[1:00] Good evening everyone. Today is
[1:03] JUNE the 2nd, 2026 and I want
[1:04] to open up our announcement
[1:06] period by acknowledging that
[1:08] this meeting is being held on
[1:10] the unceded stolen land of the
[1:12] Cherokee, Shawnee and Yuchi
[1:14] people. And to remind you all
[1:15] that no one is illegal on
[1:17] stolen land built by stolen
[1:19] labor. We have two
[1:20] proclamations today. Our first
[1:22] proclamation is from Council
[1:23] Member Jeff Eastlake. A
[1:26] proclamation recognizing Albert
[1:28] Tucker for on the occasion of
[1:29] his retirement from a
[1:31] distinguished 42 year long
[1:33] career in television news,
[1:35] Council member Eastlake. You
[1:36] are recognized.
[1:38] Thank you very much. Whereas
[1:40] MR. Albert Tucker has
[1:41] established a distinguished 42
[1:43] year career in television news
[1:45] leading up to his forthcoming
[1:49] retirement this Friday, having
[1:50] leaving behind a legacy of
[1:52] leadership, dedication and
[1:54] trusted local journalism.
[1:56] Whereas serving as news
[1:58] director at Wish-tv in
[2:00] Indianapolis, where the station
[2:01] was recognized as Indiana
[2:02] s
[2:04] Outstanding News operation in
[2:06] 2016 and received Emmy Award
[2:09] for its Heroin at Home series.
[2:10] MR. Tucker moved to Nashville
[2:13] in JUNE of 2016 to serve as the
[2:16] news director at wkrn tv, and
[2:18] Whereas, during his decade at
[2:21] wkrn, MR. Tucker had led
[2:22] Strategic newsroom and digital
[2:24] growth initiatives, expanded
[2:26] local programming and guided
[2:27] coverage of major events
[2:29] impacting Nashville, including
[2:31] the 2016 Antioch Waffle House
[2:33] shooting and the 2020 Christmas
[2:35] Day shooting or bombing in
[2:38] downtown Nashville. Whereas MR.
[2:39] Tucker has also demonstrated a
[2:41] strong commitment to civic and
[2:43] professional service through
[2:45] his participation on the abc
[2:46] Affiliate News Directors
[2:48] Advisory Board. The director of
[2:50] Nashville Crime Stoppers and as
[2:52] a graduate of the fbi,
[2:52] Citizen
[2:54] s Academy and MR.
[2:56] Tucker is also grateful for the
[2:58] support of his colleagues, his
[3:00] friend, especially his wife
[3:02] Janice, to whom he cites as the
[3:04] pillar of his support for
[3:05] decades. Along with his
[3:07] daughter Faith and his son
[3:09] Reid. As he looks forward to
[3:11] this well-earned retirement.
[3:13] Now, therefore, I, Jeff East,
[3:14] District Council member for
[3:16] district 11 of the Metro
[3:17] Nashville government of
[3:19] Davidson County, along with the
[3:20] undersigned members of the
[3:22] Council, hereby recognize MR.
[3:24] Albert Tucker upon the occasion
[3:26] of his retirement and extend
[3:28] sincere appreciation for the
[3:29] decades and dedication to
[3:31] broadcast journalism. His
[3:33] commitment to transparency,
[3:35] civic awareness and keeping
[3:36] citizens informed through
[3:38] trusted local journalism and
[3:40] his lasting contributions to
[3:41] the people of Nashville and
[3:43] communities across the nation.
[3:44] Thank you sir.
[3:52] Thank you. Thank you. Yeah.
[3:53] There you go.
[3:53] Here
[3:53] s actually.
[3:55] Three I.
[3:56] I
[3:56] m overwhelmed. I
[3:57] d like to
[3:58] thank you for this. I
[3:58] d like to
[4:01] thank my colleagues. Um, living
[4:02] in Nashville and serving this
[4:03] community has been a great
[4:04] privilege. I
[4:05] ll continue to do
[4:06] that as long as I
[4:07] m alive. And
[4:10] I thank you again. Um, it
[4:10] s
[4:11] really humbling.
[4:28] Thank you. Thank you.
[4:34] Thank you. Councilmember, and
[4:36] congratulations, MR. Tucker.
[4:39] Next we have resolution number.
[4:43] Our is 2026-1925. Council
[4:44] member Jacob Cooper. A
[4:46] resolution recognizing the
[4:48] contributions of linemen and
[4:51] recognizing APRIL 18th, 2026 as
[4:52] National Lineman Appreciation
[4:54] Day in Nashville and Davidson
[4:57] County Council Member Cooper,
[4:58] you are recognized.
[5:01] Thank you, chair Pro Tem, and
[5:03] thank you for for being here.
[5:04] Our wonderful line worker
[5:06] representatives on a on an
[5:07] incredible day where we get to
[5:09] hear from the public at our
[5:10] budget public hearing. It
[5:10] s an
[5:12] honor to recognize the folks
[5:15] that work to make our city run.
[5:16] And most most recently, and
[5:18] most importantly in the Ice
[5:19] Storm Fern, where they were out
[5:21] in the cold, many of them
[5:23] without their own power,
[5:24] helping to keep us, keep us
[5:26] safe and get electricity back
[5:27] on and in dangerous conditions
[5:28] away from their families. And
[5:29] so it
[5:30] s the least that I think
[5:31] that we can do as a body to
[5:33] recognize them with this, uh,
[5:34] this resolution. And so I will
[5:35] kick it off and have my
[5:38] colleagues join. Um, this is a
[5:39] resolution recognizing the
[5:41] contributions of line workers
[5:43] and recognizing APRIL 18th,
[5:46] 2026 as National Line Worker
[5:47] Appreciation Day in Nashville
[5:54] and Davidson County.
[5:56] Whereas the United States
[5:58] Congress first designated APRIL
[5:59] 18th as National Line Workers
[6:02] Appreciation Day in 2013 as a
[6:04] way to recognize line workers
[6:05] in their contributions
[6:06] following hurricane Sandy in
[6:11] the previous year and.
[6:13] Whereas line workers require
[6:15] extensive training, bravery,
[6:17] and technical ability to
[6:18] perform the everyday duties of
[6:24] their profession and. Whereas
[6:25] line workers are often first
[6:27] responders during storms and
[6:28] other catastrophic events,
[6:30] working to make the scene safe
[6:31] for other public safety
[6:37] personnel and.
[6:38] Whereas during Winter storm
[6:40] Fern, hundreds of line workers
[6:41] worked around the clock in
[6:42] freezing temperatures to
[6:44] respond to one of the largest
[6:45] power outages in the history of
[6:51] Nashville Electric Service and.
[6:53] Whereas the line where the line
[6:55] workers efforts did not end
[6:56] with the storm, as they are
[6:58] still working across any
[7:00] territory to permanently repair
[7:03] temporary fixes and strengthen
[7:12] the electrical grid and.
[7:13] Whereas line workers play a
[7:15] vital role in the economy by
[7:17] maintaining and expanding
[7:25] energy infrastructure and.
[7:27] Whereas line workers must often
[7:28] work under dangerous
[7:29] conditions, separated from
[7:31] their families to keep schools,
[7:33] hospitals and businesses open
[7:35] and.
[7:36] Take it home.
[7:38] Whereas it is fitting and
[7:39] proper that this Metropolitan
[7:40] Council recognized the
[7:42] contribution of line workers to
[7:44] keep the city going, often
[7:45] under dangerous conditions.
[7:47] Now, therefore, be it resolved
[7:48] by the Council of the
[7:49] Metropolitan Government of
[7:51] Nashville and Davidson County,
[7:52] that the Metropolitan Council
[7:54] does hereby recognize the
[7:55] contributions of line workers
[7:57] towards keeping power on and
[7:59] protecting public safety, and
[8:01] recognizing APRIL 18th, 2026,
[8:02] as National Lineman
[8:04] Appreciation Day. This
[8:06] resolution shall take effect
[8:07] from and after its adoption.
[8:08] The welfare of the Metropolitan
[8:10] Government of Nashville and
[8:19] Davidson County, requiring it.
[8:22] To take a picture of.
[8:28] To speak first.
[8:31] Thank you. Metro Council, on
[8:32] behalf of the lineman and nes,
[8:33] I want to say thank you for
[8:34] this. And I
[8:35] m accepting this as
[8:37] the first vice PRESIDENT Of the
[8:39] union at nes. We work hard and
[8:40] we
[8:41] re proud of what we do. So
[8:43] thank you for this recognition.
[8:44] We also want to recognize the
[8:46] leadership our PRESIDENT,
[8:48] Teresa Boles Aplin. Without
[8:50] her, we would not be as
[8:52] successful. Thank you very much.
[9:13] Now we get hold this up. Thank
[9:19] you. Sorry.
[9:21] Oh.
[9:23] All right. Thank you for all of
[9:25] the line people here today. And
[9:26] thank you for your service to
[9:28] our city. And now we are going
[9:30] to go into our announcement
[9:32] period. I am going to start off
[9:34] with a council member, Russ
[9:35] Bradford, council member.
[9:36] Bradford, you
[9:37] re recognized.
[9:37] Thank you. Ma
[9:39] am. Pro tem. I
[9:41] rise this evening to announce
[9:45] the start of Pride Month and to
[9:46] say that we, as the Metro
[9:48] Council, we stand proudly with
[9:48] our city
[9:51] s lgbtq community,
[9:52] especially right now, at a
[9:53] moment when our community is
[9:55] facing relentless attacks from
[9:58] state and federal legislators
[9:59] who are trying to strip our
[10:01] rights, restrict our access to
[10:04] care, and using policies as
[10:05] weapons against us and our
[10:08] neighbors. It matters that we,
[10:10] the local government, take a
[10:12] stand and say to our
[10:14] constituents, clearly you are
[10:17] seeing you are valued and you
[10:20] belong. Nashville has always
[10:23] been and will always be
[10:26] stronger for our diversity.
[10:29] This month and every month, we
[10:32] stand with our fellow lgbtq
[10:37] community. Thank you.
[10:41] Thank you.
[10:42] Thank you. Council member
[10:43] Bradford. Next we have Council
[10:44] member Gadd. You are
[10:45] recognized.
[10:47] Thank you so much. Speaker pro
[10:49] tempore. And also thank you to,
[10:52] um, um, Council Member Bradford
[10:55] for making sure we open up, um,
[10:57] on on pride this month so
[10:59] appropriately. Um, I do want to
[11:01] take a moment for a colleagues
[11:03] that are here at your desk or
[11:03] if you
[11:05] ll make sure you remind
[11:07] colleagues when they come in.
[11:09] Each one of us will have an
[11:12] orange ribbon. Um, and so what?
[11:14] This orange ribbon stands for
[11:16] is specifically on National Gun
[11:18] Violence Awareness Day, or wear
[11:20] Orange Day, which is something
[11:22] that is observed the first
[11:24] weekend in JUNE every year.
[11:26] This color was chosen the color
[11:27] orange because that
[11:28] s the color
[11:30] hunters wear in the woods, to
[11:32] alert others not to shoot. On
[11:33] where Orange Day we honor
[11:34] remember all victims and
[11:36] survivors of gun violence this
[11:38] year. Wear Orange Weekend will
[11:41] be JUNE 5th to seventh. Our
[11:42] Middle Tennessee Moms Demand
[11:44] Action volunteers invite all of
[11:47] us to wear this ribbon for your
[11:49] Wear Orange ribbon on this
[11:50] weekend, but also throughout
[11:52] the entire month. I
[11:52] d like to
[11:54] take a moment and ask those
[11:56] from Moms Demand Action if you
[11:58] will stand and be recognized
[12:00] for all of your service. So
[12:03] thank you all for being here.
[12:10] And um. They have also, um,
[12:12] they have also wanted to make
[12:13] sure that everyone is invited
[12:15] this Sunday. Uh, the Tennessee
[12:17] middle middle Tennessee moms
[12:20] wear orange Sunday, or wear
[12:22] orange will be this Sunday,
[12:25] JUNE 7th at 2 P.M.. Uh, in the
[12:26] center for Contemplative
[12:27] Justice. And that
[12:28] s going to be
[12:30] on Alabama Avenue, uh, right
[12:33] off of Charlotte Avenue. And we
[12:35] welcome everyone to join.
[12:35] You
[12:36] ll have an invitation in
[12:38] your inbox. And and folks can
[12:40] learn about it in the community
[12:42] by going through their website.
[12:45] Also, social media as well. So
[12:46] thank you all for being here
[12:49] today.
[12:52] Thank you. Council member. Um,
[12:53] if I MAY take a moment of
[12:55] privilege to add to that where
[12:57] orange originated on JUNE the
[12:59] 2nd, 2015, on what would have
[13:00] been Hadiya Pendleton
[13:01] s 18th
[13:04] birthday. So today would have
[13:05] been Padilla
[13:07] s 29th birthday.
[13:08] So I just wanted to take a
[13:09] moment to speak her name and
[13:11] honor her legacy. Council
[13:12] member, you
[13:13] re recognized.
[13:15] Thank you, MADAM Pro tem. Um,
[13:16] remember not to give you a
[13:20] promotion at this time. Um, so.
[13:21] I
[13:23] m a firm believer that all of
[13:25] us make it in life because of
[13:26] the people who have invested in
[13:29] us. Those those folks who take
[13:31] the time to get to know us, to
[13:32] know our hearts, to know our
[13:34] passions, and to help guide us
[13:36] during our some of our most
[13:38] formative years. And somebody
[13:40] like that, for myself is my
[13:42] oldest brother, Manas, who was
[13:45] my or her was who is, um, or
[13:47] who was my one of my very first
[13:49] best friends, a person who has
[13:51] always sought to protect me, to
[13:53] look after me, to uplift me and
[13:54] support me. Um, so I just
[13:56] wanted to take a moment to to
[13:57] say thank you to my oldest
[13:58] brother, Mendez, for all that
[13:59] he
[14:00] s done for me, but also
[14:02] taking a moment to wish him a
[14:04] very happy birthday tomorrow.
[14:06] The third will be his 41st
[14:08] birthday. So, uh. Yes. So,
[14:10] Mendez, on behalf of the
[14:11] Metropolitan County Council of
[14:12] Nashville and Davidson County,
[14:17] happy birthday.
[14:18] Councilmember, you
[14:18] re not gonna
[14:20] break out in the song.
[14:23] New. Okay? I don
[14:23] t think
[14:24] anybody wants that.
[14:24] Okay.
[14:26] Maybe after the presentations,
[14:28] we might get a little happy.
[14:30] Birthday to you.
[14:31] All right. Council member
[14:32] Allen, you
[14:33] re recognized.
[14:34] Thank you, MADAM Chair. I was
[14:36] trying to hold out until 626,
[14:37] because in light of the fact
[14:39] that we have a room that I know
[14:40] includes some teachers and
[14:41] other people that have been
[14:42] influential and want to teach
[14:44] us to love learning. I want to
[14:46] wish everybody happy Palindrome
[14:48] day. A palindrome is a word
[14:48] that
[14:49] s the same words as
[14:51] backwards. Our name like
[14:53] Hannah. And today is six, two,
[14:55] two, six. And there are three
[14:57] more, two more palindrome days
[14:59] in in JUNE. So take the
[15:00] opportunity to do something
[15:01] symmetric and teach a kid to
[15:03] learn math. So happy palindrome
[15:04] day.
[15:07] Thank you, Councilmember Allen.
[15:09] Forever the engineer. Thank you
[15:10] for gracing us with that.
[15:12] Councilmember Sara, you are
[15:15] recognized.
[15:16] Thank you, MADAM Pro Tem, a
[15:19] couple of announcements. I also
[15:21] want to wish everyone a Happy
[15:23] Immigrants month. Uh, JUNE is
[15:25] the month where we celebrate,
[15:27] uh, immigrants. And today the
[15:28] Immigrant Caucus, I
[15:29] m sure
[15:30] chair is probably on on queue
[15:32] to speak. Uh, had a ceremony
[15:34] where we have a bunch of shoes
[15:36] lining the courthouse steps.
[15:38] And those shoes tell a lot of
[15:39] stories. They tell the
[15:40] different stories of different
[15:42] people, people that have to go
[15:43] through our ship to get here,
[15:44] whether as a refugee where
[15:45] there
[15:48] s a an alley or even just
[15:50] coming for, for better what?
[15:52] For their for their families.
[15:52] And it
[15:54] s also represents the
[15:55] immigrants that have been taken
[15:57] from us with ice and through
[15:59] violence. And so as we look at
[16:01] immigrant, as we continue to
[16:02] talk about inclusion and, and
[16:04] acceptability and all of that
[16:06] stuff, I want to raise, uh, the
[16:08] voices and ask everyone to,
[16:09] number one, uh, recognize the
[16:11] contributions of immigrant to,
[16:13] to our nation, uh, and also to
[16:15] also recognize the plight of
[16:16] immigrants, uh, when it
[16:16] s not
[16:17] happened to us directly. We MAY
[16:18] not know all that is going on,
[16:21] but a lot is really happening.
[16:22] Anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim,
[16:24] anti-gay, anti everything. And
[16:27] so, uh, this is a plea that as
[16:27] we
[16:28] re recognizing all this
[16:29] month that we recognize the
[16:31] humanity and the people behind
[16:32] it. So it
[16:33] s not just shoes,
[16:33] it
[16:34] s the people. So happy
[16:36] immigrant day. I also want to
[16:37] take the opportunity to
[16:40] announce, uh, Senator Charlene
[16:42] Oliver will be doing a Iowa
[16:44] dedication on Saturday. Uh,
[16:45] this is to recognize the
[16:47] trailblazer, Senator Thelma
[16:49] Harper. And so are part of
[16:50] Clarksville, Iowa. Will be
[16:51] renamed in her honor. She
[16:52] s the
[16:54] first black woman to be elected
[16:56] to the state senate. And she
[16:56] s
[16:57] the lady with the hat. We all
[16:58] know she
[16:59] s done a whole lot.
[17:01] Uh, I love recognizing those
[17:02] that came before us, because a
[17:04] lot of us are standing because
[17:05] of the work that that they
[17:05] ve
[17:07] all done. Uh, and then finally,
[17:08] I want to invite everyone to my
[17:10] third segment on my budget
[17:12] conversation. This Sunday, uh,
[17:14] will be from 3 P.M. To 4 P.M.
[17:16] You can join, uh, on Facebook.
[17:17] And this Sunday, I will be
[17:19] talking to union leaders, uh,
[17:20] to get their perspective on the
[17:23] budget. Uh, as we look at there
[17:24] are a lot of union members out
[17:26] here. And so I want to talk to
[17:27] their leaders about where we
[17:28] are, what they expect. And it
[17:29] s
[17:30] always a very good
[17:32] conversation. So join online on
[17:33] Facebook, on my Facebook page.
[17:35] You can make comments or ask
[17:36] questions. And then afterwards
[17:38] you get the blog and the
[17:39] newsletter. Uh, thank you,
[17:42] MADAM Chair.
[17:44] Thank you. Council member Suara.
[17:46] And a special thank you for
[17:48] everyone who has come out today
[17:50] to speak during our budget
[17:52] public hearing to all of our
[17:54] city workers and union workers
[17:56] and our constituents, and
[17:57] everyone is showing up because
[17:58] you care about this city and
[17:58] you
[17:59] re taking time out of your
[18:01] day and away from your family
[18:02] to be here with us. I just
[18:03] wanted to take a moment to
[18:04] acknowledge everyone in the
[18:05] audience today, and to thank
[18:07] you all for being here. Uh,
[18:08] Councilmember, you
[18:08] re
[18:09] recognized.
[18:11] Thank you so much. Pro tem, um,
[18:13] district 17 has lots going on,
[18:13] and I
[18:14] m really excited because
[18:16] in JUNE, um, books and the Boys
[18:18] and Gold have teamed up. Um, so
[18:20] nsc and the National Public
[18:22] Library for special edition
[18:23] library card with tempo that
[18:25] you can only get this month in
[18:28] JUNE. So if anybody wants or
[18:29] needs a library card, you can
[18:30] sign up today. It
[18:32] s free and
[18:32] it
[18:33] s perfect timing because the
[18:35] Summer Reading Challenge just
[18:36] started yesterday. So just want
[18:37] to encourage everyone to
[18:39] participate. Participate in
[18:41] that and to keep reading all
[18:43] summer long. Um, in district 17
[18:46] on Saturday, JUNE 13th, I just
[18:46] want to make sure that everyone
[18:48] knows about the quarterly
[18:50] district 17 Town Hall that we
[18:52] will be having at United Record
[18:55] pressing at 3 P.M., and also
[18:57] for those earlier in the day if
[18:58] they want to celebrate the main
[18:58] library
[19:00] s 25th anniversary, uh,
[19:02] that will be happening from 10
[19:04] to 2. Um, also on Saturday the
[19:06] 13th. And I just want to do,
[19:08] um, a point of personal
[19:11] privilege. Uh, my niece Bailey
[19:13] turned 24 years old yesterday,
[19:15] so just wanted to wish Bailey a
[19:17] happy birthday. Um, and let her
[19:19] know that her auntie remembers
[19:22] her. So thank you so much.
[19:24] Thank you, Council member Vo
[19:26] and happy birthday as well.
[19:27] Council gamble, you
[19:28] re
[19:31] recognized.
[19:33] Thank you, MADAM Pro Tem, as we
[19:35] are celebrating, uh, pride
[19:37] month in the month of JUNE.
[19:38] Also immigrant month. We are
[19:41] also celebrating Black Music
[19:42] Month, National Black Music
[19:43] Month. So just want to remind
[19:45] everyone Nam has some great
[19:47] activities going on this month
[19:49] in celebration of Black Music
[19:51] Month and the Black Caucus will
[19:53] be having a meeting this
[19:57] Thursday on JUNE 4th at 6 P.M.
[19:58] Uh, in Committee room two, and
[20:00] anybody is invited to attend
[20:13] that as well. Thank you.
[20:17] Okay.
[20:20] Next we have Council. Lee, you
[20:22] are recognized.
[20:24] Thank you so very much. I just
[20:25] wanted to.
[20:26] Um.
[20:29] Announce we are having, um, you
[20:31] know, we have such a diverse
[20:32] district. Um, so.
[20:34] Our Caribbean.
[20:35] Brothers and sisters have
[20:38] organized a group, um, and the
[20:41] PRESIDENT Of that is Hamid
[20:43] Ciss\. And the person that
[20:43] s
[20:47] doing the organizing is, um,
[20:49] MR. Anthony Bower. You have
[20:51] seen them before you before we
[20:53] did a resolution to them
[20:55] before, um, you know, they have
[20:57] the, uh, jerk festival and
[20:58] different things like that.
[20:58] Well, I
[21:00] m very proud to say
[21:01] Saturday they are having a
[21:03] gala, but the Kingston
[21:06] s mayor,
[21:08] the councillor Andrew Schwab,
[21:11] is actually coming in to visit
[21:13] our city from Kingston. Joe.
[21:16] So, um, I would like to welcome
[21:16] them. They
[21:18] re not here, but I
[21:19] just wanted to let you all know
[21:20] we are so proud that that group
[21:21] is doing that. And I
[21:22] m so proud
[21:25] of all the diversity in our
[21:29] area. Thank you.
[21:30] Thank you so much.
[21:32] Councilmember Lee. Colleagues,
[21:33] is there anyone else that wants
[21:35] to be recognized? Budget your
[21:38] tombs are recognized.
[21:39] Thank you, MADAM Pro Tem, uh,
[21:41] on this Saturday, JUNE 6th at
[21:44] 10 A.M.. Uh, we are having a
[21:46] Senator Thelma Harper Highway
[21:47] dedication ceremony, uh,
[21:48] sponsored by the honorable
[21:50] Charlene Oliver. Uh, our
[21:54] district 19 state senator. Um,
[21:56] this 3930 Clarksville Pike.
[21:57] Basically, that
[21:57] s where the
[21:58] Kroger is on Clarksville
[22:00] Highway. Will be out in the
[22:02] parking lot. Uh, so encouraging
[22:03] the community to come out.
[22:11] Uh-Uh. So. To Kroger, but
[22:12] you
[22:13] re still in the same area.
[22:15] This is our area.
[22:16] But versus the the parking lot
[22:18] in front of the Kroger. And
[22:19] again, that
[22:19] s 10 A.M. This
[22:22] Saturday, JUNE 6th. Uh,
[22:24] celebrating the changing of the
[22:25] that portion of Clarksville
[22:26] Highway. The Senator Thelma
[22:36] Harper Highway.
[22:37] Thank you so very much.
[22:38] Councilmember tombs, would
[22:39] anyone else like to be
[22:42] recognized? Councilmember
[22:45] styles, you recognized?
[22:46] Thank you. I just wanted to.
[22:48] Remind people that cma.
[22:49] Fest is starting this week. We
[22:50] have.
[22:50] A lot.
[22:51] Of performers.
[22:53] Coming that are diverse
[22:56] downtown. Is doing activities.
[22:56] We
[22:57] ve got a lot of activities.
[22:58] Happening on Broadway.
[23:00] So if.
[23:00] You have.
[23:01] Some time this weekend, you
[23:03] should definitely come down and
[23:03] have a good.
[23:07] Time.
[23:08] Thank you, Councilmember
[23:09] styles, would anyone else like
[23:14] to be recognized? All right.
[23:18] Seeing none. That is the end? All right.
[34:05] Six. This is the 10th meeting
[34:08] of 2026 and the 62nd meeting of
[34:09] the current term of the
[34:11] metropolitan council of
[34:14] nashville and davidson county.
[34:15] Will all members of the council,
[34:17] as well as the public, please
[34:18] rise for the invocation and
[34:20] remain standing for the pledge
[34:22] of allegiance? The invocation
[34:24] is being offered this evening
[34:26] by the reverend doctor john
[34:29] faison, senior pastor of watson
[34:31] grove baptist church. He is the
[34:34] guest of district 17 council
[34:37] member terry vo. Welcome.
[34:38] Pastor faison, you are
[34:40] recognized.
[34:43] Shall we bow? GOD,
[34:44] we thank you for the blessings
[34:47] of an city. By your
[34:48] goodness and grace, nashville
[34:50] strives to remain forward
[34:52] focused and prosperous. You've
[34:55] given us people, creeds,
[34:57] ethnicities, faiths, and
[34:59] expressions of all kinds. That
[35:01] diversity is the secret sauce
[35:03] of our success. And for that,
[35:05] we are grateful. You've given
[35:07] us the incredible blessing of
[35:08] potential. There is so much
[35:10] ahead of us, and so much we
[35:13] still can yet become, not
[35:14] because of our goodness, but
[35:16] because of yours. And for that,
[35:19] we're grateful. Now as we
[35:20] engage in the people's work in
[35:23] the people's house, we ask that
[35:25] you keep your hands upon us.
[35:28] Bless our leadership with the
[35:30] wisdom to lead well, the
[35:31] steadiness, to handle the
[35:32] weight of their assignment, and
[35:34] the compassion to help make
[35:36] nashville a place of belonging
[35:38] for every expression of
[35:40] humanity that exists. Bless our
[35:42] elected officials, our
[35:44] government, our community
[35:45] leaders, and all of our
[35:48] citizens. Please keep before us.
[35:51] Those who are often overlooked
[35:53] remind us that budgets are
[35:55] moral documents, and that they
[35:57] reveal our true priorities
[35:59] every time. Help us make
[36:00] nashville a place of
[36:02] opportunity for those in this
[36:04] chamber, as well as the
[36:05] unhoused who sleep outside.
[36:07] Just steps from this chamber.
[36:11] Allow justice and fairness to one public square
[36:13] to every penthouse, and to
[36:16] every public housing complex in
[36:17] every discussion, give us the
[36:20] courage to choose inconvenient
[36:22] truth over comfortable lies.
[36:24] Let our choices be governed by
[36:26] the public good, not private
[36:28] dollars nor personal greed.
[36:30] Give us the sensitivity to see
[36:32] the needs of all nashvillians
[36:35] as an invitation from you to
[36:36] participate in your creative
[36:39] genius. Be with us today and
[36:40] forever. In your sovereign name
[36:44] we pray. Amen. Amen.
[36:45] I pledge
[36:47] allegiance to the flag of the
[36:49] united states of america and to
[36:51] the republic for which it
[36:55] stands. One nation under GOD,
[36:57] indivisible, with liberty and
[37:03] justice for all. All right. You
[37:06] MAY be seated quietly. So
[37:07] please. We have a whole lot of
[37:09] folks here. We're glad to see
[37:11] it. Let's try to be as quiet as
[37:13] possible. Thank you, reverend
[37:16] faison. Okay. Welcome, council
[37:17] and community members. Happy
[37:20] pride month, everyone, and
[37:21] happy immigrant heritage month
[37:24] and caribbean american heritage
[37:26] month. Thank you to immigrant
[37:28] caucus of the metro council
[37:30] chair vo for organizing an
[37:32] awareness event on the steps of
[37:34] the historic courthouse. Thank
[37:37] you to the caucus this
[37:39] afternoon to highlight the
[37:41] contributions of immigrants and
[37:42] refugees to nashville's
[37:44] cultural, civic, and economic
[37:46] vitality. Thank you to council
[37:48] member gad and moms demand
[37:50] action of tennessee for
[37:51] organizing council's wear
[37:54] orange effort today, JUNE 6th,
[37:55] is national gun violence
[37:57] awareness day, and this is wear
[38:00] orange weekend coming up this
[38:02] weekend with a variety of
[38:03] activations to remind us that
[38:06] some 47,000 americans die by
[38:09] gun violence every year, which
[38:11] is nearly 130 lives lost per
[38:13] day. And those losses impact
[38:15] families, friends and
[38:17] communities deeply and broadly.
[38:19] The united states has a gun
[38:21] homicide rate 26 times higher
[38:23] than that of our peer nations.
[38:25] This should not be our nation's
[38:27] normal. Public safety and
[38:30] justice departments represent
[38:32] 22% of metro's budget and
[38:34] community safety in all its
[38:36] many diverse forms will no
[38:38] doubt be something the public
[38:39] will be speaking to us about
[38:42] this evening, along with
[38:44] education, which represents 37%
[38:46] of the budget. For detailed
[38:48] information about the operating
[38:50] budget, the city's revenues and
[38:51] expenditures, and the budgeting
[38:53] process in general, we
[38:54] encourage all nashvillians to
[38:56] give a look to the citizens
[38:59] guide to the budget
[39:00] online@nashville.Gov. We have
[39:03] some elections and
[39:04] confirmations. A brief public
[39:07] comment period for non budget
[39:09] agenda items, and a proposed
[39:11] amendment to our rules of
[39:14] procedure to address. Before we
[39:16] get to the budget public
[39:17] hearing, I will provide you
[39:19] with more specific information
[39:21] about the conduct of that
[39:22] hearing at that time. So let's
[39:26] move right into our agenda.
[39:27] Without objection, we will
[39:28] suspend the calling of the roll
[39:30] and ask the clerk to please
[39:31] record the names of the members
[39:32] present throughout the meeting.
[39:35] Is there a motion for approval
[39:36] of the minutes of the meeting
[39:39] of MAY 19th, 2026? All right.
[39:41] Is there a second? All right.
[39:42] There's a motion, properly
[39:44] seconded, without objection.
[39:46] And seeing no one seeking to be
[39:48] recognized for a change to the
[39:51] minutes. All right. The minutes
[39:53] of the meeting of MAY 19th are
[39:55] approved, MR. Clerk. Are there
[39:58] any messages from the mayor?
[39:59] There are no messages from the
[40:00] mayor.
[40:05] Thank you, MR. Clark.
[40:08] Have one election this evening
[40:11] to fill two vacancies on the
[40:13] transportation licensing
[40:16] commission, with terms expiring
[40:21] APRIL 30th of 2028, with as
[40:23] there are only two nominees for
[40:26] those two spots. Without
[40:29] objection, we can proceed by
[40:33] acclamation. The nominees for
[40:35] these two vacancies are erica
[40:37] penley, nominated by council
[40:40] member spain and members and
[40:43] MR. T and any clever. Nominated
[40:46] by council member koopman. Is
[40:48] there any objection to
[40:52] proceeding by acclamation? Okay.
[40:56] Seeing no objection. All right.
[40:58] All in favor of the MISS Penley
[41:00] and MISS Klaver, please say aye.
[41:03] All right. Council has elected
[41:06] erica penley. And if y'all are
[41:08] with us this evening, do please
[41:12] stand. And, annie klaver, if
[41:14] you're with us. I don't believe
[41:17] they are, but we express our
[41:18] appreciation to them and we
[41:20] will keep rolling right into
[41:23] our appointees and nominees. So
[41:25] congratulations. All right,
[41:27] section f of our agenda.
[41:28] Appointees and nominees. This
[41:30] portion of the agenda shares
[41:31] all persons who were scheduled
[41:33] to appear before the rules,
[41:33] confirmations and public
[41:35] elections committee for an
[41:37] interview this evening.
[41:39] Referrals committee
[41:40] will be by rule as part of the
[41:41] council's two meeting process
[41:43] for elections and confirmations.
[41:45] No votes will be taken by the
[41:47] body in this section of the
[41:51] agenda. Chair. Cash as brief a
[41:53] report as possible, please, sir.
[41:54] No vote totals necessary.
[41:56] Simply the names of those
[41:58] interviewed and for which board,
[42:00] commission, committee or entity.
[42:01] And if a person is in the
[42:03] appointment and confirmation
[42:04] process and was unable to
[42:05] attend your committee this
[42:07] evening at what meeting they
[42:08] will next appear, or if they
[42:12] were withdrawn, go ahead, chair.
[42:14] First for the central business
[42:15] improvement district board
[42:17] appointment, christopher
[42:21] carlson we deferred one meeting.
[42:22] Central business improvement
[42:23] district board appointment of
[42:27] patrick hamilton was withdrawn.
[42:28] Contract and compliance board
[42:30] reappointment of bobby and
[42:33] bethany for the hospital
[42:34] authority. Reappointment of
[42:40] alfonso harvey for the hospital
[42:42] authority. Reappointment of
[42:43] doctor raymond martin. We. That
[42:48] was withdrawn. And then for
[42:52] social services as well. A cuff
[42:55] was a one deferral and
[42:55] -
[42:56] for the social services
[42:57] commission. Appointment of
[42:59] mandy spears was approved.
[43:02] Okay.
[43:06] All right. Next chair cash,
[43:07] you're recognized again for
[43:08] your committee report on the
[43:10] appointees in the second step
[43:11] of your committee's two meeting
[43:12] process, this time with vote
[43:14] totals and a consolidated
[43:15] motion for the confirmation of
[43:17] those persons, or first for a
[43:19] deferral motion if there are
[43:21] any. Go ahead, sir.
[43:22] Fire and
[43:23] building code. Appeals board.
[43:25] Reappointment of hahnloser
[43:27] approved. Six to 0 to 0. Fire
[43:29] and building code. Appeals
[43:32] board. Reappointment of tim pro
[43:34] for. For term expiring JULY
[43:37] 19th, 2030. Approved six to 0
[43:39] to 0 for the board of health. A
[43:41] reappointment of jeffrey stove
[43:42] doctor jeffrey stovall for a
[43:45] term expiring JULY 9th, 2031,
[43:46] approved 6 to 0 zero and the
[43:48] traffic and parking commission
[43:49] appointment of tom sturdivant
[43:51] for a term expiring APRIL 3rd,
[43:54] 2031 approved 600 and I move
[43:54] approval.
[43:56] All right. There a
[44:00] motion to confirm these for
[44:04] appointees. In a consolidated
[44:06] motion. Is there a second. Okay.
[44:08] does anyone wish to remove an
[44:09] item from this consolidated
[44:11] motion for purposes of an
[44:12] individual abstention or a no
[44:15] vote? All right. Seeing none.
[44:18] All in favor of these
[44:19] confirmations, please say I.
[44:22] All right. Council has
[44:25] confirmed these appointees and
[44:27] appointees. Two are confirmed
[44:29] appointees. If you chose to
[44:31] return to the council chamber
[44:32] this evening, which is not
[44:34] required, do please stand as I
[44:36] call your names. Council has
[44:38] confirmed the reappointment of
[44:40] key hahnloser to the fire and
[44:43] building codes appeal board.
[44:46] Council has confirmed the
[44:48] reappointment of tim pro also
[44:50] to the fire and building code
[44:52] appeals board and then council
[44:55] has confirmed the reappointment
[44:56] to te board of health of
[44:59] doctor jeffrey g. Stovall. And
[45:01] lastly, council has confirmed
[45:03] the appointment of tom
[45:04] sturdivant to the traffic and
[45:06] parking commission. Welcome,
[45:07] sir, and thank you. Thank you
[45:09] to you all. Whether in our
[45:11] chamber or watching from home.
[45:12] We appreciate your willingness
[45:29] to serve. Thank you.
[45:33] All right.
[45:35] Section h of our agenda is the
[45:37] public comment period. Again,
[45:42] these are for agenda items than the budget members
[45:44] of the public who are tennessee
[45:46] residents wishing to speak
[45:47] during public comment MAY sign
[45:49] up at a table outside the
[45:50] council chamber from 5 to 6
[45:52] P.M. On the day of a council
[45:53] meeting. Public comment is
[45:55] limited to 20 minutes total at
[45:56] council meetings, and each
[45:58] speaker is allowed up to two
[46:00] minutes to speak. Persons
[46:01] speaking on agenda items must
[46:04] be prioritized to comply with
[46:07] state law. All right. Our first
[46:10] three folks, I'll kind of read
[46:12] the the first three invite you
[46:15] to come forward, and then we
[46:17] will have seven total folks for
[46:21] public comment. First is chloe
[46:24] donigan, followed by michael
[46:27] lacey and kelly chang. Chloe
[46:29] donigan is speaking on agenda
[46:34] item 37. This is ordinance 1391,
[46:36] a record regarding data centers
[46:40] in opposition. Go ahead. You
[46:43] are recognized.
[46:44] Good evening.
[46:46] My is chloe dunnigan. I am
[46:48] a 19 year old resident of the
[46:49] rutherford county of the
[46:52] greater nashville area. I have
[46:55] come to express concerns and
[46:58] urge to limit more on proposed
[46:59] ai data centers in nashville
[47:01] due to the economic and
[47:03] societal harm that they cause.
[47:04] Only 3% of earth's water is
[47:07] fresh water, and only 0.5% of
[47:11] all of that is drinkable. Centers tap into the
[47:12] community's drinkable water
[47:14] supply and use up to 5 million
[47:16] gallons of water per day, which
[47:17] equates to a community of
[47:20] 50,000 people. Only 80% of this
[47:21] used water ends up evaporating
[47:23] into the air, and the other 20%
[47:25] or 1 million gallons is pushed
[47:27] into local processing plants.
[47:29] These plants are already at
[47:30] maximum capacity due to having
[47:31] such a booming economy around
[47:33] nashville and the surrounding
[47:34] areas, and the rest of that
[47:35] will become immense
[47:37] environmental runoff. This
[47:39] water will contain corrosive
[47:42] inhibitors such as nitrates and
[47:44] bbs, which is used in
[47:46] antifreeze. Industrial biocides
[47:48] such as chlorine dioxide,
[47:49] bromine, sodium
[47:51] hypochlorite, which is
[47:52] literally industrial bleach,
[47:54] and toxic heavy metals such as
[47:56] chromium, nickel, copper, and
[47:58] zinc. If this is not enough to
[48:00] see that we are doing some. But
[48:02] we need to protect nashvillians
[48:03] more, these centers are also
[48:04] corrosive and toxic to the air
[48:06] that we breathe. Industrial
[48:08] size diesel powered backup
[48:11] generators spew dpm or diesel
[48:12] particulate matter into the air,
[48:14] whichis a chemical cause of
[48:16] lung cancer, heart attacks, and
[48:18] respiratory inflammation, not
[48:20] to mention nitrogen oxides
[48:22] joining together and creating a
[48:23] ground level ozone and smog,
[48:25] which triggers underlying
[48:27] asthma and lung function,
[48:28] decreases, specifically in
[48:32] children from 50ml to 150ml of
[48:34] reduction in their childhood. I
[48:36] respect the current attempts to
[48:37] restrict. However, that is
[48:38] simply not enough to protect,
[48:40] and I hope that you can see the
[48:41] dangers that loom above us.
[48:42] Thank you.
[48:46] Thank you folks. All
[48:53] right. We are so glad you are
[48:55] here. I just want to convey we
[48:58] are not going to clap after
[48:59] speakers, whether in public
[49:01] comment or public hearing,
[49:02] because if we allow the clap
[49:04] time, the definition of clap
[49:05] time, then the next person like
[49:07] we're going to be here for many
[49:09] hours together looking forward
[49:13] to it. But please, you know, no
[49:15] extended clapping. Thank you.
[49:17] MR. Lacey is next. He is
[49:19] speaking on agenda item 13.
[49:23] This is resolution 2026 2006 in
[49:24] support. Go ahead.
[49:25] The item
[49:28] that I'm speaking on has to do
[49:31] with salaries for police and
[49:32] firefighters, and I'm bringing
[49:33] that up not in dissimilar
[49:36] context when it comes to ai
[49:38] data centers, because what
[49:39] you're going to hear about with
[49:41] maybe some future comments and
[49:42] from news articles and likely
[49:45] lawsuits filed over the
[49:46] implementation of a drone
[49:48] surveillance program that's
[49:50] currently happening is you are
[49:53] seeing disproportionately, in
[49:55] fact, a completely
[49:57] disproportionate ratio of
[49:59] drones going to nonwhite
[50:02] districts. First, actual
[50:03] nonwhite districts versus ones
[50:04] that have a majority white
[50:06] population. But I want to talk
[50:08] about not just the civil
[50:10] liberties aspect of this, but
[50:14] the fact that in industries as
[50:15] wide as you can imagine,
[50:17] there's a concept of training
[50:19] your own replacement. We're
[50:21] seeing that it's not just
[50:23] people in tech. It's not just
[50:24] people who write music for a
[50:26] living. It's not just people
[50:28] who do marketing for a living.
[50:30] We're seeing even law
[50:31] enforcement have its jobs being
[50:34] taken from them by the ai
[50:36] powered corporate mass
[50:37] surveillance. What we're seeing
[50:38] with these drone programs are
[50:40] not just civil liberties issues.
[50:42] These are people training this
[50:44] technology to replace them. And
[50:46] even if people feel like that,
[50:49] they are contributing to what
[50:50] larry ellison describes as his
[50:52] vision for a society, which is
[50:53] one where everything is being
[50:55] constantly recorded. Even if
[50:56] you're contributing to that
[50:58] vision, you're not you're still
[50:59] subject to the same market
[51:01] forces that are looking to
[51:03] replace you in your workplace
[51:05] with ai technology. So while
[51:07] terms like force multiplier are
[51:09] used, but with the hundreds of
[51:10] millions of dollars of
[51:12] marketing that is being sold,
[51:13] this technology, I really want
[51:15] that. There's a lot of union
[51:17] workers here. And I want to
[51:19] remind our police force and our
[51:20] firefighters that they, too,
[51:21] are a union and that they're a
[51:23] budget line that people look to
[51:26] cut using ai.
[51:27] Thank you. Next
[51:30] is kelly chang. Kelly will be
[51:32] followed by mann and hall and
[51:34] shawnee glapion and miriam alba.
[51:36] If you want to go ahead and
[51:37] come forward. Kelly, speaking
[51:41] on agenda item 37, this is bl
[51:45] 2026 1391. Regarding data
[51:47] centers in support. Go ahead.
[51:48] Hi.
[51:50] My comment is going to be a
[51:52] little bit of a combination of
[51:54] the last two. So I think chloe
[51:55] did a great job covering some
[51:57] of the environmental and health
[51:59] impacts of ata centers. But
[52:01] what I want, I hope everyone
[52:02] understands and if not, you
[52:05] will. Data centers are also the
[52:06] back end of mass surveillance.
[52:08] We don't need data centers to
[52:10] use our phones to email or
[52:12] watch netflix. As tech
[52:14] companies have been pushing. We
[52:16] need data centers to save our
[52:18] retina scans and our license
[52:20] plates and all of the places
[52:22] that we go that are constantly
[52:23] tracked by giant corporations
[52:26] who profit off us as a product
[52:29] and then sell it back to us. So
[52:31] while I'm very concerned about
[52:32] the environmental impacts of
[52:34] data centers and the
[52:35] environmental racism that we've
[52:38] seen in memphis with x, a, I,
[52:39] and I have major concerns about
[52:41] a data center being built at
[52:43] fisk in the midst of a
[52:44] historically black neighborhood.
[52:46] I think we all also need to
[52:48] zoom out and understand that we
[52:50] are building these data centers,
[52:51] which are increasing our
[52:53] electric bills and taking our
[52:54] water and polluting our
[52:55] environment, and there's noise
[52:57] pollution and all these things
[52:58] too, but we are also building
[53:00] our own cages. And a lot of it
[53:02] is done with taxpayer dollars
[53:04] and subsidies. And so that is
[53:06] why you are seeing data centers
[53:08] be the number one most uniting
[53:11] issue across the political
[53:14] spectrum in this country, 71%
[53:15] as far as a recent gallup poll
[53:17] of people across the political
[53:18] spectrum are opposed to data
[53:20] centers. Our next elections,
[53:21] the biggest issues are going to
[53:23] be data centers and mass
[53:23] surveillance. And I'm telling
[53:25] you all that because everyone
[53:27] in this room largely
[53:28] understands those risks. But it
[53:30] does not seem like our elected
[53:32] officials have caught up. So
[53:34] for those of you who are in
[53:35] favor of mass surveillance, I
[53:37] would suggest if you want to
[53:38] keep your seats, you got to
[53:40] catch up to the public opinion.
[53:41] And with this illegally
[53:41] implemented drone program,
[53:43] there is a ton of pushback, and
[53:45] there will be more conversation
[53:46] and possibly lawsuits around
[53:49] how it's been implemented.
[53:52] Thank you. Next is manning hall
[53:56] speaking on agenda item six,
[53:59] resolution 1963 in opposition.
[54:01] Go ahead.
[54:02] Hi, guys. So once
[54:05] again, you know, people using
[54:08] our local dollars for private
[54:10] policing. This is an extension
[54:11] of a lot of what they've
[54:12] already talked about, handing
[54:16] our money and our values to
[54:17] corporations when they don't
[54:21] have our local values in mind,
[54:23] you know, kind of say once
[54:25] again, I know many of you all,
[54:28] I think being confident in the
[54:30] fact that not using our
[54:32] tax dollars to hire, hire
[54:35] racial profilers is incredibly
[54:37] important to me. We chose as a
[54:42] city to act on the driving
[54:45] while black study. We've chosen
[54:46] to make better decisions,
[54:47] decisions with our public
[54:48] safety dollars and with our
[54:51] public safety actions, and
[54:53] approving a budget that we know
[54:56] is going to pay for private
[55:02] police that work for thp that
[55:04] we they won't say if they have
[55:05] racially profiled. That's
[55:09] incredibly concerning to me.
[55:12] And I hope, you know, the
[55:15] confidence that they can't give
[55:17] you an answer. And that's good
[55:19] enough when, you know, that's
[55:24] dozens of employees that
[55:25] participated in the ice raids
[55:26] last year that racially
[55:28] profiled against nashvillians,
[55:29] against our neighbors. And
[55:31] we're confident that none of
[55:32] them are going to be paid with
[55:34] our local tax dollars to be
[55:36] downtown, where lots of people,
[55:37] lots of immigrants downtown,
[55:40] lots of people that have
[55:43] experienced violence from these
[55:48] agencies and going to end that.
[55:50] I hope that you all take your
[55:54] role seriously when it comes to
[55:55] surveillance technology and
[55:57] demand a public hearing for the
[55:58] ongoing surveillance trial with
[56:01] these drones. Thank you.
[56:01] Thank
[56:04] you. Next is shiny glapion.
[56:06] Speaking also on agenda item
[56:09] six, resolution 1963, and
[56:11] opposition shall be followed by
[56:13] miriam alba. And then lastly,
[56:15] welcome to come forward, trina
[56:18] as well. Go ahead, MISS Clapton.
[56:20] How y'all doing? Y'all look
[56:23] very engaged. I appreciate that.
[56:25] I'm requesting thisbody
[56:27] confirm reporting compliance
[56:30] from alliancebernstein before
[56:34] approving its $541,500 economic
[56:37] incentive in this year's budget.
[56:38] Companies have made many
[56:40] promises, but we need to ensure
[56:41] that they are honoring those
[56:43] before issuing our public
[56:44] dollars. It's imperative that
[56:46] council ensures the public
[56:48] interest is being served. As we
[56:51] sit here in the gallery here
[56:54] and fight for crumbs like the
[56:57] hunger games. So y'all have a
[56:59] good one. See y'all in a bit.
[57:00] Thank you.
[57:01] Thank you. Next is
[57:03] miriam alba speaking on agenda
[57:07] item 37. This is ordinance 1391
[57:09] regarding data centers in
[57:11] support of 1391. Go ahead.
[57:12] Hey
[57:13] y'all. It's good to see you
[57:15] again. I'm going to duck out
[57:17] here soon. But you know what I
[57:18] want for housing. So please do
[57:20] that. But I wanted to speak on
[57:22] data centers. I assume this is
[57:24] something we all agree on. We
[57:25] don't want dirty water. We
[57:27] don't want to be coughing when
[57:28] we walk outside. We don't want
[57:29] to hear that noise. That
[57:31] apparently is just really loud.
[57:32] With data centers. We don't
[57:34] want our electricity bills to
[57:35] go through the roof. We don't
[57:37] want to invest in something or
[57:38] have others invest in something
[57:40] in our city that we actually
[57:41] know nothing about in terms of
[57:44] long term impact. So in case
[57:46] some of us do, because we think
[57:47] like we need some sort of
[57:49] revenue from businesses or some
[57:52] deal or something like that.
[57:54] And I, I have compassion for
[57:55] your desire to bring revenue to
[57:57] the city. I'm begging you and
[57:59] asking you to stop that for
[58:01] right now and regulate this
[58:03] data center technology that's
[58:05] coming here that has already
[58:07] really, really harmed a lot of
[58:09] people just environmentally.
[58:11] And it's going to be real. And
[58:13] it's, we got to put these, we
[58:15] got to put these boundaries on
[58:16] it, but we've also got to
[58:18] figure out how they're going to
[58:19] work in order to make us safe.
[58:21] So I would ask you to just look
[58:23] at the regulation, keep the
[58:23] distances, keep the
[58:25] environmental regulations on it.
[58:27] Be forward thinking in this,
[58:29] because otherwise we don't even
[58:30] know what this looks like in 5
[58:32] to 10 years. We just know what
[58:34] it looks like in 2 to 3 years.
[58:35] And it's looking really ugly
[58:37] for a lot of cities. Nashville
[58:38] is doing all right. I know
[58:40] we're all pinching pennies here,
[58:41] but it's doing all right. And
[58:43] we don't need to sell to the
[58:44] data centers. We don't know how
[58:46] long this little trend is going
[58:48] to last, but we do know that
[58:49] the impact is really bad for us
[58:51] as human beings. So please, I'm
[58:52] asking you to really think
[58:53] twice about this. I appreciate
[58:55] it and fund housing. Love you
[58:56] all. Bye.
[58:58] Thank you. All right.
[59:00] Lastly for public comment is
[59:05] trina. Who will trina. I see item six here, but I
[59:09] also see resolution 2006, which
[59:10] is regarding the pay plan. Are
[59:19] you speaking regarding the pay
[59:19] plan? No. You're speaking
[59:19] regarding the seabed. Yep. Okay.
[59:19] agenda item six, that is
[59:21] resolution 1963 in opposition.
[59:22] Please go ahead.
[59:22] All right.
[59:24] Yeah. Good evening. My name is
[59:25] trina. I live in district six.
[59:28] I'm here tonight to oppose item
[59:32] six, 2026, 1963. Today we are
[59:33] hearing a lot about law and
[59:34] order to justify the central
[59:36] business improvement district
[59:38] budget. But as mike lacy
[59:39] pointed out today, true law and
[59:40] order is the discipline of
[59:42] binding power to publicly known
[59:44] rules. What is being assembled
[59:45] by the nashville downtown
[59:47] partnership is the exact
[59:49] opposite. Their contracts are
[59:51] confidential and their security
[59:52] operations lack public
[59:53] oversight. This isn't an
[59:55] isolated incident. It's a
[59:56] systemic pattern of metro
[59:59] bypassing this body to deploy
[1:00:00] unaccountable law enforcement.
[1:00:02] Just last week, on MAY 26th,
[1:00:04] mpd launched a secret
[1:00:05] unapproved drone surveillance
[1:00:07] trial centered over madison.
[1:00:09] Under metro, ordinance tracking
[1:00:10] tech requires a public hearing
[1:00:12] and council approval. They
[1:00:14] skipped both. Even worse, data
[1:00:16] shows 100% of those trial
[1:00:17] flights targeted working class
[1:00:18] neighborhoods, with below
[1:00:20] average white populations,
[1:00:21] exposing the city to massive
[1:00:24] civil rights liability. From
[1:00:25] unauthorized surveillance to
[1:00:27] corporate backed ground patrols.
[1:00:28] Metro is trying to operate a
[1:00:30] secret city within our city.
[1:00:32] Look at the ndp's actual track
[1:00:33] record. They operate the
[1:00:35] library parking garage because
[1:00:36] of negligent oversight in their
[1:00:38] own managed space, they caused
[1:00:40] a catastrophic nine month
[1:00:41] shutdown of our main public
[1:00:44] library, destroying the single
[1:00:46] most vital, safe sanctuary left
[1:00:47] for our unhoused neighbors. And
[1:00:49] tonight, they want millions in
[1:00:51] tax surcharges to expand their
[1:00:52] footprint and deploy private,
[1:00:54] unaccountable policing to
[1:00:55] aggressively sweep away the
[1:00:58] exact community they helped
[1:01:00] displace. Do not reward secret
[1:01:03] drone programs, confidential
[1:01:04] contracts, and operational
[1:01:06] negligence. Reject this
[1:01:08] corporate annexation of our
[1:01:11] streets. Vote no on 2026 1963.
[1:01:13] Thank you.
[1:01:15] Thank you. All right.
[1:01:19] That concludes our public
[1:01:28] comment period. Next is agenda
[1:01:32] section. Regarding a
[1:01:34] amendment to a rule of
[1:01:36] procedure. This is an amendment
[1:01:39] to rule 46 regarding the
[1:01:42] scheduling of council meetings
[1:01:44] sponsored offered by council
[1:01:46] member prep. You're recognized
[1:01:46] sir.
[1:01:47] Thank you, MADAM Vice
[1:01:48] mayor. Committee report.
[1:01:48] For
[1:01:50] the report of the rules,
[1:01:51] confirmations and public
[1:01:53] elections committee chair cash.
[1:01:56] We voted on council member prep
[1:01:58] to substitute six in favor, one
[1:02:00] against zero not voting. And
[1:02:03] then we voted on the
[1:02:05] substituted rule change. Six in
[1:02:07] favor, one against zero not
[1:02:07] voting.
[1:02:09] Okay. Thank you. It's
[1:02:11] back to you, MR. Prep for a
[1:02:12] motion.
[1:02:13] Thank you, MADAM Vice
[1:02:14] mayor. Move approval.
[1:02:15] All right.
[1:02:16] Properly moved and seconded. Go
[1:02:16] ahead sir.
[1:02:17] Thank you, madam
[1:02:18] vice mayor. Move approval of
[1:02:20] the substitute with a brief
[1:02:20] comment.
[1:02:21] All right. There's a
[1:02:22] motion to substitute. Is there
[1:02:24] a second? Okay. Go ahead, sir.
[1:02:26] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor.
[1:02:27] Colleagues. So this proposed
[1:02:29] rule change effectively, what
[1:02:31] it would have done is it would
[1:02:33] have canceled the second
[1:02:34] meeting in AUGUST and the first
[1:02:36] meeting in SEPTEMBER, providing
[1:02:38] us with an opportunity to be
[1:02:39] more embedded within our
[1:02:41] communities, to do a lot of the
[1:02:43] work that we do outside of this
[1:02:44] council chamber without the
[1:02:45] pressures of our legislative
[1:02:48] schedule. However, what this
[1:02:49] substitute does is it pairs
[1:02:50] that back and simply just
[1:02:52] cancels the first
[1:02:54] SEPTEMBER, still providing us
[1:02:55] with that legislative respite
[1:02:57] for us to be able to be
[1:02:58] embedded in our communities and
[1:02:59] continue doing a lot of the
[1:03:01] work that we do outside of this
[1:03:02] chamber, because, as we know,
[1:03:04] the majority of work that we do
[1:03:06] is not what happens in this
[1:03:07] chamber. And so this substitute
[1:03:08] is a result of some pretty
[1:03:10] robust conversation that we had
[1:03:12] within the rules committee last
[1:03:14] meeting whenever we were
[1:03:16] contemplating this. But that's
[1:03:17] what this legislation, that's
[1:03:19] what this substitute does, is
[1:03:22] it it just cancels that first
[1:03:23] meeting in SEPTEMBER, providing
[1:03:24] us with a brief respite to be
[1:03:26] able to do a lot more of the
[1:03:28] things that that we do outside
[1:03:29] of this council chamber. So
[1:03:31] with that, I renew my motion
[1:03:32] and appreciate your
[1:03:32] consideration.
[1:03:34] All right. There
[1:03:37] is a motion to substitute. It's
[1:03:39] properly seconded. You've heard
[1:03:41] a description by the sponsor.
[1:03:46] Is there any discussion? All
[1:03:48] right. Seeing none of this is
[1:03:51] first on the motion to
[1:03:52] substitute. All in favor of the
[1:03:55] substitute, please say aye.
[1:03:59] Okay. The substitute is on the
[1:04:01] the role. If you would renew
[1:04:01] your motion, please, sir.
[1:04:02] Thank
[1:04:03] you, MADAM Vice mayor. Move
[1:04:04] approval of substitute.
[1:04:04] All
[1:04:06] right. Is there a second? All
[1:04:07] right. So there's a motion to
[1:04:09] approve this rule of procedure
[1:04:13] as substituted, such that the
[1:04:16] first tuesday in SEPTEMBER
[1:04:18] would no longer be a meeting of
[1:04:20] the council and effectively,
[1:04:23] the third tuesday in SEPTEMBER
[1:04:25] would operate as the first and
[1:04:27] only meeting. Is that correct,
[1:04:27] MR.
[1:04:28] Prep for.
[1:04:29] Purposes of
[1:04:30] zoning, public hearings and so
[1:04:33] forth. Okay. All right. Is
[1:04:36] there any discussion on this
[1:04:41] motion to adopt this rule of
[1:04:43] procedure as substituted? All
[1:04:46] right, MISS Allen, you're
[1:04:46] recognized.
[1:04:47] Thank you, MADAM
[1:04:48] Chair. Just for clarification,
[1:04:50] there were some complications
[1:04:54] with nominations and and public
[1:04:56] notices with that extended
[1:04:58] period of not meeting. Is that
[1:04:59] resolved with moving to the
[1:05:01] only missing one meeting in
[1:05:03] terms of things that would
[1:05:04] default to being approved
[1:05:05] because we had gone so long
[1:05:07] without meeting or having a
[1:05:09] difficulty making the the
[1:05:11] public notice for public
[1:05:11] hearings.
[1:05:12] would you like me to
[1:05:14] address that to special counsel
[1:05:14] or the sponsor?
[1:05:15] I believe
[1:05:16] special counsel.
[1:05:16] Probe special
[1:05:17] counsel. Wilson, you're
[1:05:18] recognized.
[1:05:19] Council member in
[1:05:22] this case, one deferral would
[1:05:26] be allowed for appointments in.
[1:05:27] With the. With only the
[1:05:29] cancellation of one meeting, I
[1:05:32] would want to defer to planning
[1:05:33] for anything on. Particularly
[1:05:36] with notices, but I see they're
[1:05:39] not here.
[1:05:41] All right.
[1:05:41] Give me
[1:05:48] one moment.
[1:05:50] Sponsor t while
[1:05:52] special counsel reviews that
[1:05:54] analysis, would you like to
[1:05:57] respond? In the meantime, go
[1:05:57] ahead sir.
[1:05:58] Thank you, MADAM
[1:06:00] Vice mayor. So with regard, I
[1:06:02] think council member allen is
[1:06:04] asking sort of to. Well, there
[1:06:05] there are two components to
[1:06:07] this question. The first one
[1:06:08] related to appointments made by
[1:06:10] the mayor for boards and
[1:06:12] commissions. So the original
[1:06:14] analysis of this bill or of
[1:06:16] this rule change with it having
[1:06:17] been to meetings previously,
[1:06:19] was that would have a negative
[1:06:21] impact on those appointments in
[1:06:22] the sense that we wouldn't be
[1:06:24] able to defer them at all
[1:06:25] without them becoming an
[1:06:27] indefinite deferral with us,
[1:06:30] know with the rule change as
[1:06:31] substituted, no longer
[1:06:32] canceling that AUGUST meeting,
[1:06:33] that no longer becomes one of
[1:06:35] the pressures, because it's
[1:06:36] because it would still permit
[1:06:37] for deferrals within within
[1:06:40] that time frame. Then, with
[1:06:43] regard to the schedule for
[1:06:45] public hearings and with
[1:06:46] planning, give me one moment. I
[1:06:49] might have some helpful insight
[1:06:51] into that.
[1:06:53] Sponsor t a special
[1:06:54] counsel has that answer. Now,
[1:06:55] if MAY I I'm going to put it
[1:06:57] back over to him.
[1:06:57] By all means.
[1:06:59] Please go ahead, sir.
[1:06:59] Council
[1:07:03] members, at this point, if
[1:07:04] essentially anything that would
[1:07:08] you would want to hear on a on
[1:07:09] an OCTOBER public hearing would
[1:07:11] need to be filed by the second
[1:07:13] meeting in AUGUST if something
[1:07:15] was filed for the second, for
[1:07:17] the second, or for the third
[1:07:18] meeting of the third tuesday of
[1:07:19] NOVEMBER, it would not receive
[1:07:20] a public hearing until the
[1:07:23] first meeting in NOVEMBER. I'm
[1:07:25] sorry, did I did I say that
[1:07:25] correctly?
[1:07:26] Okay. Does that
[1:07:27] answer your question? So we
[1:07:27] just.
[1:07:29] Needed to plan ahead and
[1:07:31] be aware of that change in in
[1:07:32] how the rhythm works at that
[1:07:34] time if we approve this.
[1:07:35] Yes.
[1:07:36] Thank you for that
[1:07:37] clarification.
[1:07:38] All right. Yes.
[1:07:39] MR. Prep to you recognize.
[1:07:41] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor. So
[1:07:43] with regard to the the
[1:07:45] scheduling for for planning
[1:07:47] bills in particular. So I was
[1:07:49] provided a chart that provides
[1:07:51] us with which I would be more
[1:07:52] than happy to share with the
[1:07:54] council office be able to be
[1:07:55] disseminated to, to colleagues,
[1:08:00] but for application. So for the
[1:08:02] MAY 13th application deadline
[1:08:05] for for zoning bills, it would
[1:08:07] go to the planning commission.
[1:08:08] So it wouldn't affect a shift
[1:08:10] of it going to the planning
[1:08:11] commission or of its intro.
[1:08:13] What it would do is it would
[1:08:15] shift the public hearing for
[1:08:17] bills for for zoning bills that
[1:08:20] were originally filed on MAY
[1:08:22] 13th, moving that from moving
[1:08:24] the council public hearing,
[1:08:27] second reading from SEPTEMBER
[1:08:29] 1st to SEPTEMBER 15th. And it
[1:08:31] would shift third reading from
[1:08:34] SEPTEMBER 15th to OCTOBER 6th.
[1:08:35] And so I can again. So that's
[1:08:37] just one example of what that
[1:08:39] shift would look like. It still
[1:08:40] allows for thosebills to be
[1:08:41] considered, but it simply
[1:08:42] shifts that timeline. And again,
[1:08:44] I'm more than happy to, to
[1:08:45] share this with the council
[1:08:46] office so it can be
[1:08:48] disseminated to colleagues.
[1:08:48] All
[1:08:50] right. Thank you. Is there any
[1:08:52] further discussion on this
[1:08:56] proposed change to the rules as
[1:08:58] substituted? All right. So
[1:09:00] we're going to move to our vote.
[1:09:05] This requires 27 votes of
[1:09:06] members and special counsel.
[1:09:09] How many do we have in the room.
[1:09:11] We have 30 in the room. So in
[1:09:13] an abundance of caution I am
[1:09:15] going to put this on the board.
[1:09:19] MR. Clark, if you would please
[1:09:35] open the machine.
[1:09:56] With all
[1:09:57] votes in. MR. Clerk, would you
[1:10:02] please show the vote? That
[1:10:04] board is not correct, MR. Clark.
[1:10:10] Is that so? Okay. This
[1:10:11] colleagues, the so the screen
[1:10:13] what you're seeing at home.
[1:10:15] Special counsel, can you please
[1:10:19] clarify that a an amendment to
[1:10:20] our rule of procedure does in
[1:10:23] fact require 27 votes total.
[1:10:26] that was 23 votes in the
[1:10:28] affirmative. MR. Clark, do you
[1:10:30] seek to display the vote again
[1:10:31] for purposes of the record, or
[1:10:33] do you want me to put it to
[1:10:36] special counsel to clarify?
[1:10:38] Okay, so, special counsel, I'm
[1:10:40] going to recognize you. Please,
[1:10:42] sir. And, MR. Clark, could you
[1:10:44] just could you call the vote as
[1:10:47] you saw it? I saw 23 in favor I.
[1:10:49] But I did not see the number
[1:10:50] again, sir.
[1:10:52] So. 23 in favor,
[1:10:53] seven against.
[1:10:54] Okay. 23 in
[1:10:55] favor, seven against special
[1:10:57] counsel. If you would clarify,
[1:10:58] given the discrepancy on the
[1:10:59] board, please, sir.
[1:11:00] Yes. Vice
[1:11:02] mayor, to quote rule 53 of the
[1:11:04] rules of procedure, in part,
[1:11:06] none of the standing rules of
[1:11:07] procedure shall be amended or
[1:11:09] repealed except by 27
[1:11:09] affirmative votes.
[1:11:10] All right.
[1:11:13] And only 23 votes having been
[1:11:16] achieved, that proposal has
[1:11:19] failed at. At this time,
[1:11:21] members can offer amendments to
[1:11:23] our rules of procedure
[1:11:26] throughout the term. All right.
[1:11:31] Next we are going to move into
[1:11:33] our bills on public hearing
[1:11:36] section j. All right. Now first,
[1:11:38] just for some general
[1:11:40] information regarding public
[1:11:41] hearings, spanish
[1:11:43] interpretation services are
[1:11:44] provided for all metro council
[1:11:47] public hearings. Council office
[1:11:48] team member karina valdez is
[1:11:50] here as the interpreter this
[1:11:52] evening and assisting with our
[1:11:53] budget public hearing. If you
[1:11:55] should have any questions, MISS
[1:11:56] Valdez, will you please share
[1:11:59] how you can help? Go ahead
[1:12:00] ma'am.
[1:12:01] Los servicios
[1:12:03] interpretacion en espanol.
[1:12:04] Disponible en la publica.
[1:12:05] Gracias.
[1:12:06] All right. Gracias. We
[1:12:08] appreciate you. All right. Now
[1:12:10] again, generally, for those
[1:12:12] wishing to speak this evening
[1:12:13] as part of public hearings,
[1:12:15] please do state your name, but
[1:12:16] it is not required for you to
[1:12:18] provide your exact address. If
[1:12:20] you do not wish to do so, you
[1:12:22] MAY want to tell us in what
[1:12:23] neighborhood or area you live,
[1:12:24] your connection to, what you
[1:12:26] have chosen to speak about, or
[1:12:29] who your council member is. All
[1:12:31] right, now for some budget
[1:12:33] hearing specific information.
[1:12:35] Again, welcome everyone. We
[1:12:37] look forward to hearing from
[1:12:39] you. And unlike as we shared
[1:12:41] earlier, a time limited public
[1:12:43] comment period that we have on
[1:12:45] every council agenda and in
[1:12:46] FEBRUARY for our pre budget
[1:12:48] public comment period, this is
[1:12:50] a public hearing required by
[1:12:53] the charter, and it is not time
[1:12:55] limited. Thus, all members
[1:12:56] wishing to speak, all members
[1:12:59] of the community here present
[1:13:01] will be heard. Your seating
[1:13:03] position within the gallery
[1:13:06] does not confer any priority.
[1:13:08] And as I know you are all
[1:13:10] conscientious folks, I'm sure
[1:13:12] you will be on the lookout,
[1:13:14] whether for seniors or parents
[1:13:15] with children. I saw somebody
[1:13:17] with a baby in a baby bjorn
[1:13:20] just a minute ago. And so be
[1:13:22] conscientious as you organize
[1:13:24] amongst yourselves. We're going
[1:13:26] to move really peacefully and
[1:13:28] intentionally this evening. And
[1:13:30] to facilitate that, we will
[1:13:33] have no more than ten persons
[1:13:35] waiting in line to speak at one
[1:13:39] time. Okay. And we will monitor
[1:13:41] and maintain that limit.
[1:13:43] Everyone MAY speak for up to
[1:13:44] two minutes. You do not have to
[1:13:46] speak for the entirety of the
[1:13:48] time. Speaking will not be
[1:13:51] organizedinto, for or against.
[1:13:53] As is typical at public
[1:13:55] hearings, all persons will line
[1:13:57] up together after the first
[1:13:59] group of ten steps forward to
[1:14:02] the podium to line up, folks
[1:14:04] can join the line, whether
[1:14:06] individually or in small groups
[1:14:09] of five. Okay, only when the
[1:14:12] line has five remaining persons
[1:14:13] is that the time to join the
[1:14:15] line. As we proceed, there
[1:14:17] should be no more than ten
[1:14:19] people in a single file line
[1:14:21] behind the podium, five forward
[1:14:24] of the main door and five
[1:14:26] behind. Okay, we have fire
[1:14:28] marshal guidelines to follow so
[1:14:30] the door MAY not be obstructed.
[1:14:32] And the gallery has a capacity
[1:14:35] number that cannot be exceeded.
[1:14:37] Counsel office team member MISS.
[1:14:39] Hey, shacklett is in blue.
[1:14:41] Rosie, would you please wave so
[1:14:43] that folks can see you?
[1:14:45] Everyone in the gallery can see
[1:14:49] MISS Hayes shacklett. She will
[1:14:50] administer our line this
[1:14:52] evening. Please respect our
[1:14:55] staff. Okay? This can be a evening. Folks have
[1:14:58] a lot of opinions and questions.
[1:14:59] Understandably so. And we're
[1:15:01] all doing our best to be clear
[1:15:02] and fair and administering this
[1:15:04] public hearing. Lastly, you
[1:15:06] will see three budget related
[1:15:08] hearing items on your agenda.
[1:15:10] And we recognize that the vast
[1:15:11] majority of folks are here
[1:15:13] intending to speak on agenda
[1:15:15] item one, which is the
[1:15:16] operational budget. So while
[1:15:18] there are three separate
[1:15:21] ordinances as follows. Agenda
[1:15:24] item two for the proposed tax
[1:15:26] levy and agenda item three for
[1:15:29] the capital improvement capital
[1:15:30] improvements budget, the tax
[1:15:32] levy being what will fund the
[1:15:33] majority of the final budget
[1:15:34] and the capital improvements
[1:15:36] budget being our kind of 5 to 6
[1:15:38] year planning document for bond
[1:15:40] funded infrastructure. These
[1:15:42] must all technically have a
[1:15:43] separate public hearing per our
[1:15:45] charter. But that said, I will
[1:15:47] not stop someone for combining
[1:15:49] these interrelated budget
[1:15:52] matters in. As part of our
[1:15:54] operational budget hearing
[1:15:56] remarks in our first and
[1:15:58] primary hearing. Okay, so now
[1:16:01] back on to agenda item one,
[1:16:07] ordinance bl20261377 sponsor
[1:16:14] tombs. This is again
[1:16:16] bl20261377a bill to be entitled
[1:16:17] the budget ordinance
[1:16:18] metropolitan government of
[1:16:19] nashville and davidson county,
[1:16:22] tennessee for fiscal year 2027.
[1:16:24] This is the mayor's proposed
[1:16:26] budget sponsor. Tombs. MADAM
[1:16:28] Chair, you are recognized.
[1:16:29] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor,
[1:16:31] request open the public hearing.
[1:16:33] All right. I declare the public
[1:16:37] hearing open for this matter. I
[1:16:40] ask that those folks who are
[1:16:44] wishing to speak move calmly.
[1:16:46] Observe your colleagues. And I
[1:16:48] think we're at about ten. All
[1:16:50] right, so with those folks,
[1:16:52] please sit down again, MISS
[1:16:54] Hayes. Shacklett. Whoever would
[1:16:55] like to come first to the
[1:16:58] podium. You're welcome.
[1:17:00] Five persons in front of the
[1:17:03] door. Five persons behind.
[1:17:05] There should only be ten
[1:17:08] persons in line. Okay? So just
[1:17:09] look over your shoulder. You're
[1:17:11] going to know it's time to
[1:17:12] consider whether you should get
[1:17:17] in line. Hey, folks. Folks, if
[1:17:18] everyone would, please still
[1:17:21] listen to me. Okay, this first
[1:17:22] go is going to be a little bit
[1:17:27] challenging. All right. So if
[1:17:29] you're seated and you're kind
[1:17:30] of considering, you know, I
[1:17:31] think I might like to get up
[1:17:33] right now. I'm talking to my
[1:17:35] peers that are next to me. I
[1:17:37] think we're going to move to do
[1:17:39] so. I ask you just to kind of
[1:17:41] look over your shoulder. What
[1:17:44] we usually have is folks just
[1:17:46] cramming in 20 deep, trying to
[1:17:48] turn the corner, go back behind
[1:17:50] and adding one after one after
[1:17:52] one after one. That can become
[1:17:54] challenging. Any way we
[1:17:56] approach this, given our layout
[1:18:00] is is somewhat suboptimal. Okay,
[1:18:03] but let's please do our best
[1:18:06] effort here. I see more than
[1:18:08] ten personstanding at this
[1:18:14] juncture. And so I would ask.
[1:18:18] Hang on just a minute for me.
[1:18:20] MISS Shacklett, are we good to
[1:18:22] go? With ten people standing in
[1:18:28] line? No. If you're at the back
[1:18:30] of the line, sit down. Count
[1:18:35] back to ten, MISS Shacklett.
[1:18:36] MISS Hayes, will you show her
[1:18:45] ten, please, ma'am. All right.
[1:18:47] Okay. Now, everybody else can
[1:18:50] spread out and relax and have
[1:18:53] plenty of space. If you are in
[1:18:54] line behind the podium, would
[1:18:56] you please move to your left?
[1:18:59] Okay. Over that way. Thank you.
[1:19:01] So w keep the area behind the
[1:19:03] podium clear. All right. Thanks,
[1:19:04] everybody, for their patience.
[1:19:08] Here we go. You're recognized.
[1:19:09] Go ahead.
[1:19:11] Hello. Okay. My name
[1:19:13] is carla cristina contreras,
[1:19:15] and I proudly serve as the
[1:19:18] nashville local PRESIDENT Of
[1:19:20] the screen actors guild and the
[1:19:22] american federation of
[1:19:24] television and radio artists.
[1:19:27] We are one of 25 locals
[1:19:28] representing the world's
[1:19:29] largest entertainment union,
[1:19:31] and our members are the voices,
[1:19:33] faces, and talent audiences
[1:19:36] know and love singers,
[1:19:38] recording artists, actors,
[1:19:40] dancers and more. The sag-aftra
[1:19:43] nashville local processes, more
[1:19:44] union sound recording sessions
[1:19:46] with background vocalists than
[1:19:49] new york city and los angeles
[1:19:52] combined. That means the industry is not
[1:19:54] happening somewhere else. It is
[1:19:56] happening right here. These are
[1:19:58] not outsiders chasing a dream
[1:20:01] in another city. They are your
[1:20:02] constituents, your neighbors,
[1:20:04] the people raising families,
[1:20:06] supporting local businesses and
[1:20:08] building careers right here in
[1:20:11] middle tennessee. Okay, I know
[1:20:12] this personally. I came here
[1:20:15] from los angeles in 1991 with
[1:20:17] nothing more than a three song
[1:20:19] demo, cassette tape, and a
[1:20:21] dream, just like thousands of
[1:20:23] artists still do today. What I
[1:20:25] found here was not only music
[1:20:27] city, I found a thriving
[1:20:29] creative community of emerging
[1:20:31] filmmakers industry
[1:20:32] believed world class art could
[1:20:35] be created right here at home.
[1:20:37] Today, I stand before you on
[1:20:40] behalf of 1600 sag-aftra
[1:20:42] members across our region who
[1:20:44] have chosen to build their%
[1:20:46] lives here because they believe
[1:20:48] nashville values the arts and
[1:20:49] the people who create it. And
[1:20:50] let me be clear, the
[1:20:53] entertainment industry is not a
[1:20:54] luxury. It is an economic
[1:20:57] engine. It creates jobs, drives
[1:20:58] tourism, supports restaurants,
[1:20:59] hotels, venues, crews,
[1:21:01] musicians, technicians, and
[1:21:03] countless small businesses. So
[1:21:05] today, I respectfully urge you
[1:21:07] to support and fund the
[1:21:08] nashville entertainment
[1:21:10] commission. Thank you. Because
[1:21:14] investing in entertainment is
[1:21:14] thank you.
[1:21:15] Your time has
[1:21:17] concluded. Next, go ahead and
[1:21:18] come forward. You're recognized.
[1:21:24] Go ahead. Thank you. You're
[1:21:27] welcome to speak. Go ahead.
[1:21:27] My
[1:21:30] name is tracy walden. 'm in
[1:21:32] support employee for metro
[1:21:34] nashville public school. I have
[1:21:36] been employed with metro
[1:21:38] nashville public schools since
[1:21:40] 2012. I started off in
[1:21:42] nutrition services. I currently
[1:21:44] work as a paraprofessional.
[1:21:45] When I first started working
[1:21:47] for metro, I noticed everybody
[1:21:48] was working a second job and I
[1:21:50] was wondering why. But guess
[1:21:52] what? I found myself working a
[1:21:54] second job. Also, because I
[1:21:55] wasn't getting paid enough to
[1:21:58] take care of my bills. My last
[1:22:00] five years in nutrition service,
[1:22:01] I was working in nutrition. I
[1:22:03] was working in the last five
[1:22:05] years in nutrition service. I
[1:22:06] was working in the cafeteria
[1:22:09] all by myself. I asked for for
[1:22:10] more money to get compensated
[1:22:12] for working in there by myself,
[1:22:15] but they did not compensate me.
[1:22:17] I stand before you today on
[1:22:20] behalf of support workers. I'm
[1:22:22] asking for us to be compensated
[1:22:24] for the days that we are off
[1:22:25] because there are so many days
[1:22:28] that we're off now without pay.
[1:22:30] I think. Nutrition services and
[1:22:33] prayer for paraprofessionals
[1:22:35] deserve a bonus, like the bus
[1:22:38] drivers. Because it. Because if
[1:22:40] it wasn't for us, the children
[1:22:42] wouldn't be fed nor taught.
[1:22:45] with that being said, our jobs
[1:22:48] are just as important. I am
[1:22:50] asking for to request to be
[1:22:53] considered a step raise a
[1:22:55] better cost of living and
[1:22:57] bonuses. Thank you.
[1:22:58] Thank you.
[1:23:01] Next. Go ahead.
[1:23:02] Good evening,
[1:23:04] council members. My name is
[1:23:05] doctor deontay williams and I'm
[1:23:07] a resident of nashville. I
[1:23:08] stand before you today not only
[1:23:10] as an educator, organizer, and
[1:23:11] advocate, but as the son of a
[1:23:13] single black mother whose story
[1:23:15] reflects the struggles of many
[1:23:17] working families. That's why I
[1:23:19] strongly support the $3 million
[1:23:20] child care innovation and
[1:23:22] family stability fund. Child
[1:23:23] care is often treated as a
[1:23:25] personal family issue, but it
[1:23:27] is one of the most pressing
[1:23:29] economic issues facing working
[1:23:31] families today. When affordable
[1:23:32] child care is unavailable,
[1:23:34] parents are forced to make
[1:23:35] impossible choices. Some leave
[1:23:37] the workplace entirely, others
[1:23:39] reduce their hours and turn
[1:23:41] down promotions or work
[1:23:42] multiple jobs with unstable
[1:23:44] schedules. In many cases,
[1:23:45] children are left in
[1:23:47] unaffordable care arrangements
[1:23:48] because families simply cannot
[1:23:50] afford the cost of licensed
[1:23:52] child care. We know that the
[1:23:53] first five years of a child's
[1:23:54] life are amongst the most
[1:23:56] important years of cognitive,
[1:23:57] social and emotional
[1:23:59] development. Early childhood
[1:24:00] education helps identify
[1:24:02] learning needs early. Prepare
[1:24:04] students for economic success,
[1:24:06] and provides the foundations to
[1:24:08] a life long achievement. When
[1:24:10] we fail o invest in child care,
[1:24:13] we are not only failing parents,
[1:24:15] we are limiting the potential
[1:24:16] of the next generation before
[1:24:18] they ever enter the classroom.
[1:24:20] Finally, I urge you tonight as
[1:24:22] I ask you to invest in families,
[1:24:24] invest in children, invest in
[1:24:26] home ownership, and invest in
[1:24:27] neighborhoods that have carried
[1:24:29] nashville forward. And if you
[1:24:32] need help in assisting you in
[1:24:34] figuring out how to get to the
[1:24:35] solutions, there are programs
[1:24:36] and organizations like the
[1:24:39] equity alliance, stand up,
[1:24:40] nashville, turk civic,
[1:24:42] tennessee that has
[1:24:43] professionals that have been
[1:24:44] doing the work on the ground
[1:24:47] for years and years, and we're
[1:24:49] here and we are ready to do te
[1:24:50] work. So reach out and we'll do
[1:24:52] the work with you. Thank you.
[1:24:58] Thank you. Next.
[1:24:59] Hello, my name
[1:25:00] is otilia murga. I am a public
[1:25:02] art project manager for metro
[1:25:04] arts. I also live in district
[1:25:07] 11 with over 26 years of
[1:25:08] experience and seven years of
[1:25:10] service to this agency. I just
[1:25:12] have to say that's my feelings
[1:25:14] and opinions alone. I'm here to
[1:25:16] urge the council to support the
[1:25:18] immediate initiation of the
[1:25:19] search for a permanent
[1:25:21] executive director. While metro
[1:25:23] arts needs adequate funding,
[1:25:25] financial investment is only
[1:25:26] viable under new department and
[1:25:28] commission leadership. From my
[1:25:30] daily observations, our agency
[1:25:33] is structurally fractured. We
[1:25:35] suffer from a severe lack of
[1:25:36] transparency between leadership
[1:25:37] and staff, between commission
[1:25:39] leadership and its members, and
[1:25:40] between commission leadership
[1:25:43] and human resources. For over a
[1:25:45] year, hr has been fully
[1:25:47] prepared to launch an executive
[1:25:48] search. Unfortunately, the
[1:25:50] commission chair has repeatedly
[1:25:52] rejected these opportunities,
[1:25:54] which is what I feel while
[1:25:55] misinforming its own
[1:25:56] commissioners that hr wasn't
[1:25:58] ready. While five other
[1:25:59] departments have begun their
[1:26:00] searches this past year, metro
[1:26:02] arts is deliberately missed.
[1:26:04] Opportunities to move first.
[1:26:06] This gridlock directly wastes
[1:26:07] taxpayers, taxpayers dollars
[1:26:10] and city resources. The
[1:26:11] distribution of grants suggests
[1:26:13] progress. The internal reality
[1:26:15] is one of ongoing instability.
[1:26:17] Arbitrary decision making has
[1:26:19] replaced standard operation
[1:26:20] procedures. This toxic
[1:26:21] environment has led to three
[1:26:23] formal complaints from people
[1:26:25] of color, including my own. Due
[1:26:27] to systemic and marginalization
[1:26:29] and discrimination, we are
[1:26:31] failing local artists, our
[1:26:33] public, and wasting public
[1:26:35] funds through administrative
[1:26:37] inefficiency. We are failing
[1:26:40] our local. Excuse me. I
[1:26:41] respectfully ask this body to
[1:26:42] please request a special
[1:26:44] session with hr leadership to
[1:26:46] review the extensive efforts to
[1:26:48] the start to the search for the
[1:26:49] sake of our artists, our public
[1:26:51] and our taxpayer dollars, and
[1:26:53] the integrity of metro arts.
[1:26:54] You must establish equitable
[1:26:56] and transparent hiring
[1:26:57] processes immediately. Thank
[1:26:59] you for your time.
[1:27:02] Thank you.
[1:27:05] Okay, go ahead and come forward.
[1:27:08] This. You are our fifth speaker,
[1:27:11] MISS Shacklett.
[1:27:12] Good evening.
[1:27:14] Good evening, council members.
[1:27:15] My name is christina sparks.
[1:27:19] i'm a native of nashville, a
[1:27:23] resident of district 32. I am a
[1:27:25] professional author and housing
[1:27:27] investor. I'm here tonight to
[1:27:28] voice my support for neighbor
[1:27:30] to neighbor and their request
[1:27:32] for investment in nashville's
[1:27:34] neighborhoods. Although I now
[1:27:36] live in murfreesboro, tennessee,
[1:27:38] I grew up in east nashville. As
[1:27:40] a part of a large family, I
[1:27:42] know firsthand what
[1:27:43] disinvestment looks like. I
[1:27:45] know what it feels like when
[1:27:47] neighborhoods are overlooked,
[1:27:49] when infrastructure is
[1:27:50] neglected, when resources
[1:27:53] are scarce, and when residents
[1:27:55] feel disconnected from
[1:27:56] decisions that impact their
[1:27:59] lives daily. I also know what
[1:28:01] is possible when people and
[1:28:02] neighborhoods and communities
[1:28:05] receive investment support,
[1:28:07] when they feel safe and have
[1:28:09] opportunities to thrive. No
[1:28:11] matter where we live today,
[1:28:13] many of us come from
[1:28:14] neighborhoods that help raise
[1:28:17] us, support us, and shape who
[1:28:19] we became. We have shared
[1:28:21] responsibility to ensure that
[1:28:23] today's residents have the same
[1:28:24] opportunity to live in a safe,
[1:28:26] healthy, and connected
[1:28:28] communities. What I appreciate
[1:28:29] about neighbor to neighbor is
[1:28:30] that they are not simply
[1:28:31] talking about neighborhoods
[1:28:33] that are working along
[1:28:36] alongside neighborhoods through
[1:28:37] neighborhood safety days,
[1:28:38] healing zones, resident
[1:28:40] leadership development, and
[1:28:43] safe by us community safety and
[1:28:45] design framework. They are
[1:28:47] creating opportunities for
[1:28:49] residents to participate in
[1:28:50] shaping safer, healthier, and
[1:28:52] more connected communities.
[1:28:54] this work is about dignity.
[1:28:56] It's about belonging and
[1:29:00] ensuring the residents have a.
[1:29:01] The tools and resources needed
[1:29:04] to build a stronger future. I
[1:29:05] respectfully ask you to support
[1:29:07] neighbor to neighbors funding
[1:29:08] requests and continue investing
[1:29:10] in resident led solutions that
[1:29:11] strengthen our neighborhoods,
[1:29:14] build trust, and create
[1:29:14] opportunities for communities
[1:29:17] across our city.
[1:29:18] Thank you.%
[1:29:20] next. Go ahead.
[1:29:21] Good evening,
[1:29:23] council members. My name is
[1:29:25] shalini ransom. I'm a lifelong
[1:29:28] member of north nashville,
[1:29:29] specifically buena vista
[1:29:33] neighborhood in district two.
[1:29:34] I'm here tonight also in
[1:29:35] support of neighbor to
[1:29:37] neighbors, funding requests and
[1:29:39] the important work they in the
[1:29:41] important work they are doing
[1:29:43] to strengthen neighborhoods
[1:29:45] across our city. As someone who
[1:29:46] has lived in north nashville
[1:29:49] for many years, I have
[1:29:51] firsthand seen the impact of
[1:29:53] disinvestment, neglected
[1:29:56] infrastructure, rising costs,
[1:29:57] and the challenges families
[1:30:00] face simply trying to maintain
[1:30:02] safe and healthy communities.
[1:30:04] Too often, decisions are being
[1:30:06] made about our neighborhoods
[1:30:08] without the meaningful
[1:30:09] involvement of the people who
[1:30:12] actually live in there. What I
[1:30:14] appreciate about neighbor to
[1:30:15] neighbor is that they show up,
[1:30:17] and that is something that's
[1:30:19] really important. They listen.
[1:30:22] They build relationships. They
[1:30:25] help residents organize around
[1:30:29] issues that matter to us. They
[1:30:31] understand that neighborhood
[1:30:34] safety is more about it's more
[1:30:37] than about crime statistics. It
[1:30:39] is about whether our streets
[1:30:42] are safe to walk, whether our
[1:30:43] children have safe places to
[1:30:45] gather, whether our neighbors
[1:30:48] know one another, and that
[1:30:50] whether residents have a voice
[1:30:52] shaping their future of their
[1:30:54] communities through neighbor to
[1:30:56] neighbor, neighbor to neighbor
[1:30:59] safety days, they're safe by us.
[1:31:01] Community safety and design
[1:31:03] framework. Healing zones,
[1:31:04] neighbor to neighbor to
[1:31:06] neighbor is also helping
[1:31:08] residents become a part of the
[1:31:10] solution. They are bringing
[1:31:13] communities together, metro
[1:31:15] departments, public health
[1:31:17] professionals, the community
[1:31:19] leaders to address issues
[1:31:22] before the before they become
[1:31:24] crises. For nearly 30 years.
[1:31:25] Neighbors.
[1:31:26] Thank you. Your time
[1:31:28] is. Thank you. Go ahead and
[1:31:31] come forward. You're recognized.
[1:31:33] Good evening everyone. My name
[1:31:34] is lydia and I'm representing
[1:31:36] the branch of nashville. We are
[1:31:38] a nonprofit serving southeast
[1:31:40] nashville. The branch is
[1:31:41] requesting funding that will go
[1:31:43] directly toward food purchasing
[1:31:45] through our wholesale partners.
[1:31:46] Last year, we were fortunate to
[1:31:48] receive funds for food
[1:31:49] purchasing. This year's request
[1:31:51] is higher dueto many factors,
[1:31:53] the largest being that the
[1:31:54] demand for food assistance in
[1:31:56] southeast nashville continues
[1:31:57] to rise. While the food supply
[1:31:59] systems our pantry has
[1:32:01] traditionally relied on are
[1:32:03] becoming much less predictable.
[1:32:05] Over the past year, usda
[1:32:06] supported food access has
[1:32:08] declined due to federal cuts,
[1:32:09] and in-kind food donations from
[1:32:11] key partners have also
[1:32:13] decreased. Simultaneously, the
[1:32:13] -
[1:32:14] families we serve continue to
[1:32:16] feel the pressure of rising
[1:32:17] grocery and gas costs and
[1:32:20] broader economic instability.
[1:32:21] In response, the branch has
[1:32:23] made a shift in the last year
[1:32:24] by establishing a dedicated
[1:32:26] budget line for the direct
[1:32:28] purchase of food. This allows
[1:32:30] us to ensure that we can
[1:32:31] consistently provide the items
[1:32:33] families need most, including
[1:32:35] fresh produce, meat, dairy and
[1:32:38] staple goods. While we act as a
[1:32:39] community resource for
[1:32:40] southeast nashville through our
[1:32:41] several different programs, our
[1:32:43] food pantry remains the front
[1:32:45] door to much of our work. Each
[1:32:47] month, we serve more than 1200
[1:32:49] households with full carts of
[1:32:51] groceries valued at $350. We
[1:32:53] also distribute hundreds of
[1:32:55] emergency food boxes each month
[1:32:56] and provide home deliveries to
[1:32:58] older adults and individuals
[1:32:59] with disabilities who cannot
[1:33:02] access the pantry in person.
[1:33:03] However, the reality is that
[1:33:05] without additional funding
[1:33:07] dedicated to food purchasing,
[1:33:08] we will not be able to keep up
[1:33:11] at this scale. Our funding
[1:33:13] request for metro would be
[1:33:14] instrumental in helping us
[1:33:16] continue to meet the food needs
[1:33:17] of our neighbors with
[1:33:19] consistency, dignity and enough
[1:33:21] to truly support their
[1:33:23] households during challenging
[1:33:24] economic, economic times. Thank
[1:33:25] you.
[1:33:27] Thank you. Next. Go ahead
[1:33:29] and come forward. You're
[1:33:29] recognized.
[1:33:31] Good evening
[1:33:32] council. My name is lindsay
[1:33:34] creeks. I live in 37208 and I'm
[1:33:36] the co-founder and director of
[1:33:37] advocacy at open table
[1:33:39] nashville. Just before I came
[1:33:40] in, I was talking to some of
[1:33:42] the folks outside this building
[1:33:43] who sleep on the streets. They
[1:33:44] talked aout being harassed
[1:33:46] every day and about their
[1:33:47] struggles to find housing in
[1:33:48] our city. We deserve to be
[1:33:50] treated with dignity, said my
[1:33:52] friend shay. Not like a piece
[1:33:54] of trash to be thrown out.
[1:33:56] These friends are building our
[1:33:57] city and they're cleaning it,
[1:33:59] but they can't afford to live
[1:34:00] here. They're dying. While our
[1:34:02] city funnels money to new
[1:34:04] stadiums and shiny new
[1:34:06] development deals. We have to
[1:34:08] make the next few weeks count.
[1:34:09] We have an incredible
[1:34:11] opportunity right now to invest
[1:34:13] in infrastructure and programs
[1:34:14] that will make our city more
[1:34:16] equitable, affordable and just
[1:34:18] for all nashvillians in terms
[1:34:20] of housing and vital services.
[1:34:22] We're asking you to fund the
[1:34:24] contributor saw program at
[1:34:26] $350,000 to dedicate 30 million
[1:34:28] to the barns fund and 9 million
[1:34:29] to the eviction right to
[1:34:32] counsel program to establish
[1:34:33] bond finance social housing
[1:34:35] with a 7 million from the
[1:34:37] revolving loan fund, and to
[1:34:38] dedicate 500,000 for
[1:34:40] specialized staff. Please
[1:34:41] listen to our friends at
[1:34:43] launchpad and the villages at
[1:34:45] glencliff to. In terms of true
[1:34:46] community safety, which comes
[1:34:48] from the presence of public
[1:34:50] goods, resources and support,
[1:34:52] not police. We're asking you to
[1:34:54] fully fund, reach and expand
[1:34:56] downtown with a pilot. We're
[1:34:58] asking you to dedicate 250,000
[1:34:59] to red frogs, the group
[1:35:01] providing non-police
[1:35:02] intervention and support
[1:35:04] downtown every weekend. We're
[1:35:06] asking you to expand the
[1:35:07] community safety fund to 13
[1:35:09] million. I know that's a lot,
[1:35:10] but later tonight, we're also
[1:35:12] asking you to ensure that
[1:35:13] seabed funds can't be used for
[1:35:15] private security that employ
[1:35:17] thp officers who harass and
[1:35:19] cage our immigrant and unhoused
[1:35:22] neighbors. We see the long
[1:35:23] hours y'all are putting in and
[1:35:24] the creativity with which
[1:35:26] you're doing this budget. We're
[1:35:27] very grateful. Please hear us
[1:35:29] and make this budget season
[1:35:31] count.
[1:35:33] Thank you. Next, go
[1:35:38] ahead and come forward, please. Evening and thank you for
[1:35:39] the opportunity to speak. My
[1:35:41] name is joshua gaglio and I
[1:35:42] live in sylvan park. I'm here
[1:35:44] to express support for two
[1:35:45] efforts that I believe go hand
[1:35:46] in hand the proposed affordable
[1:35:48] housing loan program and the
[1:35:49] mayor's work to preserve
[1:35:50] nashville's historic landmarks,
[1:35:51] specifically the fairgrounds
[1:35:53] speedway. Too often, we frame
[1:35:54] growth as a choice between
[1:35:56] progress and preservation, but
[1:35:57] that's a false choice.
[1:35:58] Nashville is the ability, and I
[1:35:59] would argue, the responsibility
[1:36:01] to do both. The affordable
[1:36:03] housing loan program is a great
[1:36:04] example of how we can move
[1:36:05] forward thoughtfully, gives us
[1:36:07] tools to expand housing access,
[1:36:08] support development, and
[1:36:09] address affordability in a
[1:36:11] meaningful way. At the same
[1:36:12] time, preserving historic
[1:36:13] places like the fairgrounds
[1:36:14] speedway protects something
[1:36:17] equally important identity. The
[1:36:18] speedway is not just a piece of
[1:36:20] land, it's a living part of
[1:36:22] nashville's history and culture.
[1:36:23] It represents decades of
[1:36:25] community, tradition and shared
[1:36:27] experience. Once something like
[1:36:28] that is gone, it cannot be
[1:36:29] replaced. But preserving it
[1:36:31] does not mean stopping growth.
[1:36:32] What it means is being
[1:36:34] intentional about where and how
[1:36:35] we grow. We do not need to
[1:36:36] sacrifice historic venues to
[1:36:38] create affordable housing.
[1:36:40] Nashville's opportunities,
[1:36:41] underutilized land
[1:36:42] redevelopment corridors, and
[1:36:43] infill potential that could
[1:36:44] support housing development
[1:36:46] without race in the place that
[1:36:47] define who we are. Good
[1:36:48] planning allows us to align
[1:36:50] these priorities. We can invest
[1:36:51] in affordable housing through
[1:36:53] targeted programs like the one
[1:36:54] proposed, while also protecting
[1:36:56] landmarks that contribute to
[1:36:57] tourism, community pride, and
[1:36:59] cultural continuity. In fact,
[1:37:00] doing both strengthens the city
[1:37:02] as a whole, a city that
[1:37:03] preserves its character while
[1:37:04] expanding opportunity for more
[1:37:05] resilient and far more
[1:37:06] attractive than one that trains
[1:37:08] one for the other. So I want to
[1:37:09] commend the mayor for
[1:37:10] recognizing the value of
[1:37:11] preservation for continuing
[1:37:12] efforts to protect the
[1:37:13] fairgrounds speedway. I want to
[1:37:14] encourage this body to fully
[1:37:15] support the affordable housing
[1:37:17] loan program as part of a
[1:37:18] broader strategy that balances
[1:37:20] growth with history. We don't
[1:37:21] have to choose between the
[1:37:22] future and the past. We can
[1:37:24] build a nashville that honors
[1:37:25] both. So thank you.
[1:37:27] thank you.
[1:37:29] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[1:37:31] Good evening. Y'all can do
[1:37:32] better than good evening. New
[1:37:33] here. It's my first time
[1:37:34] meeting y'all. I am doctor
[1:37:36] james pratt, jr, professor of
[1:37:37] criminology, law enforcement
[1:37:38] and security studies at fisk
[1:37:40] university. And I direct the
[1:37:41] justice propulsion lab there as
[1:37:43] well. Today, I speak only as a
[1:37:44] nashville resident in support
[1:37:46] of amendment to the proposed $3
[1:37:47] million child care innovation
[1:37:49] and familystability fund.
[1:37:51] Today I ask you, how are the
[1:37:52] children? And I hope everyone
[1:37:54] can respond, whether out loud
[1:37:55] or in your heart, that the
[1:37:57] children are well. So I ask,
[1:37:58] how are the and the
[1:37:59] children are well. Throughout
[1:38:01] my career, my research on
[1:38:02] violence, on children and
[1:38:04] family has shown that when
[1:38:05] caregivers, teachers and those
[1:38:07] who enforce the law lack
[1:38:08] understanding and emotional and
[1:38:10] material support, stress rises
[1:38:12] and harmful outcomes like
[1:38:13] violent attempts at discipline,
[1:38:15] become more likely. Most
[1:38:17] parents are doing their best
[1:38:19] with limited time, resources
[1:38:21] and help. We often hear, and%
[1:38:22] many of you might have said, it
[1:38:24] takes a village to raise a
[1:38:26] child. Today I am asking each
[1:38:28] of you to fund that village.
[1:38:29] Child care providers, after
[1:38:32] school programs, family members,
[1:38:33] neighbors, and community
[1:38:34] organizations help keep
[1:38:36] children safe while parents
[1:38:37] work. I know this personally.
[1:38:39] Two raised by a single mother,
[1:38:41] I benefited from a network of
[1:38:42] people who helped care for me
[1:38:44] when. When child care was
[1:38:46] costly. Even in the 1990s,
[1:38:48] giving gas, giving gas money,
[1:38:49] supporting neighborhood cousins
[1:38:51] and sheila academy, she was and
[1:38:53] only able to do that work by
[1:38:55] having extra jobs that fund.
[1:38:57] This fund helps stand in the
[1:38:59] gap and recognizes that when
[1:39:02] child care workers. Families
[1:39:04] work, when child care works,
[1:39:06] family works, we all work. When
[1:39:08] it all fell apart, job
[1:39:10] stability and opportunities are
[1:39:11] in fact at risk. And to that
[1:39:13] end, I encourage each of you to
[1:39:15] readily see a future where the
[1:39:17] fruits of prioritizing extended
[1:39:18] hours, evening and weekend
[1:39:20] child care, supporting existing
[1:39:21] providers, and expanding after
[1:39:24] school summer programs allows
[1:39:25] for us to see a better future
[1:39:26] with bright minds. So
[1:39:28] I hope you support amendment
[1:39:29] two and the $3 million. Thank
[1:39:30] you.
[1:39:37] Thank you. Next. Go ahead.
[1:39:40] Hello, my name is dave pomeroy,
[1:39:42] 50 year nashville resident and
[1:39:43] PRESIDENT Of the musicians
[1:39:45] union. I'm speaking to express
[1:39:47] the extreme disappointment and
[1:39:48] shock of nashville's music and
[1:39:50] film community. At the mayor's
[1:39:51] decision to eliminate funding
[1:39:53] of the nashville entertainment
[1:39:54] commission in this year's
[1:39:56] budget. Many esteemed members
[1:39:57] of our artistic and business
[1:39:58] community have served on the
[1:40:00] commission since its inception,
[1:40:01] all on a volunteer basis. It
[1:40:03] all began four years ago, with
[1:40:05] various members of metro
[1:40:06] governance fighting with each
[1:40:07] other to gain control of the
[1:40:09] process, and has been a
[1:40:10] nightmare of governmental
[1:40:12] inefficiency to be thrown under
[1:40:14] the bus after all this time and
[1:40:15] effort on the commission's part
[1:40:16] is incredibly disrespectful to
[1:40:18] the very same entities that
[1:40:19] generate billions of dollars
[1:40:21] for nashville's economy. We
[1:40:22] request that the funding for
[1:40:24] the stc be restored in the
[1:40:26] final budget. We've jumped
[1:40:27] through every hoop and obstacle
[1:40:28] presented to us, including
[1:40:30] waiting three months to add the
[1:40:32] phrase and or to the job
[1:40:34] description. We collectively
[1:40:35] spent hundreds of hours
[1:40:36] developing bylaws, budgets and
[1:40:38] narrowed hundreds of
[1:40:39] applications down to two
[1:40:40] finalists for a job that
[1:40:42] suddenly no longer exists. It
[1:40:43] is a mystery why the mayor
[1:40:45] would eliminate our funding
[1:40:47] before it was even spent.
[1:40:48] Nashville became music city
[1:40:50] because of mutual respect
[1:40:52] between employers and creators.
[1:40:54] The purpose of the commission
[1:40:55] is to make the process of
[1:40:56] bringing more employers to
[1:40:57] nashville versus other states
[1:40:59] and cities simpler and more
[1:41:00] efficient, which helps everyone.
[1:41:02] Does the music and
[1:41:03] entertainment business not
[1:41:04] bring enough money to nashville
[1:41:06] to have for us to have a voice
[1:41:08] in metro government? Despite
[1:41:09] being a right to work state,
[1:41:10] nashville has done more union
[1:41:12] recording work than new york
[1:41:14] and L.A. Combined. But we need
[1:41:15] your help to take it to the
[1:41:16] next level. If our own city
[1:41:17] government doesn't get it,
[1:41:19] where are we supposed to look
[1:41:21] for support for the work we are
[1:41:22] doing that benefits all
[1:41:24] nashville. We urge you to fix
[1:41:25] this bad decision and restore
[1:41:27] funding for the commission.
[1:41:28] Thank you for your time and
[1:41:29] attention.
[1:41:32] Thank you. Go ahead
[1:41:33] and come forward. Welcome to
[1:41:34] both of you.
[1:41:35] Thank you. Good
[1:41:36] evening, council members. My
[1:41:38] name is courtney grable nelson.
[1:41:40] I live in district 25 and I'm
[1:41:41] here tonight in support of
[1:41:42] investments in affordable
[1:41:44] housing and child care. My
[1:41:45] husband and I are both
[1:41:46] nashville nativesand high
[1:41:47] school sweethearts. We rew up
[1:41:49] here, built our lives here, and
[1:41:50] some of our fondest childhood
[1:41:52] memories were made right here
[1:41:54] in nashville. We spent weekends
[1:41:56] at the adventure science center,
[1:41:57] went on family and school trips
[1:41:59] to the nashville zoo. Back when
[1:42:00] we had elephants and enjoyed
[1:42:02] all the things that make
[1:42:03] nashville such a special place
[1:42:04] to grow up, and eventually fell
[1:42:06] in love and started a family of
[1:42:08] our own here. In DECEMBER, we
[1:42:09] welcomed our wonderful son,
[1:42:11] elliot. He was a wonderful
[1:42:12] surprise and like many young
[1:42:13] families, his arrival made us
[1:42:15] think carefully about our
[1:42:16] future and what it takes to
[1:42:18] raise a child in this city.
[1:42:19] Affordable housing and
[1:42:20] affordable child care. They're
[1:42:22] not just policy issues for us.
[1:42:24] They're what make it possible
[1:42:25] for families like ours to stay
[1:42:27] in nashville, put down roots,
[1:42:29] and build a future here.
[1:42:31] Because of the mayor's we are hopeful
[1:42:33] about the future of our family.
[1:42:34] These investments help keep the
[1:42:36] american dream alive here in
[1:42:37] nashville. The idea that
[1:42:39] working families can afford a
[1:42:40] home, raise their children in a
[1:42:42] supportive community, and
[1:42:43] create opportunities for the
[1:42:45] next generation. We're excited
[1:42:46] to raise elliot in the city
[1:42:49] that gave us so many wonderful
[1:42:50] memories. We hope he'll get the
[1:42:52] experience to say, to have the
[1:42:53] same joy and sense of
[1:42:55] possibility that nashville gave
[1:42:56] us, and that one day, he'll
[1:42:58] look back at his childhood here
[1:42:59] with the same love and
[1:43:00] gratitude that we do. Thank you
[1:43:02] for your time and consideration.
[1:43:05] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[1:43:06] recognized.
[1:43:07] Hi, my name is
[1:43:09] charlie culbertson of district
[1:43:11] 31. First, let's set the scene.
[1:43:13] Inflation in the U.S. Is 3.8%.
[1:43:15] So the offer of a 1.7% cola is
[1:43:17] frankly insulting. Now, I'm
[1:43:19] aware that the city contributes
[1:43:21] more to the budget than the
[1:43:23] state does, but that's its own
[1:43:24] issue, especially with the
[1:43:25] vouchers. But mayor o'connell
[1:43:26] is out here talking about a
[1:43:29] cash incentive for the $121
[1:43:31] billion company starbucks. We
[1:43:32] heard that cash is found for
[1:43:34] that, but not our schools. And
[1:43:35] since the city agreed to the
[1:43:37] new stadium, now we have the
[1:43:38] super bowl on the horizon.
[1:43:40] Where are the sidewalks?
[1:43:41] Where's the public
[1:43:42] transportation? Where are the
[1:43:43] benefits for the residents
[1:43:46] working long hours and multiple
[1:43:48] jobs to stay in their home town?
[1:43:50] Oh, they're dodging potholes
[1:43:51] and traffic as they move to a
[1:43:53] more affordable life outside of
[1:43:55] the tourist run city. That's
[1:43:57] completely lost the plot. My
[1:43:59] act as a multi-generational
[1:44:02] nashvillian and an eminent mps
[1:44:04] teacher is this show us some
[1:44:05] respect with a real cola
[1:44:07] increase that matches inflation
[1:44:09] and some social services that
[1:44:11] benefit the taxpayers of
[1:44:13] nashville and not the fans of
[1:44:15] nashville. Thank you.
[1:44:16] Thank you.
[1:44:20] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[1:44:20] Hi,
[1:44:22] my name is julie morehouse and
[1:44:25] I'm a resident of district 32.
[1:44:26] I just finished my 10th year
[1:44:29] teaching in metro. I'm also an
[1:44:31] alum. I'm here to speak in
[1:44:32] favor of a higher cola for all
[1:44:36] m and p s workers, 1.7% is
[1:44:38] nowhere near enough, especially
[1:44:39] when our benefits are
[1:44:41] increasing 8% this year. That
[1:44:43] means that many folks wil end
[1:44:45] up taking a pay cut this year
[1:44:46] instead of having a pay raise.
[1:44:50] The match is inflation. As you
[1:44:52] heard charlene say, inflation
[1:44:54] is at 3.8% right now. And
[1:44:55] that's like conservative
[1:44:57] national estimates. So our cola
[1:44:59] should at least be that or as
[1:45:02] approaching that as we can get.
[1:45:05] As inflation continues to rise
[1:45:06] and living in nashville becomes
[1:45:08] more and more expensive, less
[1:45:09] educators will be able to live
[1:45:12] and work here. This means less
[1:45:14] qualified educators here
[1:45:17] serving our students. This,
[1:45:21] this council needs to show
[1:45:22] nashville students and families
[1:45:24] that they are valued. A big way
[1:45:25] to do that is to pay teachers
[1:45:28] enough to stay. Thank you.
[1:45:34] Thank you. Go ahead.
[1:45:35] Hi, I'm
[1:45:38] mike montgomery, I'm a
[1:45:41] commissioner on the nashville
[1:45:43] entertainment commission, and
[1:45:45] my son is a teacher in metro
[1:45:47] public schools. And I agree
[1:45:50] with everything they just said.
[1:45:54] It has taken almost three years
[1:45:56] with 15 commissioners having 28
[1:45:58] full commission meetings and
[1:45:59] probably twice that number in
[1:46:02] ad hoc committee meetings to
[1:46:04] arrive. At this point, we did
[1:46:06] our job and we created a
[1:46:07] framework for the nashville
[1:46:09] entertainment commission, a
[1:46:11] place where music, film,
[1:46:12] television and all other
[1:46:14] creative mediums could live,
[1:46:16] overseen by a single executive
[1:46:17] director who, armed with all
[1:46:19] the information about our
[1:46:20] entertainment industry, could
[1:46:23] help recruit entertainment
[1:46:24] projects to nashville and
[1:46:26] davidson county. Specifically,
[1:46:29] the laws were written, budgets
[1:46:33] were set, a job description was
[1:46:35] defined, and a search was
[1:46:36] conducted. Each commissioner
[1:46:38] examined well over a hundred
[1:46:40] resumes. We identified six
[1:46:41] candidates to interview in
[1:46:43] person. From that, we put forth
[1:46:45] two excellent candidates for
[1:46:47] the mayor to interview. And
[1:46:49] then it all came to a halt.
[1:46:52] We're not sure exactly why, but
[1:46:55] I am here to humbly ask for
[1:46:57] your support and helping us get
[1:46:59] this project across the finish
[1:47:02] line and create a new economic
[1:47:04] engine for the people of
[1:47:07] davidson county. Memphis has
[1:47:09] its own film office now for
[1:47:11] over 20 years. Knoxville has
[1:47:12] its own entertainment
[1:47:14] commission for ten, and both
[1:47:16] have been very successful in
[1:47:19] recruiting. Business in
[1:47:21] nashville might be the only
[1:47:24] city of our size with our
[1:47:26] entertainment infrastructure
[1:47:29] that is already in place, that
[1:47:32] does not have its own
[1:47:36] commission. You know, at the
[1:47:37] risk of.
[1:47:38] Throwing you, sir,
[1:47:41] your time has concluded. Thank
[1:47:46] you. You're recognized. Go
[1:47:47] ahead.
[1:47:48] good evening, council
[1:47:49] members. My name is will conley,
[1:47:50] and I'm the executive director
[1:47:52] of the contributor. I live in a
[1:47:56] zip code 37221. Tomorrow
[1:47:57] morning. While many of us are
[1:47:59] getting ready for work, there
[1:48:00] will be people waking up
[1:48:01] outside in nashville who are
[1:48:03] living with significant
[1:48:04] disabilities, chronic health
[1:48:06] conditions, and no reliable
[1:48:08] income. Some of them will spend
[1:48:10] part of their day in a. In the
[1:48:11] emergency
[1:48:13] nashville general hospital.
[1:48:14] Some will spend it simply
[1:48:16] trying to survive, and many of
[1:48:18] them qualify for help. The
[1:48:20] tragedy is not that these
[1:48:21] benefits do not exist. The
[1:48:23] tragedy is that the people who
[1:48:24] need them most are often the
[1:48:26] least equipped to navigate the
[1:48:29] system required to receive them.
[1:48:30] For the past two years, the
[1:48:31] contributor has partnered with
[1:48:33] the emergency department at
[1:48:34] nashville general hospital and
[1:48:35] with vanderbilt university
[1:48:37] medical center to identify
[1:48:39] patients experiencing
[1:48:40] homelessness and help them
[1:48:42] access disability benefits,
[1:48:44] health care income, and
[1:48:46] ultimately, housing. Through
[1:48:47] our soar program, we meet
[1:48:49] people at one of the most
[1:48:50] difficult moments in their
[1:48:51] lives. We help connect them to
[1:48:52] benefits they have already
[1:48:54] earned and create a pathway
[1:48:56] toward greater stability and
[1:48:58] recovery. Tonight, I'm asking
[1:49:00] for your support for the
[1:49:02] $350,000 funding request that
[1:49:04] would allow this work to
[1:49:05] continue in the emergency
[1:49:06] department at nashville general
[1:49:08] hospital. This investment has
[1:49:11] already generated more than
[1:49:13] $669,000 in annual disability
[1:49:15] income, more than 487,000 in
[1:49:18] back pay awards and health care
[1:49:19] coverage for people who
[1:49:20] otherwise would have gone
[1:49:23] without it. The estimated one
[1:49:24] year value generated through
[1:49:27] this work exceeds 1.3 million.
[1:49:29] I know there are many worthy
[1:49:30] requests before you tonight,
[1:49:31] including investments in
[1:49:32] housing, mental health,
[1:49:33] eviction prevention and other
[1:49:35] efforts that strengthen our
[1:49:36] community. And I'm grateful to
[1:49:38] live in a city where so many
[1:49:38] people are advocating for
[1:49:40] solutions to some of our most
[1:49:42] difficult challenges, and I'm
[1:49:44] grateful for you, all seven of
[1:49:46] you all, especially for
[1:49:47] including it on your wish list.
[1:49:49] Thank you.
[1:49:51] Thank you. Go ahead
[1:49:54] and come forward, and y'all can
[1:49:56] go ahead and come on forward as
[1:49:58] well. Please keep to the left
[1:49:59] and kind of come on forward.
[1:50:03] Thank you. Go ahead.
[1:50:05] Hello.
[1:50:05] My
[1:50:08] name is mead forsyth. I am the
[1:50:09] executive vice PRESIDENT Of
[1:50:12] seiu local 205. Thank you so
[1:50:14] much. That's new. Since I
[1:50:15] addressed y'all last formerly,
[1:50:17] I believe I represent
[1:50:18] approximately 4000 workers
[1:50:19] across the state, both public
[1:50:23] and private sector. I'm also a
[1:50:24] nashville public library worker.
[1:50:26] I'm a metro worker. I work at
[1:50:28] the looby branch library under
[1:50:30] council member tombs. I grew up
[1:50:32] in district 15, council member
[1:50:34] gregg's district, and that's
[1:50:35] also where I'm from, and that's
[1:50:38] where my parents live still.
[1:50:39] And I really love living where
[1:50:41] i'm from. It's been it's great
[1:50:43] for me. I get to help my
[1:50:44] cousins raise their babies.
[1:50:46] It's been a real delight for
[1:50:48] bringing up the next generation,
[1:50:49] and they get to come see me at
[1:50:50] the library, and everybody
[1:50:52] wants to know when they find
[1:50:53] out. I work at the library
[1:50:55] about our programing, about the
[1:50:57] puppet shows, about the story
[1:51:00] times for the kids. And I
[1:51:01] always get to tell them, and
[1:51:02] it's a real delight for me. I
[1:51:04] feel like I've won the career
[1:51:06] lottery, right? And I know not
[1:51:07] every job can be my job, but I
[1:51:09] do think that all metro workers
[1:51:11] deserve to feel that pride and
[1:51:12] dignity in their work. And I
[1:51:15] don't think this can be
[1:51:17] achieved through gestures and
[1:51:19] written recognition. But I
[1:51:20] think the only way to really
[1:51:22] create this culture of
[1:51:23] municipal pride is to
[1:51:24] adequately fund the resources
[1:51:28] that municipality provides. I
[1:51:31] think we must fund a national
[1:51:34] general hospital. We also
[1:51:36] should have a cost of living
[1:51:37] adjustments for all metro
[1:51:38] workers. And I do think the
[1:51:39] public schools need to be
[1:51:41] addressed. We should consider
[1:51:45] granting them bonuses for the
[1:51:46] days off that are on a calendar.
[1:51:48] Maybe give them more days on
[1:51:49] calendar so they can afford to
[1:51:51] live. As a library worker, I
[1:51:53] know that people's health has a
[1:51:54] direct effect on my day to day
[1:51:57] job and my safety. And when we
[1:51:58] unevenly fund city structures,
[1:52:00] it creates this unnecessary
[1:52:01] strain on the system. We need
[1:52:03] to stop doing that. Equal
[1:52:04] funding across the board fund,
[1:52:05] everyone. Thank you.
[1:52:07] Thank you.
[1:52:12] go ahead. You're recognized.
[1:52:13] Good evening.
[1:52:14] My name is dark
[1:52:15] kenya waller, and I have the
[1:52:17] pleasure of serving as the
[1:52:18] executive director of the legal
[1:52:19] aid society of middl tennessee
[1:52:20] and the cumberlands. I'm here
[1:52:22] to speak on behalf of the
[1:52:23] eviction rights of council
[1:52:24] program. But before I dive into
[1:52:26] that, I'd be remiss in my role
[1:52:28] as an advocate if I did not
[1:52:30] just speak to briefly the
[1:52:32] process for this. Today, as I
[1:52:34] sit in the gallery and
[1:52:37] experience the opportunity to
[1:52:39] address our council, I'm
[1:52:40] disturbed by the fact that
[1:52:42] there are seniors, there are
[1:52:43] folks with disability, there
[1:52:45] are folks with children. There
[1:52:46] are folks who don't speak the
[1:52:48] language well, who are vying
[1:52:50] for an opportunity to get in
[1:52:52] this line, and it is the
[1:52:54] strongest, the fittest who are
[1:52:56] getting their first. I think
[1:52:58] there should be a better
[1:53:00] process. I can't advocate for
[1:53:01] anything else if I don't
[1:53:02] advocate for the people who are
[1:53:04] right here, right now. There's
[1:53:06] got to be a better way to
[1:53:07] consider to consider those
[1:53:09] people. And I just hope that
[1:53:10] you all will take the time to
[1:53:12] consider what that is, so that
[1:53:14] we can have a more orderly and
[1:53:16] fair process for those who
[1:53:20] can't jockey for the position,
[1:53:22] like a coworker who just gets
[1:53:23] stuff done. The eviction right
[1:53:25] to counsel program is working
[1:53:27] daily to move the needle on
[1:53:28] affordable housing in nashville.
[1:53:30] We ensure that our most
[1:53:31] vulnerable neighbors are not
[1:53:33] being pushed out with the
[1:53:34] explanation that this is just
[1:53:37] the cost of progress. There are
[1:53:38] dignified and respectful ways
[1:53:39] to do this, which do not
[1:53:41] include allowing mold to grow
[1:53:43] in an apartment until someone
[1:53:45] is forced to move, or sending
[1:53:46] an immediate notice of eviction
[1:53:48] to a tenant who clearly has
[1:53:50] months left on a valid lease.
[1:53:52] While this is true that the
[1:53:53] eviction right to counsel
[1:53:55] program helps to balance the
[1:53:56] playing field between the 99%
[1:53:59] of landlords
[1:54:00] representation in court and the
[1:54:02] 1% of tenants who are not, who
[1:54:03] do not have an attorney when
[1:54:05] they walk into court. The
[1:54:06] eviction right to counsel
[1:54:08] program also works to ensure
[1:54:09] landlords receives the rent
[1:54:10] they deserve. Please support
[1:54:15] the program at $9.3 million.
[1:54:16] Thank you and thank you for
[1:54:19] your feedback as well. Go ahead
[1:54:23] and come forward.
[1:54:23] Good evening
[1:54:25] everyone. My name is sally
[1:54:28] woodard and I am an almost nine
[1:54:29] year employee of nashville
[1:54:32] geeral hospital. I work in the
[1:54:35] patient access department as a
[1:54:37] pre-registration representative,
[1:54:40] and I help patients gain access
[1:54:42] to health care services every
[1:54:45] day. And many of the
[1:54:46] individuals that we serve
[1:54:48] already face significant
[1:54:51] barriers to care. Nashville
[1:54:52] hospital, nashville general
[1:54:54] hospital we exist to help
[1:54:57] bridge those gaps. This year,
[1:54:59] y'all, something really
[1:55:00] powerful happened during the
[1:55:03] city budget discussions. Metro
[1:55:05] employees across various
[1:55:06] departments stood in solidarity
[1:55:08] with nashville general hospital
[1:55:11] by taking a back seat and not
[1:55:13] requesting additional funding
[1:55:15] so that the focus could remain
[1:55:17] on fully funding nashville
[1:55:19] general hospital. That
[1:55:21] sacrifice shows how deeply
[1:55:22] people understand the
[1:55:24] importance of this hospital.
[1:55:26] The workers at nashville
[1:55:29] general hospital continue doing
[1:55:31] everything possible to care for
[1:55:33] the community, despite
[1:55:35] increasing health care costs,
[1:55:36] staffing challenges and
[1:55:38] financial uncertainty year
[1:55:40] after year. We're not asking
[1:55:42] for luxury. We're not. We're
[1:55:44] only asking for fairness. We
[1:55:47] are asking for the city to
[1:55:49] fully invest in the hospital
[1:55:52] that serves its most vulnerable
[1:55:53] residents. A fully funded
[1:55:55] budget means continued patient
[1:55:58] care, stronger staffing,
[1:56:00] employee retention and raises
[1:56:02] for hard working employees who
[1:56:04] have dedicated themselves to
[1:56:07] serving nashville. The city
[1:56:09] charter recognizes the
[1:56:11] responsibility to care for the
[1:56:13] indigent population. We are
[1:56:14] asking the city to fully honor
[1:56:16] that responsibility. Please
[1:56:18] fully fund nashville general
[1:56:21] hospital. Thank you.
[1:56:25] Thank you.
[1:56:27] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[1:56:29] Good evening, city council
[1:56:31] members. My name is brenda
[1:56:33] gordon, and I've worked in
[1:56:34] nashville general hospital for
[1:56:36] seven years. I'm currently
[1:56:38] working at the board clinic as
[1:56:40] a clinic coordinator. And I
[1:56:42] stand before you tonight, not
[1:56:44] just an employee, but as
[1:56:45] someone who sees firsthand what
[1:56:47] the hospital means to our
[1:56:49] community. Every day at
[1:56:50] nashville general hospital, we
[1:56:51] care for the people who often
[1:56:53] have nowhere to turn. We care
[1:56:56] for working families, seniors,
[1:56:58] uninsured patients, and the
[1:57:00] indigent population that has
[1:57:01] city committed to serve under
[1:57:04] this charter. This is not just
[1:57:06] a member, a number. I'm sorry.
[1:57:08] This is not just a number on a
[1:57:09] budget sheet. These are human
[1:57:10] beings who depend on us to
[1:57:13] survive dignity and hope. Every
[1:57:15] year, health care costs
[1:57:17] continue to rise, supplies cost
[1:57:20] more, staffing costs more. The
[1:57:21] demand for care now continues
[1:57:24] to grow. Yet every year we find
[1:57:26] ourselves fighting for the
[1:57:28] funding necessary to simply
[1:57:29] operate and continue to serve
[1:57:32] this city. This is not
[1:57:35] sustainable. Our employees work
[1:57:37] tirelessly despite staffing
[1:57:40] shortages, burnout and
[1:57:41] financial uncertainty, because
[1:57:43] we believe in the mission of
[1:57:45] this hospital. But believing in
[1:57:48] the mission should not mean
[1:57:50] sacrificing fair wages or
[1:57:52] asking employees to
[1:57:55] continuously work more for less.
[1:57:58] A fully funded budget is not a
[1:58:01] luxury, it's a necessity. Fully
[1:58:02] funding nashville general
[1:58:04] hospital budget request means
[1:58:07] protecting access to care for
[1:58:08] vulnerable citizens. It means
[1:58:09] investing the health care
[1:58:11] workers who keep this hospital
[1:58:13] running. It means allowing
[1:58:14] employees to receive the raises
[1:58:16] they deserve. After dedicating
[1:58:18] themselves to this city year
[1:58:20] after year. We are asking you
[1:58:23] tonight to stand with us. Stand
[1:58:25] with the patients, stand with
[1:58:27] the workers. Stand with the
[1:58:30] mission of general hospital.
[1:58:31] Lastly, we are grateful for the
[1:58:32] solidarity shown.
[1:58:34] Your time has
[1:58:35] expired. Your time has expired.
[1:58:38] thank you, thank you. Next,
[1:58:45] please. Go ahead. You're
[1:58:46] recognized.
[1:58:48] Hello, my name is
[1:58:49] MISS Honey. My babies call me
[1:58:51] MISS Honey and I work for mmps
[1:58:55] schools. But I'm standing today
[1:58:58] to say I stand for solidarity
[1:59:01] budget. I'm not advocating for
[1:59:02] myself today. I'm advocating
[1:59:04] for general hospital, even
[1:59:05] though I'm broke and all my
[1:59:09] babies know I'm broke, 1.75% is
[1:59:12] not enough. But our sisters and
[1:59:13] brothers at general hospital,
[1:59:17] which my students go to, have
[1:59:19] not been made whole. We need to
[1:59:22] make them whole. Y'all know
[1:59:23] y'all have not done right by
[1:59:25] mmps schools. We not even going
[1:59:26] to go down there and talk to
[1:59:28] y'all for 26 years about that.
[1:59:30] But today is general hospital.
[1:59:32] I go to general hospital, my
[1:59:34] babies, by and large for mmps
[1:59:37] go to general hospital. So mmps
[1:59:40] schools is standing behind
[1:59:42] general hospital fully fund
[1:59:45] general hospital. We are
[1:59:47] advocating for cost of living
[1:59:49] adjustment. Mainly we want them
[1:59:51] to be whole. They need doctors
[1:59:53] and nurses. We need support
[1:59:55] staff. Seiu needs to be
[1:59:57] represented fully and wholly.
[2:00:00] They serve the city. If you
[2:00:02] want great health care, you can
[2:00:04] go there. To some of y'all do
[2:00:06] go. We've seen y'all there. So
[2:00:08] if you go there and you know
[2:00:09] it's excellent health care,
[2:00:12] give them the money they need.
[2:00:14] These are your fellow coworkers,
[2:00:15] people that live in the city
[2:00:18] with you. They have to put food
[2:00:21] on the table as well. So when
[2:00:23] they show up for work and take
[2:00:25] care of patients and people who
[2:00:26] are sleeping on the streets
[2:00:27] because you're not funding that
[2:00:28] either, then make sure that
[2:00:30] they can do that with a smile
[2:00:33] on their face. Mmps schools
[2:00:35] stands behind general hospital
[2:00:39] raises fully funded more than
[2:00:40] 1.75%. I can't even believe I'm
[2:00:42] saying that. But that's what we
[2:00:44] stand. We want to know that we
[2:00:47] stand lockstep with general
[2:00:53] hospital.
[2:00:56] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:00:57] You're recognized.
[2:00:57] I'm howard
[2:00:59] allen. First of all, I just
[2:01:01] want to say I'm a nashvillian
[2:01:03] born and raised, home grown. I
[2:01:05] have a grassroots organization
[2:01:06] called the nashville
[2:01:07] underground and part of the
[2:01:09] poor people's campaign. I'm
[2:01:10] standing in solidarity tonight
[2:01:14] with people's budget coalition.
[2:01:16] I want to talk about housing,
[2:01:18] and I want to talk about social
[2:01:19] housing. Now, the $25 million
[2:01:22] budget. I want to talk about
[2:01:25] $500,000. And I want to talk to
[2:01:27] a good associate of mine. This
[2:01:30] is to the honorable thomas
[2:01:32] frederick o'connell and to you,
[2:01:35] council members. We need land
[2:01:37] to be able to do this. Social
[2:01:40] housing of $500,000. And I want
[2:01:42] you to be able to do it right,
[2:01:43] because I'm demanding it. And
[2:01:45] what it's going to consist of
[2:01:47] is permanent housing,
[2:01:50] affordable, publicly owned,
[2:01:52] community controlled, and
[2:01:55] hopefully housing for all.
[2:01:56] Maybe we might get low income
[2:01:59] housing, too, but this is what
[2:02:03] I want and I'm challenging you
[2:02:04] don't take all day about
[2:02:05] deciding whether or not you're
[2:02:07] going to give us the land, give
[2:02:08] us the land because we're
[2:02:10] demanding it. And please do it
[2:02:12] before the super bowl because
[2:02:14] you can do it. And then I can
[2:02:17] go to a social housing
[2:02:19] apartment and look at the super
[2:02:20] bowl, and then you can tell
[2:02:22] them the olympics are coming or
[2:02:23] the world's fair. But do this.
[2:02:24] Thank you.
[2:02:25] Thank you. Go ahead
[2:02:26] and come forward. You're
[2:02:28] recognized.
[2:02:29] Good evening. My
[2:02:31] name is michelle and I'm a
[2:02:32] davidson county district two
[2:02:33] resident and a social worker
[2:02:34] for the national hispanic bar
[2:02:35] association. Eviction right to
[2:02:38] counsel. Today, I'm here to ask
[2:02:39] you to support increased
[2:02:42] funding for the irc program at
[2:02:44] $9.3 million in 2025, a fiscal
[2:02:45] impact study found that for
[2:02:47] every dollar invested in irc,
[2:02:50] nashville saw a return of $4.18.
[2:02:51] Last year alone, the coalition
[2:02:52] provided legal services to more
[2:02:54] than a thousand nashvillians
[2:02:55] and achieved client goals in
[2:02:58] nearly 95% of cases. As part of
[2:02:59] the coalition, national
[2:03:00] hispanic bar association
[2:03:02] provides culturally competent
[2:03:03] legal services to all
[2:03:04] qualifying residents, including
[2:03:06] immigrant and latin, a tenants
[2:03:07] that would otherwise face
[2:03:10] eviction alone. Nahb has
[2:03:12] already assisted more than 1500
[2:03:13] clients, delivered over $1.2
[2:03:15] million indirect value to
[2:03:16] families, and has been able to
[2:03:17] provide comprehensive
[2:03:19] wraparound services through
[2:03:20] interdisciplinary teams. In
[2:03:21] davidson county. Eviction
[2:03:23] filings continue to rise, yet
[2:03:23] funding has remained
[2:03:25] essentially flat for the past
[2:03:26] three years. The mayor's
[2:03:28] proposed budget of 2.4 million
[2:03:29] does not account for inflation
[2:03:31] or growing community need.
[2:03:33] coalition organizations are
[2:03:34] already stretching limited
[2:03:36] resources and hba alone
[2:03:38] supplements. Irc funding with
[2:03:39] substantial non-metro support
[2:03:40] just to sustain current
[2:03:42] services and allow for
[2:03:43] additional social work support.
[2:03:44] Increased funding would allow
[2:03:46] us to expand outreach, provide
[2:03:48] more multilingual legal
[2:03:49] education, increase
[2:03:50] representation and help more
[2:03:52] families stay housed before a
[2:03:54] crisis occurs. Eviction is not
[2:03:55] just a housing issue, it's a
[2:03:57] justice issue, a public health
[2:03:58] issue and an economic issue.
[2:04:00] Stable housing creates stronger
[2:04:02] families and safer communities.
[2:04:03] Please support increased
[2:04:04] funding for eviction right to
[2:04:05] counsel and continue investing
[2:04:06] in a program that we know
[2:04:08] changes lives and saves
[2:04:10] taxpayers dollars. Thank you.
[2:04:13] Thank you. Go ahead please.
[2:04:15] Good evening. My name is ali
[2:04:16] campbell, nashville resident
[2:04:19] from district 14. I work as a
[2:04:20] paralegal with the eviction
[2:04:21] right to counsel program at the
[2:04:23] national hispanic bar
[2:04:24] association. Our program
[2:04:25] provides free legal
[2:04:26] representation to renters
[2:04:28] facing eviction in davidson
[2:04:29] county. We have helped hundreds
[2:04:31] of nashville families remain
[2:04:33] housed beyond the human impact.
[2:04:36] This is a fiscally responsible
[2:04:37] investment. Keeping families
[2:04:39] housed prevents the downstream
[2:04:42] costs of shelters, emergency
[2:04:43] services and displacement that
[2:04:45] fall back on the city. Eviction
[2:04:46] right to counsel program is one
[2:04:48] of the many critical housing
[2:04:50] tools the city depends on, and
[2:04:53] we hope all of them can be
[2:04:55] adequately supported. We are
[2:04:56] asking the council to fund the
[2:04:57] eviction right to counsel
[2:05:00] program at $9.3 million, so we
[2:05:01] can continue serving the
[2:05:03] nashville renters that need it
[2:05:04] most. Thank you.
[2:05:05] Thank you. Go
[2:05:09] ahead. You're recognized.
[2:05:09] Good
[2:05:11] evening. My name is faith klein,
[2:05:13] and I serve as the civil
[2:05:14] mediation director at nashville
[2:05:16] conflict resolution center.
[2:05:17] Thank you for your continued
[2:05:18] support of the eviction right
[2:05:20] to counsel program. Since the
[2:05:23] rtc began funding in 2023, and
[2:05:25] crc has provided mediation
[2:05:28] services to 836 landlords and
[2:05:30] tenants, of those cases, 82%
[2:05:32] resulted in voluntary
[2:05:33] agreements, and two thirds of
[2:05:34] those cases avoided court
[2:05:36] judgments altogether through
[2:05:38] mediation. At the heart of
[2:05:39] every eviction case are real
[2:05:40] people wth real needs.
[2:05:42] Landlords need to remain
[2:05:43] financially stable an tenants
[2:05:46] need to stay housed. Too often,
[2:05:47] courts feel like the only
[2:05:49] option, yet many disputes can
[2:05:50] be resolved through a guided
[2:05:52] conversation with a neutral
[2:05:53] mediator, allowing both parties
[2:05:56] to be heard and developed to to
[2:05:58] develop solutions that work for
[2:05:59] everyone involved. Mediation
[2:06:01] creates better outcomes. It can
[2:06:03] help landlords avoid the costs
[2:06:05] of delayed associated court
[2:06:07] proceedings, while helping
[2:06:08] tenants avoid long term
[2:06:10] consequences of an eviction
[2:06:11] judgment that can make future
[2:06:13] housing difficult to secure.
[2:06:14] For three years, funding for
[2:06:16] this program has remained
[2:06:17] largely unchanged despite
[2:06:19] inflation and rising eviction
[2:06:21] filings. As demand increases,
[2:06:23] the capacity for
[2:06:24] representation, rental
[2:06:25] assistance and mediation has
[2:06:27] not kept pace. Tonight, our
[2:06:29] coalition is requesting 9.3
[2:06:33] million for eviction right to the funding
[2:06:34] level, the funding level.
[2:06:36] Stout's independent evaluations
[2:06:39] determined is needed for full
[2:06:40] implementation, and crc share
[2:06:42] of this investment would enable
[2:06:44] us to provide every eligible
[2:06:47] landlord and tenant access to
[2:06:48] compassionatedispute
[2:06:49] resolution before their case
[2:06:52] reaches the courtroom. We
[2:06:53] respectfully ask for your
[2:06:54] support of this funding
[2:06:56] increase to 9.3 million to
[2:06:58] close the justice gap and
[2:06:59] strengthen housing stability in
[2:07:01] davidson county. Thank you for
[2:07:04] your time and consideration.
[2:07:14] Thank you. Welcome. You MAY
[2:07:16] want to pull that mic down
[2:07:17] towards you. There you go.
[2:07:17] You
[2:07:20] hear me? Yes. Okay. My name my
[2:07:22] name is grace brady. I, I
[2:07:26] reside in district 21 and I am
[2:07:27] supporting funding for the
[2:07:30] barnes fund. As nashville has
[2:07:33] has grown, it was touted as the
[2:07:35] it city. And much of that
[2:07:37] concept concept is still true.
[2:07:39] With growth comes many
[2:07:41] challenges. One of them being
[2:07:43] housing is new residents, along
[2:07:45] with the residents who are
[2:07:48] already in place. I live in
[2:07:50] nashville called north
[2:07:52] nashville, a sector that that
[2:07:54] receives less attention many
[2:07:55] than many other parts of the
[2:07:57] city. As developments were
[2:07:59] generated, my congregation at
[2:08:01] clark memorial united methodist
[2:08:04] church took note of this talent
[2:08:06] in our neighborhood to acquire
[2:08:07] affordable housing, and the
[2:08:09] lesser notice given it by the
[2:08:11] other challenges working with
[2:08:13] affordable housing arm of the
[2:08:16] law, we research the need and
[2:08:17] determined to do our own part
[2:08:20] to meet that challenge. The
[2:08:23] result was the opening of six
[2:08:26] affordable homes in AUGUST of
[2:08:29] 2025. Because the barnes fund
[2:08:32] was initial and a significant
[2:08:35] part of that funding, research
[2:08:37] has shown that nashville has a
[2:08:39] deficit of at least 20,000
[2:08:40] units in affordable housing. So
[2:08:42] it begs the question does it
[2:08:44] make for reasonable public
[2:08:46] policy to reduce the barnes
[2:08:48] fund, which has helped our
[2:08:50] project and many others to
[2:08:51] achieve affordable housing for
[2:08:53] its residents who live on
[2:08:55] minimum wages or are barely a
[2:08:58] month above it, above it.
[2:08:59] There's also research that
[2:09:01] shows that even even our
[2:09:02] service workers, like police
[2:09:04] and early responders, are who
[2:09:06] support our city and make it
[2:09:08] safe for all of us, must live
[2:09:09] outside of the city because
[2:09:11] they don't have a place to live,
[2:09:13] which also increases our public
[2:09:16] safety and health risk. I beg
[2:09:18] the council to consider and
[2:09:21] please fully fund the barnes
[2:09:22] fund for the $30 million that
[2:09:24] is being asked. Thank you very
[2:09:27] much.
[2:09:37] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:09:38] You're recognized.
[2:09:40] Good evening.
[2:09:42] I'm irene boyd from council
[2:09:45] district 24, and I am also a
[2:09:47] member of the no affordable
[2:09:49] housing task force. We know
[2:09:50] that the barnes fund is the
[2:09:53] city's most effective tool for
[2:09:55] affordable housing, and we are
[2:09:58] glad that our mayor included
[2:09:59] $22 million for barnes in his
[2:10:02] budget. However, I'm here today
[2:10:05] to urge you to add another $8
[2:10:06] million to the fund, which
[2:10:09] would match the unified housing
[2:10:12] strategies call for $30 million
[2:10:15] to be funded annually. Since
[2:10:17] nonprofit developers can
[2:10:20] leverage $9 for every $1 from
[2:10:23] barnes, this would unlock $300
[2:10:25] million more in housing
[2:10:28] investment. The positive impact
[2:10:31] of the barnes fund has, which
[2:10:32] has had, excuse me, the
[2:10:34] positive impact the barnes fund
[2:10:36] has had on the recipients of
[2:10:38] this fund and in our city
[2:10:40] should be celebrated and
[2:10:42] continued, not diminished. What
[2:10:44] could be more important in a
[2:10:46] person's life, in a city's
[2:10:49] reputation than their housing?
[2:10:50] I'm a person who is a catholic
[2:10:52] and have spent all my life
[2:10:55] being exposed and challenged by
[2:10:57] both charity and social justice
[2:10:59] teaching of my church. I worked
[2:11:00] with the catholic diocese here
[2:11:03] in nashville, where I was very
[2:11:04] involved with social justice
[2:11:08] activities and and with the
[2:11:10] teaching of social justice. I
[2:11:13] also was an organizer with
[2:11:15] nashville together, tnt. All of
[2:11:17] this and more have taught me
[2:11:19] and led me to care about and
[2:11:21] work for justice. So now I want
[2:11:23] to end with a quote from my
[2:11:25] favorite pope francis, who said
[2:11:28] this about housing. Quote, let
[2:11:30] me be clear. There is no social
[2:11:33] or moral justification, no
[2:11:35] justification whatsoever for
[2:11:38] the lack of housing, end quote.
[2:11:40] And thank you.
[2:11:43] Thank you.
[2:11:44] Go
[2:11:45] ahead. You're recognized. You
[2:11:47] MAY want to pull that mic up.
[2:11:48] yeah.
[2:11:49] Thank you. One of the
[2:11:50] things about.
[2:11:51] Being told I'm
[2:11:52] mike hodge, district 31, john
[2:11:54] rutherford's district. I'm a
[2:11:55] member of edgehill united
[2:11:57] methodist church and the
[2:11:58] affordable housing task force.
[2:11:59] You've heard us speak many
[2:12:01] times about the barnes fund
[2:12:02] because it remains the most
[2:12:04] effective tool we've got for
[2:12:06] creating affordable housing.
[2:12:07] Metro's unified housing
[2:12:09] strategy, says nashville must
[2:12:11] create 2000 truly affordable
[2:12:13] homes every year just to keep
[2:12:15] up with the need. It also calls
[2:12:17] for investing $30 million
[2:12:19] annually in the barnes fund.
[2:12:21] Mayor o'connell's budget
[2:12:23] includes 22 million, but that's
[2:12:25] 8 million short of the gol.
[2:12:26] And because every barnes dollar
[2:12:28] leverages roughly ten more from
[2:12:30] other sources, that shortfall
[2:12:32] means as much as $80 million in
[2:12:34] affordable housing investments
[2:12:36] getting left on the table. Some
[2:12:38] council members are also
[2:12:39] proposing now to reduce that
[2:12:41] funding even further. Tonight,
[2:12:42] though, I really want you to
[2:12:44] hear the voice of reverend bill
[2:12:46] barnes, the namesake of this
[2:12:48] fund and longtime pastor of
[2:12:50] edgehill united methodist
[2:12:52] church. He spent years
[2:12:53] advocating for affordable
[2:12:54] housing and for the creation of
[2:12:57] this fund. He died in 2017, but
[2:12:59] in 2015, after the barnes fund
[2:13:01] was established, he thanked
[2:13:04] this council right here, and he
[2:13:06] said it's a remarkable
[2:13:08] beginning of a process. It is
[2:13:10] the beginning. It needs a
[2:13:12] source of resilient funding,
[2:13:13] recurring funding, and that
[2:13:17] will happen. I'm sure that was
[2:13:20] 11 years ago today in 2026, we
[2:13:22] still do not have the dedicated
[2:13:24] recurring funding reverend
[2:13:26] barnes envisioned. But we do
[2:13:29] have a choice. We can continue
[2:13:30] treating affordable housing as
[2:13:32] a beginning, or we can take the
[2:13:34] next step and fully fund the
[2:13:36] barnes fund. At $30 million
[2:13:38] this year. I believe reverend
[2:13:40] barnes would thank you once
[2:13:42] again, not for starting the
[2:13:43] work, but for finishing what
[2:13:46] you began.
[2:13:51] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:13:53] Please.
[2:13:55] Good evening, council
[2:13:58] members. My name is esther. I'm
[2:14:00] a nurse at triage nurse in
[2:14:03] nashville general hospital. I
[2:14:05] have proudly served the
[2:14:07] hospital for seven years as a
[2:14:10] nurse. We see first hand
[2:14:12] growing health care needs in
[2:14:15] this city. We see patients
[2:14:17] arrive every day who are
[2:14:21] uninsured, underinsured, sick,
[2:14:23] frightened, and in need of
[2:14:24] compassionate, compassionate
[2:14:27] health care. Nashville general
[2:14:29] hospital contnues to serve.
[2:14:32] Continue to serve them because
[2:14:34] that is our mission and because
[2:14:36] this city has a responsibility
[2:14:39] to take care of its indigenous
[2:14:42] persons. But caring for people
[2:14:44] requires investment. We know
[2:14:47] that this year, many of our
[2:14:50] fellow metro employees showed
[2:14:53] incredible solidarity by not
[2:14:55] pushing for additional funding
[2:14:58] required a request of their own,
[2:14:59] because they understand that
[2:15:01] nashville general hospital
[2:15:04] needs to be prioritized. They
[2:15:06] recognize that this hospital is
[2:15:08] essential to the health and
[2:15:10] well-being of nashville. That
[2:15:12] sacrifice should not be
[2:15:17] overlooked. And have
[2:15:19] continually carrying the burden
[2:15:21] year after year while health
[2:15:23] care costs rise and staff
[2:15:27] challenges continue to grow.
[2:15:29] Nurses, frontline staff and
[2:15:31] health care workers deserve
[2:15:33] fair raises and adequate
[2:15:36] support for the work we do
[2:15:38] every day. A fully funded
[2:15:41] budget request is about
[2:15:43] protecting patient care,
[2:15:45] retaining employees and
[2:15:47] ensuring that the hospital
[2:15:49] remains strong for future
[2:15:52] generations to come. We ask
[2:15:55] this council to recognize this
[2:15:58] importance of nashville general
[2:16:00] hospital and honor the
[2:16:02] solidarity of the metro workers
[2:16:04] across the state.
[2:16:04] Thank you.
[2:16:08] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[2:16:11] recognized.
[2:16:13] My name is jeffrey
[2:16:14] jackson and I work for
[2:16:16] environmental services as a
[2:16:18] technician at nashville general,
[2:16:21] who MAY not always see the work
[2:16:23] is always behind the scenes,
[2:16:25] but maintaining clean and safe
[2:16:26] hospital environment is
[2:16:30] critical to patient care. Every
[2:16:32] employee at nashville general
[2:16:34] plays a role in protecting the
[2:16:35] community. This year, metro
[2:16:37] workers assist other
[2:16:39] departments, showing solidarity
[2:16:40] by stepping back from
[2:16:42] requesting additional funding
[2:16:44] increases because they
[2:16:44] understood the nashville
[2:16:47] general hospital need to be
[2:16:51] paralyzed in this budget. That
[2:16:53] says a lot about respect and
[2:16:55] importance of the hospital. Is
[2:16:59] to serve the indigent
[2:17:00] population of nashville and
[2:17:02] provides care to people who
[2:17:04] often have nowhere else to turn.
[2:17:06] that mission is essential to
[2:17:09] the city for health care. Costs
[2:17:10] continue rising every year,
[2:17:12] while employees continue being
[2:17:15] asked to do more with less.
[2:17:17] Workers at any age deserve
[2:17:19] raises and reflect the
[2:17:21] dedication and sacrifices they
[2:17:24] make every day. Fully funded
[2:17:25] nashville general hospital is
[2:17:28] about more than numbers. It is
[2:17:29] about protecting health care,
[2:17:32] assist, supporting employees
[2:17:33] and honoring the city's
[2:17:35] responsibility to care for its
[2:17:37] people. We appreciate the
[2:17:40] solidarity shown by our fellow
[2:17:41] metro workers, and tonight we
[2:17:44] ask this council to show same
[2:17:45] commitment by fully funding
[2:17:47] nashville general hospital.
[2:17:48] Thank you for listening and GOD
[2:17:50] bless you all.
[2:17:50] Thank you so
[2:17:52] much. So for those of you all
[2:17:54] in front of the door, you can
[2:17:55] go ahead and come forward to
[2:17:57] the podium and go ahead and
[2:17:59] come a little closer to the
[2:18:01] podium, please, and far to the
[2:18:02] left. Just a reminder. So
[2:18:04] there's going to be one person
[2:18:05] at the podium for people in
[2:18:07] front of the door, and there
[2:18:08] should only be five people in
[2:18:11] line behind the door. I
[2:18:12] recognize we have some folks
[2:18:13] from our community groups that
[2:18:15] are trying to kind of organize.
[2:18:17] When we put our next five
[2:18:20] people into line, but
[2:18:22] respectfully, it looks a little
[2:18:23] cluttered back there. I want
[2:18:26] you to please respect our staff.
[2:18:31] So when we're telling you. I'm
[2:18:32] it looks like I can't be heard
[2:18:33] back there. Is that what you're
[2:18:36] saying? So again, there should
[2:18:38] be just ten people in line.
[2:18:40] Please, please respect miss
[2:18:42] charlotte's direction. Short
[2:18:44] gray hair, blue jacket. Our
[2:18:47] lovely staff member. Please
[2:18:49] respect her guidance back there.
[2:18:51] Okay, sir. Go ahead.
[2:18:51] Good
[2:18:53] evening. My name is ian judd.
[2:18:54] I'm the project manager for
[2:18:55] eviction right to counsel
[2:18:56] program in legal aid. I'm often
[2:18:58] called the numbers guy, so I'm
[2:18:59] going to throw some numbers at
[2:19:01] you all tonight. The first is
[2:19:03] $4.18. That's our return on
[2:19:04] investment for every dollar
[2:19:06] that this council has invested
[2:19:09] in our program. That means the
[2:19:10] $2.4 million that we've had in
[2:19:11] the past, and what's been
[2:19:13] proposed here for this year
[2:19:14] would be a return of more than
[2:19:16] $8 million to the city of
[2:19:17] nashville and other
[2:19:18] nashvillians. Irc has reduced
[2:19:19] costs across the social safety
[2:19:21] net in nashville, from shelter
[2:19:22] maintenance to er visits to
[2:19:24] keeping children and families
[2:19:26] in nashville even further, the
[2:19:27] average return for each
[2:19:30] individual client was more than
[2:19:32] $12,000 per client served, and
[2:19:35] then the next number is 1069.
[2:19:36] That's the number of households
[2:19:38] that received legal assistance
[2:19:39] from our attorneys and
[2:19:41] advocates in 2025. They're in
[2:19:42] court with our clients,
[2:19:44] providing important and vital
[2:19:45] legal advice and information.
[2:19:47] Our clients are able to do this
[2:19:48] work, and with even more
[2:19:50] funding, perhaps $9.3 million,
[2:19:53] wecan help even more people as
[2:19:55] our program is scalable. The
[2:19:57] next number here is 92%. That's
[2:19:59] the percentage of clients who
[2:20:00] achieve their goal of
[2:20:02] preventing an eviction judgment
[2:20:05] or involuntary move. 92% of our
[2:20:07] clients that didn't want an
[2:20:07] eviction judgment were
[2:20:09] successful in that goal. And we
[2:20:10] want to make sure that all of
[2:20:12] our clients achieve their goals.
[2:20:13] That's the first question we
[2:20:15] ask folks, what is your goal?
[2:20:16] And we do everything in our
[2:20:18] power to make sure they can
[2:20:19] achieve it. And while those are
[2:20:20] numbers, they're also people.
[2:20:21] They're our neighbors, our
[2:20:22] constituents, our friends that
[2:20:24] are seeking help, that all MAY
[2:20:25] have lost their housing if not
[2:20:26] for our program. We're
[2:20:27] extremely grateful for this
[2:20:28] council and our future with
[2:20:30] metro planning department, and
[2:20:31] look forward to working with
[2:20:32] all of the initiatives in
[2:20:33] planning and through metro
[2:20:35] council to really create an
[2:20:37] affordable and livable housing
[2:20:38] environment here in nashville.
[2:20:40] But demand continues to rise.
[2:20:42] Every month. There are about
[2:20:43] 1200 evictions. Like I said, we
[2:20:45] helped 1000 people last year,
[2:20:46] and with more money, we can
[2:20:47] make sure that we're helping
[2:20:48] every eligible person. If we
[2:20:50] have $9.3 million to fully
[2:20:51] implement our program. Thank
[2:20:52] you.
[2:20:53] Thank you so much. Go
[2:20:54] ahead and come on forward.
[2:20:57] Thank you so much.
[2:20:57] Hello. My
[2:21:00] name is sophia colby and I am
[2:21:01] the outreach coordinator for
[2:21:02] the eviction right to counsel
[2:21:04] program at legal aid society of
[2:21:05] middle tennessee and the
[2:21:07] cumberlands. I'm here today to
[2:21:08] speak in support of the
[2:21:10] continued funding for the
[2:21:11] eviction right to counsel
[2:21:14] program. In my role, I see
[2:21:15] firsthand the impact this
[2:21:16] program has on nashville
[2:21:18] residents facing housing
[2:21:19] instability throughout. Through
[2:21:21] our courthouse outreach, I
[2:21:22] provide tenants with
[2:21:24] information about their rights
[2:21:25] and connect them with resources
[2:21:26] that an help them navigate the
[2:21:28] often complex and daunting
[2:21:30] eviction process. Many people
[2:21:31] are unaware of their
[2:21:33] protections available to them
[2:21:34] until they speak with somebody
[2:21:37] from our program. I also attend
[2:21:38] community events and conduct
[2:21:40] outreach through webinars and
[2:21:41] social media to ensure that
[2:21:42] tenants understand their rights
[2:21:43] before they find themselves in
[2:21:45] court. These efforts help build
[2:21:47] trust, increase access to legal
[2:21:49] information, and empower
[2:21:50] residents to make informed
[2:21:52] decisions about their housing.
[2:21:54] As eviction filings continue to
[2:21:55] rise, funding for this program
[2:21:57] remains critical. The eviction
[2:21:59] right to counsel program helps
[2:22:01] keep people housed, promotes
[2:22:03] stability for families, and
[2:22:04] ensures that tenants have
[2:22:05] access to the support they need
[2:22:07] during a difficult and often
[2:22:09] overwhelming process. We hope
[2:22:10] to continue this important work
[2:22:12] and expand our ability to serve
[2:22:14] the community. Thank you for
[2:22:15] your consideration and
[2:22:17] support.
[2:22:19] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:22:22] You're recognized.
[2:22:22] Hello,
[2:22:24] everyone. Good evening. My name
[2:22:25] is shannon wagner and I am the
[2:22:27] executive director of nashville
[2:22:29] conflict resolution center for
[2:22:31] 25 years, and crc has served
[2:22:32] davidson county residents
[2:22:34] across every council district,
[2:22:36] helping people navigate
[2:22:37] conflict through mediation and
[2:22:39] collaborative problem solving.
[2:22:40] You'll hear from others about
[2:22:42] the impressive outcomes, the
[2:22:44] eviction right to counsel
[2:22:45] program, and the number of
[2:22:46] cases resolved through
[2:22:48] mediation. I would like to
[2:22:49] speak briefly about why those
[2:22:51] outcomes matter. Housing
[2:22:53] disputes are often treated
[2:22:55] solely as legal problems, but
[2:22:56] many began as human problems a
[2:22:59] medical crisis, a job loss, a
[2:23:01] family emergency, or a
[2:23:02] communication breakdown that
[2:23:03] escalates over time when the
[2:23:06] only pathway available is a
[2:23:07] courtroom. Opportunities for
[2:23:08] understanding and creative
[2:23:11] problem solving are often lost.
[2:23:12] Community mediation offers a
[2:23:14] different path. It gives
[2:23:15] landlords and tenants the
[2:23:16] opportunity to sit down with a
[2:23:17] trained, neutral third party
[2:23:19] and work toward solutions that
[2:23:20] reflect the realities of their
[2:23:23] lives. Payment plans, move out
[2:23:24] timelines, property concerns
[2:23:26] and communication issues can be
[2:23:27] addressed in ways that a court
[2:23:29] order cannot accomplish. What
[2:23:32] makes irc so effective is that
[2:23:34] it recognizes that access to
[2:23:35] justice requires more than
[2:23:37] legal representation. It is
[2:23:38] truly a coalition of partners
[2:23:41] and offers multiple pathways to
[2:23:42] resolution. Mediation is just
[2:23:44] one of those pathways, and it
[2:23:46] is an essential part of a
[2:23:47] healthy and responsive justice
[2:23:49] system. As nashville continues
[2:23:51] to grow, we will face
[2:23:52] increasingly complex challenges
[2:23:53] around housing stability,
[2:23:55] access to services and
[2:23:57] community well-being. Investing
[2:23:59] in irc is an investment in a
[2:24:01] more resilient city. We are
[2:24:03] grateful for your support of
[2:24:05] irc and respectfully ask you to
[2:24:06] increase, not at the expense of
[2:24:08] other housing initiatives,but
[2:24:10] as an investment in a program
[2:24:11] that is strengthening housing
[2:24:13] stability, expanding access to
[2:24:15] justice, and helping nashville
[2:24:16] residents find solutions that
[2:24:18] work and stay in their homes.
[2:24:20] Thank you for your time.
[2:24:20] Thank
[2:24:22] you so much. For those of you
[2:24:24] that are in front of the door,
[2:24:25] please don't linger by the wall.
[2:24:27] Just go ahead and come on
[2:24:28] forward. So come on forward to
[2:24:29] the podium and the gentleman
[2:24:31] behind you can come on a little
[2:24:33] bit. Perfect. Over to the left.
[2:24:35] Great. Right. So we can get
[2:24:36] four people in front of the
[2:24:38] door. We don't want to crowd
[2:24:40] the people to see, but you can
[2:24:41] just line up right there. Go
[2:24:42] ahead ma'am. Thank you.
[2:24:43] Good
[2:24:44] evening. My name is lisa
[2:24:45] woolley. I'm the executive
[2:24:46] director of rooftop nashville.
[2:24:48] We're the rent relief partner
[2:24:50] in eviction right to counsel. I
[2:24:51] am grateful the city is
[2:24:54] choosing to support keeping
[2:24:55] nashvillians in housing through
[2:24:57] the eviction right to counsel
[2:24:59] program. The people we serve
[2:25:01] are the backbone of our city.
[2:25:03] Rent relief as a part of irc
[2:25:05] looks like closing the gap for
[2:25:07] a single mother whose worker's
[2:25:08] comp ended before she was
[2:25:10] cleared to return to work, or
[2:25:12] the resident whose company was
[2:25:13] shut down by the state. While
[2:25:15] the new job would cover the
[2:25:17] rent, it wouldn't cover legal
[2:25:20] fees. But it also looks like
[2:25:21] limiting clients to those whose
[2:25:22] hardship happened in the last
[2:25:26] 90 days, or to those who only
[2:25:28] two months rent. Because
[2:25:32] funding is limited, 91% of
[2:25:34] clients receiving rent relief
[2:25:37] funding from irc remain housed
[2:25:40] at 12 months. This program
[2:25:42] works and we hope to expand
[2:25:44] services. We're asking that you
[2:25:47] fully fund the program with 9.3
[2:25:50] million. You are not alone in
[2:25:52] investing in the irc program.
[2:25:54] Each organization in the
[2:25:56] coalition allocates private
[2:25:59] funding to support irtk. The
[2:26:01] most recent example was the
[2:26:04] winter storm docket. Irc staff,
[2:26:06] civil court judges, court
[2:26:07] advocates, metro action
[2:26:08] commission and landlord
[2:26:10] attorneys came together to
[2:26:12] allow residents impacted by
[2:26:14] winter storm fern time and
[2:26:17] resources to recover. Rooftop
[2:26:19] provided over $100,000 in
[2:26:21] community funding to support
[2:26:23] the docket. I hope when the
[2:26:25] report comes out that each of
[2:26:27] you takes the time to read it
[2:26:29] and understand that your
[2:26:31] significant impact investment
[2:26:34] has a ripple effect in this
[2:26:37] community. The backbone of our
[2:26:38] community deserves the support.
[2:26:41] I hope you'll help irc
[2:26:43] coalition continue to grow by
[2:26:45] allocating 9.3 million in the
[2:26:45] budget. Thank you.
[2:26:47] Thank you.
[2:26:51] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[2:26:52] Council members.
[2:26:53] My name is
[2:26:54] richard. I'm the general
[2:26:55] manager of the virgin hotel
[2:26:56] nashville, located on music
[2:26:58] square west midtown. I'm here
[2:26:59] this evening to provide support
[2:27:00] in favor of the civic design
[2:27:01] center's proposal for community
[2:27:02] engagement. Regarding the buddy
[2:27:05] killen circle renovation for
[2:27:06] $50,000, the midtown
[2:27:07] neighborhood is growing at a
[2:27:08] rapid rate. Much of that growth
[2:27:09] is residential, which only
[2:27:11] builds upon a strong feeling of
[2:27:12] community as a key component
[2:27:14] that makes it such a desirable
[2:27:14] neighborhood for businesses,
[2:27:15] families, industries and
[2:27:16] residents alike. The buddy
[2:27:18] circle is a gateway to midtown
[2:27:19] and the west end. As a
[2:27:20] neighborhood grows and traffic
[2:27:22] increases, there's a continued
[2:27:23] need for focus on safety and
[2:27:24] the flow of all traffic through
[2:27:25] the community, whether for
[2:27:27] automobiles, bikers, joggers,
[2:27:28] local pedestrians, tourists, or
[2:27:29] people simply walking their
[2:27:31] pets, there is a need for
[2:27:32] improvement. Every day I drive
[2:27:34] from work to and from work,
[2:27:35] passing through buddy circle.
[2:27:36] The number of cars that do not,
[2:27:38] will not stop. For pedestrians
[2:27:39] or joggers that are properly
[2:27:40] using the designated labeled
[2:27:41] crosswalks is staggering. It's
[2:27:42] even more worrisome at night
[2:27:44] when visibility is limited in
[2:27:45] certain areas. You can't even
[2:27:46] see the pedestrians approaching
[2:27:47] the circle. The proposal will
[2:27:49] also support a review of the
[2:27:50] intersection of division street,
[2:27:51] 17th street and music square
[2:27:53] west, just off the circle
[2:27:54] throughout the day, even more
[2:27:56] frequently from 3 to 6 P.M.
[2:27:57] There are constant horns
[2:27:58] honking and brakes screeching
[2:27:59] as drivers try to avoid
[2:28:00] accidents due to not knowing
[2:28:01] how to navigate the
[2:28:02] intersection. There visibly,
[2:28:04] issues with the no turn on red
[2:28:05] signs, and people are
[2:28:06] constantly turning from turning
[2:28:07] right on red into oncoming
[2:28:09] traffic from 17th division
[2:28:10] streets. From the other
[2:28:11] direction on division street,
[2:28:12] there are three lanes of
[2:28:14] traffic coming into circle the
[2:28:15] two left lanes for left turn
[2:28:17] only onto music square west and
[2:28:18] the right lane is to continue
[2:28:19] on division street. However,
[2:28:20] there's four traffic lights.
[2:28:21] This confusion. This
[2:28:22] intersection impacts the flow
[2:28:24] of buddy circle as well. Things
[2:28:26] like the no turn on red signs
[2:28:27] being illuminated better and
[2:28:28] blinking lights added to
[2:28:29] crosswalks. The buddy circle
[2:28:30] can make a huge difference. A
[2:28:32] little bit of attention go a
[2:28:33] long way. While I'm aware that
[2:28:34] oftentimes incident and
[2:28:35] accident statistics are used to
[2:28:36] make decisions around funding
[2:28:38] for projects such as this, it
[2:28:39] MAY only be a matter of time
[2:28:40] before something serious occurs
[2:28:42] if it hasn't already. We have
[2:28:43] an opportunity with a small
[2:28:44] amount of support requested to
[2:28:46] be ahead of the curve when it
[2:28:48] comes to safety. As we continue
[2:28:49] to improve our neighborhoods
[2:28:50] within nashville, specifically
[2:28:50] midtown. Thank you for
[2:28:51] listening for your
[2:28:52] consideration.
[2:28:55] Thank you. Go
[2:28:56] ahead.
[2:28:57] Yes, thank you, counsel.
[2:28:59] And I do want to also say how
[2:29:00] much we appreciate the work
[2:29:02] you're doing to make our our
[2:29:03] city a better place. My name is
[2:29:04] chris claybrook. I'm with
[2:29:06] regions bank and I serve as a
[2:29:07] member of our our leadership
[2:29:11] circle. And I'm here tonight to
[2:29:12] to talk to you also about the
[2:29:14] request to amend the operating
[2:29:16] budget to include 50,000 for
[2:29:17] the community engagement and
[2:29:19] public realm design plans for
[2:29:21] buddy killen circle. I agree
[2:29:23] with richard's comments earlier.
[2:29:24] One of our challenges continues
[2:29:25] to be just the movement of
[2:29:26] traffic through there,
[2:29:27] especially around that division
[2:29:31] and 17th, we we have safety
[2:29:32] concerns for not only our
[2:29:33] associates, the residents in
[2:29:35] that area, but also our
[2:29:37] customers that are coming in
[2:29:39] around about. Plaza is home to
[2:29:41] 125 associates that make up our
[2:29:42] regional headquarters as well
[2:29:44] as our branch. So we have a lot
[2:29:45] of, of our clients coming
[2:29:46] through there, and we have
[2:29:48] safety we
[2:29:50] want to make sure we get this
[2:29:52] development done right. On the
[2:29:53] work around buddy killen circle
[2:29:55] and the civic design center has
[2:29:56] put together a proposal
[2:29:58] including community engagement,
[2:29:59] design, development and
[2:30:00] visualizations. To start this
[2:30:02] process, I would ask you to
[2:30:03] consider including this
[2:30:04] necessary funding in the
[2:30:06] operating budget and support
[2:30:07] this upcoming work. Thank you
[2:30:08] very much.
[2:30:11] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:30:14] You're recognized.
[2:30:15] Good evening,
[2:30:17] council members. My name is MR.
[2:30:19] Stevenson. I stand here today
[2:30:20] not only as an employee of
[2:30:22] metro nashville public schools,
[2:30:24] but as a representative of
[2:30:26] solidarity. Standing beside my
[2:30:28] sisters and brothers of m. P s
[2:30:30] metro nashville government and
[2:30:32] nashville general hospital
[2:30:35] tonight, our ask is very simple.
[2:30:37] Let us. Let us make nashville
[2:30:39] general hospital financially
[2:30:41] whole because the city cannot
[2:30:42] thrive while the very people
[2:30:45] saving lives are struggling to
[2:30:48] survive. Let us provide metro
[2:30:49] employees with a cost of living
[2:30:51] adjustment, increase esterases
[2:30:53] that reflect the cost of living
[2:30:56] in this city. Let us ensure
[2:30:58] that mmps employees receives
[2:30:59] that cost of living adjustment
[2:31:01] that matches metro employees,
[2:31:04] along with compensation for the
[2:31:05] unpaid days that are already
[2:31:07] built in their calendars every
[2:31:09] year. The same song is what
[2:31:11] song. People can no longer
[2:31:12] afford to live in the city that
[2:31:14] they work in. But tonight we
[2:31:16] are asking you to do more than
[2:31:18] hear the song. We are asking
[2:31:20] you to respond to it. Let us
[2:31:22] live in the city that we serve.
[2:31:25] Let us strive instead of merely
[2:31:27] surviving. Let us choose. Stop
[2:31:28] choosing between groceries,
[2:31:31] rent, medicine, and even gas.
[2:31:33] Let us stop working two and
[2:31:35] three jobs just to make ends
[2:31:36] meet, while still showing up
[2:31:39] every day to educate children,
[2:31:41] protect communities, and care
[2:31:43] for families. Because the truth
[2:31:45] is, the people who keep this
[2:31:46] city moving should not be
[2:31:48] pushed out of the very city
[2:31:51] that they helped build. So
[2:31:53] tonight, my ask is not
[2:31:56] complicated. Is simple. This
[2:31:58] let us. Let us be valued. Let
[2:32:01] us be respected. Let us be
[2:32:03] compensated fairly, and let us
[2:32:05] continue serving nashville with
[2:32:07] dignity. Thank you.
[2:32:08] Thank you.
[2:32:10] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[2:32:15] Come on. Forward.
[2:32:16] Good evening.
[2:32:21] Well, I'm. I don't even know
[2:32:22] what to say after what misty
[2:32:25] said, but.
[2:32:26] do please come a
[2:32:28] little closer to the mic, so be
[2:32:29] sure to hear you.
[2:32:30] That's all I
[2:32:31] already know. I can't even come
[2:32:33] behind
[2:32:34] misty. Afternoon. I'm
[2:32:36] sorry. I am told from the floor.
[2:32:38] But what I have heard and
[2:32:40] what's coming in behindme is
[2:32:42] so true. It is hard out here
[2:32:43] for these people who are
[2:32:45] working 2 or 3 jobs. It hurts
[2:32:47] me to see the single moms do
[2:32:48] that. I'm sorry. And for metro
[2:32:51] general hospital, please,
[2:32:53] please, please don't take it
[2:32:54] away because I'm going to tell
[2:32:58] you I love general hospital. I
[2:32:59] use it. I even encourage other
[2:33:02] metro employees. I use it
[2:33:03] because it's beneficial and
[2:33:05] it's affordable. That's why I
[2:33:06] use it. Honestly, really,
[2:33:08] that's why I use it. And I love
[2:33:09] the doctors. I love the
[2:33:11] employees who work there, who
[2:33:14] does amazing job, great
[2:33:16] customer service. You know, I
[2:33:19] just we shouldn't have to keep
[2:33:21] asking and asking and asking. I
[2:33:23] know everybody in here got an
[2:33:25] agenda. I get it. But don't
[2:33:27] forget about the people who you
[2:33:31] work for. You have to. I'm just
[2:33:34] going to say this. Do what's
[2:33:36] right.
[2:33:38] Thank you.
[2:33:40] Go ahead.
[2:33:43] Please.
[2:33:44] Good evening, vice.
[2:33:46] Mayor and council members. My
[2:33:48] name is sabina moideen, and I
[2:33:50] serve as executive director of
[2:33:51] the american muslim advisory
[2:33:53] council. And we are coalition
[2:33:55] partners with eviction right to
[2:33:57] counsel program. Our role in
[2:33:59] the coalition is to do outreach
[2:34:01] in the immigrant communities,
[2:34:02] as well as provide language
[2:34:05] access for those who need it.
[2:34:10] Recently, a thai immigrant who own home fell victim
[2:34:16] to a foreclosure fraud. And
[2:34:18] found herself in court without
[2:34:20] legal representation and using
[2:34:23] ai to try to understand what
[2:34:25] was going on. Understanding
[2:34:29] legal proceedings is hard
[2:34:30] enough if you are a native
[2:34:32] english speaker, so imagine how
[2:34:34] hard it is for someone for whom
[2:34:36] english is their second
[2:34:38] language. We need more funding
[2:34:40] to guarantee a robust outreach
[2:34:43] to communities in
[2:34:44] nashville, especially those
[2:34:46] with limited english
[2:34:47] proficiency, so they are aware
[2:34:49] of their rights and get the
[2:34:51] support they need. And another
[2:34:53] case, a somali family that was
[2:34:55] facing personal crisis received
[2:34:57] an eviction notice because they
[2:34:59] were behind on rent. We refer
[2:35:02] the family to legal aid society,
[2:35:06] legal aid society was at
[2:35:08] capacity and they were only
[2:35:11] able to provide advice. The
[2:35:13] family was willing to pay what
[2:35:14] was owed and requested a pay
[2:35:16] and stay deal, but the
[2:35:18] landlord's attorney was
[2:35:21] pressuring him to sign an
[2:35:23] eviction settlement. He called
[2:35:27] me panicking, not sure what to
[2:35:30] do. I am not a lawyer and could
[2:35:32] not provide legal advice. The
[2:35:34] legal advice he needed. We need
[2:35:37] to make sure we have enough
[2:35:38] attorneys to take on the
[2:35:41] growing number of eviction
[2:35:43] cases that we are seeing. We
[2:35:45] are grateful for the of
[2:35:48] metro council, but we want to
[2:35:49] increase the budget.
[2:35:50] Thank you.
[2:35:55] Thank you. MISS Shacklett.
[2:35:56] Everything okay there? Could
[2:35:58] you please could you sit down?
[2:36:00] miss you. And if you to
[2:36:01] speak, MISS Shacklett needs to
[2:36:03] go back and help administer the
[2:36:08] line. Please, ma'am. All right,
[2:36:11] I, I will share again because
[2:36:12] other people have entered the
[2:36:16] room. Okay. We are having ten
[2:36:18] people in line at a time. One
[2:36:20] at the podium, four in front of
[2:36:23] the door and five in line
[2:36:24] behind the door. MISS Shacklett,
[2:36:27] who is in blue, is
[2:36:28] administering the line. We ask
[2:36:31] you please to respect when she
[2:36:32] says this is the back of the
[2:36:33] line. Everyone else should be
[2:36:36] seated. Okay, so there should
[2:36:38] be ten people. MISS Shacklett
[2:36:41] knows who that is now. One. Two.
[2:36:43] Here and there as she comes
[2:36:44] forward to speak to you. Maybe
[2:36:46] there's an extra. So let's show
[2:36:49] some grace. But I appreciate
[2:36:50] that you're sharing. There's
[2:36:52] some confusion. We have two
[2:36:53] staff members there who are
[2:36:56] doing their best to administer.
[2:37:00] Okay. Thank you. Go ahead, MR.
[2:37:01] Creeks.
[2:37:02] Yeah. We will need a
[2:37:04] special meeting for discussing
[2:37:06] this sometime soon too. Despite
[2:37:07] our best intentions, it's
[2:37:11] really been very difficult. But.
[2:37:13] So my name is andrew grace. I
[2:37:14] live in district 21 and I'm
[2:37:15] with the national people's
[2:37:18] coalition. You would have heard
[2:37:20] from probably about 30 of our
[2:37:21] folks, but most of them are
[2:37:23] going to have to go home, or
[2:37:24] some of them will. But
[2:37:26] hopefully you'll hear from more.
[2:37:27] After direct engagement with
[2:37:29] thousands of working class
[2:37:30] nashvillians over the last two
[2:37:32] years. We are asking for three
[2:37:35] things that together amount to
[2:37:37] one half of 1% of the entire
[2:37:39] operating budget. First, it's
[2:37:40] $1 million for social housing.
[2:37:42] You've heard this phrase social
[2:37:43] housing is permanently
[2:37:44] affordable, publicly owned,
[2:37:46] community controlled, bond
[2:37:48] financed, mixed income housing.
[2:37:49] This $10 million ask includes
[2:37:51] the ask we made last year and
[2:37:53] are making again, which is
[2:37:54] $500,000 for staff to establish
[2:37:56] and maintain social housing in
[2:37:57] a new independent housing
[2:37:59] authority subsidiary. The
[2:38:01] remainder of that ask is 9.5
[2:38:02] million for a revolving loan
[2:38:03] fund for social housing. The
[2:38:05] mayor 7 million revolving loan
[2:38:06] fund is not yet what we're
[2:38:08] asking for, but we intend to
[2:38:09] help ensure that it becomes
[2:38:11] what we're asking for. It's one
[2:38:12] thing to say that you want us
[2:38:14] to stay here. It's another to
[2:38:15] fund and embrace a model that
[2:38:17] actually ensures that you have
[2:38:19] the power to improve our lives,
[2:38:21] and I hope you'll use it.
[2:38:22] Second, we're asking for $13
[2:38:23] million for the community
[2:38:24] safety fund operated by metro
[2:38:26] public health. The mayor
[2:38:27] recently said there's more to
[2:38:28] safety than policing, but you
[2:38:30] wouldn't really know it from
[2:38:31] looking at the budget. We spent
[2:38:33] nearly $1 billion annually on
[2:38:34] police, courts and jails, but
[2:38:36] give only crumbs to non-police
[2:38:38] alternatives. It's past time to
[2:38:39] shift how we understand and
[2:38:41] fund safety in nashville,
[2:38:42] significantly increasing
[2:38:43] funding for non-police
[2:38:45] community safety alternatives
[2:38:46] help start that process in
[2:38:48] earnest. And third, we want
[2:38:50] full funding at $2 million for
[2:38:51] the reach program. It's an
[2:38:53] existing solution, and we need
[2:38:55] to equip it to meet the
[2:38:56] enormous need in our
[2:38:57] communities. And finally, we
[2:38:58] want and expect each of these
[2:39:00] things to be not just funded,
[2:39:01] but established through a
[2:39:03] thorough, participatory,
[2:39:04] co-governance process. We don't
[2:39:06] want to give input after
[2:39:07] decisions are already made. We
[2:39:09] want to build and govern these
[2:39:10] institutions and policies
[2:39:11] alongside you, because the
[2:39:13] budget is the people's money
[2:39:14] and the public goods that our
[2:39:16] money funds should be governed
[2:39:16] by us too.
[2:39:22] Thank you. Thank you.
[2:39:23] What is up? Y'all trying to
[2:39:25] bring the energy? Saw some
[2:39:27] yawns. So just try to be hype.
[2:39:28] All right. Who wants to talk
[2:39:29] about housing finance? Awesome.
[2:39:31] My name is cade. I'm here with
[2:39:33] stand up nashville tonight. I'm
[2:39:35] here to request that you put
[2:39:37] $500,000 in an admin account
[2:39:39] for staff that will catapult
[2:39:40] our self-sustaining housing
[2:39:42] model forward. To do this, I
[2:39:44] want to talk to you about risk,
[2:39:45] because as we've been talking
[2:39:47] to people in the city, we over
[2:39:48] and over hear this word risk
[2:39:51] and risk aversion. Okay, so for
[2:39:53] many nashville residents myself,
[2:39:55] including housing has become a
[2:39:56] persistent source of
[2:39:57] uncertainty. I don't know what
[2:39:58] it's like where you're sitting
[2:40:00] over there on the gallery, but
[2:40:01] on this side, outside of the
[2:40:02] line, hunger games and
[2:40:03] everything else going on. I
[2:40:05] know most of us know what it
[2:40:07] feels like to live in a city
[2:40:08] where housing is a gamble every
[2:40:11] day. We often talk about new
[2:40:13] ideas as risky, but we rarely
[2:40:15] talk about the risk that
[2:40:17] already exists around us. The
[2:40:19] risk of being a renter in this
[2:40:21] city to see your rent go up,
[2:40:23] the risk of another family
[2:40:24] leaving the city, another
[2:40:26] teacher moving further from his
[2:40:29] her or their classroom, or a
[2:40:30] child who MAY have to live on
[2:40:32] the street. Another young
[2:40:33] person deciding that they
[2:40:35] cannot build a future here. The
[2:40:37] risk of waking up ten years
[2:40:39] from now and realizing that
[2:40:40] nashville has become a place
[2:40:42] where ordinary people cannot
[2:40:45] afford to live. Those risks are
[2:40:47] real, and they're already here,
[2:40:49] but they're not being carried
[2:40:50] equally. They're being carried
[2:40:55] by us, the renters, the working city by families
[2:40:57] trying to hold on to the
[2:40:58] communities they've built. What?
[2:41:00] Stand up nashville is asking
[2:41:01] for is 500,000 to create
[2:41:03] capacity for nashville to build
[2:41:05] something new, an institution
[2:41:06] that can develop housing that
[2:41:08] remains affordable because it
[2:41:09] remains in public hands,
[2:41:12] housing that creates lasting
[2:41:14] public value for our city. The
[2:41:15] greatest risk facing nashville
[2:41:18] is not that we try something
[2:41:19] ambitious. The greatest risk is
[2:41:20] that we continue down the
[2:41:22] current because it feels
[2:41:23] familiar and safe. I hope
[2:41:25] you'll consider making this
[2:41:27] decision. Thank you.
[2:41:29] Thank you.
[2:41:31] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[2:41:33] Okay. Hi, everybody.
[2:41:33] I am.
[2:41:35] Susan chan. I live in district
[2:41:37] one and bells bend area. And I
[2:41:39] am here talking to express my
[2:41:42] support for two issues. One is
[2:41:43] what the two fine gentleman
[2:41:44] before me were speaking about.
[2:41:46] I'm just learning about social
[2:41:48] housing, and it sounds like a
[2:41:49] no brainer to me. It sounds
[2:41:51] like something we need to be
[2:41:54] creating here. And I think
[2:41:57] 500,000 in the budget for the
[2:41:58] establishment of an entity that
[2:42:00] can kind of plan for that and
[2:42:03] manage that makes so much sense
[2:42:06] for long term sustainable and
[2:42:08] affordable housing for the city.
[2:42:09] So that'sissue number one. The
[2:42:11] second thing I want to advocate
[2:42:15] for is a wish list item from
[2:42:16] doctor battle for metro
[2:42:18] nashville public schools to
[2:42:21] implement composting and the
[2:42:24] hiring of a sustainability
[2:42:26] manager for the schools as well
[2:42:29] as training. I believe it's
[2:42:31] lead led leadership in energy
[2:42:34] and environmental design
[2:42:36] certification for teachers.
[2:42:39] This is long overdue and
[2:42:41] obviously the composting will
[2:42:42] remove a lot of waste from our
[2:42:44] landfills, which I don't need
[2:42:45] to tell any of. You are filling
[2:42:48] up very quickly. It will save a
[2:42:49] lot of money in the metro
[2:42:56] budget over time. Somewhere
[2:42:58] between 179 and $270,000 just
[2:43:00] from picking up composting
[2:43:02] waste in schools. And I just
[2:43:04] would love to see that be
[2:43:07] implemented. So please consider
[2:43:08] including that in the budget.
[2:43:10] That's 580,000. Again, a very
[2:43:12] small ask for a very large
[2:43:14] payoff for the city and for our
[2:43:15] kids who need to learn about
[2:43:18] the value of doing these things
[2:43:20] and see that the adults around
[2:43:22] them value it as much as as
[2:43:24] they hopefully will as they
[2:43:26] mature. Thank you.
[2:43:28] Thank you.
[2:43:30] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[2:43:31] Good evening friends. My name
[2:43:33] is how. I'm the ceo of the
[2:43:35] community foundation of middle
[2:43:36] tennessee and a resident of
[2:43:38] district 24. It is nights like
[2:43:40] this. I know that leadership
[2:43:41] commitment and I want to thank
[2:43:43] you for yours. Thank you for
[2:43:44] sitting here. And thank you for
[2:43:45] the way you've respectfully
[2:43:47] listened to every single person
[2:43:48] that's approached this mic.
[2:43:50] There MAY not be a lot of
[2:43:51] things that we universally
[2:43:53] agree on in the city every day,
[2:43:55] but I do think we agree on this.
[2:43:56] Homes affordable to working
[2:43:57] families are falling out of
[2:43:59] reach faster than we can track.
[2:44:02] And daily I hear where is
[2:44:04] philanthropy on this issue?
[2:44:05] There is a role for
[2:44:06] philanthropy, and I am
[2:44:07] committed and working really
[2:44:09] hard to bring them to the table
[2:44:12] in a coordinated way. But it is
[2:44:14] important that metro builds a
[2:44:15] table big enough, bold enough,
[2:44:17] and collaborative enough for
[2:44:19] philanthropy to join. We got a
[2:44:21] taste of what can happen at
[2:44:22] that table. When metro
[2:44:23] committed $20 million to
[2:44:25] launching the national catalyst
[2:44:27] fund within months, multiple
[2:44:28] private and philanthropic
[2:44:31] investors quickly joined
[2:44:34] ballooning that fund to 76.4
[2:44:36] $76.5 million. That is nearly a
[2:44:38] 4 to 1 public private ratio.
[2:44:39] And that is what metro
[2:44:42] commitment can unlock. Every
[2:44:44] week, I work alongside leaders
[2:44:45] overseeing hundreds of millions
[2:44:46] of dollars of philanthropic
[2:44:48] capital, and I can tell you the
[2:44:50] foundations and donors are
[2:44:51] actively trying to figure out
[2:44:54] how to invest effectively in
[2:44:56] housing in the city. I believe
[2:44:58] that the capital is ready to
[2:44:59] move, but I also believe that
[2:45:01] metro has to boldly lead at
[2:45:03] this moment in time. Your vote
[2:45:05] tonight is not just about what
[2:45:07] the city spends. I believe it
[2:45:09] is. It also helps determine
[2:45:11] whether a much larger coalition
[2:45:13] activates and follows the
[2:45:14] cities that change their
[2:45:15] housing trajectory. Did it by
[2:45:18] building a system big enough to
[2:45:19] hold all of us at the table.
[2:45:21] This budget begins to build
[2:45:22] that system, and I'm proud to
[2:45:24] stand behind it tonight. Thank
[2:45:26] you.
[2:45:30] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:45:31] You're recognized.
[2:45:32] Hello, my
[2:45:33] name is lindsay.
[2:45:33] Longoria and
[2:45:35] I'm a nashville resident of
[2:45:37] district 25. I'm also the
[2:45:38] community engagement and
[2:45:39] gratitude officer for the
[2:45:41] contributor. And I'm here to
[2:45:42] request funding support on
[2:45:44] behalf of the contributor saw
[2:45:45] program. As you heard from will,
[2:45:47] our executive director earlier,
[2:45:48] for the past two years, the
[2:45:50] contributor has partnered with
[2:45:52] local emergency departments. By
[2:45:53] the way, we also support
[2:45:55] funding national general to
[2:45:57] identify patients experiencing
[2:45:58] homelessness and help them
[2:45:59] access disability benefits,
[2:46:01] health care income and
[2:46:03] ultimately housing stability. I
[2:46:04] know from personal experience,
[2:46:06] working on the front lines as a
[2:46:07] case manager, as well as from
[2:46:09] well researched data that
[2:46:11] access to housing and community
[2:46:12] resources leads to health and
[2:46:14] wholeness, a status that the
[2:46:15] majority of our clients have
[2:46:17] never experienced, especially
[2:46:18] those who have applied for
[2:46:19] these benefits on their own and
[2:46:21] been denied. As the process is
[2:46:22] not set up for individuals to
[2:46:25] navigate alone. Tonight, I am
[2:46:27] asking for your support of the
[2:46:28] $350,000 funding request to
[2:46:30] continue this necessary work
[2:46:33] that will generate an estimated
[2:46:34] $1.3 million in revenue for
[2:46:36] those who need it most. This is
[2:46:38] work that is already happening
[2:46:40] already, work that is already
[2:46:41] proven effective. There's no
[2:46:43] drawback to supporting this
[2:46:45] budget request, only a better
[2:46:47] community that benefits when
[2:46:49] folks folks who need it, when
[2:46:51] they receive the benefits that
[2:46:53] they deserve. And finally, as a
[2:46:55] side note, I would like to note
[2:46:56] that you could compensate
[2:46:58] literally any m, m, p s
[2:46:59] employee in this room to fix
[2:47:01] this line situation in like
[2:47:05] five minutes. Thanks. Bye.
[2:47:05] Next.
[2:47:09] Go ahead. MISS Styles, could I
[2:47:10] ask, please, ma'am, so that
[2:47:12] MISS Hayes shacklett can
[2:47:14] administer the line? If you
[2:47:16] might return to the chamber
[2:47:18] floor. Thank you. Or just let.
[2:47:20] Let MISS Hayes shacklett do her
[2:47:21] good work, please. Thank you
[2:47:23] ma'am. Go ahead. Sir. You're
[2:47:24] recognized.
[2:47:25] Good evening,
[2:47:27] council, and thank you for this
[2:47:29] time and for listening. It's
[2:47:30] late. My name is christian
[2:47:32] perot of the nashville property
[2:47:34] tax coalition. We're a
[2:47:35] nonpolitical group concerned
[2:47:37] about small businesses in
[2:47:41] davidson county. All 350 of our
[2:47:42] members understand the property
[2:47:44] taxes go up in a growing city,
[2:47:47] and we are okay with that. We
[2:47:49] also know that metro relies on
[2:47:51] property taxes for a large
[2:47:53] portion of its budget. Small
[2:47:55] businesses have budgets to, and
[2:47:57] they do their best to plan
[2:47:59] ahead. But no business can plan
[2:48:05] for 75%, 100, 200, and even
[2:48:07] 300% increases in their tax
[2:48:09] liabilities. Most of these
[2:48:11] property taxes are passed on to
[2:48:13] the small business tenants who
[2:48:15] occupy the commercial buildings
[2:48:17] in our neighborhood centers and
[2:48:20] roadway corridors. We are
[2:48:22] asking for reasonable tax
[2:48:24] increases, but when you have
[2:48:26] historically high property
[2:48:27] valuations, many of which are
[2:48:29] incorrect in today's economic
[2:48:31] climate, combined with an
[2:48:34] increase in tax rate, you get
[2:48:35] outrageous tax bills that will
[2:48:37] force the closure of hundreds
[2:48:39] of small businesses in the nxt
[2:48:41] 12 to 18 months. What is metro
[2:48:43] government going to do to
[2:48:45] preserve the small businesses
[2:48:46] that made nashville what it is
[2:48:49] today? Thank you.
[2:48:51] Thank you. Go
[2:48:53] ahead. You're recognized.
[2:48:53] Good
[2:48:54] afternoon. Thank you for your
[2:48:56] time. My name is medina rasheed,
[2:48:58] and I'm a proud resident at the
[2:49:00] cottages of drakes creek. I am
[2:49:02] honored to be a part of what is
[2:49:03] becoming one of nashville's
[2:49:05] first cooperative housing
[2:49:07] communities, an innovative step
[2:49:11] towards forwarding only. Oh.
[2:49:14] Excuse me, I'm sorry. I'm
[2:49:16] honored to be a part of what is
[2:49:17] becoming one of nashville's
[2:49:18] first cooperative housing
[2:49:19] community and innovative steps
[2:49:21] forward not only for our
[2:49:22] neighborhood, but for the
[2:49:23] future of affordable housing
[2:49:25] across our city. As nashville
[2:49:27] discussed budget priorities and
[2:49:29] further investments, I
[2:49:30] respectfully ask that
[2:49:31] cooperative housing initiative
[2:49:33] remain at the top of the
[2:49:35] priorities. This project is
[2:49:37] creating opportunities for
[2:49:38] working families who MAY never
[2:49:40] otherwise otherwise have access
[2:49:42] to homeownership. It gives
[2:49:43] residents stability, dignity,
[2:49:46] and true voice in our community.
[2:49:47] What makes this initiative so
[2:49:49] important is that it is not
[2:49:50] just about housing, it is about
[2:49:52] preventing displacement,
[2:49:54] building generational stability,
[2:49:56] and creating long term
[2:49:58] community investment. The
[2:49:59] excitement surrounding the
[2:50:00] cottages at drakes creek
[2:50:02] reflects the hope many
[2:50:03] nashville residents have
[2:50:05] new and creative housing
[2:50:08] solutions. However, I also want
[2:50:09] to emphasize a major concern
[2:50:11] for many current residents.
[2:50:12] Some tenants slightly exceed
[2:50:16] the current 50% median income
[2:50:17] requirement, yet we are the
[2:50:19] very people who have helped
[2:50:20] build and sustain this
[2:50:22] community. We recently went to
[2:50:24] the barnes fund to ask for
[2:50:25] consideration grandfathering.
[2:50:29] Some of us in. And that allowed
[2:50:30] those families to remain part
[2:50:32] of the co-op model. We have
[2:50:33] been told that there is no
[2:50:35] solution at this time due to
[2:50:37] the restrictions. With the
[2:50:38] funding that has been selected
[2:50:40] for this project, the barnes
[2:50:41] fund should continue funding
[2:50:43] and supporting these typeof
[2:50:44] initiatives initiatives within
[2:50:46] our city. We do not want to see
[2:50:47] neighbors displaced simply
[2:50:50] because they fall just above an
[2:50:52] income threshold during this
[2:50:55] transition. Protecting existing
[2:50:56] residents while expanding
[2:50:57] affordable ownership
[2:50:58] opportunities should go hand in
[2:50:58] hand.
[2:50:59] thank you.
[2:51:00] Thank you.
[2:51:02] Your time has concluded. Go
[2:51:05] ahead. You're recognized. That
[2:51:06] mic up. Yeah, I got you. Okay.
[2:51:08] Steven watts, district ten. So
[2:51:10] I come bearing a message from
[2:51:12] one of my neighbors at drakes
[2:51:14] creek cooperative. So she says
[2:51:17] it's messy. I say it's poetic.
[2:51:18] The housing cooperative. Let's
[2:51:20] talk about it. The safety of it
[2:51:22] is like no other. Having your
[2:51:24] neighborhood be your comfort
[2:51:26] zone, the affordability, it's
[2:51:28] life's desire. Neighbors
[2:51:30] handpicked to merge into a
[2:51:31] family compound. Without the
[2:51:34] bloodline drama, the shared
[2:51:35] responsibilities, not just
[2:51:37] yours to carry. Land your
[2:51:39] trusted with, to nurture, grow,
[2:51:40] maintain without the hectic
[2:51:41] maintenance solely on your
[2:51:43] income and time. No more
[2:51:45] strange neighbors. No more
[2:51:47] wavering landlord. No more
[2:51:49] unbalanced property tax hikes
[2:51:50] appraised for you alone. No
[2:51:52] more sudden relocation. No more
[2:51:54] pit in your stomach from moving
[2:51:57] costs or unfamiliarity. Instead
[2:51:58] initiated cooperative living
[2:52:00] for all. Melissa I. Roberts,
[2:52:01] co-chair of drakes creek
[2:52:03] cooperative council. So melissa
[2:52:05] has also told me one other
[2:52:06] thing that I really love. She
[2:52:07] says being part of the
[2:52:09] cooperative is what makes us
[2:52:11] business partners. But being
[2:52:13] neighbors makes us family so
[2:52:15] quickly. What a cooperative is.
[2:52:16] Cooperatives are similar to
[2:52:17] home ownership associations. A
[2:52:19] group of homeowners come
[2:52:20] together to fight for their
[2:52:21] shared interests. But while hoa
[2:52:23] is come together to make sure
[2:52:25] that their home value increases,
[2:52:28] which makes that the home
[2:52:28] unaccessible for people who
[2:52:30] follow them. Instead, a
[2:52:31] cooperative comes together to
[2:52:33] keep costs low, to make sure
[2:52:34] that the people who invest in
[2:52:36] the neighborhood, when that
[2:52:37] neighborhood increases in value,
[2:52:39] that those people can stay. So
[2:52:41] being employed by the southeast
[2:52:42] center for cooperative
[2:52:44] development, that makes me and
[2:52:45] the drakes creek neighbors,
[2:52:47] that makes us business partners.
[2:52:48] But I also live across the
[2:52:49] street from being
[2:52:50] neighbors is what makes us
[2:52:52] family. And so what I want to
[2:52:56] ask for is two things. So the
[2:52:57] barnes fund, obviously everyone
[2:52:59] has spoken about how we need it.
[2:53:01] We also need permanent
[2:53:02] allocations first for
[2:53:04] permanently affordable housing.
[2:53:06] Lastly, I join on to the calls
[2:53:07] of other members who asked for
[2:53:09] that 500,000 for social housing
[2:53:11] staff to sure that
[2:53:12] belonging is policy, not just a
[2:53:12] slogan.
[2:53:15] Thank you, thank you.
[2:53:19] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[2:53:20] Paula williams, district 21
[2:53:22] tonight. I did not come here
[2:53:25] carrying statistics. I came
[2:53:27] carrying the weight of a city
[2:53:29] that is exhausted, a city where
[2:53:31] mothers sit at tables hungry
[2:53:35] because there is only enough their children. A
[2:53:37] city where fathers work two and
[2:53:40] three jobs and still come home
[2:53:41] wondering can they afford the
[2:53:44] rent? How is a family supposed
[2:53:46] to survive when survival itself
[2:53:48] has become expensive?
[2:53:50] Nashvillians are hurting
[2:53:52] mentally, physically,
[2:53:54] emotionally. Every night
[2:53:56] families lie awake asking, will
[2:53:58] there be enough food tomorrow?
[2:54:00] will we still have a home next
[2:54:03] month? Will while luxury
[2:54:04] buildings continue climbing
[2:54:06] into the sky, the people who
[2:54:08] built this city are being
[2:54:10] pushed further and further away
[2:54:12] from it. Affordable housing is
[2:54:14] not a handout. It is not
[2:54:16] charity is. It is dignity. It
[2:54:18] is a mother. Finally, not
[2:54:20] worrying about eviction
[2:54:22] knocking. It is a father making
[2:54:23] it home before his children%
[2:54:26] fall asleep. Because right now
[2:54:28] time is stealing from families.
[2:54:30] Parents are missing birthdays
[2:54:32] working overtime. Children are
[2:54:34] growing up through exhausted
[2:54:37] hugs and phone calls instead of
[2:54:39] presents. Somewhere along the
[2:54:41] way, we struggle as a
[2:54:43] price of of living in nashville.
[2:54:45] But I refuse to believe a city
[2:54:48] this great cannot make room for
[2:54:50] the very people who keep it
[2:54:52] alive. So tonight, I demand you
[2:54:54] stop seeing affordable housing
[2:54:57] as numbers on paper and start
[2:54:58] seeing the people, the tired
[2:55:00] eyes, the empty refrigerators.
[2:55:02] See the families one paycheck
[2:55:04] away from losing everything.
[2:55:06] Because a city is not measured
[2:55:08] by the height of its buildings,
[2:55:11] but by how it treats the people
[2:55:13] holding those buildings up.
[2:55:15] Nashville needs compassion.
[2:55:17] Nashville nashville needs
[2:55:19] action. Nashville needs
[2:55:21] affordable housing, funded
[2:55:22] fully because the people are
[2:55:24] tired of waiting.
[2:55:27] Thank you.
[2:55:30] You're recognized. Go ahead.
[2:55:30] My
[2:55:31] name is.
[2:55:32] Jeffrey gordon.
[2:55:32] District.
[2:55:33] MR. Gordon, will you
[2:55:35] pull that mic up a little
[2:55:36] closer to you? Thank you sir.
[2:55:37] Go ahead.
[2:55:38] My name is jeffrey
[2:55:39] gordon, district six. I'm the
[2:55:40] vice CHAIRMAN Of the nashville
[2:55:41] entertainment commission. We
[2:55:43] spent the last three years on
[2:55:45] square one. We were summarily
[2:55:47] removed from the mayor's budget
[2:55:49] for the explanation ofthe fact
[2:55:50] that we would become a
[2:55:52] department of one, which would
[2:55:53] afford us to flounder and fail
[2:55:55] along the way. I take umbrage
[2:55:58] with that, and that we've been
[2:55:59] unable to communicate amongst
[2:56:01] ourselves and be efficient.
[2:56:02] Commission because of the open
[2:56:05] meetings act, which has been
[2:56:06] difficult to deal with. We're
[2:56:08] asking now we're we
[2:56:11] were $250,000. We're asking for
[2:56:13] $300,000. Our initial ask to
[2:56:16] the mayor was $585,000 to fund
[2:56:18] staffing, the ability to have
[2:56:20] an office, the ability to have
[2:56:22] monies to actually generate the
[2:56:23] initiatives that would benefit
[2:56:25] our community. Speak for actors,
[2:56:27] for singers, for songwriters,
[2:56:28] for the coffee shops down the
[2:56:31] street from the movie sets. I
[2:56:33] have nothing but love for the
[2:56:34] community. I've been here for
[2:56:37] 35 years. I make my life as a
[2:56:39] lighting director. We make the
[2:56:41] sites, we create the sounds.
[2:56:43] We've been in 185 different
[2:56:44] television markets around the
[2:56:48] world. That brings our city to
[2:56:49] the forefront of an
[2:56:51] entertainment community. There
[2:56:53] are several entertainment
[2:56:54] communities around the world.
[2:56:56] We are one that does not have
[2:56:58] the proper representation to
[2:57:00] allow our government to
[2:57:01] maximize the opportunity, the
[2:57:03] return on investment that a
[2:57:05] nominal sum would create. I
[2:57:06] thank you all for the
[2:57:08] opportunity to speak before you.
[2:57:09] I hope you can find your way
[2:57:11] clear to benefit our office.
[2:57:12] Thank you.
[2:57:15] Thank you. Go ahead.
[2:57:17] You're recognized.
[2:57:18] Good evening,
[2:57:19] vice mayor, council members,
[2:57:21] I'm stephanie coleman, ceo of
[2:57:22] the national chamber and
[2:57:25] resident of district seven. I'm
[2:57:27] here in support of the housing
[2:57:30] investments in this budget. To tell you who this
[2:57:32] budget is for. And the numbers
[2:57:34] from the city's own housing
[2:57:36] strategy that we all helped
[2:57:38] create. A hotel clerk in
[2:57:40] nashville earns about $33,000 a
[2:57:44] year. A hairstylist
[2:57:46] 43,000. A social worker
[2:57:48] caring for our most vulnerable
[2:57:51] children, about 57,000 for each
[2:57:53] of them, a home that they can
[2:57:57] actually afford runs between
[2:57:58] 800 and $1400 a month. Those
[2:58:01] homes are disappearing. Home
[2:58:03] values in this county are up
[2:58:06] 40% since 2019. Incomes are
[2:58:10] only up 19% as of last spring,
[2:58:12] there were 350 listings in all
[2:58:14] of davidson county. That median
[2:58:16] household could afford to buy.
[2:58:18] The business community does not
[2:58:20] watch this from a distance.
[2:58:22] It's a workforce problem that
[2:58:24] we feel every single day. You
[2:58:26] cannot run a city. It's
[2:58:27] hospitals, it's schools, it's
[2:58:29] restaurants. It's small
[2:58:31] businesses on people who can no
[2:58:33] longer afford to live in it.
[2:58:35] Housing has become economic
[2:58:37] infrastructure as fundamental
[2:58:39] to our competitiveness as
[2:58:41] transit or schools. And here's
[2:58:42] what the business community
[2:58:44] most wants this body to hear.
[2:58:47] This is a solvable problem, not
[2:58:49] with a single headline or a
[2:58:51] silver bullet, but the way hard
[2:58:53] problems are actually solved
[2:58:55] through patient, unglamorous,
[2:58:56] evidence based work, sustained
[2:58:58] year after year until it
[2:59:00] compounds. And this is exactly
[2:59:02] what this budget is. The
[2:59:04] unified housing strategy is a
[2:59:06] plan that sets goals, that
[2:59:08] funds the tools, that measures
[2:59:10] what works and builds on it.
[2:59:11] And that's how companies row
[2:59:13] as well, and how serious cities
[2:59:16] solve their hardest
[2:59:18] the payoff here isn't next
[2:59:19] year's headline, it's the long
[2:59:22] term return on doing the steady
[2:59:22] work consistently.
[2:59:23] Thank you,
[2:59:25] thank you.
[2:59:26] Go ahead. You're
[2:59:28] recognized.
[2:59:29] Yes. Good evening,
[2:59:30] vice.
[2:59:31] Mayor, council persons.
[2:59:32] My name.
[2:59:33] Is curtis bryant. I'm
[2:59:36] a 35 year pastor in north
[2:59:38] nashville. I live in district
[2:59:40] seven. My church community is
[2:59:43] in district 21 with COUNCILMAN
[2:59:44] Taylor. And I have a
[2:59:47] substantial project in district
[2:59:50] nuber two with council tombs.
[2:59:52] For over 35 years, I've worked
[2:59:54] in the area of affordable
[2:59:55] housing. But I want to add one
[2:59:57] caveat to that. Not just
[2:59:59] affordable housing, but
[3:00:03] workforce housing. I represent
[3:00:05] nonprofit called successful
[3:00:07] survivors. We built multiple
[3:00:08] affordable housing units across
[3:00:10] the city. We have been our
[3:00:13] leaders in providing houses,
[3:00:16] and the north nashville area,
[3:00:19] the cleveland park maxwell area,
[3:00:20] and the world baptist center
[3:00:22] area. But all faith based
[3:00:24] housing. I'm here advocating
[3:00:25] that ou all will commit at
[3:00:27] least another additional $20
[3:00:29] million to the faith community.
[3:00:32] I represent 75 other churches
[3:00:33] in an initiative called the
[3:00:35] church community collective,
[3:00:37] the church community of the
[3:00:39] largest property owners in our
[3:00:41] city. And I'd like to help move
[3:00:43] them toward providing housing
[3:00:46] for our service and
[3:00:48] community here in nashville.
[3:00:50] That housing can be provided
[3:00:52] for persons live and work
[3:00:54] in our city. I thank you all
[3:00:56] for your hard work and your
[3:00:58] time. I've been committed to
[3:01:01] affordable housing for 35 years,
[3:01:03] have dedicated most of my life
[3:01:06] towards it. I could take half
[3:01:08] of the night to express to you
[3:01:10] my desire to provide housing
[3:01:12] for individuals, people who
[3:01:14] live and work in our city. We
[3:01:18] must do what we can and must to
[3:01:19] provide safe, decent and
[3:01:22] affordable housing. Bless you.
[3:01:27] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:01:30] recognized.
[3:01:32] Good evening. My
[3:01:34] name is peter murphy. I live in
[3:01:36] madison district nine. Today I
[3:01:38] am speaking in support in
[3:01:39] support of the nashville
[3:01:41] people's budget, housing and
[3:01:44] safety for all plan
[3:01:45] co-governance. You have been
[3:01:47] talking a lot about it for the
[3:01:49] past couple of weeks.
[3:01:52] Co-governance is necessary
[3:01:54] because we are no longer
[3:01:56] interested in perpetuating
[3:01:58] systems that we pay for that
[3:02:02] are at best ignoring us and at
[3:02:04] worst actively starving,
[3:02:07] beating, raping, kidnaping and
[3:02:11] murdering us. Folks have been
[3:02:13] saying for the longest time
[3:02:15] that voting by itself is not
[3:02:18] enough. And seeing the recent
[3:02:19] actions by our state
[3:02:22] legislature, we see why that
[3:02:26] happened. Because we simply
[3:02:28] voted and outsourced our
[3:02:29] collective vision and
[3:02:32] well-being to folks who
[3:02:34] appointed themselves experts.
[3:02:38] That was a terrible mistake.
[3:02:39] Co-governance is us taking our
[3:02:42] agency back. We are the ones
[3:02:44] who know what we need and how
[3:02:48] we need it. The innovation and
[3:02:51] imagination is not up there.
[3:02:55] It's back here. We are not
[3:02:56] satisfied simply handing you
[3:02:59] our money or our votes. Not
[3:03:01] anymore. We are realizing our
[3:03:03] mistake and we're taking
[3:03:04] responsibility for rectifying
[3:03:06] it. That's what co-governance
[3:03:09] is. It's us taking our power
[3:03:11] back. It requires you to take a
[3:03:15] step back and respect us as
[3:03:17] equals. We no longer supporting
[3:03:19] systems that don't work for us.
[3:03:21] We are dismantling them and
[3:03:24] rebuilding them in our image.
[3:03:26] Thank you.
[3:03:27] Thank you.
[3:03:28] Go ahead
[3:03:32] and come forward.
[3:03:32] Hello, my
[3:03:35] name is tracy beard. I'm a
[3:03:37] nashville native, grew up in
[3:03:38] district two. I currently live
[3:03:41] in district 32. I'm also a
[3:03:44] housing justice researcher and
[3:03:46] statewide coordinator for
[3:03:48] housing for all tennessee. And
[3:03:51] I grew up here and my mother
[3:03:55] struggled in finding a place to
[3:03:56] live for us during the 90s. And
[3:03:58] that fueled the research that I
[3:04:01] do now. And I know that
[3:04:04] nashville can be better and,
[3:04:06] and, and make it better for
[3:04:07] others. And it's time for
[3:04:09] nashville to implement
[3:04:11] community led solutions and
[3:04:13] fully fund the housing and
[3:04:16] safety for all plan eviction,
[3:04:18] right to counsel for evictions
[3:04:20] and programs that house and
[3:04:22] support our unhoused friends,
[3:04:25] not criminalize them. We need
[3:04:27] all of these levers to address
[3:04:29] the systemic issues of housing
[3:04:32] and public safety. These
[3:04:33] solutions can ensure
[3:04:36] permanently affordable housing
[3:04:39] and community led safety, and
[3:04:41] to ensure that all of these
[3:04:43] things remain a human right.
[3:04:45] And I thank you for your time,
[3:04:47] and I thank everyone here for
[3:04:51] their time in this process.
[3:04:54] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:04:56] recognized.
[3:04:57] I greet you in
[3:04:59] peace. My name is karen roberts.
[3:05:03] I live in district six, and I'm
[3:05:05] here today as a community
[3:05:07] member with stand up nashville.
[3:05:09] I work as a licensed clinical
[3:05:11] social worker, and I have been
[3:05:12] working in the nashville
[3:05:15] community for well over 25
[3:05:17] years. And one of the problems,
[3:05:18] the growing problems that I
[3:05:20] hear from the clients that I
[3:05:23] serve, is that I can't afford
[3:05:26] housing. They come with major
[3:05:29] depressive disorder and anxiety,
[3:05:30] and it's not simply something
[3:05:33] that you can just talk away
[3:05:35] when they're up against
[3:05:37] something like, I can't afford
[3:05:40] to pay my rent. So I'm here
[3:05:42] tonight to ask you to request
[3:05:46] that you allocate $500,000 in
[3:05:48] an administrative account for
[3:05:51] staff that would catapult the
[3:05:52] self-sustaining housing model
[3:05:55] forward. I think a lot about
[3:05:58] our city, not in an abstract
[3:06:00] way, but about the actual
[3:06:02] people who live here, the
[3:06:03] children that are growing up
[3:06:05] here, the young people who are
[3:06:08] trying to survive, families and
[3:06:11] senior citizens. Every
[3:06:14] generation inherits a city that
[3:06:17] it did not create, and every
[3:06:19] generation leaves the city
[3:06:21] behind for somebody else. The
[3:06:24] question is, what kind of city
[3:06:27] will we want to leave? Do we
[3:06:28] want to leave a city where
[3:06:30] housing is increasingly treated
[3:06:32] as a commodity, or where
[3:06:34] housing remains a foundation
[3:06:36] for community stability and
[3:06:37] belonging? I'm going to read
[3:06:38] this poem by langston hughes
[3:06:40] because I think it's
[3:06:41] appropriate. What happens to a
[3:06:44] dream deferred? Does it dry up
[3:06:46] like a raisin in the sun. Or
[3:06:48] fester like a sore and then run?
[3:06:50] Does it stink like meat
[3:06:52] or crust and sugar over like a
[3:06:54] syrupy sweet? Maybe it just
[3:06:57] sags like a heavy load. And. Or
[3:06:59] does it explode by the
[3:07:00] indication of the people that
[3:07:02] are here tonight? I think it
[3:07:02] explodes.
[3:07:06] Thank you.
[3:07:06] Next. Go
[3:07:09] ahead.
[3:07:11] Hello, my name is dylan
[3:07:12] moore. I live in district nine.
[3:07:14] I am a teacher and mps and a
[3:07:16] member of the metro national
[3:07:18] education association. I lived
[3:07:19] in this city for seven years
[3:07:21] and that time I've learned that
[3:07:22] every year, the workers of this
[3:07:24] city have to come here and beg
[3:07:26] to get what they need. The cost
[3:07:27] of living is rising in
[3:07:29] nashville, and the wages of
[3:07:30] metro employees is not rising
[3:07:32] with it. I'd like to bring
[3:07:33] particular attention to the
[3:07:35] substitute teachers, custodial
[3:07:38] workers and support staff of
[3:07:40] mmps. These workers wages still
[3:07:41] fall well below a livable wage
[3:07:43] for nashville. These are the
[3:07:45] workers that make my job as a
[3:07:47] teacher possible, and it is
[3:07:48] becoming harder and harder for
[3:07:50] us to stay in the city we work
[3:07:52] in. Budgets are indeed a moral
[3:07:55] document and a one person 1.7%.
[3:07:57] Cola sends the message that
[3:07:59] people that keep this city
[3:08:01] running aren't a priority. Is
[3:08:03] this the type of city that we
[3:08:04] want to build, where the
[3:08:05] workers that serve us can even
[3:08:07] afford to live here, help build
[3:08:09] a city where we can all afford
[3:08:10] to live in and increase the
[3:08:11] cost of living adjustment to
[3:08:13] actually match inflation. Thank
[3:08:15] you.
[3:08:20] Thank you. Go ahead.
[3:08:21] Good
[3:08:22] evening, metro council. My name
[3:08:24] is john davis. I'm a community
[3:08:27] member with stand up nashville,
[3:08:29] and I likewise am here to
[3:08:31] request that you put $500,000
[3:08:33] in an administrative account
[3:08:37] for a staff that can that can
[3:08:39] head up the self-sustaining
[3:08:42] housing model we put forward. I
[3:08:43] sometimes wonder what nashville
[3:08:44] is going to look like 20 years
[3:08:46] from now if we stay on our
[3:08:48] current path. Every city
[3:08:49] depends on people whose names
[3:08:51] never appear in the development
[3:08:53] brochures. The nurse working
[3:08:54] the overnight shift, the
[3:08:56] school's custodian opening the
[3:08:58] building before sunrise, the
[3:08:59] child care worker, the
[3:09:01] restaurant server, the bus
[3:09:03] driver, the city employee, the
[3:09:04] musician playing a tuesday
[3:09:07] night gig. Every day. These
[3:09:09] people make nashville function,
[3:09:11] but increasingly, many of them
[3:09:12] are being asked to live further
[3:09:14] and further out from the city
[3:09:15] they serve. At some point,
[3:09:17] we've got to ask whether this
[3:09:19] is sustainable. City can't
[3:09:21] thrive indefinitely. If the
[3:09:23] people who make it run are
[3:09:25] gradually pushed out. The
[3:09:28] healthy city creates room for
[3:09:30] city for workers to live where
[3:09:32] they work, a healthy city
[3:09:33] creates stability for the
[3:09:35] people whose labor sustains it,
[3:09:37] and that's why this proposal
[3:09:38] matters. The social housing
[3:09:41] model isn't just about creating
[3:09:42] units, it's about creating
[3:09:44] places where people can remain
[3:09:45] rooted in the city they're
[3:09:47] helping to build. But I want to
[3:09:49] put a face on this housing
[3:09:50] crisis. I want to tell you
[3:09:52] about three friends of mine,
[3:09:53] keith, jimmy, and chris.
[3:09:55] They're unhoused people living
[3:09:57] in the brush by I-40, all
[3:10:00] working, all unable to afford
[3:10:01] housing. Chris has been
[3:10:03] unhoused for four years and
[3:10:04] waiting for an attainable
[3:10:05] housing most of that time. Two
[3:10:07] years ago, he was hit by a car
[3:10:09] while he tried to raise enough
[3:10:10] money for a hotel room, his
[3:10:12] only viable housing option at
[3:10:14] the time. He was in a coma at
[3:10:16] vanderbilt for several months.
[3:10:17] Today, he walks with a cane,
[3:10:19] and he's very grateful to say
[3:10:21] he's attained stable housing
[3:10:24] after a long wait.
[3:10:24] Thank you
[3:10:27] very much. Thank. Next. Go
[3:10:31] ahead. You're recognized.
[3:10:32] Hi,
[3:10:32] nancy.
[3:10:33] Similarly.
[3:10:34] District 23,
[3:10:36] there are three of us here
[3:10:37] tonight representing the
[3:10:39] fountains of musical foundation,
[3:10:41] a 501 c three nonprofit, which
[3:10:43] includes a multitude of
[3:10:44] stakeholders and supporters.
[3:10:46] we're here to address the
[3:10:47] capital improvement budget and
[3:10:49] ultimately the mayor's capital
[3:10:52] spending plan. The goal of this
[3:10:53] project is to create a safe,
[3:10:56] expanded and inspiring public
[3:10:58] realm, an important third space
[3:10:59] for residents and visitors to
[3:11:02] nashville. Fountains of musical
[3:11:05] foundation plans to expand the
[3:11:08] green space, increase safety
[3:11:10] for foot, vehicular and cycle
[3:11:13] traffic, and at the same time
[3:11:15] create inspiring spaces in
[3:11:17] which to rest and appreciate
[3:11:19] the creative power of nashville.
[3:11:21] The water surrounding the
[3:11:23] sculpture musical will soar up
[3:11:24] to 60ft in the air with
[3:11:26] beautiful, beautifully
[3:11:27] choreographed water and
[3:11:29] lighting. Two additional
[3:11:30] fountains near the circle will
[3:11:31] help expand the experience and
[3:11:34] public space. Fountains of
[3:11:35] musical will transform the area
[3:11:37] into a beautiful, welcoming
[3:11:40] public space green space that
[3:11:43] is sorely lacking in central
[3:11:45] nashville, midtown nashville,
[3:11:46] nashville in general. It will
[3:11:48] provide a gathering place for
[3:11:49] locals and visitors while
[3:11:52] fostering connections and
[3:11:53] community. This bold addition
[3:11:55] to music row will serve as a
[3:11:57] lasting symbol of nashville's
[3:11:58] artistic spirit and reinforce
[3:12:01] the city's reputation as a hub
[3:12:04] for innovation and culture.
[3:12:05] Completing musical with the
[3:12:06] addition of the fountains
[3:12:09] reflects music, culture,
[3:12:11] education, and creativity as
[3:12:13] our core identity. It creates
[3:12:15] an icon for our city. Finally,
[3:12:17] fountains of musical will be a
[3:12:18] legacy for those who inherit
[3:12:20] this city, and a signal of what
[3:12:24] we value as a community beyond
[3:12:28] the needs to create a more safe
[3:12:31] and livable space. In that
[3:12:34] buddy killen circle.
[3:12:36] Thank you.
[3:12:38] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[3:12:41] Good evening. My name is john
[3:12:43] dotson, district 23. I'm also
[3:12:45] here to advocate for fountains
[3:12:47] of music and primarily the
[3:12:49] surrounding area. We're all
[3:12:51] pushing citywide for more
[3:12:52] greenways and better
[3:12:54] connectivity. And another
[3:12:55] example of a public gathering
[3:12:57] space will model other
[3:12:59] opportunities around nashville.
[3:13:02] Buddy killen circle is in the
[3:13:03] fountains will be an example of
[3:13:05] so many things that are already
[3:13:08] going on around nashville. It's
[3:13:10] a microcosm of how we can
[3:13:11] improve nashvillians
[3:13:13] experiences, greenways,
[3:13:15] multi-modal transit
[3:13:16] connectivity, be mindful how
[3:13:18] well we can do all these things
[3:13:21] across the entire city. The
[3:13:23] success of metro's excuse me,
[3:13:25] investment in smith springs
[3:13:27] community center, the southeast
[3:13:28] community center. Example.
[3:13:30] Excellent examples of public
[3:13:31] private partnership. When the
[3:13:33] city puts a focus on something
[3:13:35] like the ford ice centers,
[3:13:37] public money follows. Private
[3:13:39] money follows. Excuse me. Like
[3:13:41] the public plaza surrounding
[3:13:42] the fountains of music that are
[3:13:43] important in drawing people
[3:13:46] together. Destinations are what
[3:13:48] make people get up, go and walk
[3:13:50] or bike about, and success of
[3:13:52] the greenways turns on the
[3:13:54] points along the way, and it's
[3:13:56] a throughput. Buddy killen
[3:13:58] circle and fountains music. It
[3:14:00] can ultimately link centennial
[3:14:02] park, fort negley, east
[3:14:05] nashville and beyond. If it's
[3:14:06] happening here in this compact
[3:14:08] space, this close to town, it's
[3:14:10] urgent to get all of these
[3:14:11] pieces fit to fitting together
[3:14:13] as quickly as possible, because
[3:14:14] the more gathering spaces that
[3:14:16] we create, the more livable
[3:14:17] city that we have, and it's
[3:14:19] better for the health of the
[3:14:20] community, the more quickly we
[3:14:21] can replicate this across the
[3:14:23] city. And finally, as you all
[3:14:25] know, fountains really bring an
[3:14:27] intrinsic economic benefit to
[3:14:29] the city. So with that, thank
[3:14:31] you for listening to all of us
[3:14:33] tonight. We appreciate it.
[3:14:37] Thank you very much. Go ahead.
[3:14:39] Welcome. You're recognized.
[3:14:39] Hi,
[3:14:41] my name is andre choir.
[3:14:42] We all
[3:14:43] appreciate the work that you
[3:14:45] all do on our behalf and the
[3:14:47] long hours that you put in,
[3:14:48] even well beyond tonight. So
[3:14:50] thank you for being here and
[3:14:52] paying so much attention. In
[3:14:53] the mayor's budget amendment
[3:14:54] requests, you have heard the
[3:14:55] request for getting the
[3:14:56] renovation of buddy killen
[3:14:58] circle project underway. The
[3:15:00] civic design center and mndot
[3:15:02] are supportive of doing this
[3:15:03] project and beginning the
[3:15:04] community engagement this
[3:15:06] summer. Additionally, this is
[3:15:08] an opportunity to leverage
[3:15:11] metro dollars this 500 $0 for
[3:15:12] forcommunity engagement at
[3:15:15] buddy killen circle will be a
[3:15:17] catalyst for millions of
[3:15:18] dollars in private donations to
[3:15:20] create the project fountains of
[3:15:21] musica, which will be creating
[3:15:24] a gorgeous public realm. We all
[3:15:26] ask that you include. You join
[3:15:27] other council people and
[3:15:29] include this item on your wish
[3:15:31] list regarding the fountains of
[3:15:33] musica. It is in the capital
[3:15:34] improvement budget. We support
[3:15:36] the crb and appreciate your
[3:15:38] support and hope that you will
[3:15:40] encourage the mayor to include
[3:15:41] it in his capital spending plan
[3:15:44] for 2027. Thank you.
[3:15:46] Thank you.
[3:15:48] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[3:15:49] Good evening. My name is joel
[3:15:51] cockrell. I'm the PRESIDENT Of
[3:15:52] the fraternal order of police
[3:15:54] for nashville davidson county,
[3:15:56] representing approximately 2000
[3:15:57] members of active and retired
[3:15:59] law enforcement. I have good
[3:16:01] news. I don't need the full two
[3:16:03] minutes. The cost to live this
[3:16:04] year has increased by
[3:16:07] approximately 3.8%. The cost of
[3:16:08] our insurance has gone up over
[3:16:11] 16% for this next year. The
[3:16:12] offer for our cost of living
[3:16:15] adjustment is 1.7%. That means
[3:16:16] the raise is gone before it
[3:16:18] arrives. We're asking to match
[3:16:20] the cost of living at 3.8% to
[3:16:21] avoid falling further behind
[3:16:23] the competition. We're asking
[3:16:26] to just keep up. Thank you.
[3:16:29] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:16:30] recognized.
[3:16:31] Hello, my name is
[3:16:33] ezra howard. I'm in district 22.
[3:16:35] I'm a member of seiu, so I
[3:16:37] support the solidarity budget,
[3:16:39] particularly on fully funding
[3:16:40] general hospital national
[3:16:42] general for 7.8 million as they
[3:16:45] requested a public option for
[3:16:47] health care service providers
[3:16:49] in a city is an increasingly
[3:16:53] rare gem. It's not just for
[3:16:55] tennessee, but for the united
[3:16:56] states. So that's something
[3:16:58] that should be preserved. But
[3:16:59] what I really want to talk
[3:17:01] about as well is just the
[3:17:02] process that goes along with
[3:17:04] the budget. One of the things
[3:17:06] that I noted, because I'm in
[3:17:08] data analytics, I was looking
[3:17:10] at the legislation and
[3:17:12] comparing it to fiscal year 26
[3:17:15] and 25 from years past, and I
[3:17:16] noticed it looks like
[3:17:18] everything got an increase. But
[3:17:20] in the news and in the mayor's
[3:17:23] state of metro address, that it
[3:17:25] was being framed as a decrease.
[3:17:26] Because when you look in the
[3:17:28] budget book, it's higher than
[3:17:30] what's legislated. Now in
[3:17:33] the pd budget hearing, this was
[3:17:35] asked smartly by cm suara, and
[3:17:37] the way I understood it from
[3:17:39] the budget officer is things
[3:17:39] happen throughout the year.
[3:17:41] Legislation passes, benefits
[3:17:43] get moved over, and that budget
[3:17:46] gets rectified and increases.
[3:17:48] It is not completely fair, I
[3:17:50] think, to compare what happens
[3:17:51] in the beginning of fiscal year
[3:17:53] 27 to what's nearly at the end
[3:17:56] of fiscal year 26. It irks me
[3:17:58] for data analytics. So I think
[3:17:59] the process should be improved.
[3:18:01] For one, it should be better
[3:18:02] explained where tose increases
[3:18:04] come from. Midstream. That
[3:18:05] should be explained in the
[3:18:07] budget book for people to fully
[3:18:08] understand. And two, it's the
[3:18:12] year of our lord 2026. Why are
[3:18:13] we just putting out pdfs and
[3:18:15] not excel files or cfes when
[3:18:18] we're talking about a financial
[3:18:19] document? That would mean I had
[3:18:21] to build a python script to
[3:18:24] scrape 400 plus pages of a pdf
[3:18:26] when they could just push a
[3:18:28] button to export to excel. I
[3:18:30] mean, I work for metro, I can
[3:18:31] do that with my data. It should
[3:18:33] be done with budget. All right.
[3:18:34] Thank you.
[3:18:36] Thank you. Go ahead.
[3:18:38] You're recognized.
[3:18:39] hi. My name
[3:18:42] is shannon. I am the I'm in
[3:18:43] district 22 sherry wiener.
[3:18:45] Shout out. I also want to
[3:18:46] second the excel spreadsheet,
[3:18:47] not what I came here for, but
[3:18:49] I'm always in favor of that.
[3:18:51] What I did want to say, though,
[3:18:53] is I am in favor of the funding
[3:18:54] for the social housing, the irc
[3:18:55] program. I myself am an
[3:18:57] attorney in solo practice. I'll%
[3:18:59] be honest with y'all, I'm tired
[3:19:00] of doing eviction cases, I hate
[3:19:03] them, I hate seeing the the
[3:19:05] vile situations that my clients
[3:19:07] are in. I hate dealing with I'm
[3:19:09] sorry, landlords. I'm tired of
[3:19:11] it. So if there's anything we
[3:19:12] can do to prevent us from
[3:19:14] getting that step in the first
[3:19:15] place, I am absolutely for it.
[3:19:17] And I think that social housing
[3:19:18] is a fantastic first step. Is
[3:19:19] it sufficient? Absolutely not.
[3:19:21] But it is necessary and I think
[3:19:22] it's a good first step. So
[3:19:24] please consider that a lot of
[3:19:25] people have already spoken to
[3:19:27] the benefits of of housing in
[3:19:28] this neighborhood, and I just
[3:19:29] am here to re-emphasize that I
[3:19:31] won't go over all the data
[3:19:33] again. But just to say, I grew
[3:19:35] up in alabama in a white flight
[3:19:36] school. I didn't have diversity
[3:19:37] in my school, and I didn't
[3:19:39] realize how important and
[3:19:40] essential it is to being a
[3:19:41] holistic human being. Until I
[3:19:43] got out into the world and
[3:19:44] experienced other people of all
[3:19:48] different races, genders,
[3:19:50] socioeconomic statuses, and so
[3:19:51] housing, I can't emphasize
[3:19:52] enough, is not only essential
[3:19:54] for keeping people in our city,
[3:19:55] but it's also essential in a
[3:19:56] selfish way for people like
[3:19:58] myself, who need to be able to
[3:20:00] live next to other people and
[3:20:01] learn from them. And so this
[3:20:03] mixed housing is I just I can't
[3:20:05] say enough good things about it.
[3:20:07] And then, you know, the other
[3:20:08] thing that I think we kind of
[3:20:10] touched on is that we are
[3:20:11] pushing the lifeblood of this
[3:20:13] city out of this city, the
[3:20:14] people who keep our tourism
[3:20:16] industry running. I mean,
[3:20:18] nashville's a giant tourism hub.
[3:20:19] They are the ones that support
[3:20:20] this and keep it going. We're
[3:20:22] also pushing out as many, you
[3:20:24] know here are from general
[3:20:25] hospital, those that, you know,
[3:20:26] work in our hospitals. These
[3:20:28] are essential people. And when
[3:20:29] we push them out, not only have
[3:20:31] we, you know, increased their
[3:20:32] commuting and childcare costs,
[3:20:33] but we've also removed their
[3:20:34] voices from this legislative
[3:20:36] body right here because they're
[3:20:37] no longer your constituents.
[3:20:38] They can no longer tell you
[3:20:39] what's up. So let's not push
[3:20:41] them out.
[3:20:42] Thank you. Go ahead
[3:20:45] and come forward. You're
[3:20:46] recognized.
[3:20:47] Good evening. Thank
[3:20:48] you for your service. Thank you
[3:20:50] for your patience. I don't know
[3:20:52] if you know it's getting late.
[3:20:53] My name is h g stovall. I live
[3:20:55] in the donelson neighborhood.
[3:20:56] My council person, MR. Jeff.
[3:20:58] Greg, thank you for your
[3:20:59] service, friend. Tonight I
[3:21:02] represent nashville launch pad.
[3:21:03] I also serve on our
[3:21:05] homelessness planning council.
[3:21:07] I seek tonight for you to
[3:21:08] understand the plight of young
[3:21:10] adults living in our city and
[3:21:13] living on our streets. 18 to 24
[3:21:15] we operate the city's only
[3:21:16] young adult, focused in the
[3:21:19] city's only lgbt friendly shelter straight from
[3:21:21] the street. We have also had
[3:21:22] the privilege of operating an
[3:21:24] interim gap housing program for
[3:21:26] a couple of years. That program
[3:21:29] has outperformed metro programs
[3:21:31] by about 3% on average and
[3:21:33] nationwide by 15% on average,
[3:21:35] and permanent housing
[3:21:38] placements. That's a miracle,
[3:21:39] since of the young people
[3:21:41] launch pad has served, 88% came
[3:21:43] from literal homelessness, 58%
[3:21:45] have a history of domestic
[3:21:47] violence, assault or human
[3:21:49] trafficking. 52% have at least
[3:21:52] one mental health diagnosis.
[3:21:53] Please invest in protecting
[3:21:56] these young adults, of whom 44%
[3:21:58] are black or people of color,
[3:22:02] and 48% are lgbtq. Plus, on
[3:22:04] behalf of these young adults
[3:22:05] who have called launch pad home
[3:22:08] for 30,000 nights since 2012,
[3:22:10] we request only $300,000 to
[3:22:11] keep this program open for
[3:22:13] another year. Together, let's
[3:22:16] give hope, solve youth
[3:22:17] homelessness, and reduce the
[3:22:19] need for adult services in the
[3:22:21] future. Thank you.
[3:22:23] Thank you.
[3:22:24] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[3:22:26] Thank you.
[3:22:27] Good evening council.
[3:22:29] My name is shakira erica nash.
[3:22:32] I live in district 33 and I am
[3:22:34] a nashville entertainer and
[3:22:35] artist and a local business
[3:22:37] owner. I'm standing here
[3:22:38] tonight because in all honesty,
[3:22:40] I'm just curious if standing at
[3:22:42] this microphone even truly
[3:22:44] means anything anymore. By that
[3:22:46] imean, over the years, I have
[3:22:48] watched this entire city
[3:22:50] completely change. The historic
[3:22:52] law of nashville is fading. The
[3:22:55] broader creative ecosystem has
[3:22:56] shifted to where the
[3:22:58] independent music publishing
[3:23:00] industry we once relied on is
[3:23:01] practically gone, and all types
[3:23:04] of independent artists are
[3:23:05] struggling in its place. The
[3:23:08] city has been overrun by luxury
[3:23:10] hotels and corporate sports
[3:23:12] arenas. The real power belongs
[3:23:14] to a silent corporate machine,
[3:23:16] while the local creators and
[3:23:17] independent businesses who
[3:23:19] built the city soul are left
[3:23:21] begging for crumbs. We were
[3:23:23] promised that metro would show
[3:23:25] true commitment to its local
[3:23:27] creatives, but instead, the
[3:23:28] mayor's proposed budget
[3:23:30] completely zeroes out funding
[3:23:32] for our newly formed nashville
[3:23:34] entertainment commission. It
[3:23:37] eliminates the $250,000 meant
[3:23:39] to build infrastructure for all
[3:23:41] independent entertainers and
[3:23:42] artists, while broader arts
[3:23:44] funding remains flatlined, and
[3:23:46] we're asking the city to honor
[3:23:49] the commitment to dedicate 1%
[3:23:51] of funding to the arts and
[3:23:52] entertainment. Corporate
[3:23:54] entities get public backing and
[3:23:56] resources instantly, but the
[3:23:57] actual human beings who keep
[3:23:59] the tourism machine running are
[3:24:01] treated like an afterthought.
[3:24:03] So the mayor's office claims
[3:24:05] this cut is due to fiscal
[3:24:06] constraints. But we know that
[3:24:08] when the major corporations or
[3:24:09] sports franchise wants
[3:24:11] something from metro, the money
[3:24:13] is always found. I'm asking
[3:24:15] this council tonight to use its
[3:24:17] power to amend the budget to
[3:24:18] not allow nashville
[3:24:20] entertainment commission to be
[3:24:22] starved to death before it even
[3:24:24] begins. Restore the funding and
[3:24:26] stand by the 1% as promised,
[3:24:28] and prove that this council
[3:24:29] chamber still belongs to the
[3:24:29] people.
[3:24:32] Thank you, thank you.
[3:24:35] All right. You're recognized.
[3:24:37] Hi, my name is lewis terrell.
[3:24:38] Normally I come up here and
[3:24:40] speak off the cuff, but today
[3:24:41] to ask me to write something
[3:24:46] down. So. So today I normally
[3:24:48] start out with I work for metro
[3:24:49] water. Thank you, metro water.
[3:24:51] I do notice y'all still
[3:24:52] drinking my water. Appreciate
[3:24:55] that. But now to the business.
[3:24:57] Normally I advocate for metro
[3:24:59] water, but today is for metro
[3:25:00] nashville general hospital.
[3:25:02] General hospital has been a
[3:25:04] staple in nashville all my life.
[3:25:06] I've had three aunts that work
[3:25:08] for general hospital. One aunt
[3:25:11] was the first black pediatric
[3:25:12] nurse in general hospital when
[3:25:15] it was on hermitage avenue. I
[3:25:16] don't know if anybody's here
[3:25:17] remember it being on hermitage
[3:25:20] avenue. That's where it started.
[3:25:22] Okay, so now to the biz.
[3:25:24] General hospital has been short
[3:25:26] changed long enough. When I say
[3:25:27] short change, they were
[3:25:29] promised something a year ago.
[3:25:31] Didn't even get a fourth of it
[3:25:34] in JANUARY. Supposed to get it
[3:25:36] in JULY. They got it in JANUARY.
[3:25:39] No compensation. So what I'm
[3:25:42] asking is the council, the
[3:25:44] mayor, to not do any back door
[3:25:47] deals, but to also give general
[3:25:49] hospital what was promised to
[3:25:51] them and also compensation.
[3:25:52] They've been short changed long
[3:25:54] enough.
[3:25:57] Thank you. Go ahead.
[3:26:03] You're recognized.
[3:26:03] Hello,
[3:26:05] council members. My name is
[3:26:06] aaron james and I work at the
[3:26:07] donaldson branch library in
[3:26:09] district 15. COUNCILMAN Jeff
[3:26:10] greggs district. I'm here
[3:26:12] tonight before you and I am
[3:26:14] very tired, and I'm sure you
[3:26:16] are too. I'm here to ask you to
[3:26:17] fund the solidarity budget,
[3:26:19] which is a 1.7% cost of living
[3:26:21] adjustment and a step raises
[3:26:22] for general government
[3:26:23] employees, plus bringing up the
[3:26:25] wages of paraprofessionals and
[3:26:27] support staff and mps. And I am
[3:26:28] tearing up right now because I
[3:26:31] am thinking about people who
[3:26:32] feed the children in schools
[3:26:34] that I went to, who cannot
[3:26:35] afford to live here anymore. I
[3:26:37] know one person in our union
[3:26:38] who moved out to clarksville.
[3:26:40] She drives over an hour to work
[3:26:41] every day, and if a specific
[3:26:43] exit floods, that has a much
[3:26:44] longer commute, sometimes she's
[3:26:46] late to work. I'm thinking of
[3:26:47] people like MISS Honey, who
[3:26:48] came in here and begged for
[3:26:50] more money. Not for herself,
[3:26:51] but for for people who work for
[3:26:53] general national general
[3:26:55] hospital. Last year, I was
[3:26:57] brought to tears by a father, a
[3:26:59] nurse on our city's payroll,
[3:27:01] begging the council for more
[3:27:03] money for nashville general
[3:27:04] because they were running out
[3:27:07] of gloves for gunshot victims.
[3:27:08] And I hope that makes you feel
[3:27:10] something, because that's our
[3:27:11] town's name. That is my town. I
[3:27:13] was born here. That's my town's
[3:27:15] name on a hospital, and they
[3:27:21] don't have gloves. He has a
[3:27:24] daughter of his own to raise,
[3:27:26] and he needs money to do that.
[3:27:28] And they didn't get that money
[3:27:30] like MR. Terrell just mentioned.
[3:27:31] They didn't get that raise.
[3:27:32] They were promised by our
[3:27:34] government. That's y'all.
[3:27:35] That's me that I am a part of
[3:27:36] this government. They didn't
[3:27:38] get that money in JULY like
[3:27:39] they were promised. They didn't
[3:27:41] get it until JANUARY. So I'm
[3:27:45] asking you for money for step
[3:27:48] raises and 1.7% 1.7% cola for
[3:27:50] national metro general
[3:27:53] government employees to make to
[3:27:57] match the the minimum for metro
[3:28:00] support staff and to give
[3:28:02] national, metro and general
[3:28:03] government hospitals what they
[3:28:05] deserve. Thank you.
[3:28:06] Thank you.
[3:28:11] Go ahead. Come forward please.
[3:28:13] Hi there. My name is madeline
[3:28:14] and I'm a resident of district
[3:28:16] 20. I'm a member of nashville
[3:28:17] people's budget coalition, and
[3:28:19] I work as a mental health
[3:28:20] professional here in nashville,
[3:28:22] tennessee. And I am using my
[3:28:23] time to talk about what's on my
[3:28:25] budget wish list, which
[3:28:27] consists of $9 million
[3:28:29] allocated allocated to a
[3:28:30] revolving loan fund for social
[3:28:34] housing and 500 $500,000 to
[3:28:36] social housing staff. Because
[3:28:37] in my opinion, that is mental
[3:28:39] health care. I went to graduate
[3:28:41] school and learned countless
[3:28:42] theories of development and
[3:28:44] perspectives on diagnosing
[3:28:45] people. But as I've come to see
[3:28:47] it, the first mental health
[3:28:48] intervention should be access
[3:28:51] to consistent and affordable
[3:28:52] housing. It's not uncommon for
[3:28:54] people to forego medical
[3:28:56] treatment or skip grocery runs
[3:28:57] in order to make rent. This
[3:28:58] stress is not sustainable, and
[3:29:00] it's certainly not conducive to
[3:29:01] the positive mental health that
[3:29:03] you claim to want for this city.
[3:29:04] You could diagnose these people
[3:29:07] with anxiety or depression or
[3:29:08] pathologize their anger, but
[3:29:09] maybe this is an honest
[3:29:10] reaction to not knowing if you
[3:29:12] will have a comfortable, safe
[3:29:13] place to put your head down at
[3:29:15] night. We are not short on
[3:29:16] studies demonstrating that
[3:29:18] housing reduces rates of
[3:29:19] violent crime and increases
[3:29:21] mental health, and I think we
[3:29:23] can all agree that we deserve
[3:29:26] safe places to live. If we
[3:29:27] really are worried about the
[3:29:28] mental health crisis, we need
[3:29:30] to first make sure that
[3:29:31] everyone's most basic needs are
[3:29:33] met. The mayor says he wants us
[3:29:35] to stay, but the majority of us
[3:29:37] can only afford to leave.
[3:29:38] Access to housing is mental
[3:29:40] health care. It's harm
[3:29:41] reduction and it's safety
[3:29:43] planning. This $9 million
[3:29:45] towards the revolving loan fund
[3:29:47] and the $500,000 towards social
[3:29:49] housing staff would be mental
[3:29:51] health care. If you'd like my
[3:29:53] vote and the vote of many other
[3:29:54] nashville constituents here
[3:29:56] tonight, I suggest that the
[3:29:57] council members at large and
[3:29:59] mayor freddy, please listen
[3:30:00] when we speak because the
[3:30:02] status quo is not working, and
[3:30:03] we'd like to work with you to
[3:30:05] try something new. We are on
[3:30:06] the same team. Thank you for
[3:30:08] your time.
[3:30:11] Thank you. Go ahead.
[3:30:13] You're recognized.
[3:30:13] Hello, I'm.
[3:30:16] Kyle cook. I live in district
[3:30:18] 24 in the district. I work in
[3:30:19] district 19. Jacob cooper
[3:30:21] representing. I'm a member of
[3:30:25] seiu local 205. I'm the chief
[3:30:26] steward of the metro nashville
[3:30:29] government chapter. In 2001,
[3:30:31] when nashville built a new main
[3:30:32] library, they also built five
[3:30:34] other branch libraries. They
[3:30:36] built a first art museum. They
[3:30:38] built a a country music hall of
[3:30:39] fame, and they brought in
[3:30:42] dozens of new workers like me.
[3:30:43] I'm not from here. I'm from
[3:30:46] upstate new york. I was just
[3:30:48] blown away by a city that was
[3:30:50] doing all this. And I was so
[3:30:53] blessed by you to have a good
[3:30:55] job, a good pay with benefits
[3:30:58] like health insurance, and I
[3:31:00] had to pay that. I could afford
[3:31:03] to make rent. And mostly I was
[3:31:04] blown away because nashville is
[3:31:07] such a friendly city that you
[3:31:10] welcome me out of state people,
[3:31:12] newcomers. And you offered me
[3:31:14] all these things and you
[3:31:16] offered these cost of living
[3:31:18] adjustments every year so I
[3:31:21] could keep up with inflation.
[3:31:22] And it made it a very livable
[3:31:25] place to live and work. And now
[3:31:28] I'm a nashvillian just like you.
[3:31:29] And nashville is still
[3:31:30] welcoming people from out of
[3:31:33] state and out of the country.
[3:31:34] And I hope we will offer the
[3:31:36] same welcome to help me build a
[3:31:39] life here to all of my fellow
[3:31:40] union members and new employees
[3:31:43] who I see every couple of weeks
[3:31:44] that come in, and I want them
[3:31:46] to have the same opportunity I
[3:31:48] had. So I want you to support
[3:31:49] the mayor's cost of living
[3:31:52] adjustment at 1.7%, include my
[3:31:55] union family at public schools,
[3:31:56] and give them some paid time
[3:32:00] off when the schools are closed,
[3:32:01] when they've been left out of
[3:32:03] some earlier budgets. And I
[3:32:05] just want you to be generous to
[3:32:07] them.
[3:32:09] Thank you. Go ahead. Come
[3:32:11] on. Forward.
[3:32:13] Good evening. I'm
[3:32:16] nicole and I live in district
[3:32:18] 17 who loves to swim. Anybody
[3:32:19] in this room loves to swim.
[3:32:21] Okay. Hands raised. I learned
[3:32:23] to swim at the napier community
[3:32:26] center pool. And last year,
[3:32:27] terry and I, with the support
[3:32:30] of unicycle and other
[3:32:32] nashvillians, collected
[3:32:35] swimwear for my neighbors. And
[3:32:37] I mentioned that because last
[3:32:38] week I took some of my
[3:32:40] neighbors to the pool. We just
[3:32:43] walked right over and there
[3:32:45] were about 50 people in the
[3:32:47] pool, and the pool was
[3:32:49] renovated five years ago. And
[3:32:53] then council member, council
[3:32:54] member freddy and doctor
[3:32:55] lawless. And some folks said,
[3:32:58] we don't want this pool closed.
[3:32:59] When I was there at the
[3:33:00] community center last week,
[3:33:02] most of the students came when
[3:33:04] the. When the pool opened for
[3:33:07] evening engagement and that was
[3:33:09] at 2:00. Prior to that,
[3:33:11] was not much engagement. And so
[3:33:13] I am asking, and I know alicia
[3:33:15] and some others have said this
[3:33:16] before in the past. Napier
[3:33:18] community center needs to be
[3:33:19] funded, y'all. Right now the
[3:33:21] pool is just the only
[3:33:23] engagement, which is great, but
[3:33:25] it needs to be funded. So I
[3:33:27] just want to put that out there
[3:33:28] quickly. Also, the tennessee
[3:33:29] justice center no. Last year
[3:33:31] got some funding. Funding.
[3:33:33] Tennessee justice center is the
[3:33:34] only organization that is
[3:33:36] advocating for people who lose
[3:33:38] health care and need snap
[3:33:39] assistance. And I tell you, my
[3:33:40] neighbors, the neighbor
[3:33:41] community and all over
[3:33:43] nashville go there, but
[3:33:44] particularly neighbor community
[3:33:46] walk there as well. Of course,
[3:33:48] housing support and sons. I
[3:33:50] wouldn't want you to stay
[3:33:52] investment. I see firsthand
[3:33:54] just how many of my neighbors
[3:33:56] just need housing assistance.
[3:33:58] And eviction is facing many of
[3:33:59] them. So please, please
[3:34:01] prioritize those. Thank you all
[3:34:02] for all the work that you do.
[3:34:05] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:34:06] recognized.
[3:34:07] Hi. Thank you for
[3:34:09] your time. My name is taylor. I
[3:34:11] work in the music industry and
[3:34:12] I'm a community member here
[3:34:14] with stand up nashville.
[3:34:16] Tonight I tonight I'm here to
[3:34:19] request that you put $500,000
[3:34:20] in an admin account for staff
[3:34:22] that will catapult the
[3:34:23] self-sustaining housing model
[3:34:25] forward. Lately, one image that
[3:34:26] jkeeps coming to mind when I
[3:34:27] think about housing in
[3:34:29] nashville is a moving truck. I
[3:34:31] graduated from belmont in 2020,
[3:34:32] and I've watched a lot of
[3:34:34] people leave this city since
[3:34:36] then. With every person leaving,
[3:34:36] nashville is feeling less and
[3:34:38] less like the city I fell in
[3:34:40] love with. I can't see a long
[3:34:42] term future here because of our
[3:34:44] affordability crisis. I've
[3:34:45] personally had to relocate
[3:34:46] within the city multiple times
[3:34:48] as rent prices are increasing,
[3:34:50] and it's deeply concerning and
[3:34:51] saddening to know that I'm
[3:34:53] actually part of a privileged
[3:34:55] minority. More and more people
[3:34:56] are leaving simply because they
[3:34:58] can't afford to stay here. They
[3:34:59] have to leave a place that
[3:35:01] still feels like home. And
[3:35:02] every time nashville loses
[3:35:04] something not just a resident,
[3:35:06] but a relationship, a story, a
[3:35:08] piece of community. And our
[3:35:09] community is what makes our
[3:35:11] city so special. The housing
[3:35:13] crisis is often discussed in
[3:35:14] statistics. We talk about
[3:35:16] prices, units, and percentages,
[3:35:17] but every behind every
[3:35:19] statistic is a person trying to
[3:35:21] hold on to a life they've built.
[3:35:22] That's why I support stand up
[3:35:23] nashville's budget request,
[3:35:24] because I believe nashville
[3:35:25] should be a place where people
[3:35:27] can imagine a future, and I
[3:35:28] believe this is achievable. But
[3:35:30] we need you to make a small but
[3:35:31] important investment in this
[3:35:34] moment. Thank you.
[3:35:36] Thank you.
[3:35:38] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[3:35:38] Hi,
[3:35:39] I'm kay.
[3:35:40] Bowers and I live in
[3:35:42] district 25 with jeff. Thank
[3:35:49] you jeff. It's a challenge to.
[3:35:50] Find words to speak to you
[3:35:52] tonight that have not already
[3:35:56] been spoken. We know that
[3:35:57] housing affordability is the
[3:35:59] number one concern. According
[3:36:01] to the latest poll by
[3:36:03] vanderbilt. And at the same
[3:36:05] time that we have this housing
[3:36:08] affordability crisis, we have
[3:36:11] thousands of vacant luxury
[3:36:15] housing units. Yet the high
[3:36:18] rent levels remain. That's the
[3:36:20] picture that we're facing.
[3:36:22] Housing instability causes
[3:36:23] tremendous stress. You've heard
[3:36:26] the stories on our fellow
[3:36:29] neighbors, and it spills over
[3:36:31] into our communities. The
[3:36:33] community youth safety plan
[3:36:35] shows that housing instability
[3:36:41] is a top concern of our youth.
[3:36:43] Quality. Stable and affordable
[3:36:45] housing is a key component of
[3:36:48] making our community safe.
[3:36:50] Affordable homeownership
[3:36:51] opportunities make for
[3:36:53] neighbors who are invested in
[3:36:55] their neighborhoods. Yet with
[3:36:58] our absence of the private
[3:37:00] market, the handful of
[3:37:03] nonprofits doing this work need
[3:37:06] our public investment. We need
[3:37:08] $30 million invested into the
[3:37:10] barns housing trust fund, as
[3:37:13] our housing plan calls for. At
[3:37:15] the same time, let's catch up
[3:37:17] with other cities. Let's follow
[3:37:20] their lead, their example, and
[3:37:22] stand up, a housing model that
[3:37:23] provides housing for a variety
[3:37:26] of incomes is financially
[3:37:27] sustainable, that is
[3:37:29] permanently affordable and
[3:37:30] provides for public ownership.
[3:37:33] And that means you don't have
[3:37:36] to pay shareholders or
[3:37:39] investments out of your profits.
[3:37:41] These models can work. They're
[3:37:42] being done. I ask for you to
[3:37:43] get behind them.
[3:37:44] Thank you.
[3:37:48] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:37:49] recognized.
[3:37:51] My name is shamika
[3:37:52] kimbrough and I work at
[3:37:53] nashville general hospital at
[3:37:56] metro center. Today I came as
[3:37:58] this is my first time coming
[3:38:00] and I didn't I wasn't aware
[3:38:01] that you could speak during
[3:38:05] this conference. So today,
[3:38:07] health care is a cornerstone of
[3:38:09] a thriving community. Nashville
[3:38:11] general hospital serves many of
[3:38:14] our city's most vulnerable
[3:38:17] residents, including uninsured,
[3:38:18] underserved, and
[3:38:20] underprivileged population. Our
[3:38:22] providers, nurses, technicians,
[3:38:24] and support staff work
[3:38:26] tirelessly every day to ensure
[3:38:28] that all patient care have
[3:38:30] access to quality health care,
[3:38:32] regardless of their ability to
[3:38:35] pay due. However, the cost of
[3:38:37] living continues to rise.
[3:38:39] Employees our insurance
[3:38:41] premiums have gone up, dental
[3:38:44] insurance doubled, vision
[3:38:48] insurance tripled. So today, to
[3:38:49] increase, the health care
[3:38:50] workers pay, I mean force
[3:38:53] growing demands and challenges.
[3:38:55] despite being part of a metro
[3:38:57] nashville public service system,
[3:38:58] nashville general hospital
[3:39:01] employees do not receive the
[3:39:03] same level of benefits and
[3:39:04] compensation growth that many
[3:39:07] other metro employees receives,
[3:39:08] including teachers, police
[3:39:10] officers and firefighters,
[3:39:12] education, public safety and
[3:39:13] health care are all essential
[3:39:16] public services. Healthy
[3:39:18] students learn better, healthy
[3:39:20] families build stronger
[3:39:22] communities. Healthy workers
[3:39:24] contribute to a stronger
[3:39:27] economic trade. Investment in
[3:39:28] health care, as in an
[3:39:30] investment in nashville's
[3:39:32] future. We are not asking for
[3:39:33] special treatment. We are
[3:39:36] asking for equitable treatment.
[3:39:37] Nashville general hospital
[3:39:39] employees deserve compensation
[3:39:43] and better benefits that that
[3:39:45] reflects the value of their
[3:39:48] work and align with their
[3:39:50] support. Support provided to
[3:39:55] other metro agencies. Thank you.
[3:39:59] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:40:00] recognized.
[3:40:02] Hi, my name is zach
[3:40:06] jenkins. I am a in. District 21.
[3:40:08] I'm an educator, which is
[3:40:09] probably why my energy is so
[3:40:10] low right now, because I've
[3:40:13] been dealing with kids all day.
[3:40:14] But with that being said, I'm
[3:40:16] going to be real quick. So I
[3:40:18] come here today to say that I
[3:40:21] stand in solidarity with seiu.
[3:40:23] Many a all the nashville
[3:40:24] general hospital employees and
[3:40:26] every single educator, nurse
[3:40:28] and support staff worker who
[3:40:29] keeps our schools and hospitals
[3:40:31] running. I'm a specifically
[3:40:33] speak on schools today. Our
[3:40:35] schools are the heart of this
[3:40:36] community, but it's the people
[3:40:37] inside them who keep the heart
[3:40:39] beating. When we talk about the
[3:40:40] budget,we're talking about our
[3:40:42] values, and we cannot claim to
[3:40:43] value education if we don't
[3:40:45] fully value our educators. That
[3:40:47] means ensuring that cost of
[3:40:49] living adjustments keep pace
[3:40:50] with the soaring cost of living
[3:40:53] here in nashville right now, a
[3:40:54] raise that doesn't match
[3:40:56] inflation is not a raise at all.
[3:40:58] It's actually a pay cut, truth
[3:41:00] be told. Furthermore, we must
[3:41:02] also protect and honor our step
[3:41:04] raises for mps and nashville
[3:41:06] general employees, step raises
[3:41:08] aren't a bonus or luxury. Truth
[3:41:10] be told, they are a fundamental
[3:41:12] promise. They honor, experience,
[3:41:13] dedication, and years of
[3:41:15] service to our teachers and to
[3:41:16] the people who visit our
[3:41:18] hospitals every single day. So
[3:41:20] we protect cost of living
[3:41:22] adjustments and step raises.
[3:41:23] We're not just supporting
[3:41:23] teachers. We're not just
[3:41:25] supporting metro general,
[3:41:27] nashville general employees.
[3:41:28] We're investing in the
[3:41:29] stability of our classrooms and
[3:41:31] our hospitals. We're investing
[3:41:34] in the future of our students.
[3:41:35] We're investing in the future
[3:41:37] of people who need health care.
[3:41:39] So finally, last thing I want
[3:41:41] to say is to the nashville
[3:41:43] general workers, to the nurses,
[3:41:47] to mpamnea to the sei. You
[3:41:48] support staff, workers in our
[3:41:50] school, exceptional educators
[3:41:52] and every educator. We see you,
[3:41:55] I see you, we thank you. And I
[3:41:58] stand with you. Thank you.
[3:42:02] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:42:04] recognized. Thank you.
[3:42:04] Good
[3:42:06] evening, council members, and
[3:42:07] thank you for the opportunity
[3:42:10] to speak tonight. My name is
[3:42:12] rosemary henkel rieger. I live
[3:42:15] in district 34. I'm the
[3:42:16] co-director of the southeast
[3:42:18] center for cooperative
[3:42:20] development. And together with
[3:42:22] some local partners, we are
[3:42:25] converting a 60 unit complex
[3:42:27] into nashville's first limited
[3:42:30] equity housing cooperative. And
[3:42:34] this was only possible with a
[3:42:35] $7 million commitment from the
[3:42:37] barnes fund. And thank you
[3:42:40] again for that support. This
[3:42:43] barnes fund support will turn
[3:42:45] renters into owners. Residents
[3:42:47] will sit on the board and
[3:42:49] control their own housing costs
[3:42:51] and shape their own policies.
[3:42:54] They are building modest, what
[3:42:57] we call pocket wealth. And
[3:42:59] because we are pairing the
[3:43:00] cooperative with the community
[3:43:03] land trust, that affordability
[3:43:07] will never expire. There is no
[3:43:08] covenant that lapses once the
[3:43:11] mortgage is paid off. There are
[3:43:14] no re subsidizing the same
[3:43:16] units. The land comes off the
[3:43:19] speculative market permanently.
[3:43:21] That is what the barnes fund is
[3:43:23] making possible. And it is why
[3:43:25] I'm asking you to go further
[3:43:27] than the mayor's proposal. We
[3:43:29] are grateful for the largest
[3:43:32] ever general fund allocation of
[3:43:34] 22 million. But metro's own
[3:43:37] unified housing strategy calls
[3:43:40] for a minimum of 30 million a
[3:43:42] year. So we're not asking for
[3:43:44] somethingnew. We are asking
[3:43:46] you to fully fund the barnes
[3:43:49] fund to the $30 million level
[3:43:51] that your own strategy says
[3:43:53] nashville needs. We stand with
[3:43:56] our friends, many who have
[3:43:58] spoken tonight from noaa, stand
[3:44:00] up nashville, the southern
[3:44:03] movement committee, and the
[3:44:05] nashville people's coalition,
[3:44:06] and our neighbors who are
[3:44:08] working to create social
[3:44:10] housing. Thank you.
[3:44:13] Thank you.
[3:44:15] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[3:44:17] Good evening, metro council. My
[3:44:19] name is jessica davis. I am.
[3:44:20] The co-owner.
[3:44:21] Of bridging the
[3:44:23] gap learning center, founder of
[3:44:25] the chris foundation and
[3:44:27] founder of the bridge network.
[3:44:28] The bridge network is a
[3:44:30] statewide organization
[3:44:31] supporting home based child
[3:44:33] care providers. I'm speaking
[3:44:35] tonight as a provider, an
[3:44:37] advocate, and someone who has
[3:44:38] spent more than two decades
[3:44:40] serving nashville
[3:44:42] children and families. I want
[3:44:45] to be clear nashville does not
[3:44:46] simply have a child care
[3:44:48] affordability crisis. We have a
[3:44:50] child care access crisis.
[3:44:52] Families cannot afford care
[3:44:53] because there is not enough
[3:44:55] care. Last year, I made the
[3:44:56] decision to create more child
[3:44:59] care opportunities for families
[3:45:00] by opening bridging the gap
[3:45:02] learning center. We were invest.
[3:45:05] I was investing in my community.
[3:45:07] What followed was a maze of
[3:45:10] barriers, fees, approvals,
[3:45:11] inspections, zoning
[3:45:13] requirements and delays that
[3:45:14] many small providers simply
[3:45:17] cannot survive. The reality is
[3:45:19] that every time a child care
[3:45:21] provider gives up, closes their
[3:45:23] doors, or decides not to expand,
[3:45:26] families lose access, children
[3:45:28] lose opportunities, parents
[3:45:30] lose options, and our workforce
[3:45:32] loses workers. The reason
[3:45:34] bridging the gap center exists
[3:45:35] today is because of
[3:45:37] organizations like the equity
[3:45:39] alliance, who stepped up and
[3:45:40] believed that child care
[3:45:42] matters. The equity alliance
[3:45:44] stood by me as I navigated
[3:45:45] barriers that often keep small
[3:45:47] providers from opening doors.
[3:45:49] But the truth is, families and
[3:45:51] providers should not have to
[3:45:53] rely on luck, connections or
[3:45:55] extraordinary persistence just
[3:45:58] to access or create child care.
[3:45:59] The stories are heartbreaking
[3:46:01] and predictable. Parents are
[3:46:03] working multiple jobs and still
[3:46:05] can't afford care. It is the
[3:46:06] infrastructure that allows
[3:46:08] parents to work, businesses to
[3:46:11] operate and children to thrive.
[3:46:12] If we are serious about
[3:46:15] economic development, workforce
[3:46:16] participation, family stability,
[3:46:18] we have to be serious about
[3:46:20] child care.
[3:46:22] Thank you. Go ahead.
[3:46:24] You're recognized.
[3:46:25] Hello,
[3:46:25] everyone.
[3:46:26] Good evening. Hope
[3:46:27] you are having a good night so
[3:46:29] far. Thank you, by the way, for
[3:46:31] bearing with us in this meager
[3:46:32] form of democratic
[3:46:33] representation. I know it's a
[3:46:35] long night. I'm zach, I'm a
[3:46:36] member of the democratic
[3:46:38] socialists of america here in
[3:46:40] middle tennessee. And I just to you about
[3:46:41] some preventative care that
[3:46:43] maybe we can do for our city.
[3:46:46] I'm a big fan of preventative
[3:46:47] practices. It's important to
[3:46:48] learn from your mistakes and
[3:46:49] prepare for what's going to
[3:46:51] come next. We all know about
[3:46:52] winter storm fern knocked out
[3:46:55] power to nearly 230,000
[3:46:56] nashvillians. Thousands were
[3:46:57] without electricity for nearly
[3:46:59] weeks. The total damage is
[3:47:02] estimated at $140 million. The
[3:47:04] budget increase proposed by the
[3:47:06] mayor does raise funding for
[3:47:08] the office of emergency
[3:47:09] management, but most of that
[3:47:11] goes to warning sirens and
[3:47:12] response positions, not
[3:47:13] prevention. For the next
[3:47:15] disaster, we need to be
[3:47:16] proactive in investing in
[3:47:18] sustainable stormwater runoffs,
[3:47:19] hardened power infrastructure
[3:47:21] and,most consequentially,
[3:47:22] dedicated funding to protect
[3:47:23] our most vulnerable
[3:47:25] neighborhoods. These types of
[3:47:26] investments pay for themselves
[3:47:28] tenfold, both in cost reduction,
[3:47:30] for dsaster relief and in the
[3:47:32] lives that they save. Climate
[3:47:34] resilience is not a luxury.
[3:47:35] It's life or death for the
[3:47:37] working people in this city.
[3:47:38] Preventing the next disaster
[3:47:39] requires a comprehensive
[3:47:41] program. Preparing for and
[3:47:42] preparing and planning for
[3:47:44] future needs to be the highest
[3:47:46] priorities. That means going
[3:47:49] beyond disaster prep, solving
[3:47:51] issues at the root, creating
[3:47:53] better infrastructure, social
[3:47:55] housing, community centered and
[3:47:57] led programs. All of these
[3:47:59] things contribute to building a
[3:48:00] resilient city. All of these
[3:48:01] things have been talked about
[3:48:02] by the number of people who
[3:48:05] have spoken before. The people
[3:48:07] of this city need to know that
[3:48:09] their lives are prioritized by
[3:48:11] the city. Every time you vote,
[3:48:13] I want you to ask yourself, how
[3:48:15] does this center the people of
[3:48:18] nashville? How does this the land of tennessee?
[3:48:20] Is there a way to make this
[3:48:22] program sustainable, equitable,
[3:48:25] and natural for the environment?
[3:48:26] Nashville can be a model for a
[3:48:28] new future, and it can be a
[3:48:30] better future.
[3:48:32] Thank you.
[3:48:32] go
[3:48:34] ahead. You're recognized. Go
[3:48:36] ahead and come on up.
[3:48:36] Hello,
[3:48:39] council. My name is ariel fears,
[3:48:41] and I am a resident of the 16th
[3:48:42] district for 12 years, and I'm
[3:48:44] a member of the national
[3:48:46] people's budget coalition. I'm
[3:48:47] here tonight to urge you to
[3:48:49] fully fund our housing and
[3:48:50] safety for all plan, which
[3:48:52] includes the 500,000 for
[3:48:52] staffing that you've been
[3:48:54] hearing about from so many
[3:48:57] people. Tonight, I am raising
[3:48:58] my family here, and since we've
[3:49:02] been here, many of our friends
[3:49:04] have had to move away just due
[3:49:05] to the impossible housing
[3:49:07] situation and due to safety
[3:49:08] concerns for them or their
[3:49:10] children. And that's lonely.
[3:49:12] And it's an unrecognizable
[3:49:15] place in many ways. And it's
[3:49:16] getting harder and harder to
[3:49:18] stay here, not only because, of
[3:49:20] course, we're financially someone mentioned
[3:49:21] before, my family sure as hell
[3:49:23] can't afford child care. My
[3:49:25] partner and I just trade our
[3:49:26] children off like this to each
[3:49:27] other all the time, which
[3:49:29] limits how much we can work
[3:49:33] anyway. I stay because I'm
[3:49:34] stubborn and because of people
[3:49:35] like this behind me, and
[3:49:37] because I can hang on a little
[3:49:38] bit longer. But it's
[3:49:40] increasingly hard to do that
[3:49:42] without extreme dissatisfaction
[3:49:43] at the fact that our city is
[3:49:45] funding punishment more than it
[3:49:47] funds prevention. And I don't
[3:49:48] care what anyone says. I care
[3:49:50] about what we're actually
[3:49:52] funding. Okay, we are watching
[3:49:53] that. You've heard people say,
[3:49:54] we want co-governance I cosign
[3:49:56] that you've heard lots of
[3:49:59] things tonight. And as someone
[3:50:00] who works in healthcare myself,
[3:50:03] but in private practice, it's
[3:50:05] abhorrent to me that our
[3:50:07] government, health care workers
[3:50:09] have to come up here and plead
[3:50:10] every year just to have some
[3:50:13] kind of reasonable pay. I it's
[3:50:14] insulting to me. It must be
[3:50:15] insulting to you to have to
[3:50:18] operate in that kind of system.
[3:50:19] We have to find a way to do
[3:50:21] better. Thank you.
[3:50:22] Thank you.
[3:50:24] Go ahead. Come on. Forward.
[3:50:27] You're recognized.
[3:50:28] How y'all
[3:50:30] doing? My name is trevor gwin.
[3:50:34] I am I live in district 32. A
[3:50:35] little bit of a confession.
[3:50:38] This is my first public hearing.
[3:50:40] So kind of sat back and
[3:50:41] observed as I listened to
[3:50:43] everyone tell their stories,
[3:50:45] I'm here on behalf of
[3:50:46] nashville's people budget
[3:50:47] coalition, to ask that you
[3:50:49] fully fund the housing and
[3:50:51] safety plan for all that's and
[3:50:53] hold $25 million budget. As
[3:50:55] with $500,000 for social
[3:50:56] housing staff, 9 million for
[3:50:58] social housing revolving loan
[3:51:00] fund, 13 million for community
[3:51:02] safety fund, 2 million for the
[3:51:04] reach non-police mental health
[3:51:07] program. So a bit off the cuff
[3:51:10] for me as I listen to each and
[3:51:12] every one of the citizens come
[3:51:14] up and talk about their issues,
[3:51:16] they seem to all be rooted in
[3:51:18] the same thing of affordability,
[3:51:23] of living in this city and not.
[3:51:26] I've been in antioch for since
[3:51:29] 2014. And like my constituents,
[3:51:31] I'm going to echo her saying as
[3:51:33] well, it's hard building a
[3:51:35] community here with people you
[3:51:37] love, working class people that
[3:51:38] are working hard to make this
[3:51:41] city run and be a nice place to
[3:51:44] live. But it's sad hearing that
[3:51:46] they have to leave because they
[3:51:48] cannot afford the city that
[3:51:50] they are living in. It's
[3:51:52] frustrating. I have two little
[3:51:53] boys now and I'm trying to look
[3:51:57] for a new place to stay, and
[3:52:01] with the the rise in the rise,
[3:52:04] in the pricing of homes, it
[3:52:06] always seems like, well, I just
[3:52:07] can't afford to be here. The
[3:52:09] next place that I go, I'm
[3:52:10] asking that you please, please
[3:52:12] fund this social housing
[3:52:13] program. Thank you.
[3:52:14] Thank you.
[3:52:19] Go ahead and come on forward.
[3:52:20] Good evening, council members.
[3:52:22] Thank you so much for your time
[3:52:23] and attention today. My name is
[3:52:25] malik with a c. I just moved
[3:52:27] from COUNCILMAN District into
[3:52:29] COUNCILMAN Capps district with
[3:52:30] my fiance about two weekends
[3:52:32] ago in east nashville. So
[3:52:33] waiting on my government issued
[3:52:34] trucker hat, which is east
[3:52:36] nashville uniform. On behalf of
[3:52:38] the nashville area chamber, I
[3:52:40] want to add to the chorus of
[3:52:41] voices speaking in support of
[3:52:44] housing advocacy, the 2000
[3:52:45] businesses we represent, and
[3:52:47] the tens of thousands of
[3:52:48] employers we know in nashville
[3:52:49] that housing is one of the
[3:52:51] biggest challenges we're facing.
[3:52:52] Last year, the average down
[3:52:54] payment for a house was over
[3:52:55] $50,000. We now know that the
[3:52:57] majority of nashville's public
[3:52:59] workers can't afford to live in
[3:53:00] the city, and the majority of
[3:53:02] working class nashvillians
[3:53:03] can't afford to buy a house
[3:53:05] inside of the city. One thing I
[3:53:07] want to say, though, is as a
[3:53:08] public policy professional,
[3:53:10] like each of you, we know that
[3:53:11] we're trying to pay for this
[3:53:12] budget by rubbing two nickels
[3:53:14] together. The city doesn't have
[3:53:15] that much money, but we know
[3:53:17] that other cities are able to
[3:53:18] do these innovative financing
[3:53:20] models. Our neighbors in austin
[3:53:22] were able to pass $350 million
[3:53:24] in voter referendum, passed
[3:53:26] bond financing. Our neighbors
[3:53:28] in charlotte wereable to do
[3:53:30] 250 million for similar things.
[3:53:32] But we know that the $69
[3:53:33] million in the housing budget
[3:53:35] today is a foundation of how we
[3:53:37] do this in the future. So my
[3:53:39] request for each of you is that
[3:53:40] we've heard some pretty
[3:53:41] incredible things from all of
[3:53:42] our neighbors from all over
[3:53:43] nashville. They're each
[3:53:45] incredibly important. My
[3:53:47] request is to make it additive
[3:53:48] and not remove anything from
[3:53:50] the current housing budget,
[3:53:52] because any dollar removed from
[3:53:54] the $69 million we have right
[3:53:56] now is just going to make it
[3:53:57] harder to build affordable
[3:53:58] housing in the future. Thank
[3:53:59] you for all of your time.
[3:54:00] Thank
[3:54:01] you.
[3:54:03] Go ahead. You're
[3:54:04] recognized.
[3:54:05] Hello, everyone. My
[3:54:07] name is anton christiansen
[3:54:08] galena, and I'm on the
[3:54:09] commission that oversees the
[3:54:10] barnes fund. And I live in
[3:54:12] terry falls district. So today,
[3:54:14] the most effective tool that
[3:54:15] the city has to meet the
[3:54:17] affordable affordability crisis
[3:54:19] is the barnes fund. Last year,
[3:54:21] with $35 million, the barnes
[3:54:23] fund backed the construction of
[3:54:27] nearly 800 homes and attracted
[3:54:28] $274 million of outside
[3:54:30] investment. So here's how it
[3:54:31] all works. The barnes fund
[3:54:34] gives nonprofits money to build
[3:54:35] houses. The nonprofits bring
[3:54:37] their proposals to a commission,
[3:54:39] which then grades projects and
[3:54:40] decides whether or not they'd
[3:54:41] be a good use of our city's
[3:54:44] money. Last year, we were only
[3:54:45] able to fund half of the
[3:54:46] projects that nonprofits
[3:54:48] brought to us, and we said no
[3:54:49] to a lot of projects that I
[3:54:51] wish we'd been able to build,
[3:54:53] but what we have been able to
[3:54:55] build has been spectacular. The
[3:54:57] magic of the barnes fund is the
[3:54:59] creativity of the nonprofits.
[3:55:00] They bring us projects that
[3:55:02] couldn't get done in other
[3:55:03] cities. We've supported
[3:55:04] projects like homes built on
[3:55:06] church land. We funded a
[3:55:07] beautiful house on a flower
[3:55:09] farm for expectant mothers. We
[3:55:10] funded a project that
[3:55:11] refurbished an old motel to
[3:55:14] give teens who age out of
[3:55:15] orphanages a place to call home.
[3:55:17] Instead of being left to the
[3:55:18] streets. Across the country,
[3:55:20] people have been calling our
[3:55:21] housing office in nashville to
[3:55:24] ask about the barnes fund. Why?
[3:55:25] Because we've successfully
[3:55:27] built a tool that helps
[3:55:29] nonprofits build homes for
[3:55:30] people. We built policies and
[3:55:31] procedures that ensure those
[3:55:33] homes are built to high
[3:55:34] environmental accessibility and
[3:55:34] -
[3:55:37] building standards. We built
[3:55:38] thousands of good homes for
[3:55:40] thousands of families. As a
[3:55:41] city, we should be proud of the
[3:55:43] barnes fund. I am, and
[3:55:47] nashville needs it fully funded.
[3:55:47] Thank you.
[3:55:49] Thank you very much.
[3:55:51] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[3:55:52] recognized.
[3:55:53] Vice mayor and
[3:55:55] council. My name, melvin james.
[3:55:58] I'm from murray county. I'll be
[3:56:01] 61st JULY, third of next month.
[3:56:03] I met this coalition two weeks
[3:56:05] ago knocking on my door about
[3:56:09] the housing thing. I can be
[3:56:13] pointed at whatever. GOD has
[3:56:15] been good to me. I raised one
[3:56:18] kid. He's 42. He's
[3:56:22] nissan. I'm divorced as of 2008.
[3:56:24] I have bounced around from
[3:56:25] murray county, columbia,
[3:56:28] tennessee housing here, white
[3:56:33] bluff, white county. It's all
[3:56:34] about the money. I made a
[3:56:36] mistake of messing with chicks
[3:56:39] in 99, so I really don't have
[3:56:43] no power to vote. I voiced my
[3:56:44] opinion. I can't get my voting
[3:56:46] rights back, but I'm not
[3:56:48] switching over to the maga and
[3:56:50] all that to get it. Say all
[3:56:53] that. Help the people that need
[3:56:56] help. I mean, I'm making it. By
[3:56:59] the grace of GOD, I got
[3:57:01] assistance even being a felon,
[3:57:04] I got assistance. The street I
[3:57:06] live on, whites, whites, creek,
[3:57:08] pike, we don't even have a bus
[3:57:09] thing now. Somebody hit it. So
[3:57:13] we got to stand out in the rain.
[3:57:16] Sidewalk from trinity ane to
[3:57:19] hanes garden, where I live at.
[3:57:20] Barely got a sidewalk to walk
[3:57:24] on. That's enough for I cry.
[3:57:26] Thank you for coming out. Thank
[3:57:28] you. Go ahead. You're
[3:57:30] recognized. Come on up.
[3:57:31] Good
[3:57:31] evening council.
[3:57:32] My name is
[3:57:34] andrea pemberton and I'm in
[3:57:35] district 21. I'm here with
[3:57:37] stand up nashville and with
[3:57:38] nashville people's I'm
[3:57:40] here tonight to ask for two
[3:57:42] things. One is to invest in
[3:57:44] social housing, including 9
[3:57:45] million for social housing,
[3:57:47] revolving loan fund and 500,000
[3:57:49] for dedicated social housing
[3:57:50] staff. I'm also here to ask
[3:57:52] tonight for council to create
[3:57:53] more opportunities for
[3:57:54] meaningful public engagement in
[3:57:56] the budget process. Political
[3:57:58] strategist james carville once
[3:57:59] famously said, it's the economy,
[3:58:01] stupid. But tonight, resident
[3:58:02] after resident has stepped up
[3:58:04] to make a similar statement
[3:58:05] painfully clear here it's
[3:58:08] housing dummies. Housing is at
[3:58:09] the center of so many of the
[3:58:11] issues our city is trying to
[3:58:12] address. Housing often
[3:58:13] determines whether someone can
[3:58:15] keep a job, recover from an
[3:58:16] illness, injury or addiction,
[3:58:17] escape domestic violence,
[3:58:19] complete their education, start
[3:58:21] or expand their family or age
[3:58:22] with dignity. Housing is health
[3:58:24] care. It's economic development.
[3:58:26] It's public safety, and it's
[3:58:27] educational opportunity.
[3:58:29] Without access to safe, secure,
[3:58:30] quality, affordable housing,
[3:58:31] every other problem becomes so
[3:58:33] much harder to solve. Housing
[3:58:35] MAY not be every individual's
[3:58:37] personal issue right now, but
[3:58:38] it is our city's largest
[3:58:39] collective problem,and it's
[3:58:41] only going to get worse if we
[3:58:42] don't address it. That's why
[3:58:44] I'm asking tonight for you to
[3:58:45] invest in social housing and
[3:58:46] investment in social housing
[3:58:47] demonstrates that nashville has
[3:58:48] the political curage to try
[3:58:50] new, innovative approaches to a
[3:58:51] problem that is growing faster
[3:58:53] than our existing solutions can
[3:58:55] address. Secondly, the line of
[3:58:56] residents waiting to speak
[3:58:57] tonight makes one thing clear
[3:58:59] people want a meaningful voice
[3:59:00] in how public dollars are spent.
[3:59:02] If this many nashillians are
[3:59:03] taking time to come here and
[3:59:05] weigh in on the budget, we need
[3:59:06] a process that gives them more
[3:59:07] than two minutes at the
[3:59:09] microphone. I'm also asking for
[3:59:10] council to expand opportunities
[3:59:11] for residents to participate in
[3:59:12] the budgetary process. On the
[3:59:14] front end, we can require
[3:59:15] departments to hold public
[3:59:16] budget workshops before
[3:59:17] submitting. Requests to
[3:59:18] mayor. Require public responses
[3:59:20] explaining how community
[3:59:21] recommendations are addressed,
[3:59:23] and bring back participatory
[3:59:24] budgeting programs where
[3:59:26] residents can propose projects,
[3:59:27] departments can review for
[3:59:28] feasibility, and the public can
[3:59:30] vote on final investments.
[3:59:33] Thank you. You.
[3:59:34] Go ahead.
[3:59:36] Now come on up just right after
[3:59:37] the next person. Come on up.
[3:59:38] Don't wait for the collapse,
[3:59:40] which should not be happening,
[3:59:42] but keep on coming. You're.
[3:59:44] You're good. Go.
[3:59:44] Hello. My name
[3:59:46] is megan. I live in district
[3:59:47] five. One of my favorite things
[3:59:49] about living in nashville is
[3:59:51] the community mindedness of its
[3:59:54] residents. I feel really proud
[3:59:56] to be a part of, and I'm
[3:59:58] inspired by the group of people
[4:00:02] here. I'm here to support the funding of $500,000
[4:00:03] to an administrative account
[4:00:05] for staff that will facilitate
[4:00:08] permanently affordable housing,
[4:00:09] treating homeownership as an
[4:00:11] investment rather than an
[4:00:12] expense. These returns in the
[4:00:13] form of residents who are
[4:00:14] deeply connected to their city
[4:00:16] and its long term well-being.
[4:00:17] Like the people you've heard
[4:00:19] from tonight, they know
[4:00:20] nashville the best because they
[4:00:23] are the best of nashville. It
[4:00:24] might seem that on the whole,
[4:00:26] some of the budget requests
[4:00:27] being made are in competition
[4:00:29] with one another. That funding
[4:00:30] one and two could mean three
[4:00:33] and four won't be funded. I
[4:00:35] want to point out that these
[4:00:37] requests are all being made by
[4:00:38] residents showing up and
[4:00:39] speaking up for their home and
[4:00:42] their neighbors, arranging work
[4:00:44] schedules, child care,
[4:00:45] transportation preparation,
[4:00:47] research, and committing to
[4:00:49] speaking to their
[4:00:50] representatives directly. It's
[4:00:53] an amazing thing, and I want to
[4:00:55] take notice of which which
[4:00:57] interests are not here tonight.
[4:00:59] And let that speak for itself.
[4:01:01] I strongly urge you to invest
[4:01:03] in social housing for the
[4:01:04] residents who have already
[4:01:06] invested so much in nashville.
[4:01:07] Thank you.
[4:01:10] Thank you. Go ahead.
[4:01:11] You're recognized.
[4:01:12] I'm mason
[4:01:14] caples once again. Before you,
[4:01:17] I've done work with the equity
[4:01:18] alliance, also stand up
[4:01:21] nashville and most notably seiu.
[4:01:22] Speaker, today I'm just going
[4:01:24] to give you what I've been
[4:01:25] experiencing in the past year.
[4:01:29] In NOVEMBER, sheriff nikki
[4:01:32] taylor, she was touted for
[4:01:33] stopping and helping an
[4:01:36] individual who needed help on
[4:01:38] the side of the road. He was
[4:01:40] incapacitated. There's also
[4:01:42] corporal marvin ramsey. He's
[4:01:44] another sheriff who was
[4:01:46] recognized in FEBRUARY because
[4:01:50] he. During those storms, he
[4:01:52] offered his room to an
[4:01:55] individual, an elderly couple
[4:01:58] who couldn't stay at the hotel
[4:02:01] because they were full. These
[4:02:02] are stories about nashville
[4:02:04] caring about nashville. We're
[4:02:05] asking you to care about
[4:02:07] nashville as much as we do. The
[4:02:08] people who live here, who work
[4:02:11] here, not just the nurses
[4:02:13] against or the health care
[4:02:14] workers against the students,
[4:02:16] against the doctors. We all are
[4:02:18] asking for funding. And in the
[4:02:21] fundamental I went and said,
[4:02:23] and our students are at the
[4:02:25] highest level in davidson
[4:02:27] county. They're peaking at the
[4:02:31] top level of history. They're
[4:02:33] doing the best. Our students
[4:02:36] have grammy, tony awards. Why
[4:02:38] are you not funding teachers?
[4:02:40] They're the individuals who's
[4:02:41] teaching these kids to be this
[4:02:44] great. It's all it's up to all
[4:02:47] of us to keep us going. Housing
[4:02:49] is a fundamental right. That's
[4:02:52] how I feel. There is no reason
[4:02:53] that bill barnes funding should
[4:02:58] ever be reducted from reduced.
[4:02:59] These are the things I'm a
[4:03:02] beneficiary of, bill barnes.
[4:03:03] These things are things that
[4:03:05] other individuals said and said,
[4:03:07] this is important. I know you
[4:03:08] all will do the right thing.
[4:03:09] Keep doing it. Please do
[4:03:11] something about the minimum
[4:03:13] wage. Thank you very much.
[4:03:14] Thank you.
[4:03:16] Go ahead and come on
[4:03:19] board.
[4:03:20] I'm angus, but you all
[4:03:23] know that this is my favorite
[4:03:24] meeting of the year because
[4:03:26] y'all don't get paid by the
[4:03:29] hour. I'm tired. I don't want
[4:03:31] to be here. But once again, all
[4:03:32] of these neighbors inspired me
[4:03:34] to come down and speak truth to
[4:03:37] power. I've listened to lots of
[4:03:38] folks tonight mention
[4:03:40] unfulfilled promises. We do
[4:03:43] this every year because you
[4:03:44] continue to fail. The people
[4:03:47] who call nashville home. It's
[4:03:49] pride month, and one of my
[4:03:51] closest friends, a trans woman,
[4:03:52] felt she had no choice but to
[4:03:54] flee nashville days ago because
[4:03:56] it is no longer city where
[4:03:58] she could feel safe, not
[4:03:59] because she didn't have a
[4:04:01] robust community of support,
[4:04:02] but because elected officials
[4:04:04] don't have the courage to make
[4:04:06] bold decisions. The mayor
[4:04:08] wanted us to stay. And yet,
[4:04:10] every daythe city feels like a
[4:04:13] less like a place anyone would
[4:04:14] want to call home if they could
[4:04:16] even afford it. I'm sick of
[4:04:19] begging for scraps. I'm sick of
[4:04:20] catering to tourists and
[4:04:22] downtown bar owners. I'm sick
[4:04:24] of having to annually ask you
[4:04:26] to even attempt to meet the
[4:04:27] basic needs of your
[4:04:29] constituents. We do not want
[4:04:31] surveillance. We do not want
[4:04:33] police drones. We do not
[4:04:35] believe that cops keep us safe.
[4:04:38] We do. We do not want expanded
[4:04:40] business partnerships. We have
[4:04:42] pretty humble requests for safe
[4:04:43] streets, affordable housing,
[4:04:45] accessible green space, fully
[4:04:47] funded schools, public transit
[4:04:48] accessibility, a robust library
[4:04:50] that doesn't have to close
[4:04:51] because special interests blew
[4:04:53] up an adjacent garage. All we
[4:04:55] want is for you to serve the
[4:04:57] people of nashville to
[4:04:58] prioritize the most basic needs
[4:05:01] of our neighbors. I never
[4:05:03] thought I would do this, but
[4:05:04] I'm going to quote lamar
[4:05:06] freaking alexander from a
[4:05:08] recent local podcast appearance.
[4:05:10] My advice would be to use your
[4:05:12] word focus on the soul of
[4:05:14] nashville, on the music, on the
[4:05:16] parks, on the people, on the
[4:05:20] schools. Focus on those things.
[4:05:22] Thank you. Go ahead and come on
[4:05:24] up. You're recognized.
[4:05:25] I'm
[4:05:26] jessica, I live in district
[4:05:30] seven. Emily is my council
[4:05:33] person. Is she here? That's a
[4:05:35] bummer. I don't know how I'm
[4:05:38] supposed to follow angus. He
[4:05:40] kind of said it all. I would
[4:05:42] like to specifically ask that
[4:05:44] you fully fund the nashville
[4:05:47] people's budget coalition's.
[4:05:49] You know, the plan, everything.
[4:05:50] Everybody's already said it
[4:05:51] tonight. I'm going to make it
[4:05:53] quick. Don't give public money
[4:05:57] to people like the music
[4:05:59] foundation, fountain party,
[4:06:01] whatever. I mean, a fountain
[4:06:04] would be cool. Ellen maguire,
[4:06:05] arguably like a national
[4:06:07] treasure. But I mean, virgin
[4:06:09] hotels could sneeze $50,000.
[4:06:10] You know what I mean? Like,
[4:06:13] it's. That's insane. People are
[4:06:15] begging for their lives and
[4:06:18] livelihoods. So yeah, that was
[4:06:19] quick.
[4:06:21] Thank you. Next. Go
[4:06:24] ahead. You recognized.
[4:06:25] Hello,
[4:06:26] my name is philip kinzer and I
[4:06:28] live in district 24. I've lived
[4:06:30] in nashville for almost 29
[4:06:32] years, but my roots go back way
[4:06:33] further than that. My family's
[4:06:35] been here for several
[4:06:36] generations. I'm here tonight
[4:06:37] because I believe in the
[4:06:39] nashville people's budget
[4:06:40] coalition's housing and safety
[4:06:42] for all plan. And the time that
[4:06:43] I've been here, nashville has
[4:06:45] become a city where workers
[4:06:47] struggle to afford rent, let
[4:06:49] alone to buy a home in the city
[4:06:51] where the median housing
[4:06:54] outpaces the median income.
[4:06:55] There's been very little done
[4:06:58] to balance that. Like many of
[4:06:59] my peers, I've been applying
[4:07:00] for jobs in other cities,
[4:07:01] hoping to leave and find a
[4:07:03] place where my income is more
[4:07:06] suited to living. I want to
[4:07:08] make nashville a place where
[4:07:09] the people who work here can
[4:07:11] live. My concerns are not just
[4:07:12] for my life, but for those
[4:07:14] around me. I don't want just
[4:07:18] want a city safe for myself,
[4:07:19] but for the strangers that I
[4:07:21] pass on the street. I want to
[4:07:23] live in a city where everyone
[4:07:24] feels valued. I believe that
[4:07:26] the value is expressed in many
[4:07:29] ways, but the way we spend our
[4:07:31] money is the most obvious one.
[4:07:32] We need to be investing in long
[4:07:35] term housing solutions to give
[4:07:36] people safe and dignified
[4:07:37] places to live. I believe the
[4:07:39] people's budget coalition plan
[4:07:41] is a strong first step in
[4:07:43] showing nashville citizens, you
[4:07:45] actually want us to stay here.
[4:07:49] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[4:07:52] recognized.
[4:07:53] Hello.
[4:07:53] My name is
[4:07:55] nevo polanski. I'm a resident
[4:07:56] of district five, and I'm a
[4:07:58] member of the national people's
[4:08:00] coalition. I'd like to use my
[4:08:01] time to uplift our
[4:08:02] organization's safety and
[4:08:03] housing for all plan.
[4:08:05] Specifically, the importance of
[4:08:07] funding requested to hire staff,
[4:08:08] administrative service fees,
[4:08:10] fees dedicated to furthering
[4:08:11] social housing in nashville,
[4:08:13] and funding for revolving loan
[4:08:14] fund used to finance social
[4:08:17] housing development. I believe
[4:08:19] that a budget is both a
[4:08:20] reflection of a community's
[4:08:21] values and a roadmap to address
[4:08:24] existing problems. We all know
[4:08:25] that access to affordable
[4:08:26] housing is a problem in
[4:08:28] nashville. Similarly, I feel
[4:08:29] confident in saying that
[4:08:30] everyone wants to feel safe in
[4:08:31] their community. We're looking
[4:08:33] for creative solutions to
[4:08:35] improve community safety. One
[4:08:36] solution nashville is working
[4:08:38] towards is creating 750 new
[4:08:39] beds in the form of a jail,
[4:08:41] which MAY cost up to $410
[4:08:44] million, separating people from
[4:08:45] their communities after harm
[4:08:47] has already happened. I bring
[4:08:48] up the jail because the amount
[4:08:50] of money our organization is
[4:08:51] asking for just under $10
[4:08:53] million for new, permanently
[4:08:55] affordable housing pales in
[4:08:56] comparison to the money we are
[4:08:58] ready to dedicate to that new
[4:09:00] jail. Social housing offers an
[4:09:01] alternative that I would like
[4:09:03] to believe is more in line with
[4:09:05] our values as a community.
[4:09:06] Additionally, as my peer
[4:09:07] madeline noted, research shows
[4:09:09] that providing affordable
[4:09:10] housing reduces crime,
[4:09:12] especially violent crime. When
[4:09:13] we have the option to make our
[4:09:14] communities more safe by
[4:09:16] addressing crime before it
[4:09:17] happens, I think we should take
[4:09:19] that option. I would rather
[4:09:20] live ina community that values
[4:09:22] providing support to our
[4:09:24] neighbors in need, instead of
[4:09:25] punishing people after they
[4:09:27] cause harm. I would rather live
[4:09:28] in a community that focuses on
[4:09:29] proactive solutions to
[4:09:31] community safety instead of
[4:09:32] reactive punishments. I'd
[4:09:33] rather live in a community
[4:09:35] where everyone has a home. This
[4:09:36] budget is an opportunity to
[4:09:38] affirm the values that drive
[4:09:40] our community and decide what
[4:09:41] solutions we will prioritize to
[4:09:43] address the problems that face
[4:09:46] us. Please support the social thank you for
[4:09:47] your time.
[4:09:49] Thank you. Go ahead.
[4:09:51] You're recognized.
[4:09:52] Hey,
[4:09:54] everyone. Good evening. Good
[4:09:55] night. Whatever it is, I don't
[4:09:57] even know if it's the next day
[4:09:57] yet.
[4:09:59] We got two more hours till
[4:09:59] that.
[4:10:01] So I was getting I was
[4:10:02] getting a little worried there.
[4:10:03] My name is kenneth hamby. I
[4:10:05] work as a specialty pharmacy
[4:10:06] liaison in nashville general.
[4:10:08] I'm also a very proud member of
[4:10:09] district three. Thank you,
[4:10:10] councilmember gamble, for
[4:10:11] everything that you continue to
[4:10:14] do for us and all of you. I
[4:10:16] mean, this is this is an insane
[4:10:17] thing to go through. This is my
[4:10:19] first one, and I cannot imagine
[4:10:21] doing this as a part time gig.
[4:10:23] That's incredible. So as I said,
[4:10:24] I work at nashville general, so
[4:10:26] that's what I'm here to talk
[4:10:27] about. I've been with nashville
[4:10:28] general for a year now, but
[4:10:30] I've been a player in the
[4:10:31] national health care game much
[4:10:33] longer. Even in my short time
[4:10:34] in nashville general, I quickly
[4:10:35] learned how important this
[4:10:36] hospital is to the people of
[4:10:38] nashville. I work closely with
[4:10:39] patients who often need
[4:10:40] assistance accessing specialty
[4:10:40] medications, treatment
[4:10:41] coordination, and health care
[4:10:42] support they MAY not otherwise
[4:10:43] receive. Many of our patients
[4:10:45] are already dealing with
[4:10:46] serious, complex medical
[4:10:47] conditions while also facing
[4:10:49] financial hardships. Housing
[4:10:51] national general helps ensure
[4:10:52] that they are not forgotten.
[4:10:54] Not to mention, we are one of
[4:10:55] the only health care institutes
[4:10:56] in all of nashville that even
[4:10:58] accepts a medicaid patient,
[4:11:00] which is insane to. The
[4:11:01] hospital is a obviously a
[4:11:03] crucial part of our city. This
[4:11:04] year, the majority of metro
[4:11:05] workers across many different
[4:11:06] departments, which thank all of
[4:11:08] them. I mean, that's the show
[4:11:09] of support, is amazing across
[4:11:12] all the departments have
[4:11:13] foregone a lot of their funding
[4:11:15] requests to make sure that we
[4:11:16] are compensated fairly for the
[4:11:17] things that we've done for
[4:11:18] years without, you know,
[4:11:21] getting that. So shout out to
[4:11:22] them. They've really made us a
[4:11:24] priority. And I hope one day we
[4:11:25] can return the same favor. The
[4:11:27] reality is health care costs
[4:11:28] continue to rise every single
[4:11:30] year. Medication costs rise,
[4:11:32] operating costs rise, patient
[4:11:33] needs continue to grow. Yet
[4:11:36] nashville general continues to budget season just
[4:11:38] to secure necessary funding,
[4:11:39] let alone a cost of living
[4:11:44] raise. We. I will say we also
[4:11:45] contend with much less
[4:11:48] important issues. Quite frankly,
[4:11:50] I chose to go last as national
[4:11:52] general often does, so I hope
[4:11:54] that that's taken into account.
[4:11:54] Thanks.
[4:11:56] Thank you. Go ahead and
[4:11:58] come on forward. You're
[4:12:04] recognized.
[4:12:06] Okay. Hi, I'm.
[4:12:07] Lilia, I'm from.
[4:12:09] District 20.
[4:12:10] Been here since 2013. Family
[4:12:13] came up here from south georgia
[4:12:14] and I recently became an
[4:12:17] independent renter. Shout out
[4:12:19] nashville general and mnps my
[4:12:21] mom was a public school teacher
[4:12:23] in williamson county, so I get
[4:12:27] it. And I am also here
[4:12:30] expressing that I would love
[4:12:31] for you to fund the full
[4:12:34] nashville people's budget
[4:12:38] coalition. Housing and safety
[4:12:41] plan for all. That's a mouthful.
[4:12:42] And while I have not faced
[4:12:43] housing insecurity myself,
[4:12:46] except for recently became this
[4:12:47] renter. And you know what? I'm
[4:12:50] feeling it already. I am
[4:12:52] familiar with the cycles of
[4:12:54] violence and how the two are
[4:12:57] often very connected. I've had
[4:12:59] friends recently who have had
[4:13:01] to stay in unsafe housing
[4:13:03] situations because of violence,
[4:13:06] neighbors as well. And thinking
[4:13:08] about the super bowl coming up
[4:13:09] and the fact that people are
[4:13:10] living on the streets, which is
[4:13:13] no place to live. I don't want
[4:13:14] to be like the example of
[4:13:15] atlanta, where people are
[4:13:17] sweeping up homeless people
[4:13:20] from the street. There's a lot
[4:13:22] of people that, you know, are
[4:13:24] willing to help with this. And
[4:13:27] I think the alternative of
[4:13:29] social housing in lieu of
[4:13:30] affordable housing is that
[4:13:32] affordable housing is subject
[4:13:33] to market fluctuations. So
[4:13:35] social housing would be more
[4:13:36] permanently affordable. And I
[4:13:39] think if you also look like me
[4:13:41] and family or generations
[4:13:43] have benefited from land owning
[4:13:45] in the south, now is the time
[4:13:48] to start turning the tides. And
[4:13:50] if you vote against that, then
[4:13:52] I'm not saying anything. But,
[4:13:53] you know, there might be
[4:13:55] something after, you know, you
[4:13:56] perish into the afterlife. I
[4:13:59] don't want to say anything, but,
[4:14:01] you know, do the right thing.
[4:14:02] yeah.
[4:14:04] Thank you. Go ahead. Come
[4:14:11] on. Forward. You're recognized.
[4:14:12] Go ahead.
[4:14:13] Hi. My name is trina,
[4:14:16] and I live in district six. Let
[4:14:19] us get real. About what we need.
[4:14:21] A people's retainer of jigsaw.
[4:14:24] Sam reed. Get the people listed
[4:14:25] as a billable client. So on
[4:14:28] this one night a year, reliant. Sam works for
[4:14:31] the titans and for the ndp
[4:14:32] whose private police could
[4:14:34] replace him in pd, at least the
[4:14:36] central precinct. We could sell
[4:14:38] it for parts, convert it to
[4:14:39] apartments or studios for the
[4:14:41] arts. Maybe sam could convince
[4:14:43] y'all to invest in the grid or
[4:14:45] to hide power lines like the
[4:14:47] unhoused y'all did. Maybe we
[4:14:49] could get sam to restore our
[4:14:51] power. If only we could afford
[4:14:54] jigsaw's billable hour. Instead
[4:14:55] of wondering why freddie's
[4:14:58] staff wears jigsaw swag, let's
[4:14:59] get us on his roster and get
[4:15:01] sam read his bag. Until we do,
[4:15:04] we should refuse all taxation
[4:15:05] when sam's the only one here
[4:15:08] with real representation, the
[4:15:10] satire is over. But our housing
[4:15:13] crisis crisis isn't. Instead of
[4:15:15] answering any. Ask from mmpd
[4:15:16] the least trusted department in
[4:15:19] the city which keeps bypassing
[4:15:20] the peopl's will and this
[4:15:21] council's authority to deploy
[4:15:23] corporate surveillance
[4:15:24] technology like fuzes and
[4:15:26] illegal drones. I'm asking you
[4:15:28] to fund what the people
[4:15:30] actually need a permanent
[4:15:33] eviction diversion court,
[4:15:35] permanently affordable social
[4:15:37] housing at least 1% of the
[4:15:38] budget dedicated to local arts,
[4:15:40] with half of that going
[4:15:42] directly to individual artists,
[4:15:43] fully fund the varsity spending
[4:15:45] plan and find the missing 8
[4:15:46] million for the barnes housing
[4:15:49] trust fund. And lastly, fund
[4:15:51] the solidarity budget and make
[4:15:53] nashville general hole
[4:15:54] nashville boycott eighth and
[4:15:58] roast. Thank you.
[4:15:59] All right.
[4:16:02] Next you're recognized.
[4:16:02] Hi, my
[4:16:04] name is claire hennigan. I am a
[4:16:05] community organizer.
[4:16:05] With noaa
[4:16:08] living in district five.
[4:16:09] Although I am going to have to
[4:16:11] move soon because nashville is
[4:16:13] in a crisis. The people who
[4:16:14] keep the city running are being
[4:16:15] priced further and further out
[4:16:17] of it. I'm sure many of you
[4:16:18] sitting in front of me are
[4:16:19] feeling this. Your neighbors
[4:16:21] are changing, workers are
[4:16:22] disappearing, and homes in your
[4:16:24] district, maybe even your own,
[4:16:27] are affordable anymore. We have
[4:16:29] a chance to build a better
[4:16:30] nashville. The unified housing
[4:16:32] strategy is extremely clear. It
[4:16:33] states, as nashville's most
[4:16:34] significant and flexible source
[4:16:36] of affordable sets of
[4:16:37] local affordable housing
[4:16:39] subsidy, the barnes fund often
[4:16:40] plays a pivotal role in the
[4:16:42] funding process of affordable
[4:16:43] housing by contributing the
[4:16:44] first grant funds to a capital
[4:16:45] stack. Now, that was a mouthful,
[4:16:47] and I hope I'm not alone,
[4:16:48] saying I barely understood that
[4:16:50] when I first read it. But then
[4:16:51] I listened to developers like
[4:16:52] nelson community partners,
[4:16:55] first horizon bank and clark
[4:16:56] memorial united methodist
[4:16:58] church, even who have used
[4:16:59] barnes funds exactly that way
[4:17:01] to open a door to more money,
[4:17:03] or really to open doors and
[4:17:04] windows and skylights and
[4:17:06] whatever else, because every
[4:17:08] dollar we get from we put into
[4:17:10] the barnes fund yields nine
[4:17:12] more elsewhere. This is why $30
[4:17:13] million is so important. When
[4:17:15] we invest in barnes, people
[4:17:18] invest in nashville. The us is
[4:17:20] not a multiple choice quiz.
[4:17:21] Noah stands strong with our
[4:17:22] allies and the people's budget
[4:17:24] and stand up nashville. When we
[4:17:27] say this, your cost burden
[4:17:28] constituents don't deserve to
[4:17:29] be treated with scarcity
[4:17:30] thinking. Not when downtown
[4:17:32] just received almost $15
[4:17:33] million in a state grant. Not
[4:17:35] when we've been sounding the
[4:17:36] alarm for decades, and
[4:17:37] definitely not when we have a
[4:17:39] super bowl coming to town. Just
[4:17:41] four years. 65% of households%
[4:17:41] in nashville do not earn enough
[4:17:43] to buy a house, and over 50% of
[4:17:45] us are spending too much on
[4:17:46] rent. As my friend kenneth
[4:17:47] patterson would say, these are
[4:17:49] not statistics. These are
[4:17:52] warnings. Our educators, police
[4:17:53] officers, firefighters, city
[4:17:54] council staffers can't afford
[4:17:56] to stay here. To our cities,
[4:17:57] employees want more tanks and
[4:17:59] cameras or real opportunities
[4:18:00] to actually own a home in the
[4:18:03] city that they serve. Please
[4:18:05] fund the entire unified housing
[4:18:06] strategy and put $30 million
[4:18:07] into the barnes fund.
[4:18:09] Thank you.
[4:18:12] Go ahead. You're recognized.
[4:18:13] I'm stacy elliott, a resident
[4:18:15] of district 16, a member of the
[4:18:17] party for socialism and
[4:18:18] liberation, a member of the
[4:18:19] national people's budget
[4:18:20] coalition, and a union member
[4:18:22] who supports the solidarity
[4:18:24] budget and social housing. Like
[4:18:26] most of us, I know we need
[4:18:26] investments that actually serve
[4:18:28] the people who live and work
[4:18:29] here, instead of passing
[4:18:30] budgets that keep finding new
[4:18:32] ways to hand our money over to
[4:18:33] the capitalist epstein class, I
[4:18:35] don't have time to cover a
[4:18:36] comprehensive list of factors
[4:18:37] on how we got to this current
[4:18:38] housing crisis, but here's a
[4:18:40] brief recap as this country's
[4:18:41] housing policy moved farther
[4:18:43] and farther away from
[4:18:44] recognizing housing as a basic
[4:18:45] human need and right, it leaned
[4:18:47] more into technocratic policy
[4:18:48] that makes housing a commodity
[4:18:50] controlled by the greed and
[4:18:51] whims of an ever shrinking
[4:18:52] group of corporations and
[4:18:53] private firms, all the while
[4:18:55] being subsidized by our public
[4:18:57] tax dollars. Decades of
[4:18:58] divesting from the public good,
[4:19:00] of government housing, and
[4:19:01] investing in neoliberal schemes
[4:19:03] driven by anti-blackness and
[4:19:05] anti-communism, is largely how
[4:19:06] we got to the capitalist
[4:19:08] hellscape hellscape of economic
[4:19:08] violence. We're currently
[4:19:10] enduring. All that to say, we
[4:19:12] know that any market based or
[4:19:13] neoliberal scheme for forcing
[4:19:14] the taxpaying public to split
[4:19:15] housing responsibilities with
[4:19:17] capitalist firms ultimately
[4:19:19] only benefits the exploiter
[4:19:21] class of landlords. While the
[4:19:22] public foots the bill and
[4:19:23] becomes more precarious.
[4:19:25] Working class renters in
[4:19:26] nashville already pay an arm
[4:19:28] and a leg. Just to be able to
[4:19:29] barely scrape by in housing.
[4:19:30] Were neglectful. Absentee
[4:19:31] landlords, collect fact checks
[4:19:33] from our wages subsidized by
[4:19:34] our tax dollars, while
[4:19:35] landlords face almost no
[4:19:36] recourse when they refuse to
[4:19:38] make repairs or even provide
[4:19:39] basic accommodations. We can't
[4:19:41] count on private actors and
[4:19:42] o-called public private
[4:19:43] partnerships to responsibly
[4:19:45] steward public dollars, because
[4:19:46] being a decent human being
[4:19:47] would cut into their profits
[4:19:49] too much. We want what has been
[4:19:50] proven to be effective in
[4:19:52] countries all around the world,
[4:19:53] including the U.S. Social
[4:19:54] housing, permanently affordable
[4:19:55] housing. Instead of having a
[4:19:57] slumlord and rising rent costs,
[4:19:59] residents have dignity and
[4:20:00] autonomy. We want funding for
[4:20:02] social housing that allows
[4:20:02] working class people of
[4:20:04] nashville to live in housing
[4:20:05] that is democratically held by
[4:20:07] the people and is permanently
[4:20:08] affordable for the people. Free
[4:20:10] tony caruthers, free palestine,
[4:20:15] free them all. Thank you.
[4:20:15] Next.
[4:20:20] Go ahead.
[4:20:21] I'm luis, I live in
[4:20:24] district 13. I am new to
[4:20:25] nashville. I finally came back
[4:20:27] after 29 years, having been in
[4:20:28] nashville since I was about a
[4:20:30] year old. And you guessed it,
[4:20:31] it's because housing. So now
[4:20:33] that I lived here this year, I
[4:20:35] thought it'd be a really great
[4:20:36] to go to my first council
[4:20:38] meeting and talk to you about
[4:20:39] why you should put $500,000 in
[4:20:42] an admin account for staff that
[4:20:43] will catapult the
[4:20:45] self-sustaining housing model
[4:20:47] forward. Permanent affordable
[4:20:49] housing is not just a dream.
[4:20:51] It's a worthwhile goal that
[4:20:52] acknowledges working class
[4:20:54] families are the backbone of
[4:20:56] this city. This is a measurable
[4:20:59] step towards that goal. As a
[4:21:00] community member that has
[4:21:01] worked with thousands of people
[4:21:03] from an immigrant or refugee
[4:21:04] background and people in mixed
[4:21:06] status households like mine.
[4:21:10] Growing up, I know that housing
[4:21:11] instability is one of the
[4:21:12] biggest indicators of whether
[4:21:13] or not you thrive in your
[4:21:14] community, especially in the
[4:21:16] city. Planning for the future
[4:21:17] and putting down roots becomes
[4:21:19] hard when every month you have
[4:21:20] to pay for the roof over your
[4:21:22] head, and that roof has a lot
[4:21:23] of damage that has been fixed
[4:21:26] by a very shady landlord. It's
[4:21:27] not news. It's not an
[4:21:28] exaggeration. It's a simple
[4:21:30] truth that no council person
[4:21:32] here can deny today. And that's
[4:21:34] the latino immigrant, black
[4:21:35] working class and refugee
[4:21:36] community members are the ones
[4:21:39] that run the city, not the
[4:21:40] millionaires who have bars over
[4:21:41] on broadway, not the
[4:21:42] billionaires who own the
[4:21:43] buildings in downtown and the
[4:21:45] gulch in midtown or wherever.
[4:21:49] It's not the millionaires who
[4:21:50] sorry, it's just a little it's
[4:21:51] a little bit emotional with
[4:21:55] this man. It's not just the
[4:21:57] people who open hospitals reap
[4:21:59] the benefits from the working
[4:22:00] class, who make sure the
[4:22:01] hospital runs, and they send
[4:22:03] those funds that trickle down
[4:22:04] to a few dozen millionaires who
[4:22:06] don't even live in the states,
[4:22:08] the people who make broadway
[4:22:09] function day and night, the
[4:22:10] people who ensure our hospitals
[4:22:12] are pen, our libraries are
[4:22:13] open, who maintain our streets
[4:22:15] and keep them clean. The people
[4:22:17] who provide education to our
[4:22:19] youth, the people who help
[4:22:21] navigate their neighbors when
[4:22:23] they are in crisis. Those are
[4:22:26] the people that run this town. In social housing.
[4:22:29] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[4:22:30] recognized.
[4:22:32] Good evening. I'm
[4:22:33] happy pride. It's exciting to
[4:22:35] see all these flags. As a
[4:22:36] person who's lived in tennessee
[4:22:37] my whole life, my name is
[4:22:39] sophia lawson and I'm a
[4:22:41] community member with stand up
[4:22:42] nashville, and I work as a
[4:22:43] middle school teacher here in
[4:22:45] nashville. Tonight, I'm here to
[4:22:47] request that you put 500,000 in
[4:22:49] an admin for staff that
[4:22:50] will catapult the
[4:22:51] self-sustaining housing model
[4:22:53] forward. I want to bring your
[4:22:55] attention to a few individuals
[4:22:56] in the city, the teachers and
[4:22:58] school support staff who get to
[4:22:59] school hours before the
[4:23:01] students arrive. The nurse
[4:23:02] pulling an overnight shift at a
[4:23:04] hospital downtown. The metro
[4:23:05] bus drivers starting their
[4:23:07] route before sunrise. The child
[4:23:08] care worker who makes it
[4:23:09] possible for everyone else to
[4:23:11] get to their jobs. The thing
[4:23:12] that all these people have in
[4:23:13] common is that nashville cannot
[4:23:15] function without them, and
[4:23:16] increasingly, nashville is
[4:23:17] making it impossible for them
[4:23:20] to afford to live here. It's
[4:23:21] hard for me to count the number
[4:23:23] of teachers, cafeteria workers,
[4:23:25] custodians, bus drivers,
[4:23:26] paraprofessionals that I have
[4:23:27] met in my school who are having
[4:23:29] to live up to an hour from the
[4:23:31] school that they support. Due
[4:23:32] to the current affordability
[4:23:33] crisis, these people show up
[4:23:34] every day because they believe
[4:23:35] in supporting the students of
[4:23:37] this city, but are unable to
[4:23:38] live sustainably in the areas
[4:23:40] that they support. A city that
[4:23:42] cannot house the people who run
[4:23:43] its schools, staff its
[4:23:44] hospitals, drive its busses and
[4:23:46] care for its children, is
[4:23:48] quietly dismantling itself.
[4:23:49] Essential workers should not
[4:23:50] have to feel like a martyr to
[4:23:52] the cause of keeping the city
[4:23:54] functioning. The housing
[4:23:55] production fund is a direct
[4:23:57] response to that problem.
[4:23:59] Permanently affordable,
[4:24:00] publicly owned housing gives
[4:24:01] essential workers a real shot
[4:24:02] at living in the communities
[4:24:04] that they serve. We're asking
[4:24:06] for the infrastructure to build
[4:24:07] homes where the people who keep
[4:24:08] nashville running can actually
[4:24:10] afford to live. Please fund the
[4:24:13] housing project fund. Thank you.
[4:24:17] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[4:24:18] recognized.
[4:24:19] Good evening. My
[4:24:21] name is erica and I'm a
[4:24:24] community member here with
[4:24:26] stand up nashville. Tonight.
[4:24:27] I'm here to request that you
[4:24:29] put $500,000 in an admin
[4:24:31] account for staff that will
[4:24:33] launch the self-sustaining
[4:24:35] house housing model forward.
[4:24:36] One thing I love about
[4:24:37] nashville is the community I've
[4:24:40] built here. It's what is not
[4:24:42] measurable by the construction
[4:24:44] permits or tourism revenue or
[4:24:47] population group growth. You
[4:24:49] can't measure the community,
[4:24:50] the people who watch your cat
[4:24:52] when you're out of town, the
[4:24:53] teachers who've taught three
[4:24:55] generations of the same family,
[4:24:56] the local bartender who knows
[4:24:58] your regular. When you walk in
[4:24:59] the door, the feeling of
[4:25:01] knowing the names of the people
[4:25:02] on your bock. These things are
[4:25:03] harder to count, but they
[4:25:05] matter just as much as the
[4:25:07] other economic indicators. The
[4:25:08] challenge nashville faces is
[4:25:09] that many of these people who
[4:25:10] are creating these
[4:25:12] relationships and community are
[4:25:13] finding it harder to stay, not
[4:25:15] because they stopped
[4:25:16] contributing, caring, or loving
[4:25:17] for the city, but because
[4:25:18] housing costs keep rising
[4:25:20] faster than income. Every time
[4:25:21] someone leaves, because they
[4:25:23] can no longer afford to remain,
[4:25:25] nashville loses something. It's
[4:25:27] becoming a transient city built
[4:25:29] for those not keeping the most
[4:25:31] integral parts of our city
[4:25:33] running, but the corporations
[4:25:35] and tourism that much of our
[4:25:37] city's money is going to. My
[4:25:39] peers and I are at a point in
[4:25:40] our lives where we're trying to
[4:25:42] decide whether we are going to
[4:25:43] build our lives, our families
[4:25:45] and our communities here, or if
[4:25:46] we'd be better served to go
[4:25:48] elsewhere. I want to stay here
[4:25:50] somewhere that prioritizes
[4:25:51] communities that are struggling
[4:25:53] before the tourists and
[4:25:54] corporations stand up.
[4:25:55] Nashville's proposal is based
[4:25:57] on the belief that the people
[4:25:58] who suppot the city should
[4:25:59] have a future in it. That's why
[4:26:01] we're asking for funding to
[4:26:02] create a social housing
[4:26:04] development entity, because we
[4:26:06] need tools that do more than
[4:26:08] react to the displacement after
[4:26:11] it happens. Nashville future
[4:26:12] should include the people who
[4:26:14] make nashville what it is.
[4:26:16] Thank you.
[4:26:17] Thank you. Go ahead.
[4:26:20] You're recognized.
[4:26:21] Hello, my
[4:26:23] name is lucas simmons. I'm a
[4:26:25] professional engineer and I am
[4:26:26] a member of the democratic
[4:26:27] socialists of america middle
[4:26:31] tennessee chapter. I'm here on
[4:26:32] behalf of the nashville
[4:26:35] people's budget coalition.
[4:26:36] You've all heard the talking
[4:26:39] points that we've been making,
[4:26:41] but I want to speak on my own
[4:26:43] experiences here in nashville.
[4:26:44] I've been practicing
[4:26:45] engineering for about six years,
[4:26:48] and I've worked on a lot of
[4:26:51] these private, affordable joint
[4:26:52] ventures. I've worked with
[4:26:53] holiday ventures, I've worked
[4:26:56] with dominion group, and it
[4:26:58] seems to me that every single
[4:26:59] time they will cut costs and
[4:27:01] they will cut corners to build
[4:27:03] a development, while not being
[4:27:04] able to sustain that
[4:27:05] development in the future. And
[4:27:07] I think that the answer in the
[4:27:09] future, nashville should be
[4:27:11] social housing. I'm not going
[4:27:13] to again.
[4:27:15] I think you guys get it, but I
[4:27:17] just think that we should do
[4:27:18] something different. We should
[4:27:19] try something different, and
[4:27:20] I'd really appreciate your
[4:27:21] support in that matter.
[4:27:21] Thank
[4:27:24] you, thank you. Go ahead.
[4:27:27] You're recognized.
[4:27:27] Hey, what's
[4:27:31] going on? Council. Andrew. Okay.
[4:27:32] Nashville native, member of
[4:27:34] middleton dsa and people's
[4:27:37] budget coalition fully support
[4:27:39] people's budget coalition and
[4:27:40] what they're doing to get
[4:27:42] affordability to nashville and
[4:27:45] housing. But, you know, sitting
[4:27:47] through this tonight after
[4:27:48] hours of hearing what people
[4:27:51] had to you know, I can't
[4:27:53] not think that maybe this is a
[4:27:55] sham in some ways that maybe
[4:27:56] you don't hear the people and
[4:27:59] what they're saying. And I got
[4:28:00] to think, you know, what you do
[4:28:03] when you leave this room today
[4:28:05] and how you vote is really
[4:28:06] going to mean something to the
[4:28:08] people that were here. Because
[4:28:09] if you don't vote that way, I
[4:28:11] mean, what do they think to the
[4:28:12] people that you serve here? You
[4:28:15] know, that that said something.
[4:28:17] We came as a unified front with
[4:28:19] many groups here speaking on
[4:28:22] things that matter to them. In
[4:28:23] some ways, they're trying to
[4:28:25] survive and live a life.
[4:28:28] Growing up in nashville all my
[4:28:30] life, I see, you know, certain
[4:28:32] interests coming and taking
[4:28:34] grift onto the city that I love.
[4:28:35] I choose to stay here. I'm
[4:28:37] going to be here. I move a lot
[4:28:39] in your your council districts.
[4:28:40] And I see these stories and I
[4:28:42] feel these stories. And I'm
[4:28:46] just asking, pleading that you
[4:28:48] take something from this and
[4:28:49] you're not following the status
[4:28:51] quo or whatever interests you
[4:28:54] serve. Serve the people here.
[4:28:57] If you feel tired and fatigued,
[4:29:00] then action that you MAY do,
[4:29:02] you're going to really feel
[4:29:04] some fatigue then. So please
[4:29:06] vote with the people here and
[4:29:07] take these stories to heart.
[4:29:08] Thank you.
[4:29:10] Thank you. Go ahead.
[4:29:13] You're recognized.
[4:29:14] Good evening.
[4:29:15] I'm seamus and I live in
[4:29:18] district 18. To borrow a line
[4:29:20] from nina simone. Freedom is
[4:29:23] living with no fear by show of
[4:29:24] hands. Council, would you say
[4:29:26] that you believe in protecting
[4:29:30] our freedom? Would y'all see
[4:29:34] berkeley? Do any of y'all okay?
[4:29:35] Every year you hear from folks
[4:29:37] across the city who say that we
[4:29:40] do not believe in reactionary,
[4:29:42] punitive policing, folkswho
[4:29:44] oppose surveillance, and
[4:29:45] neighbors who come begging for
[4:29:46] material support, like fair
[4:29:48] cost of living adjustments,
[4:29:50] community education, and
[4:29:53] commodified housing. These
[4:29:54] conversations always center on
[4:29:56] a deep fear of tangible
[4:29:57] consequences of what will
[4:30:00] happen if y'all ignore us. I'll
[4:30:02] tell you what we'reafraid for
[4:30:04] our family, for our friends,
[4:30:06] family, and neighbors in this
[4:30:07] city. We're afraid for the
[4:30:09] lives destroyed and senselessly
[4:30:12] ripped away from us because you
[4:30:13] protected brutal policing.
[4:30:15] We're afraid of the stalking,
[4:30:16] as we are seeing from fascist
[4:30:19] ice officers enabled by
[4:30:20] surveillance technology. We're
[4:30:22] afraid that you will sell out
[4:30:23] our workers and children. The
[4:30:25] beating heart of nashville for
[4:30:28] a quick dime from tourists. And
[4:30:29] most of all, we're afraid that
[4:30:31] y'all will once again toss
[4:30:33] aside the hope, effort, and
[4:30:35] livelihood of our neighbors.
[4:30:37] For once, this city has got to
[4:30:38] take a risk doing the right
[4:30:40] thing, supporting the people
[4:30:42] who run this city requires
[4:30:45] y'all to take innovative risks.
[4:30:47] If y'all. If you believe in
[4:30:49] protecting our freedom, then
[4:30:50] you will listen to the people
[4:30:52] who have come here tonight and
[4:30:53] the many more who are not able
[4:30:55] to show up. Following nina
[4:30:57] simone's idea for the people of
[4:31:00] nashville to have freedom, you
[4:31:03] must address our fears.
[4:31:03] Thank
[4:31:09] you. Welcome. You're recognized.
[4:31:10] Hello. Thank you. Thank you for
[4:31:12] your patience and your
[4:31:14] endurance. I'm one of the last
[4:31:15] people speaking because I don't
[4:31:17] have the endurance to stand up
[4:31:19] for a long time. I think I was
[4:31:21] here first, speaking at a
[4:31:24] budget hearing 35 years ago,
[4:31:26] speaking in favor of quality
[4:31:28] child care. And I'd like to
[4:31:30] speak again in favor of that.
[4:31:32] I'm here representing th
[4:31:34] nashville peace and justice
[4:31:38] center. We're a coalition of 27
[4:31:40] nonprofit, nonpartisan
[4:31:42] organizations and several
[4:31:44] thousand individuals. And so
[4:31:45] this year, just like the year
[4:31:48] before last year, I've been
[4:31:50] sent to support the people's%
[4:31:54] budget coalition's request for
[4:31:56] permanently affordable social
[4:31:59] housing and also for people
[4:32:02] friendly community safety. So
[4:32:03] all the years that I've lived
[4:32:05] in nashville, two things that
[4:32:07] I've noticed. One is, of course,
[4:32:09] the increasing glamor and the
[4:32:12] cost of living of living here.
[4:32:15] The other thing is that not
[4:32:17] just nashville, but nationally,
[4:32:20] statewide and citywide, the
[4:32:24] militarization of of so-called
[4:32:29] safety. And so I met, I met a
[4:32:32] freddy mayor freddy at the
[4:32:34] earth day festival, and I was
[4:32:35] chatting with him, and I was
[4:32:39] telling him that the downtown
[4:32:41] partnership has got to be made
[4:32:43] accountable and has got to be
[4:32:45] made transparent. He assured me
[4:32:47] that the city council would do
[4:32:50] that. So I think I hope it will
[4:32:52] do that. Martin luther king
[4:32:55] spent his life combating the
[4:32:58] triple evils of racism,
[4:33:01] militarism and unbridled greed.
[4:33:04] And I'm afraid that nashville
[4:33:06] right now, although it was the
[4:33:07] home of civil rights movement,
[4:33:09] I don't think it measures up
[4:33:11] very well. Thank you.
[4:33:13] Thank you.
[4:33:16] go ahead. You're recognized.
[4:33:17] Hi,
[4:33:20] everyone. My name is alexandria
[4:33:22] danner. I am the metro
[4:33:24] organizer with seiu, and I was
[4:33:25] originally not planning on
[4:33:26] speaking tonight. I don't have
[4:33:28] anything prepared to say, but I
[4:33:32] am feeling particularly called
[4:33:33] because I've been through this
[4:33:35] process for a long time. And a
[4:33:37] lot of you have, and it's been
[4:33:39] a really painful night for all
[4:33:40] of us on this side of the wall
[4:33:42] and all of you on that side of
[4:33:45] the wall. And I just I cannot
[4:33:47] think of anything else besides
[4:33:50] how much this process is just
[4:33:51] busted. You all know this
[4:33:53] process is busted. All of us on
[4:33:54] this side know this process is
[4:33:56] busted. The mayor knows it's
[4:33:59] busted. Metro, hr and finance
[4:34:00] know it's busted. All of the
[4:34:02] department heads and all of
[4:34:03] everyone down the chain.
[4:34:04] Everybody knows that this
[4:34:08] busted. And for lewis, who came
[4:34:09] here earlier and talked about
[4:34:12] his perspective for all of the
[4:34:14] metro employees and the nps
[4:34:15] employees who are who are
[4:34:18] willing to sacrifice the food
[4:34:19] on their table and the money
[4:34:21] that they're going to be able
[4:34:22] to spend on their kids clothing,
[4:34:24] to be able to make sur that
[4:34:25] their coworkers and their
[4:34:26] friends and their community
[4:34:27] members over at the hospitals
[4:34:29] are made whole for them to make
[4:34:32] that sacrifice. And then for us
[4:34:35] to hear, I heard 3 or 4 hours
[4:34:36] ago when we were getting here,
[4:34:38] that now their health insurance
[4:34:39] is going to go up by what, what,
[4:34:42] 15? 16. 18%. And so that just
[4:34:44] leaves me with what are we
[4:34:47] doing here? If, if every year
[4:34:51] the onus is put on you 28 days,
[4:34:52] 29 days before the end of the
[4:34:54] month that all of these people
[4:34:56] have to, you have to make these
[4:34:58] employees whole every single
[4:34:59] year. This process should be
[4:35:01] done at the beginning. This
[4:35:03] process should be done in in
[4:35:04] NOVEMBER and DECEMBER. JANUARY,
[4:35:08] FEBRUARY. Why is this the end of the goalpost?
[4:35:09] Every single year people are
[4:35:11] having to beg for their lives.
[4:35:13] You've heard all of our asks
[4:35:14] this year from all of the
[4:35:16] employees, but I am personally
[4:35:18] begging all of you that this
[4:35:20] process has to be fixed before
[4:35:21] next year and the next year and
[4:35:23] the next year, because none of
[4:35:25] us, including all of you, can
[4:35:26] continue to do this. So thank
[4:35:28] you for the time that you've
[4:35:29] spent tonight to hear all of us
[4:35:30] out.
[4:35:36] Thank you. Go ahead.
[4:35:38] Michelle flynn.
[4:35:39] Last call. If
[4:35:41] anybody else wants to speak,
[4:35:44] please come forward. Pardon me.
[4:35:44] Go ahead.
[4:35:46] Sure. Just a quick
[4:35:48] comment. I've been really
[4:35:51] struck tonight by the challenge
[4:35:53] for the council about flipping
[4:35:57] the way they look at budgeting.
[4:35:58] In addition to the question
[4:36:01] about doing this work earlier.
[4:36:05] It seems to me that funding,
[4:36:07] first and foremost, what people
[4:36:10] here have said are the service
[4:36:12] needs in this community, and
[4:36:14] that be the point that from
[4:36:16] which a budget is then formed
[4:36:18] first, to fund these things
[4:36:20] people have talked about. And
[4:36:22] then you sit and look at things
[4:36:24] like the police budget and
[4:36:26] other budgets that you have
[4:36:27] made. People have made requests
[4:36:29] or agencies have made requests
[4:36:31] to you about. Now, that may
[4:36:32] seem really odd to you, but I
[4:36:34] would say that is a thing that
[4:36:37] each of us does with our own
[4:36:38] families. We sit and say, what
[4:36:40] are their most pressing needs
[4:36:42] for our children? What are the
[4:36:44] most pressing needs for me to
[4:36:46] age out in this community?
[4:36:47] Right? These are the kind of
[4:36:51] things that we do naturally as
[4:36:52] people that have a certain
[4:36:54] amount of money coming in, and
[4:36:56] there's demands on those
[4:36:58] resources. And if you were to
[4:37:00] sit first and say, what is it
[4:37:03] that people from the community
[4:37:05] need? It's not a paternalistic
[4:37:07] approach. It is actually an
[4:37:08] equitable approach. And then
[4:37:10] you sit and say, who else is
[4:37:12] asking us for money? For what
[4:37:13] things? And have you really
[4:37:15] heard them come and speak from
[4:37:18] their hearts and their souls
[4:37:21] about where this city needs to
[4:37:23] be and where it needs to go? I
[4:37:24] think it's a much different
[4:37:26] approach, a much more humane
[4:37:27] approach, and one that you can
[4:37:30] all be very proud of and we can
[4:37:33] all be very proud of. Thank you.
[4:37:36] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[4:37:37] recognized.
[4:37:39] Good evening
[4:37:41] everybody. My name is alex. I
[4:37:44] am from district 18. You've
[4:37:46] heard a lot of good points
[4:37:48] today. A lot of you have
[4:37:49] probably already made up your
[4:37:51] mind on some of the things, how
[4:37:53] you're going to vote on budget
[4:37:55] matters. So I'm not here to
[4:37:56] convince you on many of the
[4:37:59] great points you've heard. I
[4:38:01] agree, especially with the last
[4:38:03] speaker, that one of the things
[4:38:04] you've heard a lot today is
[4:38:04] about.
[4:38:06] Could you move a little
[4:38:07] closer to the mic? Thank you.
[4:38:09] just one of the things you've
[4:38:11] heard today was about a lot of
[4:38:13] people's needs. I want you to
[4:38:15] remember back to the start of
[4:38:17] this session. We started this
[4:38:19] session today with a prayer.
[4:38:21] Part of that prayer was talking
[4:38:24] about how a budget is a moral
[4:38:26] document. Now, I know for
[4:38:29] myself what my morals are. I
[4:38:31] ask you today what your morals
[4:38:34] are. Are your morals going to
[4:38:38] allow you to tell people that
[4:38:39] they don't need what they're
[4:38:41] telling you they need? Are you
[4:38:43] going to vote for a budget that
[4:38:45] doesn't fulfill their basic
[4:38:47] needs? And we as people have
[4:38:49] very few basic needs. You know,
[4:38:52] we need a purpose. We need
[4:38:54] sustenance, housing, health
[4:38:57] care, food and water. People
[4:38:58] have stood in front of you
[4:38:59] today and told you that they
[4:39:01] need housing. They need health
[4:39:03] care. They need food and water.
[4:39:05] Are you going to vote for a
[4:39:06] budget that doesn't give them
[4:39:09] that? So I want you to think
[4:39:10] about what your morals are when
[4:39:11] you end up voting, what your
[4:39:13] final decisions are, and make
[4:39:15] sure that you vote with your
[4:39:17] morals. And I want to leave you
[4:39:19] with one lesson that I learned
[4:39:21] pretty young from my parents
[4:39:23] today is your words matter, but
[4:39:25] they matter. They don't matter
[4:39:27] at all unless your actions
[4:39:29] follow them as well. Thank you.
[4:39:32] Thank you. Go ahead. You're
[4:39:35] recognized.
[4:39:36] Good evening, metro
[4:39:38] council. My name is jessica
[4:39:41] williams and I reside in
[4:39:43] district one. I want to start
[4:39:45] by saying that I really admire
[4:39:47] all the work that you all do in
[4:39:48] nashville. I have taken time to
[4:39:50] really study and learn how the
[4:39:52] city operates, from the metro
[4:39:54] council to the planning
[4:39:55] commission, and just how all
[4:39:56] the decisions are made within
[4:39:59] the city. Something I do want
[4:40:01] to leave with you all is that
[4:40:04] as a real estate developer and
[4:40:05] owner of a real estate
[4:40:06] brokerage, smart girl
[4:40:08] development, I cannot help but
[4:40:13] notice how our city is falling
[4:40:14] apart. What I mean by that is a
[4:40:16] lot of our new construction
[4:40:19] builds are deteriorating away.
[4:40:20] So you see a lot of people's
[4:40:22] homes that have invested quite
[4:40:24] a substantial amount into their
[4:40:26] properties that no longer that
[4:40:28] are functioning or are
[4:40:31] experiencing a lot of financial
[4:40:32] investment that they need to
[4:40:34] make back into their own homes.
[4:40:36] And so as we as I drive around
[4:40:38] and I see I would like to be
[4:40:40] able to see a better quality of
[4:40:42] builds being done and issued
[4:40:43] from the code side department
[4:40:45] so that we can ensure that
[4:40:48] we're delivering homeowners
[4:40:51] solid homes that are not
[4:40:52] dilapidating after five years
[4:40:54] of purchasing it. Also, I want
[4:40:57] to share, as a real estate
[4:41:01] developer about my kids. So on
[4:41:04] 17th avenue north, I had an
[4:41:06] opportunity to develop two%
[4:41:07] homes and I took all the kids
[4:41:09] off the that were on the block
[4:41:11] and taught them how to build
[4:41:12] the houses. And so when the
[4:41:14] homes were finished, they were
[4:41:15] able to do the open house and
[4:41:17] share with all of their family
[4:41:19] members and people in the
[4:41:20] community about their
[4:41:21] properties or about those
[4:41:22] properties that they helped
[4:41:23] build. What I would like to see
[4:41:28] is at least $150 million into
[4:41:30] children, to investments, to
[4:41:32] the parks that they play in, to
[4:41:34] the sidewalks that they walk in
[4:41:35] because they walk up and down
[4:41:37] the street and they really have
[4:41:38] nowhere to go.
[4:41:40] Thank you. All
[4:41:42] right. Go ahead. You're
[4:41:44] recognized.
[4:41:46] Hey, it's kelly.
[4:41:49] I'm back. I was really mad, but
[4:41:51] honestly, I'm exhausted. And
[4:41:52] this whole thing is
[4:41:53] embarrassing. It's embarrassing
[4:41:55] for y'all. It's embarrassing
[4:41:56] for everyone here. Like people
[4:41:58] come here every damn year and
[4:42:00] beg for scraps and pennies, and
[4:42:01] we act like there's all these
[4:42:03] other things that can't ever be
[4:42:04] touched. I have a specific
[4:42:06] memory last year, discussing
[4:42:07] the substitute bill, where
[4:42:10] somebody brought something and
[4:42:13] there was an ask for 10 or
[4:42:14] $15,000 and, you know, where's
[4:42:16] it going to come from? And
[4:42:19] somebody suggested pd budget
[4:42:23] and we would never dare take
[4:42:24] 10,000 or $15,000 from pd
[4:42:26] budget from their $350 million
[4:42:28] they're giving every year. It
[4:42:29] feels like someone has a gun to
[4:42:30] your head or someone has
[4:42:33] something on you, because we
[4:42:34] literally cannot break. We can
[4:42:36] take money from everywhere else.
[4:42:37] We can. We feel comfortable.
[4:42:39] Y'all feel comfortable taking
[4:42:41] money from schools, from kids,
[4:42:43] from starving elderly people,
[4:42:45] from people living on the
[4:42:46] streets, from organizations
[4:42:49] that help all of those people.
[4:42:51] You feel comfortable taking
[4:42:54] money from everywhere. But we
[4:42:55] have to make sure every cop has
[4:42:57] a car to take home. We have to
[4:42:59] make sure every cop has a body
[4:43:01] camera and a taser and a gun
[4:43:03] and a baton and everything else
[4:43:06] to brutalize the people of this
[4:43:07] city when they deem it
[4:43:09] necessary. And we never once
[4:43:11] stop and say, hey, what if we
[4:43:14] tried for one year to not give
[4:43:18] them 10% of our city budget?
[4:43:20] Crime is dropping without
[4:43:21] surveillance technology, I
[4:43:22] might add. Thank you to
[4:43:24] everyone who has supported that
[4:43:26] fight over the past five years.
[4:43:28] And we still. What what
[4:43:29] adjustment has there been to
[4:43:30] pd's budget? What is the
[4:43:32] average 21% less crime overall?
[4:43:34] Did we take 21% of their
[4:43:36] dollars, or is that what you're
[4:43:38] going to do? You have a few
[4:43:39] more weeks. Are you going to do
[4:43:41] that? You're not. And you're
[4:43:42] not going to tell me you're
[4:43:43] going to because you would
[4:43:45] never do that. And so I want to
[4:43:47] remind you that these are our
[4:43:48] kids. These are our elderly
[4:43:49] people. These are people who
[4:43:51] make the city what it is. These
[4:43:52] are not expired.
[4:43:53] Thank you.
[4:43:53] Thank you.
[4:43:55] Thanks. Next. Go
[4:43:58] ahead.
[4:43:59] She was on the road,
[4:44:02] MISS Angie. She just. Okay. All
[4:44:04] right. How y'all doing, shani?
[4:44:06] District eight represented. I'm
[4:44:08] tired. I see y'all still
[4:44:09] holding strong. I appreciate
[4:44:12] that they got a we have some
[4:44:13] carrot cake out there if y'all
[4:44:14] need a little sugar rush, you
[4:44:17] know? So I'm here with stand up
[4:44:19] nashville and we are asking for
[4:44:23] you all to approve $500,000 to
[4:44:25] create a new housing entity
[4:44:28] that can build and own
[4:44:29] permanently affordable housing
[4:44:31] in nashville. We are looking
[4:44:34] for staff right now, right? We
[4:44:36] want in the admin budget. We're
[4:44:37] trying to find a home for it.
[4:44:39] We you all have a whole lot of
[4:44:41] questions. You all want to know,
[4:44:43] how is this going to work? What
[4:44:45] what y'all asking us a lot of
[4:44:46] questions. I know my
[4:44:47] counterpart cade has talked to
[4:44:49] you all or attempted to talk to
[4:44:52] you all if you replied. And so
[4:44:55] there with with this $500,000,
[4:44:57] it allows us to have one
[4:44:58] individual that's going to help
[4:45:00] us push this thing forward. We
[4:45:02] can't expect you all to fully
[4:45:04] do it. We need somebody that
[4:45:05] can that can take that on as
[4:45:08] their full time job and really
[4:45:10] get the answers that you all
[4:45:12] say you need in order to push
[4:45:14] this forward. And then when we
[4:45:15] think about where the money
[4:45:17] comes from, I like when I think
[4:45:18] about social housing, I think
[4:45:20] bout all the people that have
[4:45:21] spoke before me. These are the
[4:45:23] people who social housing is
[4:45:25] for, right? So you got your
[4:45:26] teachers, you know, they, they,
[4:45:28] they are saying they're not
[4:45:30] making enough money. This type
[4:45:32] of housing allows them to have
[4:45:35] a permanent, affordable space
[4:45:37] to live in, to thrive in, to
[4:45:41] build their life upon. I am
[4:45:44] lucky to be a home on owner. I
[4:45:45] would I don't know where I
[4:45:47] would be living if I did not
[4:45:50] purchase my home in 2018. This
[4:45:51] rent is ridiculous, right? And
[4:45:54] so we need a place that has
[4:45:58] permanent affordability at. A
[4:46:00] spot where, you know, it's also
[4:46:02] mixed income so people can come
[4:46:02] together.
[4:46:04] Thank you. Your time
[4:46:04] has expired.
[4:46:08] Take it home, man.
[4:46:11] You're recognized.
[4:46:11] Hey, that's
[4:46:13] a lot of pressure. District
[4:46:14] five mendenhall. First off,
[4:46:18] actually found a parking
[4:46:19] validation on the floor, so if
[4:46:21] anybody lost theirs, I got
[4:46:25] yours. You pulled in at 507.
[4:46:26] Y'all have heard a lot of great
[4:46:28] reasons of why. To support
[4:46:29] social housing and social
[4:46:30] housing staff in this budget,
[4:46:32] the city will not move unless
[4:46:35] council members push it too. It
[4:46:36] is time to match the risk that
[4:46:40] everyday nashvillians by existing and living
[4:46:41] in the city. That does not work
[4:46:44] for them right now. Please take
[4:46:45] a small risk and amend this
[4:46:46] budget with funds for social
[4:46:49] housing staff. Stay on metro
[4:46:50] finance and planning to issue
[4:46:52] bonds for housing. The best
[4:46:54] time to plant a tree was 20
[4:46:55] years ago. The second best time
[4:46:57] to plant that tree is today.
[4:46:59] This is for all nashvillians
[4:47:02] today and tomorrow and forever.
[4:47:03] Build social housing that
[4:47:05] community controlled, community
[4:47:07] owned and permanently
[4:47:09] affordable and will be back to
[4:47:11] say thanks.
[4:47:13] Thank you. Are you
[4:47:15] seeking to speak in the white
[4:47:17] jacket? Okay. Go ahead. You're
[4:47:19] recognized.
[4:47:21] Okay. Good evening,
[4:47:22] council members. My name is
[4:47:24] nikki ellis and I'm a proud
[4:47:26] resident of district five. And
[4:47:27] I'm a metro employee serving as
[4:47:29] a convenience center supervisor
[4:47:31] with the department of waste
[4:47:33] services and the founder of
[4:47:35] forward focus. And I believe in
[4:47:38] second chances initiative. 17
[4:47:40] years ago, I was a health care
[4:47:41] executive and a vice PRESIDENT
[4:47:42] Of marketing and business
[4:47:45] development. In 2009, I was
[4:47:46] convicted in federal court of
[4:47:48] misprision of a felony and
[4:47:50] served in the same and served
[4:47:52] 18 months in the same federal
[4:47:53] facility as martha stewart.
[4:47:55] When I returned home, I quickly
[4:47:57] learned that serving my
[4:48:00] sentence was only part of the
[4:48:02] hallenge rebuilding a life,
[4:48:04] supporting a family, finding
[4:48:06] employment and secure and
[4:48:08] stable housing represented
[4:48:10] obstacles that many people
[4:48:12] never see. Today, I stand
[4:48:14] before you not only as a metro
[4:48:16] employee and a community
[4:48:17] advocate, but as proof that
[4:48:20] people can overcome their past
[4:48:21] when given the opportunity to
[4:48:24] support to do so. Unfortunately,
[4:48:26] many justice impacted
[4:48:27] individuals who are ready to
[4:48:29] work, care for their families
[4:48:30] and contribute to our city
[4:48:32] still face barriers to
[4:48:34] affordable housing and
[4:48:36] coordinated reentry resources,
[4:48:38] and we know this challenge is
[4:48:39] significant in davidson county
[4:48:40] because it's the highest in
[4:48:42] class. It is the home of the
[4:48:43] highest incarcerated zip code
[4:48:46] in the country. But this issue
[4:48:49] is much more about adults
[4:48:51] returning home. Here in
[4:48:53] tennessee, approximately
[4:48:54] 144,000 children have
[4:48:57] experienced a parent
[4:49:00] incarceration. Let that sink in.
[4:49:03] 144,000. This is not not simply
[4:49:06] a housing for justice impacted
[4:49:08] individuals issues. It's about
[4:49:10] children. It's about families.
[4:49:12] It's about housing stability,
[4:49:14] and it's about the future
[4:49:16] safety of our communities. If
[4:49:18] we truly want safer communities,
[4:49:20] we must invest in the
[4:49:23] conditions that create safety.
[4:49:24] Thank you so much. Appreciate
[4:49:27] you coming out. All right.
[4:49:28] Seeing no one else seeking to
[4:49:31] be recognized, I will declare
[4:49:35] the public hearing closed at
[4:49:40] 1050 ish, and I will go back to
[4:49:44] sponsor tombs budget chair, for
[4:49:46] a motion on your bill, please,
[4:49:47] ma'am.
[4:49:49] Thank you, MADAM Vice
[4:49:51] mayor, I move for approval with
[4:49:53] the re referral to budget and
[4:49:54] finance, and I will make a
[4:49:56] brief comment.
[4:49:58] Okay. Let's see.
[4:50:00] I'm getting a committee report
[4:50:03] aswell. Reminder from special
[4:50:03] counsel.
[4:50:04] Thank you very much.
[4:50:07] Let me find my paper.
[4:50:08] I saw you
[4:50:10] taking a lot of notes. So I
[4:50:11] know it's I know it's under
[4:50:14] there somewhere.
[4:50:15] All right.
[4:50:17] Budget and finance voted to
[4:50:18] recommend approval with the
[4:50:20] referral to the budget and
[4:50:21] finance committee. Nine in
[4:50:23] favor, zero against zero not
[4:50:23] voting.
[4:50:24] Thank you ma'am. All
[4:50:27] right. Renewing that motion. Is
[4:50:30] there a second? Okay. Is there
[4:50:33] any on that motion?
[4:50:35] Oh with a brief comment. Yes,
[4:50:36] ma'am. Go ahead.
[4:50:37] So for the
[4:50:39] viewing audience and a few
[4:50:41] folks who are still here. I
[4:50:43] just wanted to give just an
[4:50:45] overview of how we've gotten to
[4:50:46] this point and where we are in
[4:50:47] the process.
[4:50:48] Yes. Appreciate
[4:50:48] that.
[4:50:50] So in FEBRUARY, we had
[4:50:53] what's called a pre budget
[4:50:55] hearing, where individuals from
[4:50:57] the public could come and speak
[4:50:59] to the council.
[4:51:00] Public comment.
[4:51:02] Public comment. Yes, ma'am. Yes.
[4:51:04] but anyway, so that.
[4:51:05] FEBRUARY
[4:51:06] early budget. So that community
[4:51:08] members could come out and talk
[4:51:09] to the council and also is an
[4:51:11] opportunity publicly voice
[4:51:13] what they want to see in the
[4:51:14] budget ahead of the mayor's
[4:51:15] budget coming out. So that's
[4:51:16] interaction with with the
[4:51:18] council. Then I hosted a four
[4:51:20] part budget education series in
[4:51:24] different parts of the county,
[4:51:26] and then we're here now at at
[4:51:27] public hearing, which is
[4:51:29] another opportunity for the
[4:51:30] public to come and address the
[4:51:32] council. Obviously, any day of
[4:51:33] the week you have the
[4:51:35] opportunity to reach out to
[4:51:36] your individual council member
[4:51:39] to talk about budget concerns.
[4:51:41] We've also been having we had
[4:51:44] two weeks of council budget
[4:51:45] hearings where members of the
[4:51:47] public could come and view
[4:51:49] those as well. We've also had
[4:51:51] council budget workshops this
[4:51:53] past week, and we have one
[4:51:54] tomorrow as well as thursday,
[4:51:56] and those are open to the
[4:51:57] public. Folks can come and sit
[4:51:59] in and listen to the the
[4:52:00] conversation. A lot of the
[4:52:01] groups that spoke today, we
[4:52:03] invited to those work sessions
[4:52:05] so that they could speak to
[4:52:06] council members and also speak
[4:52:09] with departments. So I want to
[4:52:11] put that out there, because
[4:52:12] there's always an effort every
[4:52:14] year to involve the public
[4:52:15] earlier so that folks can feel
[4:52:17] like they have an input into
[4:52:19] the budget, and it's not last
[4:52:21] minute. And when we get to
[4:52:22] today, where we have our public
[4:52:24] hearing is meant to be a
[4:52:25] conversation. It's not meant to
[4:52:29] be an hour where the public has
[4:52:31] to come here and beg us to
[4:52:32] include things in the
[4:52:34] substitute budget is an
[4:52:35] opportunity to once again,
[4:52:37] because because of life and
[4:52:39] work and family obligations,
[4:52:40] every council member doesn't
[4:52:41] get a chance to come to the
[4:52:43] budget hearings, doesn't get a
[4:52:44] chance to come to the work
[4:52:47] sessions. So this is another to get in front of
[4:52:48] council members and talk about
[4:52:50] what is important to you.
[4:52:52] Not a it's not begging. It
[4:52:53] shouldn't be feel demeaning. We
[4:52:55] are all community. And so this
[4:52:57] is a chance for us to come
[4:52:59] together and figure out what's
[4:53:03] the. To hear from the community
[4:53:04] about what ideas they want to
[4:53:06] be incorporated into the budget.
[4:53:08] And obviously we take that back
[4:53:09] and try to make something out
[4:53:11] of that. And I just want to put
[4:53:13] that out there for the public.
[4:53:15] So this is supposed to be a
[4:53:17] collaborative process, and we
[4:53:18] tweak it every year to try to
[4:53:20] make it better. But this is
[4:53:22] really about community and, and
[4:53:23] about what's doing what's best
[4:53:25] for nashville. And with that, I
[4:53:27] ask for approval.
[4:53:28] Thank you,
[4:53:29] MADAM Chair. Appreciate you.
[4:53:32] All right. Any further
[4:53:35] discussion? Seeing none. All in
[4:53:37] favor, please say aye. Any
[4:53:40] voting? No. Any abstaining? All
[4:53:43] right. MADAM Chair, I know
[4:53:45] we're tired, but just because
[4:53:47] our charter requires it again,
[4:53:50] as ialluded to at the start,
[4:53:53] we did not preclude anybody in
[4:53:54] that one first public hearing
[4:53:56] talking about the capital
[4:53:58] improvements budget or the tax
[4:54:01] levy, but just from a
[4:54:03] procedural standpoint, our next
[4:54:06] agenda item is agenda item two.
[4:54:09] this is ordinance bl 2026-1378.
[4:54:10] Sponsor teams. This is an
[4:54:11] ordinance establishing the tax
[4:54:12] levy in the general services
[4:54:14] district for the fiscal year
[4:54:16] 2026 2027, and declaring the
[4:54:17] amount required for the annual
[4:54:19] operating budget of the urban
[4:54:20] services district pursuant to
[4:54:22] section 6.07 of the
[4:54:24] metropolitan charter budget
[4:54:26] chair tombs, you're recognized.
[4:54:28] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor.
[4:54:30] Our request to open the public
[4:54:30] hearing.
[4:54:31] Okay. I'm going to
[4:54:34] declare the public hearing open
[4:54:37] on 1378, which is the tax levy.
[4:54:40] Is there anyone who seeks to be
[4:54:42] recognized specifically on the
[4:54:47] tax levy? Seeing none, I will
[4:54:49] declare the public hearing
[4:54:51] closed. And it's back to you,
[4:54:53] chair tombs, for a motion on
[4:54:56] this bill.
[4:54:58] The committee report ma'am. You do.
[4:54:59] Thank you.
[4:55:00] Budget and finance
[4:55:01] voted to recommend approval
[4:55:02] with the re referral to the
[4:55:03] budget and finance committee.
[4:55:04] Nine in favor, zero against
[4:55:06] zero not voting. Move for
[4:55:08] approval with the re. Referral
[4:55:09] to budget and finance.
[4:55:09] Okay.
[4:55:10] Properly moved. Properly
[4:55:12] seconded. Is there any
[4:55:17] discussion on this ordinance on readings?
[4:55:18] Seeing none. All in favor,
[4:55:22] please say aye. Any voting okay.
[4:55:25] Any voting no. Any abstaining?
[4:55:27] MR. Slick, you'll be recorded
[4:55:29] as an abstention. MR. Clerk, if
[4:55:31] you would. Next is agenda item
[4:55:34] three, ordinance bl 2026-1380.
[4:55:35] Also sponsor tombs, an
[4:55:38] ordinance adopting the 2026
[4:55:42] 2027 through 2031 2032 capital
[4:55:43] improvements budget for the
[4:55:44] metropolitan government of
[4:55:45] nashville davidson county as
[4:55:47] the official capital
[4:55:49] improvements budget of the
[4:55:50] metropolitan government of
[4:55:51] nashville and davidson county
[4:55:56] for the fiscal year 2026 2027.
[4:55:58] Sponsor. Tombs, you are
[4:55:59] recognized.
[4:56:00] Thank you, MADAM
[4:56:01] Vice mayor. Request open the
[4:56:02] public hearing.
[4:56:02] All right. I
[4:56:05] declare the public hearing open
[4:56:08] on 1380. Is anyone seeking to
[4:56:10] be recognized? Go ahead, sir.
[4:56:12] You're very welcome.
[4:56:13] Hey, y'all.
[4:56:14] I'm back. I'm still here, so
[4:56:15] I'll just comment on it. All
[4:56:17] right. So bonds, we're really
[4:56:18] trying to get that going
[4:56:19] already talked about in the
[4:56:21] operating budget. When it comes
[4:56:22] to the capital improvements
[4:56:24] wish list this year and other
[4:56:26] stuff that y'al can put your
[4:56:27] weight behind. Like we said,
[4:56:28] really looking for people to
[4:56:30] step into that leadership role
[4:56:31] and really get this ball moving.
[4:56:33] So this is a great chance for
[4:56:35] y'all to do that, to show the
[4:56:37] city that there is, you know, a
[4:56:38] demand behind this and that
[4:56:40] council members really want us
[4:56:42] to invest in this new model. We
[4:56:44] can pilot this program with the
[4:56:46] bonds. We're a little bit ahead
[4:56:47] of where the city is on this.
[4:56:48] But again, that whole
[4:56:49] conversation about taking risks.
[4:56:51] So this is a great opportunity
[4:56:53] for you all to do that. Hang in
[4:56:54] there. Long night. Everyone's
[4:56:56] looking good. All right. Bye.
[4:56:58] Thank you. Is anybody else
[4:57:00] seeking to be recognized
[4:57:02] specifically on the capital
[4:57:04] improvements budget? On its
[4:57:06] second of three readings?
[4:57:07] Seeing none, I will declare the
[4:57:09] public hearing closed. And it's
[4:57:11] back to you. Budget chair, team
[4:57:13] sponsor for a motion on this
[4:57:15] bill as well.
[4:57:16] Committee report.
[4:57:17] Yes, ma'am.
[4:57:18] Budget and finance
[4:57:19] voted to recommend approval
[4:57:21] with a referral to budget and
[4:57:22] finance. Nine in favor, zero
[4:57:23] against zero not voting.
[4:57:23] All
[4:57:25] right. We also need a report
[4:57:26] from the planning and zoning
[4:57:27] committee chair horton. You're
[4:57:28] recognized, sir.
[4:57:29] Thank you,
[4:57:30] vice mayor. Planning and zoning
[4:57:31] recommended approval. Eight in
[4:57:32] favor, zero against zero not
[4:57:33] voting.
[4:57:34] Okay. Thank you sir.
[4:57:36] Back to you, MISS Tombs, for a
[4:57:39] motion mindful of the JUNE 9th
[4:57:40] special called meeting. Do you
[4:57:42] have that information that you
[4:57:44] need on that one on that motion.
[4:57:46] So move for approval with the
[4:57:48] re referral to the JUNE 19th
[4:57:49] meeting.
[4:57:51] Yes. Or JUNE 9th
[4:57:53] rather. So next tuesday there
[4:57:56] is a special called meeting
[4:57:59] specific to the crb. Okay. It
[4:58:02] will 6:00 meeting start 5 P.M.
[4:58:04] Joint special committee in
[4:58:06] advance of that. 6:00 start. So
[4:58:08] that is the motion passage on.
[4:58:11] Second in a re referral into
[4:58:13] the committees for joint
[4:58:16] special committee meeting at 5
[4:58:18] P.M. On tuesday, JUNE 9th. Is
[4:58:20] there a second for that
[4:58:21] extended motion? Thank you. Is
[4:58:24] there any discussion on that
[4:58:28] motion? All right. Seeing none.
[4:58:30] Anything. Yeah. Yes. Go ahead
[4:58:31] please. Chair.
[4:58:33] in my previous
[4:58:35] comment I forgot to include
[4:58:37] that the budget is on third
[4:58:41] reading on JUNE 16th. So take into
[4:58:42] account all of the ideas that
[4:58:45] were shared today. There will
[4:58:46] be a substitute budget will
[4:58:48] work on that. But third and
[4:58:49] final reading, the final vote
[4:58:51] on the budget is JUNE 16th, two
[4:58:52] weeks from today.
[4:58:53] And I believe
[4:58:54] there's an extra opportunity
[4:58:56] for wish list. Having heard or
[4:58:56] incorporated.
[4:58:58] Wish list are due
[4:59:00] tomorrow. 11:59 P.M. Okay.
[4:59:01] All
[4:59:03] righty. Okay. Is there any
[4:59:07] further discussion on 1380, the
[4:59:09] crb capital improvements budget?
[4:59:10] Seeing none. All in favor,
[4:59:12] please say aye. Any voting no
[4:59:15] or abstaining. All right. That
[4:59:17] concludes our bills on public
[4:59:19] hearing. All right. Let's let's
[4:59:20] lean in. Council members. We
[4:59:21] have a pretty short agenda.
[4:59:24] We've got a lot of stuff on our
[4:59:26] consolidated consent agenda.
[4:59:29] And let's just keep on rolling.
[4:59:33] Okay? This is agenda section k,
[4:59:36] all resolutions and second and
[4:59:37] third reading ordinances on
[4:59:38] this agenda are included on the
[4:59:39] consent agenda. If recommended
[4:59:42] for approval unanimously by all
[4:59:45] the committees to which the
[4:59:47] item was referred, items on the
[4:59:48] consent agenda will be voted on
[4:59:50] at a single time. The item
[4:59:51] number, along with the
[4:59:52] resolution and ordinance number
[4:59:53] for the items on the consent
[4:59:54] agenda will be read by me.
[4:59:56] Members of the council MAY
[4:59:57] remove any items from the
[5:00:01] consent agenda by request
[5:00:02] before the consent agenda vote
[5:00:06] is taken. All right. Here are
[5:00:09] the items proposed for the
[5:00:12] consolidated consent agenda.
[5:00:15] First is agenda item seven.
[5:00:22] Resolution 2026-2000. Agenda
[5:00:26] item eight. Resolution
[5:00:29] 2026-2001. Agenda item nine.
[5:00:34] Resolution 2026-2002. Agenda
[5:00:39] item ten. Resolution 2026-2003.
[5:00:44] Agenda item 14. Resolution
[5:00:48] 2026-2007. Agenda item 17.
[5:00:52] Resolution 2026-2010. Agenda
[5:00:58] item 18. Resolution 2026-2011.
[5:01:03] Agenda item 19. Resolution
[5:01:06] 2026-2012. Agenda item 20.
[5:01:10] Resolution 2026-2013. Agenda
[5:01:17] item 21. Resolution 2026-2014.
[5:01:22] Agenda item 22. Resolution
[5:01:25] 2026-2015. Agenda item 24.
[5:01:30] Resolution 2026-2017. Agenda
[5:01:35] item 25. Resolution 2026-2018.
[5:01:40] Agenda item 26. Resolution
[5:01:42] 2026-2019. Agenda item 27.
[5:01:48] Resolution 2026-2020. Agenda
[5:01:54] item 28. Resolution 2026-2021.
[5:01:59] Agenda item 29. Resolution
[5:02:01] 2026-2022. Agenda item 30.
[5:02:05] Resolution 2026-2023. Agenda
[5:02:10] item 31. Resolution 2026-2024.
[5:02:15] Agenda item 32. Resolution
[5:02:18] 2026-2025. Agenda item 33.
[5:02:22] Resolution 2026-2026. Agenda
[5:02:27] item 34. Resolution 2026-2027.
[5:02:32] Agenda item 35. Resolution
[5:02:34] 2026-2028. Agenda item 36.
[5:02:40] Resolution 2026-2029. Okay,
[5:02:43] that concludes the items or the
[5:02:44] resolutions proposed for the
[5:02:45] consolidated consent agenda
[5:02:49] next to bills on second reading
[5:02:51] proposed for the consent agenda.
[5:02:53] First among those is agenda
[5:03:01] item 77 ordinance bl 2026-1358.
[5:03:03] Agenda item 80 no wait. Agenda
[5:03:08] item 78. Is that a change? 78
[5:03:12] on consent okay. Agenda item 78.
[5:03:17] Ordinance bl 2026-1379. Agenda
[5:03:23] item 80 ordinance bl 2026-1382.
[5:03:28] Agenda item 81 ordinance bl
[5:03:30] 2026-1383. Agenda item 82
[5:03:35] ordinance bl 2026-1384. Agenda
[5:03:41] item 83 ordinance bl 2026-1385.
[5:03:46] Agenda item 84 ordinance bl
[5:03:50] 2026-1390. Next, for items on
[5:03:52] third reading bills proposed
[5:03:53] for the consolidated consent
[5:03:56] agenda. First among those is
[5:04:02] agenda item 85 ordinance bl
[5:04:04] 2025-882. Agenda item 86
[5:04:09] ordinance bl 2025-883. Agenda
[5:04:14] item 87. Ordinance bl 2026-1368.
[5:04:19] Agenda item 88. Ordinance bl
[5:04:22] 2026-1369. Agenda item 89.
[5:04:27] Ordinance bl 2026-1370. Agenda
[5:04:33] item 90. Ordinance bl 2026-1371.
[5:04:37] Okay. Agenda item 91 ordinance
[5:04:43] bl 2026-1372. Agenda item 92
[5:04:49] ordinance bl 2026-1373. Agenda
[5:04:55] item 93. Ordinance bl 2026-1374.
[5:05:00] Agenda item 94. Ordinance bl
[5:05:03] 2026-1375. And then lastly
[5:05:04] proposed for the consent agenda
[5:05:11] is agenda item 95, ordinance bl
[5:05:13] 2026-1376. Do any items need
[5:05:15] be removed from the consent
[5:05:18] agenda? If so, members, please
[5:05:26] join the queue to request that.
[5:05:27] Excellent. There is no one in
[5:05:30] the queue, MR. Clark. Are all
[5:05:32] committee reports in for the
[5:05:35] items on the consent agenda?
[5:05:36] Yes. All committee reports are
[5:05:36] in.
[5:05:38] Thank you, MR. Clark.
[5:05:39] Members, is there a motion for
[5:05:41] approval of the consent agenda?
[5:05:43] Properly seconded. All in favor,
[5:05:45] say I. Council has passed all
[5:05:47] items on the consent agenda.
[5:05:49] All right. Now we will go back
[5:05:52] in agenda order for items that
[5:05:56] were not on consent. First with
[5:06:00] resolutions. Okay. First among
[5:06:03] those is agenda item four. This
[5:06:06] isresolution 2026-1801.
[5:06:08] Sponsors benedict and bradford.
[5:06:10] This is a resolution urging the
[5:06:11] electric power board of the
[5:06:12] metropolitan government of
[5:06:13] nashville and davidson county
[5:06:14] to terminate the employment of
[5:06:16] theresa kaplan as chief
[5:06:18] executive officer of nashville
[5:06:21] electric service. MISS Benedict
[5:06:24] is not present. MR. Bradford,
[5:06:26] you are next on the sponsor
[5:06:28] list. There you are recognized.
[5:06:30] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor,
[5:06:31] committee reports.
[5:06:31] For the
[5:06:33] report of the rules,
[5:06:33] confirmations and public
[5:06:35] elections committee chair cash.
[5:06:37] We moved to indefinitely. Defer
[5:06:39] five to 0 to 0.
[5:06:40] Okay. And for
[5:06:42] the report of the
[5:06:44] transportation and
[5:06:45] infrastructure committee chair
[5:06:46] evan siegel, please.
[5:06:47] The
[5:06:47] transportation and
[5:06:48] infrastructure committee
[5:06:50] recommended that it be deferred
[5:06:51] indefinitely. Ten in favor,
[5:06:52] zero against and zero not
[5:06:52] voting.
[5:06:56] Okay. All right. So
[5:07:01] with the sponsor not present,
[5:07:03] we we have to it's not over
[5:07:05] their objection in their
[5:07:09] absence. So we do have to take
[5:07:14] this up because rule 8.2 does
[5:07:19] not apply here. So MR. Bradford.
[5:07:20] Would you like to make a motion,
[5:07:21] sir.
[5:07:23] Yes, I believe is is is
[5:07:25] the sponsor's intent to defer
[5:07:28] this until after we get more
[5:07:30] information. So I'll go with
[5:07:31] the committee's and move for
[5:07:32] indefinite deferral.
[5:07:33] Okay.
[5:07:35] There is a motion to
[5:07:37] indefinitely defer. It is
[5:07:40] properly seconded. Is there any
[5:07:42] discussion on the indefinite
[5:07:45] deferral motion. Seeing none.
[5:07:47] All in favor, please say aye.
[5:07:51] Any voting no. Any abstaining?
[5:07:53] Okay. This has been
[5:07:55] indefinitely deferred. Next is
[5:07:57] agenda item five. This is
[5:08:01] resolution 2026-1954. Sponsor
[5:08:03] styles. This is a resolution
[5:08:04] expressing a lack of confidence
[5:08:06] in the performance and
[5:08:06] leadership of the electric
[5:08:08] power board of the metropolitan%
[5:08:09] government of nashville and
[5:08:11] davidson county for its
[5:08:15] failures during winter storm
[5:08:21] fern. Let's see, MISS Styles.
[5:08:24] What we have here though,
[5:08:26] instead, with you present and
[5:08:30] with rule 8.2 in effect, which
[5:08:32] requires an indefinite deferral
[5:08:35] if recommended by committees
[5:08:38] with a two thirds over the
[5:08:40] objection of the sponsor. Okay,
[5:08:43] but we will need your committee
[5:08:45] reports if your request does.
[5:08:47] Please, ma'am.
[5:08:48] Committee report
[5:08:49] please.
[5:08:51] Okay. For the report of
[5:08:51] the transportation
[5:08:53] infrastructure committee chair
[5:08:54] evan siegel.
[5:08:55] The transportation
[5:08:57] infrastructure committee
[5:08:58] recommended that it be deferred
[5:08:59] indefinitely. Ten in favor,
[5:09:01] zero against and zero not
[5:09:01] voting.
[5:09:03] Okay. And for the
[5:09:04] report of the rules,
[5:09:05] confirmations and public
[5:09:07] elections committee chair cash.
[5:09:09] Did nothing. No recommendation.
[5:09:13] All right. Rule 8.2, though,
[5:09:14] simply requires the
[5:09:16] recommendation of an indefinite
[5:09:18] deferral in one committee does
[5:09:20] not require that of both
[5:09:25] committees, and, I presume,
[5:09:27] MISS Styles. That is over. Your
[5:09:35] objection. Okay. And with that.
[5:09:38] Rule 8.2 is, in effect such
[5:09:40] that special counsel. What
[5:09:42] happens at this juncture, sir?
[5:09:44] it is then just indefinitely
[5:09:45] deferred by rule.
[5:09:46] Yes. Vice
[5:09:48] mayor, this would in this case
[5:09:49] would be an indefinite deferral
[5:09:51] without debate or discussion.
[5:09:53] Okay. All right. Thank you,
[5:09:54] special counsel, for the
[5:09:57] clarification. Okay. So that
[5:09:59] has been indefinitely deferred
[5:10:02] per rule 8.2 with no debate or
[5:10:05] discussion. All right. Next is
[5:10:08] agenda item six. This is
[5:10:12] resolution 2026-1963. Sponsor
[5:10:13] coupon. This is a resolution
[5:10:16] approving the fiscal year 2027
[5:10:17] central business improvement
[5:10:19] district budget and accepting
[5:10:20] previous central business
[5:10:23] improvement district budgets.
[5:10:26] MR. Coupon, you are recognized,
[5:10:28] sir. Oh I'm sorry sir.
[5:10:28] Thank
[5:10:30] you, MADAM PRESIDENT. Committee
[5:10:32] reports please.
[5:10:33] For the report
[5:10:34] of the budget and finance
[5:10:35] committee. Chair. Tombs, you're
[5:10:36] recognized.
[5:10:37] Thank you, MADAM
[5:10:38] Vice mayor, budget and finance
[5:10:39] voted to recommend approval.
[5:10:41] Seven in favor, two against
[5:10:41] zero not voting.
[5:10:43] All righty.
[5:10:45] That's the one committee report
[5:10:47] back to you, MR. Cooper, for a
[5:10:47] motion.
[5:10:48] Thank you. I'd like to
[5:10:50] move approval with a comment.
[5:10:51] All right. That properly
[5:10:52] seconded. Go ahead, sir.
[5:10:52] Thank
[5:10:54] you. So I appreciate all the
[5:10:55] work that's been done on this.
[5:10:56] And I'm speaking representing
[5:10:57] 22,000 downtown constituents
[5:10:58] and many businesses who do
[5:11:00] appreciate and want to see the
[5:11:02] work continue of the cleaning,
[5:11:03] safety programing and so much
[5:11:05] more that happens downtown.
[5:11:07] We've heard all night about
[5:11:08] really important things that
[5:11:09] have not been funded in the
[5:11:12] budget, and I appreciate the
[5:11:13] millions of dollars that
[5:11:14] downtown residents reach into
[5:11:15] their pockets and put into the
[5:11:18] bucket for, for our city to be
[5:11:20] better. And the whole city does
[5:11:21] realize that benefit. I
[5:11:22] recognize that that benefit
[5:11:23] does not always trickle out of
[5:11:24] downtown, and that's something
[5:11:26] I'm working on as well. But in
[5:11:28] this situation, it is, you know,
[5:11:29] about honoring the wishes of
[5:11:31] these of these folks that are
[5:11:32] put in this hard earned money
[5:11:34] into a bucket. Some of the
[5:11:35] concerns, as we know, since the
[5:11:37] expansion that have come up.
[5:11:38] One was about past budgets that
[5:11:40] we heard that for two decades,
[5:11:41] it wasn't approved by council
[5:11:42] and individual resolution. It
[5:11:44] was important to me, and I
[5:11:45] appreciate the downtown
[5:11:46] partnership supporting the
[5:11:48] efforts to bring this to you
[5:11:49] all. As you're seeing it
[5:11:51] tonight as a standalone. I also
[5:11:54] asked that they and finance go
[5:11:55] back through the records and
[5:11:57] put all the previous budgets in
[5:11:58] there so that we have those on
[5:12:00] the record as well. And so I
[5:12:01] appreciate that that
[5:12:03] collaboration to make that
[5:12:05] happen. We talked about
[5:12:06] community safety funding and
[5:12:07] looking at alternative ways to
[5:12:09] make downtown safer, safer and
[5:12:10] appreciate again, downtown
[5:12:12] partnership, open table.
[5:12:13] COUNCILMAN Suara, myself,
[5:12:16] working together on some
[5:12:17] initiatives that we you should
[5:12:19] have gotten an email about, but
[5:12:20] we should have legislation in
[5:12:22] the coming weeks to set up a
[5:12:23] dedicated mental health
[5:12:25] services for downtown. So
[5:12:26] really excited about that. And
[5:12:27] we know that the private
[5:12:30] policing has been a big
[5:12:31] conversation. We know that's
[5:12:32] something that's important for
[5:12:33] downtown. We know that there
[5:12:35] have been questions about can
[5:12:36] mpd staff it. I had
[5:12:37] conversations as recently as
[5:12:40] today asking central precinct
[5:12:41] can is there any way that we
[5:12:43] can find the officers? And they
[5:12:45] reminded me that the e d u
[5:12:47] itself remains unfunded in this
[5:12:49] current budget. So they're
[5:12:50] trying to figure out how to put
[5:12:52] that together. We don't. So
[5:12:53] they don't have any extra
[5:12:55] people to do it. And so that
[5:12:56] being said, there's a new
[5:12:57] operator. And I've told folks
[5:12:59] day, night, morning, evening,
[5:13:00] 4:00 in the morning, if there
[5:13:02] is any issue, any incident,
[5:13:03] anything going on with private
[5:13:05] police or anybody downtown,
[5:13:06] call me, reach out to me. It's
[5:13:08] important to get to the bottom
[5:13:10] of it. I can't go back in time.
[5:13:11] I can't go back into whatever
[5:13:12] happened or didn't happen in
[5:13:14] the past. But my commitment
[5:13:15] going forward is to make sure
[5:13:17] that everything is taken care
[5:13:18] of. And again, you know, the
[5:13:20] work we spent a lot of time
[5:13:21] talking on talking about a
[5:13:23] piece of the work that happens,
[5:13:24] but there's so much great work
[5:13:25] that happens with, again,
[5:13:26] cleaning, safety programing,
[5:13:27] things that really make our
[5:13:28] downtown run. So appreciate all
[5:13:30] that work. And I urge my
[5:13:31] colleagues to support the
[5:13:34] resolution. Thanks.
[5:13:34] all right.
[5:13:36] We're on to discussion. First
[5:13:39] in the queue is quinn evans.
[5:13:41] You're recognized.
[5:13:41] Thank you,
[5:13:43] MADAM PRESIDENT. I rise tonight
[5:13:44] because I want to share
[5:13:46] something that happened last
[5:13:47] night in committee for those
[5:13:49] who were not able to be here,
[5:13:51] which is that I asked the
[5:13:53] downtown partnership if it was
[5:13:55] committed to going forward,
[5:13:57] making sure that safety was
[5:14:00] holistic, that it involved safe
[5:14:02] streets. And the answer I got
[5:14:03] was no. The downtown
[5:14:05] partnership use its mandate as
[5:14:06] clean and safe and clean and
[5:14:09] safe as trash and cops. And I
[5:14:11] think if you ask most
[5:14:13] nashvillians what clean and
[5:14:15] safe means, it's not just
[5:14:17] picking up trash. And it is not
[5:14:19] just funding officers downtown.
[5:14:21] It means that when people walk
[5:14:23] on sidewalks downtown, that
[5:14:24] they feel like they're not
[5:14:27] going to die. And what we have
[5:14:31] every single year downtown are
[5:14:33] tourists coming to this city,
[5:14:36] paying this fee and dying on
[5:14:38] our streets. They are dying on
[5:14:41] scooters. They are dying on our
[5:14:42] sidewalks. And the downtown
[5:14:44] partnership doesn't view that
[5:14:46] as a safety issue. It doesn't
[5:14:49] view the garage blowing up on
[5:14:53] us. And. People are talking and
[5:14:55] it always throws me for a loop.
[5:14:56] Please don't interject while
[5:14:57] members.
[5:14:58] But when the garage
[5:15:00] blows up and we have visitors
[5:15:01] and people who live here whose
[5:15:04] cars are stuck there for months
[5:15:07] on end, and what is a hazardous
[5:15:09] site that is neither clean nor
[5:15:12] safe? I believe very strongly
[5:15:14] that beds are important, and i
[5:15:18] believe that what this city for was a clean and safe
[5:15:20] downtown. Ironically, I'm going
[5:15:22] to again quote lamar alexander
[5:15:25] tonight. I don't think that he
[5:15:27] expected to be quoted twice at
[5:15:29] council tonight. But the first
[5:15:31] part of his quote, the latter
[5:15:33] of which we've already heard,
[5:15:35] was, well, I think the number
[5:15:36] one goal of the chamber of
[5:15:38] commerce should not be
[5:15:40] recruiting more jobs to
[5:15:41] nashville, but keeping it a
[5:15:44] nice place to live. And that's
[5:15:45] what this bid should be focused
[5:15:47] on. It should be focused on a
[5:15:48] nice place to live and a nice
[5:15:50] place to live. Looks nice and
[5:15:52] it feels nice, and it is
[5:15:54] actually safe in all the ways
[5:15:55] necessary for people to live
[5:15:57] downtown. And that's what the
[5:15:58] downtown partnership should be
[5:16:00] doing with this budget. This
[5:16:01] budget looks like a tax. It
[5:16:03] feels like a tax. It walks and
[5:16:04] talks like a tax. People
[5:16:06] believe it is a tax. You read
[5:16:08] on your receipt. It is a tax
[5:16:11] and it is a sales tax required
[5:16:13] to be paid for a clean and safe
[5:16:15] downtown. And we owe it to
[5:16:16] everybody paying that tax to
[5:16:18] make sure that this budget is a
[5:16:20] reflection of a clean and safe
[5:16:23] downtown.
[5:16:25] All righty. Council
[5:16:26] member parker, I believe you
[5:16:27] sought to be recognized for
[5:16:28] having a little bit of a tablet
[5:16:30] issue there, but go ahead.
[5:16:31] You're recognized, sir.
[5:16:31] Thank
[5:16:32] you, vice mayor. For whatever
[5:16:34] reason, when I hit the button,
[5:16:35] it's showing on my screen, but
[5:16:36] not on my screen.
[5:16:37] I'm not
[5:16:39] seeing it here either. Yeah.
[5:16:41] Well, well, anyway, I'm, i
[5:16:43] don't want to get too into the
[5:16:44] weeds. We've had a lot of good
[5:16:46] committee discussion about the
[5:16:48] sea bed and how they utilize
[5:16:51] their funds that, you know, I
[5:16:53] do want to note on the on the
[5:16:55] safe streets issue, I don't
[5:16:56] really think that the ask is
[5:16:58] for them. For me personally, my
[5:16:59] view, the ask is not for them
[5:17:01] to spend a bunch of their
[5:17:02] special collections on, you
[5:17:04] know, like capital
[5:17:05] infrastructure improvements,
[5:17:11] but rather to stop impeding the
[5:17:13] deployment of safe
[5:17:14] infrastructure within their
[5:17:17] area. They, they have a habit
[5:17:22] of, of, of, of doing that. And
[5:17:23] again, I don't, I don't want to
[5:17:24] get into the specifics of a lot
[5:17:26] of good committee discussion
[5:17:27] about that. I do want to talk
[5:17:29] about what we're doing here
[5:17:30] tonight. And, and I think I was
[5:17:32] the council member who read the
[5:17:33] code and realized that we were
[5:17:35] supposed to be doing this every
[5:17:37] year. I brought it up in a in a
[5:17:38] committee discussion. And you
[5:17:40] know, what we've got before us
[5:17:41] now is not just the fiscal 27
[5:17:42] budget, but decades of
[5:17:43] oversight that we're being
[5:17:47] asked to kind of engage with.
[5:17:50] At 1115, after a lengthy public
[5:17:53] hearing, I doubt that this has
[5:17:55] gotten the attention either the
[5:17:57] fiscal 27 budget or the decades
[5:18:00] of of oversight that it
[5:18:02] deserves. And and, you know,
[5:18:06] we've heard from the lobbyists
[5:18:07] and leadership of the
[5:18:08] organization that they are
[5:18:10] going to try to address some of
[5:18:11] these concerns that people have
[5:18:13] brought up. They have a new
[5:18:16] private police contractor. They
[5:18:18] say that they're going to stop
[5:18:19] blocking safe infrastructure
[5:18:21] downtown so that fewer people
[5:18:23] get hurt downtown. That's great.
[5:18:25] I haven't seen that yet. I need
[5:18:27] to see a little bit of a track
[5:18:28] record from this organization
[5:18:29] before I'm comfortable
[5:18:31] approving these budgets. So I'm
[5:18:32] going to be voting no, because
[5:18:33] I think that we have a critical
[5:18:35] oversight role with regards to
[5:18:39] this entity. You know, it's
[5:18:40] it's spelled out what happens
[5:18:42] if this budget fails in this
[5:18:43] body. It's not the downtown
[5:18:45] partnership goes away. It's not
[5:18:46] that they don't have any
[5:18:47] funding. It's not that
[5:18:48] everything is terrible. It's
[5:18:50] that they have to redo their
[5:18:51] budget and they have to bring
[5:18:53] it back to us. And if the board
[5:18:54] members are curious what we
[5:18:56] need to see in a budget that
[5:18:58] gets voted down here, they can
[5:18:59] communicate with us. It's it's,
[5:19:01] it's there's, there's a, I
[5:19:02] would take a call from any
[5:19:04] board member of the downtown
[5:19:06] partnership or the sea bed to
[5:19:07] talk about my concerns and what
[5:19:09] I would like to see out of this
[5:19:10] organization, how they could
[5:19:12] better serve the city. But I'm
[5:19:13] not ready. Based on the issues
[5:19:15] that have arisen in debate in
[5:19:16] recent months this year, last
[5:19:18] year to vote for this, I'm
[5:19:19] going to be voting against this,
[5:19:21] and I would encourage any
[5:19:22] colleagues who are interested
[5:19:24] in exercising our oversight
[5:19:25] authority over this entity to
[5:19:29] join me in voting no tonight.
[5:19:31] Thank you, MR. Parker. MR.
[5:19:34] Cuban, I'm going to go through
[5:19:35] other colleagues before I
[5:19:40] return to you, sir. Okay. Are
[5:19:41] you seeking to be recognized
[5:19:43] again, or you just happen to be
[5:19:48] in the queue? Okay, okay. All
[5:19:50] right, MR. Huffman, you're next
[5:19:52] in the queue, sir.
[5:19:52] Thank you,
[5:19:54] vice mayor. And I'll be brief
[5:19:57] with these comments. Really
[5:19:58] want to highlight a couple of
[5:20:01] things, colleagues. The first
[5:20:06] thing is that siren was a bad
[5:20:09] actor. We all know that
[5:20:11] terrible actor, not a good
[5:20:14] representation of this city. It
[5:20:16] was such a bad actor. It put
[5:20:19] people in, in our unhoused, our
[5:20:21] most vulnerable residents in
[5:20:23] bad situations. There's no
[5:20:25] doubt about that. And what did
[5:20:28] the downtown partnership do?
[5:20:32] They fired them. I want you all
[5:20:35] to realize that the downtown
[5:20:37] partnership is very much a
[5:20:40] partner to us. And they saw a
[5:20:43] problem and they addressed it,
[5:20:45] and they addressed it by hiring
[5:20:49] a new company who I don't know
[5:20:51] who's looked it up yet, but I
[5:20:52] definitely invite you to look
[5:20:54] up their records and other
[5:20:57] cities, look at their track
[5:20:58] record for de-escalation
[5:21:02] tactics specifically, and think
[5:21:04] about that as you're
[5:21:06] considering your vote for this.
[5:21:08] If that is your inflection
[5:21:09] point on if you're going to
[5:21:12] vote yes or no. We have a
[5:21:13] commitment to this city to keep
[5:21:16] it safe. And whether we like it
[5:21:19] or not, the city runs on
[5:21:21] tourism, and these tourists
[5:21:25] come to downtown. Recently, I
[5:21:26] think it was billboard. I don't
[5:21:28] even know if it's called
[5:21:29] billboard magazine anymore, if
[5:21:32] it's just billboard mentioned
[5:21:34] that bridgestone arena is now
[5:21:35] 10th nationally for growth,
[5:21:39] gross revenue. They're 18th
[5:21:42] globally. And I mention that
[5:21:44] because there's always people
[5:21:46] coming in to downtown, 20,000
[5:21:49] people on any given night. And
[5:21:51] all of those people are
[5:21:53] frequenting the businesses
[5:21:55] downtown. They're buying $15
[5:21:59] drinks and $20 drinks at bars,
[5:22:01] and we get a chunk of that to
[5:22:02] fund the projects that the
[5:22:04] people in the back were talking
[5:22:10] about tonight. So I urge you to
[5:22:13] support this, because we owe it
[5:22:15] to this city to keep it safe.
[5:22:17] And the last thing that I will
[5:22:19] say as well, especially around
[5:22:21] our unhoused friends, because
[5:22:24] it's just that is a really,
[5:22:26] really soft spot for me. The
[5:22:30] downtown partnership has a
[5:22:31] deescalation policy, and I
[5:22:33] learned that because I took a
[5:22:35] ride, a ride along with them
[5:22:36] last year, and I encourage all
[5:22:38] of y'all to do the same thing.
[5:22:40] Anytime that they see an
[5:22:42] unhoused person having an
[5:22:44] interaction with a police
[5:22:45] officer, they automatically
[5:22:47] intervene. They automatically
[5:22:49] start to deescalate that
[5:22:51] situation. Thank you.
[5:22:52] All right.
[5:22:53] Next in the queue,
[5:22:54] councilmember, you're
[5:22:55] recognized.
[5:22:55] Thank you, vice
[5:22:58] mayor. Tonight I rise in
[5:23:01] opposition to this resolution
[5:23:05] for me, just like my colleague
[5:23:07] just said, if it has a large
[5:23:09] track record in my research, it
[5:23:12] said that it was launched in
[5:23:15] 2026. So for me, it might be
[5:23:16] part of an organization that
[5:23:19] has decades of experience, but
[5:23:21] it itself was only launched
[5:23:23] this year. So I have lots of
[5:23:25] questions. I'm not sure how you
[5:23:27] can have a track record if you
[5:23:29] just were started a few months
[5:23:31] ago. And you know, for me, I
[5:23:33] just have multiple other
[5:23:34] concerns. We all the time in
[5:23:36] metro government have to work
[5:23:38] on rfp. And we always have to,
[5:23:40] you know, try to find the best
[5:23:41] bid. And I just want to
[5:23:44] understand, did the see bid and
[5:23:45] did they do the same thing? And
[5:23:47] if so, I'd just like to
[5:23:48] understand how that process
[5:23:49] went. But I definitely don't
[5:23:50] feel comfortable, especially
[5:23:55] with the 20 years of finances.
[5:23:57] I don't feel comfortable also
[5:23:58] passing that tonight. So I just
[5:24:00] ask my colleagues to consider
[5:24:03] this and before voting. So
[5:24:04] thank you so much.
[5:24:05] Thank you.
[5:24:06] Next in the queue is council
[5:24:07] member styles. You're
[5:24:10] recognized ma'am.
[5:24:10] Thank you
[5:24:13] very much.
[5:24:15] I'm rising in
[5:24:17] support. I also have a sea bed
[5:24:20] in my district, and I look
[5:24:23] forward to being able to use it
[5:24:24] for many of the things that my
[5:24:27] constituents ask for, which is
[5:24:30] safety and beautification and a
[5:24:33] variety of other things that
[5:24:34] this sea bed currently provides
[5:24:35] downtown that we as a city are
[5:24:38] not able to do. We do not have
[5:24:40] in and got a bunch of trucks
[5:24:41] that are coming out and
[5:24:42] cleaning the sidewalks and
[5:24:44] getting rid of vomit and a
[5:24:46] variety of other things every
[5:24:49] single night. We can't. Well, I
[5:24:50] guess we could. We just haven't
[5:24:52] prioritized that. And I think
[5:24:53] when we have tourists coming,
[5:24:55] it does matter when they come
[5:24:58] and they see filthy streets,
[5:24:59] they're telling people don'tgo
[5:25:03] to nashville. And we do survive
[5:25:04] very much on our tourists. We
[5:25:06] have residents and tourists.
[5:25:08] Everyone is important, but to
[5:25:11] act as if they are a problem
[5:25:13] because they are handling
[5:25:15] scenarios that we actively are
[5:25:17] not. I don't think that that's
[5:25:19] right. The sea can be a
[5:25:21] very beneficial thing. I think
[5:25:24] that we should support council
[5:25:26] member koopman in his efforts
[5:25:29] for this sea bed. And if there
[5:25:30] are questions that you have, by
[5:25:32] all means, I mean, we have
[5:25:33] certainly passed things with
[5:25:34] people having questions and
[5:25:35] still said, oh, it sounds like
[5:25:37] a good idea. We're going to
[5:25:38] move forward. Why is this any
[5:25:40] different? Thank you.
[5:25:40] Thank you.
[5:25:42] Next in the queue is council
[5:25:43] member nash. You're recognized
[5:25:45] sir.
[5:25:46] Thank you, MADAM CHAIRMAN.
[5:25:49] I my sense is this is kind of
[5:25:51] the first year that we've
[5:25:52] decided we've got to approve
[5:25:54] their budget, although it was
[5:25:57] in ordinance previously. So
[5:25:59] here we are for the kind of the
[5:26:02] first go round. They have
[5:26:03] obviously heard us because
[5:26:05] they've made some changes. And
[5:26:08] I think we're going to have a
[5:26:11] better sense of how this new
[5:26:13] process is going to work and
[5:26:15] how the new security thing is
[5:26:16] going to work. If we go ahead
[5:26:19] and pass this budget and watch
[5:26:23] over this next year. Kind of
[5:26:25] say, we're not going to give
[5:26:26] you budget, we're not let you
[5:26:29] go forward except on your money,
[5:26:30] but we're still going to try
[5:26:32] and find out what you're doing,
[5:26:33] I think is kind of opposite of
[5:26:35] what we want to be doing. Let's
[5:26:37] let's give them a chance to get
[5:26:39] started. New process. We'll
[5:26:40] watch them. And if we don't
[5:26:41] like it, we get to vote next
[5:26:43] year.
[5:26:45] all right. Next in the
[5:26:47] queue is council member
[5:26:48] porterfield. MADAM Pro tem,
[5:26:49] you're recognized.
[5:26:50] Thank you,
[5:26:53] vice mayor. Yesterday there was
[5:26:55] a really interesting
[5:26:56] conversation in budget and
[5:26:58] finance in which myself and my
[5:27:00] colleague, council member quinn,
[5:27:02] voted against this legislation.
[5:27:03] I just want to speak to a few
[5:27:05] reasons why why I voted against
[5:27:07] it, in addition to the concerns
[5:27:09] that my colleague lifted up,
[5:27:10] there was conversation around
[5:27:12] the secondary employment unit,
[5:27:14] and the work by the secondary
[5:27:16] employment unit will be done by
[5:27:18] thp the tennessee highway
[5:27:20] patrol. And we noted that there
[5:27:22] had been concerns about
[5:27:25] behavior from various entities
[5:27:26] of various patrol members from
[5:27:28] the thp I'm going to come back
[5:27:31] to that point. Another concern
[5:27:33] was civility, which is, I guess,
[5:27:35] an offshoot of block by block.
[5:27:37] There was concerns about
[5:27:39] concern for me about this being
[5:27:41] a no bid contract. But I want
[5:27:43] to quote some things from an
[5:27:44] article in the banner that was
[5:27:46] written by our very own stephen
[5:27:48] elliott, who, sitting right
[5:27:50] here to my left. And three
[5:27:52] things from the article that I
[5:27:56] really wanted to highlight. Let
[5:28:01] me pull that back up here.
[5:28:02] Three things from the article
[5:28:05] that I wanted to highlight. One
[5:28:07] when asked about thps work with
[5:28:08] federal immigration agents last
[5:28:10] year and which troopers ignored
[5:28:12] traffic violations, cited
[5:28:13] broken english and other
[5:28:15] demographic markers when
[5:28:17] turning people over to ice,
[5:28:18] turner said that he remained
[5:28:20] confident in chp officers. So
[5:28:22] even though we have video
[5:28:23] evidence of the work of the
[5:28:25] officers are saying that they
[5:28:27] still are confident in those
[5:28:29] officers, we have confidence
[5:28:30] that chp will address those
[5:28:32] issues that arise with us or
[5:28:33] anyone else. I don't have
[5:28:35] confidence that this will be
[5:28:36] addressed. There was another
[5:28:39] concern about, again, block by
[5:28:41] block, which was an entity that
[5:28:44] was just started this year.
[5:28:45] We're hearing so much about
[5:28:46] like their track record, but
[5:28:48] this was an entity that was
[5:28:49] started just a couple of months
[5:28:51] ago. But I also wanted to lift
[5:28:55] up that mpd confirmed that
[5:28:59] block by block kept fuel in the
[5:29:01] library parking garage that
[5:29:04] blew up. So we're saying that
[5:29:07] we have confidence in thp even
[5:29:08] though we see what the chp
[5:29:10] officers have done, we are
[5:29:12] saying that we
[5:29:15] have confidence held fuel in
[5:29:16] our library that, in essence,
[5:29:18] blew up our library. That
[5:29:20] definitely didn't keep us safe.
[5:29:22] So if we know that this entity
[5:29:24] has done this, more do we
[5:29:27] need to vote against this? When
[5:29:28] we see that they've literally
[5:29:31] blown up our parking and this
[5:29:32] doesn't make everything go away,
[5:29:34] we want downtown be
[5:29:35] safe, residents and tourists.
[5:29:37] If we vote this down, the board
[5:29:38] just has to bring back another
[5:29:40] budget that will approve. So
[5:29:41] we're not saying that we're
[5:29:42] going to vote down everything,
[5:29:44] but we are saying bring us
[5:29:45] something back that's going to
[5:29:46] keep our residents and our
[5:29:47] tourists safe. So I'm voting
[5:29:49] against this, and I would
[5:29:50] encourage my colleagues to vote
[5:29:51] against it as well.
[5:29:52] all rght.
[5:29:53] Next in the queue is council
[5:29:55] member ellis. You're recognized
[5:29:55] ma'am.
[5:29:56] Thank you, MADAM
[5:29:57] PRESIDENT. I just wanted to
[5:29:59] throw up a flag. And and I'm
[5:30:01] not sure the procedure on this,
[5:30:03] but my colleague had mentioned
[5:30:06] that solarin was a bad actor,
[5:30:07] and I'm not standing up to
[5:30:09] defend them, but I would like
[5:30:10] to see the receipts for who
[5:30:12] bought those bus tickets to
[5:30:15] ship out those unhoused people
[5:30:17] who the nashville downtown
[5:30:20] partnership hired. So I want to
[5:30:22] see some receipts before moving
[5:30:24] this thing along. So if I were
[5:30:26] to file an open records request,
[5:30:29] would I be able to get those
[5:30:31] documents from the nashville
[5:30:32] downtown partnership or through
[5:30:35] the c bid?
[5:30:36] I can address that
[5:30:41] to special counsel wilson.
[5:30:42] Councilmember, the downtown
[5:30:43] partnership is technically a
[5:30:45] separate organization from the
[5:30:46] seabed. They are a private
[5:30:47] organization. They are not
[5:30:48] subject to open records.
[5:30:50] So. So
[5:30:52] if the seabed has contracted
[5:30:54] services with the vendor, can I
[5:30:56] get the records of that
[5:30:58] contracted service provider
[5:30:59] through the c bid, since
[5:31:02] they're getting taxpayer money?
[5:31:04] Special counsel.
[5:31:05] I can't speak
[5:31:06] to what records the seabed MAY
[5:31:09] or MAY not have, but the seabed
[5:31:13] is, at least in part, semi
[5:31:14] semi-governmental. So that
[5:31:16] would be different than asking
[5:31:18] downtown partnership directly.
[5:31:20] Okay. All right. I'm just going
[5:31:22] to pump the brakes just for the
[5:31:24] record and be a no vote on this
[5:31:26] until we can get I can get some
[5:31:28] more records for myself. I
[5:31:29] don't want to rubber stamp this.
[5:31:31] All right. Next is
[5:31:33] councilmember evans. You're
[5:31:35] recognized.
[5:31:36] Thank you, vice
[5:31:39] mayor. I am standing to speak
[5:31:41] in favor of the sea bed tonight.
[5:31:44] This was a, I would say, a very
[5:31:45] lengthy conversation that
[5:31:48] started from last term when the
[5:31:52] late jason stein would message
[5:31:55] me about things that are
[5:31:58] previous. The previous vendor
[5:31:59] of the sea bed was doing in
[5:32:02] downtown. And so over time, you
[5:32:04] know, there were a lot of
[5:32:05] rabbit holes that I personally
[5:32:07] chased down kind of related to
[5:32:10] this process. And I think that
[5:32:13] the outcome of the council
[5:32:14] member who raised, you know,
[5:32:17] the concern about the budget
[5:32:18] red flag and the approval
[5:32:21] process, I think, you know, I
[5:32:22] wish we had all known that a
[5:32:24] lot earlier and we could have
[5:32:25] started having that
[5:32:26] conversation, you know, back,
[5:32:27] you know, when some of those
[5:32:30] details were emerging over time.
[5:32:32] I'm grateful that we learned
[5:32:34] all of it and that we now have
[5:32:35] a budget, you know, that we
[5:32:38] have had an opportunity to have
[5:32:40] the sea bed and downtown
[5:32:42] partnership team speak in front
[5:32:45] of the budget committee, like that will be a
[5:32:48] process carries on as long
[5:32:50] as metro council exists and as
[5:32:52] long as this relationship
[5:32:53] exists. And so I'm looking at
[5:32:57] this as a fresh start with
[5:32:59] commitments that have been made
[5:33:01] in a public setting on a
[5:33:03] recording. And I'm choosing to
[5:33:06] kind of give this relationship
[5:33:08] and dynamic another opportunity,
[5:33:12] because we have the mechanism
[5:33:14] as a result of that work, to
[5:33:16] bring this budget to the
[5:33:18] council, to be able to follow
[5:33:21] up and enforce it in a very
[5:33:23] different way than we had
[5:33:24] previously, because we were
[5:33:26] ignorant to how it should have
[5:33:28] been done. So anyway, I'm
[5:33:30] grateful to the budget chair
[5:33:32] for her bringing that forward
[5:33:34] to the council member who
[5:33:35] identified that this was an
[5:33:36] issue. But I'm also going to
[5:33:38] choose to let's give this
[5:33:40] another opportunity, start from
[5:33:42] scratch and see if we can have
[5:33:44] a better experience this time.
[5:33:47] Thank you, MISS Evans. Next is
[5:33:48] council member suara. You're
[5:33:51] recognized ma'am.
[5:33:52] Thank you,
[5:33:55] vice mayor. I just wanted to
[5:33:56] say on record some of the
[5:33:58] things that I said in budget
[5:33:59] yesterday, as well as some of
[5:34:00] the private conversations
[5:34:03] that's gone on that it's been
[5:34:05] alluded to. But I just want to
[5:34:06] make sure that all of that is
[5:34:08] put on record, especially for
[5:34:10] follow up and for
[5:34:12] accountability. Like I shared
[5:34:13] yesterday in budget, there were
[5:34:15] three things that bothers me or
[5:34:18] that concerns me about downtown
[5:34:19] safety, security, and the
[5:34:21] conversations that we've had
[5:34:23] over this past several months.
[5:34:26] The three are the unhoused
[5:34:28] population. The third one is
[5:34:30] just general security downtown.
[5:34:32] And then the third one is thp
[5:34:35] slash ice. So when this
[5:34:36] conversation started, one
[5:34:39] the things that I did was talk
[5:34:41] to some of the partners that
[5:34:43] work on the. Because last time
[5:34:45] we were talking about this, it
[5:34:47] was the owners population piece
[5:34:48] that was very, very troubling
[5:34:50] for most of us. And so that was
[5:34:52] the area that I wanted to make
[5:34:53] sure that we addressed first.
[5:34:55] And so talking to open table
[5:34:56] and talking to downtown
[5:34:57] partnership and also talking to
[5:35:00] chief swan, there is now
[5:35:02] movement to make sure that
[5:35:04] there's a proposal down that
[5:35:07] will address how our own house
[5:35:08] population will be treated
[5:35:10] downtown. The proposal will be
[5:35:11] should be today, tomorrow,
[5:35:12] wednesday is when the chief
[5:35:14] said, but there is movement
[5:35:16] along making sure that people
[5:35:18] arenot just jailed or people
[5:35:20] are not harassed because they
[5:35:21] are on house. And to make sure
[5:35:24] that we have mental health
[5:35:26] services downtown. So that's
[5:35:28] that's on that and that's being
[5:35:29] worked on. And I think we
[5:35:31] should make sure we follow up
[5:35:32] on that. It's very critical.
[5:35:34] The next one is just general
[5:35:36] security downtown. One of the
[5:35:37] questions that I asked chief
[5:35:41] drake was, if we have
[5:35:42] entertainment district, we have
[5:35:44] a unit downtown. Why do we need
[5:35:48] a private company to deal with
[5:35:51] security? And the chief said
[5:35:52] it's because they're
[5:35:53] understaffed. But he did say
[5:35:54] during his budget hearing that
[5:35:56] his goal is that that is where
[5:35:58] we move to, and that's what he
[5:35:59] would like to see happen. The
[5:36:01] downtown people also said this,
[5:36:03] that they would love to see us
[5:36:05] move towards that model. So I
[5:36:06] think what we need to keep
[5:36:08] working on between now and the
[5:36:10] next budget is how do we fully
[5:36:11] fund that entertainment
[5:36:13] district so that it is empty,
[5:36:15] that is there and not a private
[5:36:17] company? And then lastly on chp,
[5:36:19] this is the one that gives me
[5:36:22] the most in all the
[5:36:23] conversation. Because when you
[5:36:24] think about everything that's
[5:36:27] happening, we just one year
[5:36:28] into the ice raid in nashville,
[5:36:30] it's a lot of support for thp
[5:36:32] and the private company will be
[5:36:34] using chp officers. And that's
[5:36:36] something that I that I found
[5:36:38] troubling. But in light of all
[5:36:39] the conversation that's going
[5:36:42] on in light of finding people
[5:36:46] to do it, and mpdmpd doing it,
[5:36:48] I do believe that our goal and
[5:36:50] what we should be working on is
[5:36:52] making sure that we don't have
[5:36:53] private organization and that
[5:36:56] we're not using thp. Thp law is
[5:36:57] just so different. It's it's
[5:36:59] the tennessee law that allows
[5:37:01] unhoused people to be arrested
[5:37:03] for being on public spaces. I
[5:37:05] think that's just too much for
[5:37:06] us to be. And that's where we
[5:37:09] need to, to go. So the whole
[5:37:10] point of all this conversation
[5:37:12] is just to talk about where we
[5:37:14] are, what's going on, what we
[5:37:16] need to do, and what we need to
[5:37:17] continue to make sure that the
[5:37:18] chief and everybody is working
[5:37:20] on how do we keep downtown safe
[5:37:23] without a private policing?
[5:37:25] Thank you, MR. Koopman. I
[5:37:27] appreciate your kind of waiting
[5:37:29] till the end of the. Q so your
[5:37:30] other colleagues could say
[5:37:31] something and you could bring
[5:37:33] up the rear, would you, MISS
[5:37:35] Allen? I'm going to recognize
[5:37:36] you since the sponsor already
[5:37:38] spoke earlier. Go ahead.
[5:37:38] Thank
[5:37:39] you, MADAM Chair.
[5:37:40] I just want
[5:37:42] to build on a couple of things
[5:37:43] that my colleagues have said.
[5:37:45] First of all, I do want to
[5:37:46] point out that the sea bed is
[5:37:48] funded by two sources. One is
[5:37:49] the sales tax that was referred
[5:37:51] to, but the larger piece is the
[5:37:52] property assessment that the
[5:37:54] individual downtown owners,
[5:37:55] property owners who have chosen
[5:37:58] to pay this additional
[5:37:59] assessment are paying for, and
[5:38:01] they are part of the group that
[5:38:03] that decides what their
[5:38:04] definition of safe is. I hope
[5:38:05] they hear us loud and clear
[5:38:07] that we would like for them to
[5:38:08] broaden their definition of
[5:38:09] safe. And I believe that they
[5:38:11] have they have the ability to
[5:38:13] do that, but it does require a
[5:38:14] board change to do that, not
[5:38:16] the people that were here
[5:38:17] answering the questions
[5:38:18] yesterday. So I think this is
[5:38:20] our way to send a message to
[5:38:22] that board that we consider
[5:38:23] safe, that the streets are safe
[5:38:25] from a from an infrastructure
[5:38:26] standpoint, as well as from a
[5:38:28] policing standpoint. And I also
[5:38:30] want to just echo the the
[5:38:31] statements that have made here.
[5:38:33] This is that because this this
[5:38:35] scrutiny has been put on this
[5:38:36] process, a lot of good things
[5:38:38] have happened. I mean, the
[5:38:39] importance of looking at both
[5:38:41] how the budget is reviewed. We
[5:38:42] now have a process in place to
[5:38:44] do that. We've also called for
[5:38:45] accountability on all the
[5:38:47] security encounters that happen
[5:38:50] downtown, and I would again,
[5:38:52] encourage the organization to
[5:38:53] provide us, not just with
[5:38:55] annual reports on what their
[5:38:56] security encounters look like,
[5:38:57] but they have given us a
[5:38:59] quarterly one, and I would like
[5:39:00] to see those submitted
[5:39:02] quarterly as well. That's not
[5:39:03] something that's that's baked
[5:39:05] in, but changes have happened
[5:39:06] because of the robust
[5:39:07] conversations that we've had. I
[5:39:09] appreciate all the work that my
[5:39:10] colleagues have done into
[5:39:12] looking into how this process
[5:39:13] has worked. It has not been
[5:39:14] perfect, but it has, I think,
[5:39:15] improved significantly because
[5:39:17] of this scrutiny. And I think
[5:39:20] that the the organization on
[5:39:21] downtown partnership are all
[5:39:23] aware of the things that are
[5:39:24] important to us and that we
[5:39:26] will continue to push for those
[5:39:28] changes to be made. So, as
[5:39:29] other council members have said,
[5:39:31] I'm willing to give them a
[5:39:33] chance to put this in place and
[5:39:35] to continue to work on making
[5:39:36] this process better. Now that
[5:39:38] we've had a really good chance
[5:39:39] to explain the issues that are
[5:39:41] important to us.
[5:39:41] All right.
[5:39:43] Thank you, MISS Allen. Sponsor
[5:39:45] coupon. I'm going to come back
[5:39:46] to you because I do not believe
[5:39:48] you used all your time to start
[5:39:50] to pull it together. But please
[5:39:52] make it quick, sir.
[5:39:52] Thank you,
[5:39:54] MADAM PRESIDENT. And so I just
[5:39:55] want to address quite a few
[5:39:58] things that were said. You know,
[5:40:00] first of all, last year at the
[5:40:01] expansion conversations, one
[5:40:02] thing that was brought up is
[5:40:04] that I am the ex officio member
[5:40:05] representing the council on the
[5:40:07] dmc board and ndp board, and I
[5:40:09] took that to heart. I took that
[5:40:10] really seriously as my job to
[5:40:12] represent everybody here, and
[5:40:13] that's the work I've been doing
[5:40:16] over the last year in pushing
[5:40:18] and pushing ndp. You know, on
[5:40:19] the things that the council has
[5:40:21] deemed important. And that's
[5:40:23] why, you know, again, recently
[5:40:24] I had tom turner and lindsay
[5:40:26] krings with open table sitting
[5:40:27] across from each other
[5:40:29] discussing ways to partner on
[5:40:30] downtown safety. That's not
[5:40:32] police based. Right. We're
[5:40:33] seeing that progress. We have
[5:40:35] the budgets before us, which we
[5:40:36] haven't had for two decades.
[5:40:37] Right? So we are seeing forward
[5:40:39] progress. We are seeing
[5:40:41] movement. I completely agree
[5:40:43] with COUNCILMAN Evan siegel. My
[5:40:44] heart breaks. Talking to the
[5:40:45] families. I talked to the
[5:40:46] families of the people that die
[5:40:48] on our streets and die on our
[5:40:49] roadways. And nobody nobody's
[5:40:50] heart breaks more than mine
[5:40:52] when I have when I get to do
[5:40:54] that. So I take that very
[5:40:56] seriously. I was part of some
[5:40:58] great conversations with
[5:40:59] downtown partnership and mndot
[5:41:00] on some quick build for connect
[5:41:02] downtown and other things like
[5:41:04] that. And then director alarcon
[5:41:05] left, and those have stalled
[5:41:07] out. And I recently have been
[5:41:10] re reinvigorating those. A bid
[5:41:11] is supposed to supplement
[5:41:13] services. It's not supposed to
[5:41:15] replace services. And I think
[5:41:16] my position has been clear that
[5:41:17] we are failing as a city
[5:41:18] downtown and throughout the
[5:41:20] city. Vision zero pedestrian
[5:41:22] deaths are up across our city
[5:41:23] and we need to do more. A bid
[5:41:24] should support, should
[5:41:25] supplement, should add some
[5:41:26] funds to that, but they
[5:41:28] shouldn't be the only one held
[5:41:29] responsible when that fails.
[5:41:31] And so I think that we are
[5:41:32] failing as a city to keep our
[5:41:34] roads safe. And we're watching
[5:41:35] people die on our watch. And so
[5:41:37] I think that the bid again, and
[5:41:38] I would encourage them to
[5:41:40] supplement it, but not to that
[5:41:42] not to be fully taken over. But
[5:41:44] at the end of the day, to me,
[5:41:45] this is about 22,000 residents,
[5:41:47] 22,000 people that support a
[5:41:48] budget and support the bid and
[5:41:50] support this budget. It's a
[5:41:52] little concerning to me that I
[5:41:53] hear references to 11:00 at
[5:41:55] night, and as if this is last
[5:41:57] minute, this bill was first
[5:41:59] made public on MAY 13th, when
[5:42:01] the ndp appeared for a budget
[5:42:02] committee. There have been
[5:42:03] weeks of conversation.
[5:42:05] COUNCILMAN Suara and I, through
[5:42:06] at some of these meetings, have
[5:42:08] had conversations through ndp,
[5:42:10] have had conversations. So here
[5:42:12] some of this concern come up in
[5:42:14] literally in the 11th hour is
[5:42:16] concerning to me concerning my
[5:42:17] constituents. I appreciate the
[5:42:18] concerns. My commitment is
[5:42:19] still to be your ex officio
[5:42:21] member is still to work on your
[5:42:23] concerns. I was telling someone
[5:42:24] earlier today that even if this
[5:42:26] passes, this is not the end.
[5:42:27] Holding a budget over
[5:42:28] somebody's head to me is not
[5:42:30] the way to make progress here.
[5:42:31] It's to continue to collaborate,
[5:42:32] to continue to partner. I will
[5:42:34] continue to push. That's my
[5:42:35] promise to everyone here.
[5:42:37] There's more work to be done.
[5:42:38] There's more things to be
[5:42:40] addressed. But again, a vote
[5:42:42] against this bill is telling
[5:42:44] 22,000 people that put money
[5:42:46] into our budget, millions of
[5:42:47] dollars into our budget,
[5:42:48] telling them that we don't care,
[5:42:49] we don't trust them, and that
[5:42:51] we know better. And I just
[5:42:53] think that's not fair.
[5:42:55] Right?
[5:42:57] Seeing no one else in the queue,
[5:43:00] we will move to the vote. MR.
[5:43:02] Clark, this is a resolution
[5:43:03] several members have declared
[5:43:05] from the floor that they will
[5:43:07] be voting no. If we have but
[5:43:08] one no vote on a resolution, we
[5:43:10] do have to be on the board by
[5:43:12] rule. And so, MR. Clark, if you
[5:43:31] would please load the vote, sir.
[5:43:39] Colleagues, this requires 21
[5:43:43] votes for passage. Everyone
[5:44:00] voted. All votes. And, MR.
[5:44:06] Clark, please show the vote.
[5:44:09] MR. Clark seems to be the
[5:44:10] second time we've encountered
[5:44:13] this issue. Can you confirm in
[5:44:14] special council? Can you
[5:44:16] confirm that this does indeed
[5:44:21] require 21 votes for passage?
[5:44:22] Special council.
[5:44:24] Vice mayor,
[5:44:29] under ordinance number oh 98 to
[5:44:31] 1270. Future annual budget
[5:44:32] submitted by the district
[5:44:33] management corporation MAY be
[5:44:34] approved by resolution by 21
[5:44:35] affirmative votes of the
[5:44:36] metropolitan council.
[5:44:37] All right.
[5:44:40] I saw 20 affirmative votes. I
[5:44:42] did not catch the remainder of
[5:44:43] the vote. MR. Clark, can you
[5:44:45] please call the vote, sir, for
[5:44:47] the record.
[5:44:48] 20 votes in favor,
[5:44:50] eight against. And I believe
[5:44:52] there were two. Two abstentions.
[5:44:56] Okay. 20 votes in favor, eight
[5:45:00] against and two abstentions.
[5:45:03] And this resolution has has
[5:45:09] failed. All right. Next is.
[5:45:11] Agenda item 11. This is
[5:45:17] resolution 2026-2004. Sponsor
[5:45:19] tombs and hill. This is a
[5:45:20] resolution adopting a new pay
[5:45:21] plan for the general employees,
[5:45:22] the metro government of
[5:45:23] nashville and davidson county,
[5:45:24] excluding employees of the
[5:45:26] board of health, the board of
[5:45:27] education, and the police and
[5:45:29] fire departments. Effective
[5:45:33] JULY 1st, sponsor. Tombs. Madam
[5:45:35] budget chair, you're recognized.
[5:45:36] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor.
[5:45:37] Committee reports budget and
[5:45:40] finance voted to recommend a.
[5:45:42] To defer to the JUNE 16th
[5:45:43] meeting. Nine in favor, zero
[5:45:44] against zero not voting.
[5:45:45] Okay.
[5:45:48] So that's a effectively a one
[5:45:50] meeting deferral to a regular
[5:45:51] meeting. The JUNE.
[5:45:52] We didn't
[5:45:54] want to confuse it with the.
[5:45:54] JUNE.
[5:45:56] No I appreciate that.
[5:45:59] JUNE 16th meeting. Okay. And
[5:46:00] for the report of the
[5:46:02] government operations and
[5:46:02] regulations committee chair
[5:46:04] hill, you're recognized, ma'am.
[5:46:06] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor. We
[5:46:07] recommended one meeting
[5:46:10] deferral.
[5:46:15] One. Colleagues. Okay.
[5:46:16] I'm not sure what's going on
[5:46:17] because I'm focused on
[5:46:19] committee reports, but let's
[5:46:23] please. Okay. Okay. Colleagues.
[5:46:25] Everybody. Everybody. Deep
[5:46:31] breath, deep breath. Hey hey
[5:46:33] hey hey.
[5:46:34] No no no.
[5:46:36] No no, we're
[5:46:39] not doing that. If people want
[5:46:41] to have a calm discussion off
[5:46:44] the floor, that's fine. If we
[5:46:46] ever say take it outside in
[5:46:49] this room, that means for a
[5:46:50] substantive, calm discussion in
[5:46:53] the hallway, that does not mean
[5:46:56] for any escalation of tempers
[5:46:58] and feelings in here.
[5:47:01] Colleagues, from a professional
[5:47:03] perspective. Okay, look, we
[5:47:05] need to get it together. Okay?
[5:47:07] Everybody take a deep breath.
[5:47:09] It is very late. You have all
[5:47:12] been very patient. I know that
[5:47:13] was probably an outcome that
[5:47:15] was not anticipated. And thus
[5:47:16] some folks are emotional about
[5:47:18] that. But we need to maintain
[5:47:20] our professionalism. We are in
[5:47:21] the middle of a committee
[5:47:23] report. We owe the respect to
[5:47:24] our constituents and the people
[5:47:26] who have spent the time here
[5:47:28] this evening. We need to
[5:47:29] proceed through our agenda.
[5:47:30] We're talking about pay plans.
[5:47:32] Pay plans matter. Let's make
[5:47:33] sure that we keep them on track
[5:47:35] with the budget and renew our
[5:47:38] focus so that we can hopefully
[5:47:39] proceed and get on out of here
[5:47:43] by midnight. Okay. Is everyone
[5:47:44] sufficiently calm to proceed at
[5:47:49] this juncture? Okay. All right.
[5:47:51] MADAM Chair, I apologize. I
[5:47:53] believe perhaps you were amid
[5:47:54] report for government
[5:47:55] operations.
[5:47:58] Yes, on 2004. Defer
[5:47:59] one meeting, five in favor,
[5:48:01] zero against zero. Not voting.
[5:48:05] Okay with that per rule 8.1
[5:48:09] that will be deferred by rule
[5:48:10] having that track with the
[5:48:12] budget, it will be taken up at
[5:48:14] the meeting of JUNE 16th. Next
[5:48:15] is agenda item 12. We have a
[5:48:17] series of pay plans here.
[5:48:22] Resolution 2026-2005 sponsors
[5:48:23] tombs, huffman and hill. This
[5:48:25] is a resolution adopting a new
[5:48:26] pay plan for the employees of
[5:48:28] the metropolitan board of
[5:48:31] health, effective JULY 1st,
[5:48:33] 2026. Chair tombs, you're
[5:48:34] recognized.
[5:48:34] Thank you, MADAM
[5:48:36] Vice mayor. Committee reports
[5:48:38] budget and finance voted to
[5:48:40] recommend a deferral to the
[5:48:41] JUNE 16th meeting. Nine in
[5:48:43] favor, zero against zero not
[5:48:43] voting.
[5:48:44] Okay. And for the
[5:48:46] report of the public health and
[5:48:47] safety committee chair huffman,
[5:48:47] you're recognized, sir.
[5:48:48] Thank
[5:48:49] you, vice mayor. Public health
[5:48:51] and safety recommended deferral
[5:48:52] nine in favor, zero against
[5:48:53] zero not voting.
[5:48:54] Okay. And for
[5:48:55] the report of the government
[5:48:57] operations committee again,
[5:48:58] chair hill.
[5:48:59] We recommended one
[5:49:00] meeting deferral five in favor,
[5:49:02] zero against zero not
[5:49:05] all right. Then by rule 8.1,
[5:49:09] this is an automatic deferral
[5:49:12] by rule to the meeting of JUNE
[5:49:14] 16th. Next is agenda item 13,
[5:49:18] resolution 2026-2006. Sponsor
[5:49:19] tombs, huffman and hill. This
[5:49:21] is a resolution adopting a new
[5:49:23] pay plan for employees of the
[5:49:24] metropolitan departments of
[5:49:26] police and fire, effective JULY
[5:49:29] 1st, 2026. Sponsors tombs,
[5:49:31] huffman and hill again, budget
[5:49:34] chair tombs, you are recognized.
[5:49:35] Thank you, MADAM Vice mayor.
[5:49:36] Committee reports. Budget and
[5:49:37] finance voted to recommend a
[5:49:39] deferral to the JUNE 16th
[5:49:40] meeting. Nine in favor, zero
[5:49:42] against zero not voting.
[5:49:43] Okay.
[5:49:44] And for the report of the
[5:49:45] public health and safety
[5:49:46] committee chair huffman.
[5:49:46] Thank
[5:49:48] you, vice mayor. I'd like to.
[5:49:49] Public health and safety
[5:49:50] recommended. Deferral one
[5:49:52] meeting, nine in favor, zero
[5:49:52] against. You're not voting.
[5:49:55] Okay to meeting of JUNE
[5:49:57] 16th. And for the report of the
[5:49:59] government operations and
[5:50:00] regulations committee. Chair
[5:50:02] hill, please, ma'am.
[5:50:02] We
[5:50:03] recommended a one meeting
[5:50:05] deferral, five in favor, zero
[5:50:06] against not voting.
[5:50:06] All
[5:50:10] right. So by rule 8.1, this is
[5:50:12] a mandatory deferral by rule to
[5:50:13] the meeting of JUNE 16th. That
[5:50:15] is our regular meeting. So not
[5:50:16] the meeting of JUNE 9th,
[5:50:17] is a special called meeting.
[5:50:24] Okay. All right. Okay. Next is
[5:50:29] agenda item 15, resolution
[5:50:30] 2026-2008. Sponsors, tombs hill,
[5:50:32] huffman, ewing and suara. This
[5:50:34] is a resolution approving
[5:50:35] application for a comprehensive
[5:50:37] opioid stimulant and substance
[5:50:38] abuse use site based program
[5:50:40] grant from the U.S. Department
[5:50:42] of justice to the metro
[5:50:43] government acting by and
[5:50:45] through the metro board to
[5:50:48] implement a pilot, a pilot of a
[5:50:50] sobering and stabilization
[5:50:51] center to provide a coordinated,
[5:50:53] community based response for
[5:50:54] individuals experiencing
[5:50:57] substance related crises and
[5:50:58] reduced reliance on emergency
[5:50:59] departments and incarceration
[5:51:01] by creating a safe, appropriate
[5:51:03] diversion option. MISS Tombs,
[5:51:05] sponsor your recognized.
[5:51:05] Thank
[5:51:06] you, MADAM Vice mayor.
[5:51:08] Committee reports budget
[5:51:09] finance voted to recommend
[5:51:10] approval. Ten in favor, zero
[5:51:11] against zero not voting.
[5:51:12] Okay.
[5:51:13] And for the report of the
[5:51:14] government operations
[5:51:15] regulations committee chair
[5:51:18] hill, you're recognized.
[5:51:18] Thank
[5:51:20] you, MADAM Vice mayor. We
[5:51:21] recommended a one meeting
[5:51:23] deferral, three in favor, two
[5:51:24] against zero not voting.
[5:51:26] Okay.
[5:51:27] And then for the report of the
[5:51:28] public health and safety
[5:51:31] committee chair huffman.
[5:51:31] Thank
[5:51:32] you, vice mayor. Public health
[5:51:35] and safety recommended approval.
[5:51:36] Not in favor. Zero against zero
[5:51:37] not voting.
[5:51:38] Okay. But with the
[5:51:41] one meeting deferral in
[5:51:45] committee for gov ops, rule 8.1
[5:51:46] applies such that that will be
[5:51:48] a mandatory deferral by rule.
[5:51:50] Again, this will be to the
[5:51:55] meeting of JUNE 16th. Okay.
[5:51:58] Next. Well, no, we took that.
[5:52:00] We put that back on consent. So
[5:52:06] not that 123 agenda item 23.
[5:52:09] Resolution 2026-2016 sponsors
[5:52:10] tombs, huffman and ewing. This
[5:52:11] is a resolution approving
[5:52:13] amendment one to a grant from
[5:52:14] the tnnessee department of
[5:52:15] finance and administration to
[5:52:17] the metro government, acting by
[5:52:18] and through the
[5:52:19] family safety to host a
[5:52:21] tennessee family justice
[5:52:23] centers statewide conference to
[5:52:24] enhance the statewide network
[5:52:26] of family justice centers and
[5:52:27] increase the capacity and skill
[5:52:32] of statewide teams. MR. Chair,
[5:52:34] you're recognized.
[5:52:34] Thank you,
[5:52:36] MADAM Vice mayor, budget
[5:52:37] committee report. Budget
[5:52:38] finance voted to recommend
[5:52:40] approval. Ten in favor, zero
[5:52:41] against zero not voting.
[5:52:42] Okay.
[5:52:43] And for the report of the
[5:52:44] public health and safety
[5:52:45] committee chair huffman, you're
[5:52:47] recognized, sir.
[5:52:47] Thank you,
[5:52:49] vice mayor. Public health and
[5:52:50] safety recommended approval.
[5:52:51] Not in favor. Zero against zero
[5:52:52] not voting.
[5:52:55] Okay. All righty.
[5:52:58] So I'm not sure why that was
[5:53:01] not on consent. But if we could
[5:53:02] be back to you, MISS Tombs, for
[5:53:03] a motion, please.
[5:53:04] Move for
[5:53:05] approval.
[5:53:05] Okay. Is there a
[5:53:06] second?
[5:53:06] Second.
[5:53:07] Is there any
[5:53:09] discussion on this item? Seeing
[5:53:10] none. All in favor, please say
[5:53:13] aye. Any voting? No. Any
[5:53:16] abstaining? Okay. You have
[5:53:19] adopted this resolution. I
[5:53:20] believe there were abstentions
[5:53:22] in committee which explains its
[5:53:24] removal from consent. No
[5:53:27] worries. Okay, now we are at
[5:53:28] bills. That concludes our
[5:53:30] resolutions. Now we are on
[5:53:32] bills, on introduction and
[5:53:33] first reading. By rule, all
[5:53:35] items on first reading shall be
[5:53:36] voted on at the same time,
[5:53:38] unless requested otherwise, by
[5:53:39] a primary sponsor or by two
[5:53:41] other members. Do any items
[5:53:45] need to be removed from the
[5:53:51] collective vote? Okay, MISS
[5:53:53] Evans, I see you there in the
[5:53:55] queue. Now. You are recognized.
[5:53:55] Go ahead ma'am.
[5:53:56] Thank you, vice
[5:53:58] mayor. I apologize because I
[5:54:00] was not prepared with the
[5:54:02] number, but I just need to
[5:54:04] thank you. Item number 37,
[5:54:07] council member haughton's bill.
[5:54:10] Okay. Would you also like to
[5:54:12] remove its companion 38? That
[5:54:14] requires certain materials.
[5:54:15] They have to.
[5:54:16] Actually have to.
[5:54:17] Okay. Yeah. That's fine.
[5:54:17] They
[5:54:19] do. Ideally they track together.
[5:54:25] Okay. Okay, so 37 and 38. Let's
[5:54:28] see. You are not the primary
[5:54:31] sponsor. Are there two members
[5:54:33] that would seek to have that
[5:54:37] removed? Okay. I see several
[5:54:40] seconds. Okay. That will be
[5:54:43] taken off of first reading. Do
[5:54:44] any other items need to be
[5:54:46] removed from the collective
[5:54:50] first reading vote? Okay.
[5:54:51] Seeing none, is there a motion
[5:54:54] for approval of all items
[5:54:56] remaining on first
[5:54:58] consideration? Okay, it's
[5:54:59] properly seconded. Without
[5:55:02] objection, you have approved
[5:55:05] all items on first reading. All
[5:55:07] right. Now we will go back to
[5:55:10] those two pulled items again.
[5:55:12] They are companions to each
[5:55:15] other. First among them is
[5:55:21] agenda item 37. Ordinance bl
[5:55:22] 2026-1391. Sponsors. Haughton,
[5:55:23] porterfield, gadde, hoffmann.
[5:55:25] Welch, tombs. Prep. Tee.
[5:55:27] Benedict, spain. Parker. Weiner.
[5:55:29] Vo. Bradford. Koopman. Ewing.
[5:55:31] Johnston. Sepulveda. Evans,
[5:55:33] cortez and hill. This is an
[5:55:34] ordinance amending title 17 of
[5:55:36] the metro code of laws to add
[5:55:38] various new data center uses
[5:55:39] and related definitions and
[5:55:41] conditions to the zoning code
[5:55:43] and its companion agenda. Item
[5:55:47] 38 ordinance bl 2026-1392.
[5:55:49] Sponsor. Haughton. This is an
[5:55:50] ordinance that requires certain
[5:55:51] materials to be restricted in
[5:55:54] the construction of buildings
[5:56:00] referred to or related to. 1391
[5:56:02] okay, sponsor horton, you're
[5:56:03] recognized sir.
[5:56:03] Thank you, vice
[5:56:04] mayor. Move for approval,
[5:56:05] please.
[5:56:08] Okay. Okay. There's a
[5:56:10] motion to approve. Is there a
[5:56:12] second? Okay. All right. We're%
[5:56:14] on to discussion. Council
[5:56:16] member evans. You're recognized.
[5:56:18] Thank you, vice mayor. I think
[5:56:20] that the sponsor has brought
[5:56:22] forth a very important piece of
[5:56:25] legislation that is probably
[5:56:28] very overdue. We also have
[5:56:30] another bill that is late filed,
[5:56:32] and the reason why I asked for
[5:56:35] this one to come off of consent
[5:56:36] is primarily because of the
[5:56:38] late filed nature of the other
[5:56:40] piece of legislation that there
[5:56:42] it's possible that two people
[5:56:44] or more will raise their hands
[5:56:47] to remove that item or not
[5:56:48] allow it to proceed to, you
[5:56:50] know, to be considered on first
[5:56:52] reading. And so I think, you
[5:56:53] know, one of the things that I
[5:56:54] feel like is important,
[5:56:56] especially in the heightened
[5:56:57] tension that we have just
[5:56:59] witnessed in our body, is to
[5:57:01] really think through even if
[5:57:03] you don't agree with a bill, if
[5:57:04] you don't agree, you know, with
[5:57:05] maybe the direction of
[5:57:08] something, being able to have a
[5:57:09] conversation as a body, I think
[5:57:11] isreally important, especially
[5:57:13] when we're a diverse council of
[5:57:17] 40 people with different views,
[5:57:19] experiences, etc. But I think
[5:57:20] we will all be unified about
[5:57:22] this topic. And so I think that
[5:57:24] there's aspects of the late
[5:57:26] filed legislation that are
[5:57:28] important to consider. And so I everyone will
[5:57:31] give this topic the due
[5:57:33] consideration as we pass this
[5:57:35] piece of legislation to also
[5:57:38] consider, you know, the ceo of
[5:57:39] nashville zoo and his
[5:57:41] perspective about the late
[5:57:43] filed bill as well. So that's
[5:57:45] all I'm in total support of the
[5:57:46] direction that we're headed.
[5:57:47] Thank you.
[5:57:48] All right. Is there
[5:57:50] any further discussion on the
[5:57:52] motion, the consolidated motion
[5:57:56] to approve 37 and 38, which are
[5:57:58] on introduction and first
[5:58:00] reading. MISS Weiner, do you
[5:58:04] seek to be recognized? Go ahead.
[5:58:05] Yes, ma'am.
[5:58:06] Thank you, thank
[5:58:08] you. I'll be brief, I promise.
[5:58:11] We really don't have to choose
[5:58:14] between these two bills and the
[5:58:16] bill that's late filed. We need
[5:58:18] them all. We need to make sure
[5:58:22] that we cut any opportunity out
[5:58:25] in the imminent future. So that
[5:58:27] we can work our way through the
[5:58:30] long term picture of the bills
[5:58:31] that we have filed, that we
[5:58:34] have before us right now. We
[5:58:36] need to think collectively. We
[5:58:38] need to think in terms of short
[5:58:41] term as well as long term.
[5:58:43] Excuse me. And and so we need
[5:58:46] to protect the zoo. We need to
[5:58:49] protect the proposed potential
[5:58:51] neighbors of any new data
[5:58:52] centers that could come on
[5:58:55] board without a moratorium, as
[5:58:56] we'll discuss shortly. Thank
[5:58:57] you.
[5:58:59] All right. Any further
[5:59:01] discussion? Again, this is a
[5:59:03] motion to approve on 37 and 38
[5:59:07] missiles. You're recognized.
[5:59:09] Thank you. I'm I'm not in
[5:59:12] support of these bills at this
[5:59:13] time. Not because they're not
[5:59:15] needed. I think they are. But I
[5:59:19] do think that the upcoming bill
[5:59:20] gives us an opportunity to
[5:59:22] council member evans point to
[5:59:25] have more robust conversation
[5:59:26] as a body, to figure out what
[5:59:28] are all the things that we'd
[5:59:30] like to see when we're
[5:59:30] discussing with the future of
[5:59:33] data centers look like here in
[5:59:34] nashville. So to take a moment
[5:59:38] to pause, breathe, reassess,
[5:59:39] make sure everything is in line,
[5:59:42] and then create some new
[5:59:44] ordinances. I think it's a wise
[5:59:45] move. So I would be a no on
[5:59:47] these. Thank you.
[5:59:49] All right.
[5:59:50] council member porterfield,
[5:59:51] you're recognized.
[5:59:52] Thank you,
[5:59:53] vice mayor. I'll speak very
[5:59:54] briefly. I rise in support of
[5:59:55] this legislation. I would ask
[5:59:57] my colleagues to support this
[5:59:59] legislation as well. I know
[6:00:00] that it's been several
[6:00:03] references to a late filed to
[6:00:04] some late filed legislation
[6:00:06] that will be coming up, but
[6:00:08] this is amendable. So if there
[6:00:10] are things that people want to
[6:00:11] see that are not currently in
[6:00:14] that this can be amended on a
[6:00:15] future reading. I'm standing
[6:00:16] in support. Thank you.
[6:00:17] All
[6:00:18] right. Seeing no one else in
[6:00:21] the queue will move to the vote.
[6:00:25] All in favor of approval on
[6:00:28] first of three readings of this
[6:00:30] title 17 bill, which is
[6:00:32] amendable in the future and can
[6:00:35] be deferred multiple times.
[6:00:40] 3738 all in favor, please say any voting no. Any
[6:00:44] abstaining? Okay. All right.
[6:00:46] Several no's. That's fine. It
[6:00:48] passes. First reading 37 and 38
[6:00:50] have passed their first reading,
[6:00:53] even though there is some no
[6:01:01] votes. Okay. All right. MISS
[6:01:02] Lee, were you you were an
[6:01:09] abstention. Okay. All right.
[6:01:14] Now, as just touched upon, is
[6:01:17] agenda item or rather section
[6:01:22] in late bills in one unnumbered
[6:01:24] is an ordinance declaring
[6:01:26] temporary moratorium upon the
[6:01:28] acceptance, processing,
[6:01:30] approval and issuance of zoning,
[6:01:32] building or grading permits for
[6:01:33] data center developments on
[6:01:35] property within nashville and
[6:01:38] davidson county. Sponsors
[6:01:40] johnston, huffman, bradford,
[6:01:42] evans, copan, eastlake, ellis,
[6:01:44] rutherford, stiles, spain,
[6:01:46] wiener, nash, webb, drawful and
[6:01:49] gregg. In the absence of the
[6:01:52] primary sponsor, does the
[6:01:56] second sponsor seek to be
[6:01:58] recognized? MR. Huffman, your
[6:01:59] second sponsor on this bill? Do
[6:02:05] you seek to be recognized? For
[6:02:06] potential suspension of the
[6:02:07] rules?
[6:02:08] Yes. I'd like to
[6:02:09] consider suspension of the
[6:02:10] rules with the body.
[6:02:11] Okay. So
[6:02:13] there's been a motion to
[6:02:15] suspend the rules. Chair. Cash,
[6:02:18] did you take up the late filed
[6:02:19] nature of this in your
[6:02:19] committee?
[6:02:21] Yes we did. We and
[6:02:24] we voted to approve the late
[6:02:27] filing and voted five in favor.
[6:02:29] Zero against one did not vote.
[6:02:32] Okay. So having heard the
[6:02:35] request of the second sponsor
[6:02:37] and the report of chair cash,
[6:02:40] is there any objection to a
[6:02:43] suspension of the rules? Okay,
[6:02:47] it just takes two. And so the
[6:02:50] rules are not suspended,
[6:02:53] meaning that this bill will not
[6:02:55] proceed on first reading at
[6:02:56] this time, but it can be timely
[6:02:59] filed for our next agenda. Okay,
[6:03:01] next, we're on to bills on
[6:03:03] second reading that were not on
[6:03:05] consent. First among those is
[6:03:08] agenda item 76, ordinance bl
[6:03:11] 2026 1356 sponsors tombs, evans,
[6:03:12] siegel and benton. This
[6:03:15] ordinance, amending chapter
[6:03:18] 2.24.225 of the metro code of modify appraisal
[6:03:19] requirements for certain real
[6:03:21] estate acquisitions made by the
[6:03:22] national department of
[6:03:24] transportation and multimodal
[6:03:25] infrastructure, aka in dot and
[6:03:27] for. Choose how you move
[6:03:29] projects. Chair tombs. You're
[6:03:33] recognized to get the committee
[6:03:34] reports and then the bill
[6:03:35] before us. Please, ma'am.
[6:03:35] thank
[6:03:36] you, MADAM Vice mayor,
[6:03:38] committee report, budget and
[6:03:39] finance voted to recommend
[6:03:41] approval as substitute. Nine in
[6:03:42] favor, zero against zero not
[6:03:43] voting.
[6:03:43] Okay. And for the
[6:03:45] report of the transportation
[6:03:46] infrastructure committee chair
[6:03:50] evans. Siegel. Go ahead, ma'am.
[6:03:52] I'm trying. I just had a
[6:03:56] butterfinger. The train. It was
[6:03:57] not your fault. Council member
[6:03:59] allen, the transportation and
[6:04:01] infrastructure committee voted.
[6:04:04] And this is 1356 voted in favor
[6:04:06] of the substitute. Ten in favor,
[6:04:07] zero against. You're not voting.
[6:04:09] And to approve a substitute,
[6:04:10] ten in favor, zero against.
[6:04:11] You're not voting.
[6:04:12] Okay with
[6:04:13] those committee reports in.
[6:04:14] It's back to you chair tombs
[6:04:16] for motion to get the bill
[6:04:16] before us please.
[6:04:17] For approval.
[6:04:19] Is there a second? Okay. Back
[6:04:19] to you.
[6:04:21] Like to move the
[6:04:21] substitute.
[6:04:22] Second for that
[6:04:23] motion. Anything you want to
[6:04:24] say about the substitute.
[6:04:25] It
[6:04:26] changes the fees.
[6:04:27] Okay. Is
[6:04:31] there any discussion? Very
[6:04:33] cogent. Is is there any
[6:04:34] discussion on the motion to
[6:04:37] substitute on the substitute?
[6:04:38] Seeing none. All in favor of
[6:04:39] the motion to substitute please
[6:04:42] say aye. Any voting no or
[6:04:44] abstaining. All right. And if
[6:04:47] an abstention this is on the
[6:04:50] substitute motion MISS Styles.
[6:04:53] So the substitute has passed
[6:04:55] and is on the bill. If you
[6:04:56] would please renew your motion.
[6:04:57] Move for approval of
[6:04:57] substituted.
[6:04:58] Okay. Second for
[6:05:01] that. All right. Any discussion
[6:05:04] on that. Okay. There's a motion
[6:05:06] to approve as substituted on
[6:05:08] second of three readings.
[6:05:09] Seeing none. All in favor
[6:05:11] please say aye. Any voting no
[6:05:13] or abstaining MISS Styles.
[6:05:15] That's an abstention there.
[6:05:17] Okay. You'll be recorded as an
[6:05:21] abstention. All right. Next on
[6:05:24] second reading is agenda item
[6:05:31] 79. Okay. Ordinance bl 2026
[6:05:33] 1381 sponsor coupon. This is an
[6:05:34] ordinance approving the fiscal
[6:05:38] year 2027 gulf central business
[6:05:39] improvement district council
[6:05:40] member cooper, you're
[6:05:41] recognized sir.
[6:05:42] Thank you,
[6:05:42] MADAM PRESIDENT. Committee
[6:05:43] reports, please.
[6:05:44] For the report
[6:05:45] of the budget. Finance
[6:05:46] comittee chair, tombs.
[6:05:46] Budget
[6:05:48] and finance voted to recommend
[6:05:49] approval. Seven in favor, two
[6:05:51] against zero not voting.
[6:05:52] Okay.
[6:05:55] All right. It's back to you,
[6:05:56] MR. Koopman. For a motion to
[6:05:58] get the bill before us.
[6:05:58] Move
[6:05:59] approval.
[6:06:00] Okay. Is there a
[6:06:03] second? Okay, so we're on to
[6:06:04] discussion. But you have the
[6:06:06] floor. First. You want to go to
[6:06:08] the queue. Okay. Council member
[6:06:10] porterfield, your first in the
[6:06:12] queue. Go ahead ma'am. Sorry.
[6:06:13] That's me. Go ahead.
[6:06:14] It's all
[6:06:15] good. Thank you. Yesterday I
[6:06:17] had a question that I asked
[6:06:18] publicly and I did get the
[6:06:20] answer. So I just wanted to
[6:06:21] like speak it into the record.
[6:06:23] The question that I asked was
[6:06:25] around safety. And if we knew,
[6:06:26] was any of the money for this
[6:06:28] going to like thp or civic or
[6:06:29] any of those other things, and
[6:06:31] it is not the money is going to
[6:06:34] the downtown partnership safety
[6:06:35] ambassadors. So I just wanted
[6:06:37] to get that information on the
[6:06:39] record for anyone that MAY be
[6:06:40] wondering. So thank you.
[6:06:40] Okay.
[6:06:44] Is there any further discussion?
[6:06:50] Okay. Let's see. I guess we'll
[6:06:54] try by voice to start because
[6:06:57] this is it's a bill in second
[6:06:59] rather than a resolution. Okay.
[6:07:02] All in favor of this ordinance
[6:07:04] on its second of three readings,
[6:07:08] please say aye. Any voting? No
[6:07:10] any abstaining. All right. This
[6:07:11] is passed its second of three
[6:07:14] readings. Next we're moving
[6:07:18] into third reading items, none
[6:07:21] of which all of them were on
[6:07:24] consent. And so with that, that
[6:07:25] concludes this evening's agenda.
[6:07:26] Our next council meeting will
[6:07:28] be a special called meeting on
[6:07:30] tuesday, JUNE 9th to take up
[6:07:31] the capital improvements budget.
[6:07:32] The joint special meeting will
[6:07:34] be at 5 P.M. In the main
[6:07:35] meeting with a very brief
[6:07:37] agenda will start at six. There
[6:07:38] will be no announcements.
[6:07:39] Portion. Is there a motion to
[6:07:49] adjourn? We are adjourned.
[6:07:49] This
[6:07:51] has been a service of the metro
[6:07:53] nahville network. If you would
[6:07:55] like to see this presentation
[6:07:56] again or for more information
[6:07:59] on this and other programs,
[6:08:16] visit nashville.Gov.