Good morning, Nashville! It’s Thursday, August 20th - up early with the storms!

⚡ Quick hits

Weather: 🌦️ Showers and thunderstorms. High: 92, Low: 72.
TDOT picked a partner for toll lanes on I-24 and revealed the project could end up stretching past Nashville’s airport and through much of the downtown interstate loop.
What’s new in Nashville’s neighborhoods, including indoor pickleball, a new kind of pedal tavern, and a repeatedly complained about home gets another visit from Metro Codes.

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🚗 $9 billion project moves forward

It’s not just I-24 anymore.

When Tennessee’s Transportation Modernization Board picked a private partner to build toll lanes on I-24 from roughly I-440 to Murfreesboro yesterday, the board also opened the door to extending the toll lane project to I-40 a few miles past the airport and the right side of the downtown interstate loop up to the I-24/I-65 split pending more negotiations and approvals.

The deal

A group of firms called DriveTN proposed spending $9.2 billion on the project while paying more than $24 billion in concessions to Tennessee over a 50-year agreement.
The design avoids taking out Antioch’s new Pan-Asia Supermarket and the Noble Place Townhomes off Thompson Lane, according to TDOT. However, other property owners have started receiving letters indicating they could lose their property.

How the lanes will work

Existing travel lanes will remain without a charge to use them.
The price to use the toll lanes will vary depending on traffic congestion.

What both sides are saying

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee: “We knew that modernizing transportation would bring new opportunities, but this is by far bigger and better than we could have imagined for our state.” … “Will be the beginning of a change in the way that we are able to fund and build transportation infrastructure all across the state.”
Nashville State Representative John Ray Clemmons: “[Families in my district] outright, overwhelmingly oppose this project. This includes the small business owners, whose property you’re gonna take, the homeowners, whose homes you’re gonna tear down, severely decreased values in the neighborhoods, through which all the cars are gonna detour to avoid construction, and the tolls in the future. Now, you’re here today to announce a winner or winners, who’ll profit off the back to Tennessee’s working families in this region for half a century.”

What’s next

Property acquisitions are beginning this quarter, according to TDOT.
TDOT indicated the project could move faster than initially expected, but I haven’t heard a new timeline.

🏠 What’s new in Nashville’s neighborhoods

Downtown(ish)
- Nashville’s first two pedal taverns designed for people with mobility issues and disabilities received permits from Nashville’s Transportation Licensing Commission this week. The current pedal taverns, which commissioners showed no interest in expanding due to traffic congestion, aren’t “meeting the need of this community that wants to party,” one commissioner said.
- Shakespeare in the Park returns to Centennial Park tonight after nearly a decade away. Vendors open at 5:15 p.m. The performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” starts at 7 p.m. The cost: “Pay-What-You-Will ($20 suggested donation/person),” according to The Nashville Shakespeare Festival’s website.
Old Hickory
- A home with a history of codes complaints at 1107 Bryan Street got another visit from Metro Codes this week after someone sent a complaint alleging a “strong foul odor” and trash filling the inside and outside of the home. Metro issued an abatement notice, which is essentially a warning, for open storage of junk and trash and parking on the grass. It’s the second notice issued for the property this year.
The Nations
- Plans for indoor pickleball are moving forward at 1101 63rd Avenue North. The developer tells me a new building permit application is for The Picklr West Nashville.
Germantown
- Food truck to brick-and-mortar: Nashville Chicken and Waffles plans to open at the Nashville Farmers’ Market, according to a building permit application.
Crieve Hall and Oak Hill
- Want a sound wall along I-65? Nashville State Senator Heidi Campbell said residents have a rare opportunity to push for one as TDOT opens a study to improve congestion on I-65 between I-440 and Maury County. Here’s a link to her email explaining what you should do.
Pasquo
- Expansion of Stephens Valley neighborhood: 62 new townhomes and three mixed-use buildings are planned for the neighborhood at 441 Union Bridge Road, according to a building permit application.
Donelson & Hermitage
- New Starbucks: part of a former bank at 2725 Old Lebanon Pike will become a Starbucks with a drive-thru, according to a new building permit application. It’s one of two tenants expected to move into the building, based on a separate building permit.
- Taste of Donelson-Hermitage is back from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. tonight at the Holiday Inn by the Nashville Airport! “This one-of-a-kind culinary showcase brings together some of the area’s finest restaurants, eateries, bakeries, and beverage providers for an evening dedicated to celebrating the flavors, creativity, and community spirit that define Donelson Hermitage,” the event’s website says. Tickets are about $43 for adults, about $14 for kids 11 and up, and free for children 10 and under.
East Nashville
- A 16-year-old boy was arrested for bringing a gun stolen from an unlocked car to East High School yesterday morning, Metro Police said. 66% of the 602 guns stolen in Nashville this year were left in a car, according to police.
Wedgewood-Houston
- Restore our Fairgrounds, the group hoping to replace racing at the fairgrounds with affordable housing, released renderings of its vision for the property. The group is collecting signatures for a petition that would put the Fairgrounds’ future in the hands of voters this fall.
South Nashville
- Tonight at 6 p.m. - traffic calming meeting for Holt Hills Road at the Edmondson Pike Library Branch

📰 A few final headlines…

Metro Police asked for help finding a Colorado man who disappeared after visiting an East Nashville bar.
Laser strikes on aircraft in Nashville dropped slightly from 27 cases at this point last year to 24 this year, according to FAA data. “Many high-powered lasers can incapacitate pilots flying aircraft that may be carrying hundreds of passengers,” the FAA said. I checked how often it’s happening here because Metro Police shared video of a laser strike on its helicopter last weekend. They arrested a man on two counts of aggravated assault and evidence tampering for allegedly hiding the laser.
“TVA will consider a new electricity rate for data centers” at its quarterly meeting today. (WPLN)
Airport expansion: Nashville’s airport board approved buying two properties for a future runway: 0 Reynolds Road for $5.9 million and 1715 Murfreesboro Pike for $2 million. Airport leadership also wants to eventually extend a runway to allow direct flights to Asia.
Senator Marsha Blackburn celebrated the Department of Justice’s appeal of a Nashville federal judge’s ruling that threw out Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s prosecution for alleged human smuggling because, the judge said, it was essentially retaliation for challenging his wrongful deportation. “No one who transports illegal aliens for profit should walk free,” she wrote.
“Belmont University Hits Record-Breaking Enrollment, Tops 9,000 Students,” the university said.

🍔 MAP: click here for restaurant inspections across Nashville

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$9 billion reveal