Happy Monday, Nashville! It’s September 21st. Lots of news from Nashville’s neighborhoods, including neighbors fighting a “content house,” another property purchase tied to the Music City Loop, and a data center community meeting.
🌦️ Weather
Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. High: 98, Low: 71. 80s tomorrow!
✈️ More ground delays & ground stops
The number of flights impacted by ground stops and ground delays at Nashville International Airport is well above levels from just a few years ago, according to federal data I reviewed.
I started looking into this after the FAA issued another ground delay at BNA on Friday due to air traffic control staffing.
The FAA uses ground delays and stops to limit or stop air traffic from coming to the airport if it doesn’t have the capacity to handle scheduled traffic. Sometimes that’s because of weather, but it’s also happened repeatedly at BNA this year because of air traffic control staffing issues.
Here’s what the data shows for the number of flights impacted by ground stops or ground delays at BNA each year:
2021 - 53 (average 0.15 per day)
2022 - 205 (average 0.56 per day)
2023 - 236 (average 0.65 per day)
2024 - 152 (average 0.42 per day)
2025 - 1,031 (average 2.82 per day)
2026 (through August) - 560 (average 2.30 per day)
The database doesn’t list the reason for each ground stop and ground delay, but the average daily rate of impacted flights has more than tripled compared to a few years ago. The rate peaked in 2025, a year that included widespread staffing issues due to the government shutdown. For perspective, hundreds of flights take off and land at BNA each day, so a small fraction are impacted each year.
“The number of air traffic controllers in the U.S. has declined by about 6% in the last decade,” the Government Accountability Office said in January. “At the same time, there has been a 10% increase in the number of flights that rely on the air traffic control system. As a result, there have been staffing shortages at critical facilities.” Nashville is far from alone.
🏠 What’s new in Nashville’s neighborhoods
Green Hills
Influencer loses zoning appeal over “content house”: It’s a $7 million home, and neighbors aren’t pleased about what it’s become since an influencer with millions of followers bought it and turned it into what Metro calls a “content house.” One neighbor told Metro’s Board of Zoning Appeals, “Over the years we’ve witnessed huge public gatherings, 200 to 300 people, video photo shoots, shuttle buses blocking the road, many cars coming and going daily.” Metro’s zoning administrator issued a stop-work order because he determined the house was illegally operating as a commercial amusement/event space. On the other side: the influencer’s attorney described two private, invitation-only events with no admission charge and between 20 and 50 guests each. The board voted to affirm the zoning administrator’s decision, but the issue is also on appeal in a Metro court.
Downtown (and nearby)
The Boring Company’s biggest property purchase (that we know of): An LLC linked to the same address as The Boring Company just bought another property along the Music City Loop’s proposed underground tunnel route down Murfreesboro Pike. “Music City Loop’s initial 25-mile system will connect downtown Nashville and Lower Broadway to West End Ave and the Nashville International Airport and hopefully will include major stops along the way,” the company website says. It just paid $7 million for the former Volvo dealership at 302 Murfreesboro Pike. Over the past year, the LLC also paid $1.25 million for a property about a five-minute drive down Murfreesboro Pike at the I-24 and I-40 interchange and nearly $1 million for a commercial building near the intersection of Murfreesboro Pike and Briley Parkway. On West End, the LLC spent almost $2.4 million on a building at 3301 West End Avenue.
(Up to) $75 million for extension to pedestrian bridge: The John Seigenthaler pedestrian bridge is on track to be extended by about 750 feet to link directly with the new Titans stadium campus after approval from Metro’s Sports Authority. The project, estimated to cost up to $75 million, would be paid for with tourism-related tax revenue that was initially set aside to pay off Music City Center debt and then moved to East Bank projects by Tennessee’s legislature. The project still needs approval from Metro’s East Bank Development Authority tomorrow. Major construction would start in 2028 with completion in fall 2029 ahead of the 2030 Super Bowl, according to a Titans representative.
Antioch
Impact of new police precinct: Since the opening of the new Southeast police precinct 10 months ago, violent crime in the precinct dropped 26%, property crime decreased 15%, traffic stops nearly doubled (91%), and response times dropped by almost eight minutes, according to Metro’s police chief. This dashboard tells you response times for your neighborhood — and how they’ve changed over time.
North Nashville
Data center community meeting tonight: More than 18,000 people have signed a petition against a proposed data center at Fisk University. “Black and working-class neighborhoods across the country have repeatedly been the desired location for developing harmful infrastructure for the sake of profit,” the petition says. Tonight, you can ask Fisk representatives about the project at a community meeting organized by the North Nashville Organization for Community Improvement. It’s at 5:30 p.m. at Crossroads Campus (1757 16th Avenue North). You can register here, although registration is optional. Fisk’s president told ABC News last month the proposal “would make various campus renovations and new opportunities possible.” You can read the university’s full defense of the project here.
East Nashville
“New and recycled fashion”: Buffalo Exchange plans to open a thrift store at 1004 Gallatin Avenue on October 9. It already has a location on Elliston Place. “We offer customers 25% in cash or 50% in trade on-the-spot for current trends, designer, everyday styles, vintage and one-of-a-kind fashion finds,” its website says.
Wedgewood-Houston
Nearly 75,000 signatures: A group hoping to eliminate racing at Nashville’s Fairgrounds said it delivered a petition with 74,905 signatures to the Davidson County Election Commission on Friday. If about 40,000 of those signatures are verified — 10% of the county’s registered voters — Metro’s voters could decide next year whether to amend Metro’s charter to ban racing at the Fairgrounds. Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell told reporters on Friday he’s “not convinced” the “language” should be added to Metro’s charter.
Bellevue
New tea shop: Muni Muni Tea Shop is coming to Bellevue, according to a new building permit. It’s a “tea shop for matcha, bubble milk tea, and boba,” its Instagram says. Muni Muni already has a shop in downtown Nashville. Now it’s opening at the former WIN Bubble Tea space at 7648 Highway 70 South.
Donelson
Digitizing memories: Have an old audio cassette tape? You can now digitize it at the Donelson library branch’s Memory Lab. The library already offers digitization of several other old formats like VHS and camcorder tapes. More details + how to get an appointment at this link.
📰 A few final headlines…
Will Paramount come to Nashville? I’ve been following evolving reports this weekend about a potential settlement between Paramount and 12 Democratic attorneys general. The company has suggested it could leave California after states sued over its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery. Politico reported last week that the company was looking for 400,000 square feet of office space in Nashville. Then, last night, The Wall Street Journal said the settlement discussions include a potential promise to stay in California. And now this morning, Deadline reports that several attorneys general are resisting the deal. I’ll keep you updated on any impact on Nashville.
Honoring Phil Ponder: Dozens of people signed a card for artist and former Metro Council member Phil Ponder at the Hermitage Chick-fil-A this weekend. The restaurant said he entered hospice care. “We love Phil and want to have words, memories, affirmations that are from our community,” it said in a Facebook post. Like a lot of Nashvillians, I grew up with several of his prints in our home. Watch: profile by Tennessee Crossroads.
Airport traffic changes: Starting today, there’s a new traffic light for inbound and outbound traffic on the road connecting Terminal Drive to I-40, Nashville International Airport said. It shared a map and explanation of the changes here. Also today and tomorrow, a lane closure impacting the approach to arrivals and departures. And then on Wednesday, a change to exiting Terminal Garage 1. More in this video.
🧠 Today’s quiz: Neighborhood Match
Test your memory of Friday’s newsletter. Match each clue to one of the following neighborhoods: Downtown, Antioch, Wedgewood-Houston, Bellevue.
A 70-acre fall festival with a corn maze and sunflower field
A “serious safety concern” over food delivery drivers blocking traffic
A petition deadline over Fairgrounds racing
A new restaurant health inspection flagged for cockroaches
🍔 MAP: click here for restaurant inspections across Nashville
Finally, I want to thank all of you for an important milestone. nash.news reached 5,000 subscribers on Friday. I'm grateful for the opportunity to simplify all of the change in my hometown into a free morning newsletter. Every subscription, opened email, and clicked link helps make nash.news possible. Thanks for supporting independent journalism. I’ll be back in your inbox tomorrow! —Ryan
It is interesting to see that in Antioch, there may be a correlation between greater police presence and lower crime.
Just found this newsletter. EXCELLENT! I'll share to my Nashville connections.