245 People Walk Into a Council Meeting…
🦞 The zoo data center debate reaches its apex · Metro produces no documents justifying origin or current need for $1.5M in grants to pro-illegal alien nonprofits · Internal Rose poll suggests late-campaign gain on Blackburn · Much more!
Good afternoon, everyone. The zoo data center debate reaches its apex at last night's council meeting... Metro Nashville produces no documents justifying origin or current need for $1.5M in grants to pro-illegal alien nonprofits... Internal Rose poll suggests late-campaign gain on Blackburn.... And much more!
New American Frontiers Join us July 16th for a conversation with Kevin Dolan, founder of the EXIT fraternity, on institutional decline, parallel power, and where political opportunities are. (Buy Ticket)
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Everybody wants a ticket to the data center fight.
From Megan Podsiedlik
As of 8 p.m. last evening, 245 tickets had been doled out to Nashvillians wishing to speak during the public hearing on the Council’s proposals to regulate the construction of data centers in Music City.
“If you want to do the math, two [minutes] times 245 speakers is an eight-hour public hearing,” said Vice Mayor Angie Henderson, reminding those in attendance that the bill has 28 sponsors—enough votes to ensure its passage.
The audience chuckled when Henderson asked those opposed to the bill to raise their hands. The response made it clear who had filled the room. The ribbon of people winding down the staircase and out the door was made up entirely of residents waiting for their chance to speak in favor of regulations on data centers.
Respecting the council’s time and considering the repetitive nature of the unified message, several speakers kept it short, and the public hearing lasted only four hours.
The spectrum of speakers present at last night’s meeting reflected how the topic of data centers has become an incredibly nonpartisan issue. Though the word "revolution" was thrown around a surprising amount of times—perhaps inspired by the past weekend’s celebrations—there were a number of nuanced takes indicating how much the implications of data centers have captivated public consciousness.
Between warnings about AI's potential impact on the job market, concerns over noise and water pollution, and the strain data centers could place on the electric grid, speakers also challenged what they described as a manufactured narrative that data centers are an unavoidable necessity despite little evidence of clear public benefit. Several speakers also emphasized that they support innovation, but not at the expense of public health or their communities.
The overwhelming backlash appears to stem from poor messaging combined with the insurmountable task of convincing the public that a data center next to a zoo is a good idea. Mayor Freddie O’Connell implied as much in an uncharacteristically aggressive statement condemning a press release by data center developer DC Blox in which the company claimed collaborative progress on its controversial facility next to the Nashville Zoo.
“The timing would suggest an attempt to disrupt tonight’s council votes on data center legislation,” O’Connell said of the release which he called “divorced from reality and indicative of a company trying to repair a PR problem they caused for themselves.”
The crayfish paradox “Currently, it appears as if Nashville cares more about animals than we do about the residents of North Nashville,” said Winston Wellington Wright, a Fisk University alumnus who spoke in support of regulations to protect North Nashville from a proposed 30-megawatt data center at Fisk University.
Wright's remarks are reminiscent of Nashville’s crayfish protection debacle. The city’s endangered crayfish population was mentioned at least twice during last night’s meeting—though by speakers advocating for stronger data center regulations to protect vulnerable species. Still, the comparison carries weight in a city where residents have at times felt that protecting crayfish has come at the expense of addressing the concerns of Nashvillians.
Following the record-breaking flash floods that swept through Music City in 2021, several homeowners near Sevenmile Creek raised their foundations to protect their properties from future flooding. Some residents have even taken some off-the-book measures to safeguard their homes, doing so without obtaining permits due to Nashville’s strict regulations on new construction and modifications within floodplains.
The Cumberland River Compact removed a dam on Sevenmile Creek in 2015, touting the project as a restoration effort that would return the waterway to a free-flowing state. For residents living along the creek, however, that was not their experience when clogged channels and rising waters washed out their homes, carried off their vehicles, and prompted dramatic rescue efforts.
Yet Sevenmile Creek cannot simply be dredged or altered to reduce flood risks because it serves as a critical habitat for Nashville’s federally endangered crayfish. As a result, some residents are left with a difficult choice: continue living with the risk, unable to make foundational improvements that could protect their homes, or sell their properties to the government.
In a city where protections for crayfish can appear to outweigh the concerns of residents, Wright’s statement carries more weight. What does it mean when setting aside differences for the sake of a zoo seems easier than doing so for the sake of your neighbors?
*The council passed all data center regulation legislation, including the mayor’s late-filed eminent domain bill. Ultimately, it’s unknown whether any of the legislation will have an impact on DC Blox’s zoo data center proposal or any other data center projects already in the works.
✹ NEW AMERICAN FRONTIERS
New American Frontiers Kevin Dolan, founder of the EXIT fraternity, argues the institutions most people still rely on have turned hostile to competence and entered a slow decline that can't be reversed from within. After being doxxed and fired in 2021, he set out to build the alternative: parallel institutions and the high-trust networks that hold up when formal ones don't.
Join us Thursday, July 16th for a conversation on institutional decline, parallel power, and where the political openings actually are.
✹ METRO COUNCIL WATCH
New Council Watch Features We've added additional features to Council Watch. In addition to who's funding your council member, you can now see how they vote and who they vote with most frequently. (Take a Look)
HEADLINES
- 🎪 Metro Nashville produces no documents justifying origin or current need for $1.5M in grants to pro-illegal alien nonprofits. Metro Nashville produced 51 emails in response to The Star’s public records request, but none included documentation explaining or justifying the nearly $1.5 million in FY2027 grants approved for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors in this year’s budget. According to state law, such documents are required before nonprofit appropriations are made. While a spokesperson from the mayor’s office previously told The Star that none of the money appropriated in the FY 27 budget would be used for attorneys, legal representation, or advocacy for illegal aliens, the Metro Clerk later told The Star that the FY 27 budget merely changes the funding source to the original grant from Biden-era ARPA funds to Metro taxpayers. (TN Star)
* For additional background, see The Pamphleteer's original reporting that first highlighted the proposed funding in Mayor Freddie O'Connell's budget. - 🗳 Internal Rose poll suggests late-campaign gain on Blackburn. An internal poll commissioned by U.S. Representative John Rose's gubernatorial campaign indicates he has narrowed the gap with U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn as early voting approaches. McLaughlin & Associates conducted the survey of 600 likely Republican primary voters between June 28 and 30. (TNJ)
*Early voting in Tennessee’s gubernatorial primaries starts next Friday, July 17 and continues through August 1. (TN election info) - 🥤 TN halts SNAP waiver program excluding certain sweets and sodas. Tennessee's planned restrictions on using SNAP benefits to purchase certain sugary foods and drinks have been halted after the federal government directed states to pause implementation of approved waiver programs. The move follows a federal court ruling that vacated the U.S. Department of Agriculture's approvals for several state waivers, sending them back to the agency for further review and leaving Tennessee's July 31 implementation date on hold. (TNJ)
DEVELOPMENT
- Margot Cafe and Bar building listed for $3M following restaurant's closure (NBJ)
- Kohler spends $14 million on Wedgewood-Houston warehouse (NBJ)
- 16-story tower slated for former Pure Gold's Crazy Horse site (NBJ)
- Music Row's TikTok office building fetches $146 million (NBJ)
- CoreCivic sells two detention facilities for $1.5B (Post)
THINGS TO DO
View our calendar for the week here.
📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.
🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.
👨🏻🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide.
TONIGHT
🎸 Bloc Party @ Ryman Auditorium, 7p, $84, Info
🪕 Addie Levy @ The Basement, 7p, $12.85, Info
+ bluegrass multi instrumentalist based out of Nashville
🎸 Carson Bull and The Cousins / Sidecar / Moondance @ The East Room, 8p, $13.36, Info
+ high energy country and rock 'n roll
💀 Tennessee Dead @ Tennessee Brew Works, 6p, Info
🪕 Bluegrass Night @ The American Legion Post 82, 7p, Free, Info
🎸 Kelley’s Heroes @ Robert’s Western World, 6:30p, Free, Info
📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.
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Today's newsletter is brought to you by Davis Hunt, Megan Podsiedlik, and Camelia Brennan.