No. 668: Density, Density, Density
🗺️ Density Galore, Derrick Henry's legacy, Nolensville Town Square, and much more!
Good afternoon, everyone.
Today, Miles recaps the legacy of Derrick Henry as he moves on from the Titans, and Megan relays the contentious debate over increasing density at last night's Metro council meeting.
Onward.
✵ DERRICK HENRY'S LEGACY
From Miles Harrington
Whether you are a Tennessean by birth or a transplant like myself, you probably have become well aware of the steep sports tradition this state has. Whether at the amateur level, Olympic level, semi-pro, or top-tier professional leagues, Tennessee has few peers over a wide-ranging number of sports.
As a result, here at The Pamphleteer we are going to take a deeper dive into these individuals once a month to recognize the greatness of the men and women who have had, or will have, a lasting impact on the Tennessee sports world.
NFL franchises had until this past Monday to extend four-year contracts for their top pending free agents before they would officially hit the free agency market on March 13th. That day came and passed with the Titans re-signing exactly zero of their soon-to-be free agents, including all-pro running back Derrick Henry. Most already saw it coming; Nashville will soberly wave goodbye to the king.
✽ TROUBLE IN DENSITY PARADISE
From Megan Podsiedlik
Last night at Metro Council, the proverbial rubber met the road when it came to Metro’s incremental march towards density. First up was a public hearing on a resolution that would bring Skinny Dennis, a Brooklyn-based honky tonk, to East Nashville. Some area residents weren’t too keen on the prospect.
“We are struggling to have existing codes enforced against businesses that are not good neighbors,” said a frustrated Will Hester, who resides three blocks away from where the music venue plans to set up shop. “We chose to live in an area that is dense, that is racially and socioeconomically diverse,” he said. “We have had many interactions with folks at HUB Nashville and wonderful Metro police officers who have come by to respond to our repeated [noise] complaints. But we have not found our council member, or codes more generally, to be responsive to our repeated requests.”
Phyllis Crim also spoke against the resolution. “Young families with strollers and dogs have finally returned to the neighborhood,” she said. Despite some residential dissent, the resolution passed unanimously. It is, however, worth noting that Skinny Dennis investors have mounted a door knocking campaign, collecting input from the neighborhood. They’ve also vowed to continue to cultivate a relationship with their new neighbors as they become part of East Nashville.
About halfway through the meeting, Councilmember Evans-Segall struck a sour note with her peers once again, this time by attempting to amend another council member's bill on second reading. Gamble’s original ordinance, among other things, would ease lot size requirements for open spaces in residential subdivisions. “It just provides an incentive to have a conversation where we say, ‘What is right for everybody in Davidson County?’” said Evans-Segall of the changes she made to Gamble’s bill. “‘How can we create pathways and incentives for people to provide goods to everyone instead of to the select few who can buy into these subdivisions?’”
Lisa Milligan, the Assistant Director of Metro Land Development, informed the body that the planning commission would disapprove the amendment, and multiple councilmembers began to express hesitancy. Gamble, too, questioned the efficacy of the amendment. Even Councilmember Allen, a mechanical engineer by trade, was having a hard time making the math math in Evans-Segall’s attachment.
“We can definitely, as a body, pass something that is disapproved by the planning commission,” Evans-Segall said confidently. “Given the few people who objected to this today, it would surprise me if the 27-vote threshold is too hard for us to meet.”
Councilmember Gamble then took to the mic and asked Milligan to delineate the time, effort, and public outreach that went into the orchestration of the original bill. After the assistant director’s reply, Gamble pointedly asked Evans-Segall, “What kind of analysis or group input and involvement went into the development of the amendment?”
“The Planning Department reached out to me in the fall to talk about this bill,” said Evans-Segall, who then explained that her adjustment was rooted in the research and input previously collected to develop guidelines for Plan to Play; a Metro Parks and Recreation initiative that Evans-Segall claimed “specifically calls for public private partnerships for creating public spaces for public good, for everybody to use.”
In the end, the proposed amendment failed spectacularly (“Just because three people voiced their opposition doesn’t mean they’re the only...people who are opposed,” Councilmember Hancock warned Evans-Segall mere moments before the vote), with 20 no votes and 11 yes votes. That being said, those 11 yeses are telling.
Last meeting, Evans-Segall shook things up with a slew of bills set to overhaul Davidson County’s zoning codes, which rubbed a few council members and Metro figureheads the wrong way. As it stands, she may have the support of a small cohort of allies including Councilmembers Cortese, Parker, Capp, Benedict, Harrell, Huffman, Welsch, Vo, Horton, and Sepulveda— all of whom backed last night’s contentious amendment.
HEADLINES
Memphis Prison Warden Ignores Request from Rep. Ogles to Move Unjustly Imprisoned J6 Defendant to Minimum Security Camp (Star) Citing reporting by The Tennessee Star exposing the conditions inside FCI Memphis as relayed by Parks, Ogles demanded in a February 12 letter to Bowers for Parks to be moved from the primary prison facility to its minimum security satellite campus.
Senate chair on House effort to reject $1.9B in federal education funding: ‘It’s dead’ (TNJ) House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, had first floated the idea of doing without the federal money to give the state more flexibility about how it chooses to educate children. But a series of hearings by a specially appointed task force last fall failed to reveal specific advantages of doing without the funds, while raising concerns about how to pay for ongoing programs without them.
Vanderbilt Graduate Students Push for Official Campus Union (Scene) Students cited insufficient pay, unsafe working conditions and precarious terms of employment during a lunchtime rally hosted by Vanderbilt Graduate Workers United on Feb. 14 outside the Jean and Alexander Heard Library.
DEVELOPMENT
- Q&A: Is Nolensville Town Square The Future Of Suburban Mixed-Use Developments? (Now Next)
- Construction Complete at Creekside Logistics in Smyrna (Now Next)
- West Trinity project could offer mixed-use buildings (Post)
- PwC to take space at Nashville Yards (Post)
THINGS TO DO
View our calendar for the week here and our weekly film rundown 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
🎸 Rico Del Oro @ The East Room, 8p, $12.33, Info
🪕 Bluegrass & 2-4-1's Featuring Sheriff Scott & The Deputies @ Tennessee Brew Works, 6p, Free, Info
+ bluegrass 6-8pm and 2-for-1 craft beer specials all day
🪕 Bluegrass Night @ The American Legion Post 82, 7p, Free, Info
📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.
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