotel/motel tax to go toward the stadium
• 50% of sales tax for the stadium and area around the building to go towards the stadium

The proposal for a new stadium has been presented and negotiated in tandem with the development of the East Bank. Projects, it should be noted, not everyone is particularly enthusiastic about: data released in September from a poll conducted by Beacon Center of Tennessee showed 61% of voters opposed the $500M bond for the stadium given by the state.

Some may recall that Majority Leader Jack Johnson (R-Franklin) led the charge in the Senate's attempt to remove the bond from the state budget during General Session back in April. In the end, the House committee left it attached, and Governor Lee approved the budget– including the $500M bond– on April 21st.

The stadium is expected to be completed in time for the Titans’ 2026 season. We’ll have more to say on this in the coming days.

HEADLINES

• Did a Newly Elected Judge Rush Her Last Trial? (Banner) After winning her primary in May, Lynne Ingram tried one last case. Her client’s new attorney said it never should have seen a courtroom that fast.
• State charter commission sides with local school boards, rejecting charters pitched for Brentwood and Hendersonville (WPLN) The Tennessee commission with the power to overturn local decisions on charter schools sided with local districts Monday. The Public Charter School Commission voted 8-0 against letting two charter schools open in Middle Tennessee.
• The Tennessee Department of Environment Announces over $34 Million for Infrastructure Grants (Star) The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) announced that 12 grants totaling $34,585,121 from Tennessee’s American Rescue Plan will be administered in the form of water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure grants.

POLITICS

• Trump endorses Republican Ogles in 5th District (TNJ) Former President Donald Trump has endorsed Republican Andy Ogles in his 5th Congressional District race against Democrat Heidi Campbell.
• Heidi Campbell outraises Andy Ogles nearly 2-1 in third quarter (Main Street) Campbell raised more than $533,000 to Ogles’ $297,800 this quarter, according to documents filed last Saturday, and heads into the final days of the race with nearly $150,000 more cash on hand than her opponent.
• TN Court Rules In Favor Of Second Amendment Rights For Public Housing Tenants (TCN) A three-judge panel in the Tennessee Court of Appeals unanimously ruled on Thursday to protect the second amendment rights of those living in public housing. The new ruling means that Tennessee public housing authorities are no longer allowed to prevent tenants from owning guns in order to secure a lease.

DEVELOPMENT

• CA South Proposes Its Tallest Development Thus Far In Downtown Nashville (Now Next)
• Midtown site eyed for mixed-use project sells for $66M (Post)
• Music Row property sells for $1.65M (Post)
• West Nashville Catholic property could see addition (Post)

✿ Kentucky Dairyman Saves His Farm and Herd by Selling Raw Milk

Six years ago, Mike Armstrong, owner and operator of Moo2U Dairy and 3rd generation dairy farmer, quit selling milk to Purity and entered the very niche market of selling raw milk directly to customers. In doing so, Armstrong saved his dying business and discovered a superior model for dairy farming.

For nearly his whole life, Armstrong sold his milk to Purity which pasteurized it and put it on grocery store shelves. As a commercial dairy farmer, he was at the mercy of what Purity would pay, a price that dipped and swelled often, and on more than one occasion, left him unable to cover his costs. In 2014, the price sank like a stone again and remained there forcing many commercial dairy farmers to shutter their doors. Out of desperation, Armstrong pivoted from selling his milk to Purity to selling raw milk directly to customers.

“We were going broke” he recalls, “This was a last ditch effort to keep milking. The only alternative was to quit, and that was not somethin’ that I was gonna consider, because at that time, all the commercial dairy farmers were quittin’ so the price for a cow at a stockyard was in the tank. I mean, they wasn’t givin’ nothin’ for ‘em. I love my cows better’n that so I said no way I ain’t doin’ that… And here we are six years later.”

𝓧 CHART OF THE DAY: FAT

⚔ MISSIVES ⚔

• 📉 A US recession is effectively certain in the next 12 months in new Bloomberg Economics model projections, a blow to President Joe Biden’s economic messaging ahead of the November midterms.
• 💥 Astronomers have spotted what may be the most powerful explosion ever seen. The gamma ray burst, called GRB221009A, was spotted on 9 October, and even its afterglow is brighter than most objects in the sky.
• 🛰 The Pentagon and SpaceX have held discussions about funding for the company’s Starlink internet service in Ukraine, a senior military official said Monday, but Elon Musk indicated that SpaceX is no longer seeking that support.
• ⛽️ European Union officials are seeking the power to impose an emergency cap on the price of natural gas on the bloc’s main trading exchange, part of a package of proposals to cushion consumers from high prices and fill storage tanks next year ahead of winter.
• 💻 Microsoft Corp. laid off more employees this week, becoming the latest tech company to show signs of concern about future demand.

THINGS TO DO

View our full event calendar here.

🍺 The Pamphleteer hosts Bar Hours on the third Thursday of every month (the next meeting is this Thursday, October 20th) at Lucky's 3 Star Bar from 6-8 PM.

👘 The Weaving Splendor exhibit at the Frist presents rarely seen Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Persian, and Turkish textiles drawn from the renowned collection of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Running until December 31st.

👨🏻‍🌾 Check out the Pamphleteer farmer's market guide.

🎧 Listen to the Pamphleteer's Picks on Spotify, our playlist of the best bands playing in town this week.

TONIGHT

🧛🏻‍♂️ The Lost Boys @ Belcourt, 7:10p, $12.50, Info

🎸 Honky Tonk Tuesday @ American Legion Post 82, 5p, Free, Info‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌
+ Two step lessons @ 7p, The Cowpokes @ 8p

🎸 Sloppy Jane & Liza Anne @ Exit/In, 8p, $16, Info

🍸 Electric Relaxation @ Bar Sovereign, 9p, Free, Info

🎺 Todd Day Wait @ The Underdog, 11:30p, Free, Info‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌
+ Honky Tonk Tuesday afterparty, down the street

ON THE RADAR

🎻 Mozart & Tchaikovsky@ Schermerhorn, (10/28-29), $25+, Info

🎺 Too Many Zooz @ Basement East, (10/31), $20, Info

🎸 Widespread Panic @ Bridgestone (10/30-31), Info

🌶 The Gypsy Kings @ The Ryman, (11/1), $39.50, Info
+ The roving band of flamenco guitarists

🎻 Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony @ Schermerhorn, (11/17-19), $26, Info

🎻 Sierra Farrell's NYE Circus Spectacular @ Brooklyn Bowl, (12/31), $35+, Info

🎙 Weyes Blood @ Brooklyn Bowl (2/22), $23+, Info

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