February Update

EVENTS

Recycling Christmas trees into mulch, rather than putting them in the trash, keeps them out of landfills and helps save Metro the cost of disposal fees. Trees can be taken until February 11 to the following locations:

• Cane Ridge Park
• Una Recreation Center
• Whitfield Park
• Cedar Hill Park
• Two Rivers Park
• Joelton Community Center
• Sevier Park
• Richland Park
• Elmington Park
• Edwin Warner Park
• Lakewood City Hall
• Frederick Douglas Park
• Both of Living Earth’s locations at 1511 Elm Hill Pike and 6401 Centennial Blvd. (Living Earth of Tennessee’s operating hours are Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; Saturday 8:00 a.m. to noon)

Trees must be cleaned of all ornaments, lights, wire, string and other decor before bringing them to be tree-cycled. No artificial trees can be accepted. Please do not dump any other items at these drop-off locations.

Brush pick-up this month is scheduled to start in the following areas:

• February 3 – Area 2 East Madison, Inglewood, Neely’s Bend, Peeler Park, Maplewood Heights, Iverson, Maxwell Heights, Edgefield, Eastwood, Shelby Bottoms, Shelby Hills, and Lockland Springs
• February 13 – Area 3 Old Hickory, Lakewood, Hermitage, Stones River, Two Rivers, River Trace
• February 17 – Area 4 Donelson, Airport, Percy Priest, Northeast Antioch
• February 27 –Area 5 Antioch, Cane Ridge, Paragon Mills

Every other week Recycling pick-up begins January 30 in the urban services district. This is part of the Zero Waste Solid Waste Master Plan adopted in 2019 to increase options for diverting waste from landfills. This is important because landfills are becoming increasingly less accessible. Cardboard, plastic bottles, and aluminum cans can be turned back into useful products once they are collected, saving natural resources and landfill space. The recycling schedule can be found at recycling calendar page

WeGo Public Transit is holding the 2023 Spring Service Changes public comment period Jan. 17 through Feb. 7, with adjustments becoming effective Sunday, April 2. Changes include the 18 Airport route, 19 Herman route, and new WeGo Link zones in Bellevue, Sylvan Park and Cockrill Bend. WeGo link is a low cost ride share to cover the “last mile” between bus routes and popular destinations not currently served by a bus. A full list of detailed service changes can be found at: the Service Changes link, including public meetings that will be both in-person and virtual. Comments will be taken at the meeting or they can be mailed to WeGo Public Transit Community Engagement, Attn: Public Meeting Comments, 430 Myatt Drive, Nashville, TN 37115; or call Public Comments at 615-862-5686; or email comments to WeGoTransit@nashville.gov through February 7.

The Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee is holding listening sessions hear from community members about solutions to mobility challenges in Nashville. The next community listening session is February 16th with Urban Housing Solutions and Network for Sustainable Solutions. Register here: Transit Together. Other sessions are

• February 28th w/Civic Design Center Register here (venue TBA)
• March 8th w/Walk Bike Nashville (venue TBA)
• March 21st at Southeast Library at Global Mall Register here

Neighbor to Neighbor is hosting its fifth annual Conference for Neighborhoods (C4N) on April 1. Topics will include Neighborhood Safety, Infrastructure, Homelessness, Transit and others. Participants will learn critical skills and capabilities to more impactfully involve residents and identify specific steps that should be taken to motivate residents to address issues that affect them. Registration for C4N is required at the C4N website. The cost is $35 to $75.

The Metro Budget process for fiscal 2024 is underway. At this point each department has prepared an operating budget to present to the Mayor. Over the next few months the Mayor’s Office will put together a city-wide operating budget to propose to the council on May 1. The Metro Council is holding a public comment period scheduled for the February 21 Council meeting to hear from citizens about their budget priorities. Information about the budget is at the Citizen’s Guide to the Budget

The Broadway bridge has been identified as deteriorating, and TDOT has completed designs to replace it later this year. The bridge will be shut-down for construction from July through August with project completion expected in October. During that time traffic will be rerouted to Church and Demonbreun. Detours will be set up from I-40 to 8th Avenue. The new bridge will still have six lanes of traffic with wider sidewalks including additional space for planters to separate vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Visit the project web page for more information on the construction timeline and detours.

Applications are being accepted for Vanderbilt’s School for Science and Math program. The School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt (the SSMV) is seeking highly motivated MNPS high school students who are passionate about science and math, ready to apply themselves as today’s problem solvers and interested in becoming tomorrow’s leaders. The SSMV will prepare students to successfully engage in college studies at an accelerated rate, promote the pursuit of graduate, postgraduate and professional study, and provide the strong foundation crucial for career success. The SSMV application is be available to current eighth-graders and is due February 10. Visit the SSMV website to learn more .

In February the International Dark Sky Association is highlighting the Globe at Night citizen science project, This project generates data showing how fast light pollution is growing. February 12 - 23, observing the constellation Orion and reporting what it looks like from Nashville is a way to Love the Stars. Nashville now has Dark Sky lighting regulation to guide outdoor lighting to minimize light pollution, which affects our health, our environment, and our economy.

The Tennessee Environmental Council Tree Day is coming up in March. The hard freeze last December was devastating to a lot of trees and bushes, so replacements might be needed. If you missed the Nashville Tree Conservation Corps tree planting opportunity, you can still order seedlings from TEC. Pick up is Saturday March 18 at several locations around the county. Reserve your trees at the TEC Tree Day website. Pick up spots are:

• 909 E Trinity Lane, E3 Innovate
• 3700 James Kay Lane, Hermitage Library
• 658 Murfreesboro Rd, Greenrise Technologies
• 11 Cheek Rd, Cheekwood

ISSUES

The council is considering several noteworthy bills in February and March. BL2022-1471 Family Bill clarifies the definition of dwelling unit and raises the maximum number of unrelated people in a single family home. People have expressed concern about parking from increased density, so the council will continue to work on this. An amendment is expected to bring the maximum down from the proposed 7 to 5, which is more in line with cities like Chattanooga and Charlotte.

The proposed new Titans Stadium negotiations are continuing. There are no bills before the council on the February 7 agenda, but the council will have to sign off on multiple agreements before anything is final. We expect to see those by March.

The Planning Commission is scheduled to consider BL2022-1409, a Tree Bill which strengthens incentives to preserve existing tree canopy and heritage trees. The sponsor is still working with stakeholders on finding a balance that will protect trees without significantly driving up the cost of building homes and exacerbating Nashville’s housing affordability challenges. An amendment is expected when this goes before the Planning Commission on February 9.

The mayor’s office has announced $10 million for Participatory Budgeting. This is a chance for communities to decide together how government money is spent. Neighbors suggest infrastructure improvements or project ideas and then vote on which ideas to invest in for the neighborhood. This process allows residents to identify, discuss, prioritize, and have a direct line to the funding needed for community improvements. North Nashville has successfully implemented two participatory budget processes and chosen playground and crosswalk projects. This will expand the process to other neighborhoods throughout the city. To submit ideas, visit the Paticipatory Budgeting website.

The State legislature is currently considering bills to reduce the size of the council, defund the convention center, and take over nominations for Nashville’s Sports and Airport Authorities. These bills do not appear to be driven by good governance or to represent the will of the people and taxpayers that they will impact. The Davidson County delegation is working to defeat or amend each of these, but it will be difficult. Anyone who has friends in other Tennessee Counties should ask them to write their senators and representatives and ask them to oppose HB48/SB87 (reduce council to 20) , SB648 (takes away tax resources paying convention center bonds), and HB1176 and HB1197 (Airport and Sports Authority nominations). State legislators can be contacted at the state legislature website

Openings on Metro Boards and Commissions. Metro has over 75 boards and commissions that help the government operate and interpret regulations fairly. These are composed of volunteer citizens with interest or expertise in the particular subject. Board members are nominated by the mayor and confirmed by the Metro Council. When current members’ terms expire, and they decide not to continue, there is the opportunity to add new members to the board. Terms are expiring, and spots may be opening up on the Fair Board, Greenways Commission, Metro Action Commission, Planning Commission, Stormwater Commission, and the Board of Zoning Appeals. Anyone who is interested in serving can fill out a form on the Metro website at for each specific board or contact me at the email below, and I’ll pass your resume on to the mayor’s office.

IRS Free File is offered via a public-private partnership between the IRS and the Free File Inc. (formerly the Free File Alliance) whereby leading tax software providers make their online products available in both English and Spanish for free. Seven partners will provide IRS Free File online products this year to any taxpayer or family who earned $73,000 or less in 2022. IRS Free File products support both computer and mobile phone access. Get more information here.

I recently sponsored and passed legislation that sets up C-PACER funding for commercial properties to perform resiliency or energy efficiency renovations. It works like a loan that is paid back by additional assessments from the Metro trustee and travels with the ownership of the property. More information is available at the Trustee’s website

I hope everyone is staying warm and safe. Please let me know what is on your mind. You can reach me at burkley.allen@nashville.gov or 615-383-6604. Happy Valentines, Presidents Day, and 2/3/23!

Regards,
Burkley Allen
Metro Council At-Large