On Tuesday night, Metro Council struggled through a rules change proposal by Councilmember Sandra Sepulveda that would allow the body more time to review board and committee nominations, extending the timeline of the confirmation vote by two weeks. “So, someone will come before the Rules Committee, we will have questions, we would go over their résumé, and then we would vote on a recommendation,” explained Sepulveda. “Then, at the next meeting…their vote would be on our agenda.”
According to Sepulveda, the existing rule has created “a situation where our boards and commissions don’t look and reflect the city that we currently live in,” which in turn has caused the “problems in our current boards and commissions that we are seeing in the news today.” (Could she have been referring to the strife within the Metro Arts Commission?)
Dave Rosenberg, a former council member currently serving as Metro’s Director of Data and Innovation, disagreed, stating that Sepulveda’s proposal would both deter volunteers and prove to be an inefficient solution. “Under this proposal, you will be treating volunteers with more suspicion, then you do legislation that you pass and what I mean by that is tonight you’re going to vote on a series of resolutions that just went through committee,” he said, before reminding the council that they have “636 seats to fill on 70 boards and commissions.”
Councilmember Terry Vo, on the other hand, echoed Sepulveda’s sentiments. The new rule, said Vo, would “symbolize the aspirations and integrity of our collective vision to have boards and commissions that reflect our city, which they don’t today.” Councilmember Emily Benedict piped up in solidarity, stating her intention to ensure that nominees are“diverse, from all areas of the city.”
As the discussion dragged on, Councilmember Jennifer Gamble struggled to see how the rule change would increase diversity. “I’m concerned that it’s going to do the opposite, that it’s going to drive more minorities away from doing it because of the perception or stringency of the process,” she said, before endorsing an alternative fix: “I think a better solution would be what councilmember Evans stated: having council members more involved and making nominations to the mayor’s office for board appointments.”
Ironically, Sepulveda admitted that she created a list of “Latinx” nominees that she recommended to the administration “and several of them got appointed to those boards and commissions,” proving that solutions to add diversity are already being implemented.
Exasperated, she concluded: “We are done with the old way of doing council. We need to do better.” In the end, the rules change passed with 29 ayes and 10 nays. The new rule will take effect in 30 days.
In Other Media Most outlets lead this morning with results from Vanderbilt University’s most recent poll. Mayor O’Connell achieved a 71 percent approval rating. In 2020, Mayor John Cooper’s approval rating was 80 percent around the same time.
O’Connell has yet to be tested on his number-one campaign priority—passing a transit referendum—but the poll revealed 84 percent of respondents supported placing the referendum on the ballot. That doesn’t tell us a whole lot of anything, but you can be sure it’ll be used to show support for whatever initiative the O’Connell camp rolls out in the next few weeks.
Differing significantly from the more arcane and Rhorsach-like Imagine Nashville poll, the Vanderbilt poll expressed clearly the top five priorities of Nashville residents:
1. Crime (71%)
2. Improving public education (67%)
3. Prioritizing affordable housing rental options (63%)
4. Prioritizing affordable home prices (62%)
5. Reducing area traffic (59%)
Is John Rose running for governor? “Well, it’s something I’m thinking about,” he told an audience Tuesday night. Rose would be joining a crowded field of maybes, including Rep. Mark Green, Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs, House Speaker Cameron Sexton, Ole Smoky Moonshine founder Joe Baker, Economic and Community Development Commissioner Stuart McWhorter, and CoreCivic CEO Damon Hininger.
A plague o’ both houses! A clear and unbiased primer on a controversy plaguing the Tennessee Republican Party from Stephen Elliott at the Nashville Banner. Some delegates elected in March to represent Donald Trump do not meet the party’s bonafide qualifications, which jeopardizes their election. The ordeal prompted a stern letter from the Trump campaign warning against their removal. On Saturday, the TRP is meeting to sign off on the slate of delegates.
Meanwhile, the Tennessee Democratic Party is quarreling over whether ex-officio members have voting rights within the party’s state executive committee. The Tennessee Lookout’s Holly McCall reported on that this morning.
Development
Tony Giarratana secured financing for his 750-foot tall skyscraper project at 1010 Church Street, the current site of the Downtown YMCA. Once completed, the mixed-use development will be the tallest building in Tennessee, eclipsing the Batman Building. It will join Giarratana’s other developments along Church Street, which he calls “downtown’s street for locals.”
Giarratana’s 1010 Church Street will include 140 condos atop 360 apartments and 500 parking spaces across 60 floors.