Best Advocate for the Downtrodden: Father Charles Strobel Charlie Strobel is getting annoying. Or at least, you get the sense some people are feeling that way these days. That's because, like a mosquito buzzing in the ear of Nashville's movers and shakers, Strobel has persistently—some would say stubbornly—refused to tone down his unceasing advocacy on behalf of this city's homeless residents. With his gracefully lilting Southern accent and that Nokia cell phone that won't stop playing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," Strobel is a one-of-a-kind Catholic priest in a time when Catholic priests' collective reputation could use a makeover. He can pray, he can curse, he can command, persuade or guilt—come on, he's Catholic—and one gets the sense that he can storm the palace if need be. As he ages—and gracefully, we might add—he's caring less about what people think of him and more about whose ear he'll have to bend or chew to get respite care, as part of a broader systemic effort, for Nashville's homeless. It's a recipe for fireworks, and we predict he'll lead a thousand-person march up Eighth Avenue before he lets another ostensibly benevolent, inevitably bureaucratic committee's plan get shelved amid polite, pomp-filled promises. Go Charlie, go. Liz Murray Garrigan

Best soon-to-be-Fulfilled Promise: Nashville Greenways It has been promised, and we're all waiting: an ambitious network of landscaped walking paths threading throughout Nashville is the vision shared by everyone involved in the Nashville Greenways project. As the downloadable route maps show, Nashville pedestrians will eventually have an opportunity to ramble amply throughout Davidson County virtually out of earshot and glimpse of any vehicular traffic whatsoever. Despite the slings and arrows of inevitable bureaucratic impedimenta, trails are opening and trekkers are tromping in locations as varied as Richland Creek/White Bridge Road, Charlotte Pike/Cumberland River and Beaman Park. For updates, maps, volunteer sign-ups and atta-boys, log onto www.nashville.gov/greenways. Marc Stengel

Best As-Yet Undeveloped Development Project: Church Street Gayborhood Nobody enters the world of alt-weekly journalism to make money, and I'm no exception. But man, if I were a real estate developer—or a well-heeled investor, or hell, even if I just had some rich friends in need of an idea man—I'd make some serious money with this one. It's Nashville's first gay neighborhood, a.k.a. the Gayborhood. No, it's not an effort to ghettoize the city's same-sex-loving population. It's simply a recognition that Church Street, just a couple blocks west of I-40, is quickly and intentionally becoming a corridor of homo hangouts. Unfortunately, however, they line a high-speed four-lane highway, the other side of which is covered by surface parking for the likes of Jack Morris Auto Glass. Why not buy Jack's place and build some trendy lofts atop retail shops and a gourmet grocery store? Then get Metro to slow the traffic, plop in a median, tree-lined sidewalks and a couple dozen street lamps—just like 12 South, the Gulch, and Demonbreun redevelopments—and you've got yourself a real livable place. Just think, Nashville's gayborhood, like Columbus, Ohio's Short North, San Francisco's Castro or Washington, D.C.'s Dupont Circle, could serve as an urban living model for the rest of our back-assward little city. I know I'm not the first person to realize this—even The Tennessean has noted it in the recent past—but let's get this ball rolling. I mean, there's money to be made here, folks, on some upscale residential development to accompany the commercial investment that's already happening. Besides, this project sure as hell beats building another Wal-Mart, no matter how cheap those slave kids'll work. Just remember where you heard the idea. Liz Murray Garrigan

Best Awkwardly Intimate Men's Room: Broadway Brewhouse Men don't like to talk to each other in public rest rooms, George Michael excepted. (Did he talk?) Seinfeld may have done a whole episode on our peculiar habits, come to think of it: we look straight ahead and keep our hands to ourselves. (You fellas who put one—or god forbid, both—hands on the wall while pissing make the rest of us uneasy.) So when you've had a few beers at the Brewhouse or eaten a Cajun burrito from Mojo, that little room can feel like particularly close quarters. Two urinals, so close they practically touch each other, with a sink right next door. Whose idea of a joke is that? Aggressively heterosexual men don't put their hands within two feet of another man's business. Oh, and there's also a real-deal toilet in there, for a total capacity of three, plus a hand-washer. Try packing that many in, I dare you. Now, the downside to this situation is clear; the upside is that it's a real conversation starter. Give two tipsy guys something to bitch about, and they'll be fast friends. So thanks, I think, for helping a dude make a new buddy in the bathroom. But seriously—eyes forward. Liz Murray Garrigan

Best Person We Miss: Charles Hawkins Like many people, I was stunned to hear of Charles Hawkins' death last June at age 72 after a painful bout with cancer. He was just too vital a man. I've never known a riverboat captain, but the mental image I have is a lot like Mr. Hawkins: broad-shouldered, barrel-chested, treetop tall, with a booming voice and bottomless gusto. When I met him, he still had the Paul Bunyan build that made him the strike-out king of Vanderbilt's baseball team in the '50s; he was a millionaire many times over and one of the city's most prominent real-estate magnates (not to mention Albie Del Favero's Little League coach). And yet he didn't have a pretentious bone in his body. When I suggested the now-gone Varallo's on Church Street for a business lunch, he beamed; a half-hour later he was tucking into a hubcap-sized bowl of chili like a farm hand going after gravy. That was when he and a group of investors bought the Belcourt on behalf of the Watkins Institute, an experiment he subsidized long after anyone else would have sold it for a parking lot. What impressed me wasn't so much that he bought the theater, although that was a huge boon to the city. What impressed me was that he actually attended it. (The last time I saw him was last fall at the inscrutable Matthew Barney film Cremaster 3: not only was he the only one present who owned up to his confusion, he actually cornered Terry Glispin from the Fugitive Art Center in the lobby wanting answers. The same was true of Vanderbilt baseball, his abiding passion. Lots of people could have written a fat check for a new stadium, as he did. But those public philanthropists wouldn't have brought cookies to the teammates before each game—let alone candy bars for those with wheat allergies. Charlie Hawkins was your supporter when it counted: in the dugout, with bases loaded, nine innings down. There isn't room to list all the things he and his wife Lee Ann have done for the city and the local arts scene in particular—not just the big gestures that make headlines, but the countless small kindnesses that recipients sometimes never knew. Even at his visitation—attended by thousands, from wealthy politicians to university chancellors to destitute art students—his family laid out a lavish spread for the visitors. Not dainty finger food, mind you, but big ham biscuits worthy of the man himself, meant to please, fortify and sustain. Surrounded by flowers stood the large-as-life portrait of a contented man, represented by a single item leaned against the gilt frame: a Vanderbilt baseball bat, gleaming with pride. Jim Ridley

Best Neighborhood Association: Woodland-in-Waverly We at the Scene aren't unbiased on this question, as we proudly reside in this eclectic little neighborhood just off the Eighth Avenue corridor near Melrose. What makes this place so special is its diversity of cultures and lifestyles—musicians and artists neighboring fine abodes that are home to some of the city's high-profile professionals. Scads of sweet-faced little kids playing in the yards of old-timers who can hold forth like professors on the history of this little neighborhood. Duplexes, cottages and Victorians all peacefully co-exist. Block parties and ice cream socials draw the mayor and dozens of neighborhood residents, who all seem genuinely to enjoy one another. It gives community a good name. Liz Murray Garrigan

Best Automotive Attraction: Lane Motor Museum Don't bother trying to understand the Lane Motor Museum at 702 Murfreesboro Road. Suffice it to say that this brainchild of Jeff and Susan Lane is unique not only to Nashville but also within the wider world of automotive cognoscenti. Assembled upon the honey-colored hardwood floors of the former Sunbeam Bakery are some 100 and more of the most exotic, eccentric, fanciful and beautiful automobiles and motorcycles ever conceived. The national automotive press has discovered and raved about Lane Motor Museum since its founding in October 2003. It's only appropriate, therefore, that Nashvillians discover this automotive Garden of Delights for themselves. For more information and directions, go to www.lanemotormuseum.com. Marc Stengel

Best Next Thing to Happen in East Nashville: Redevelopment of South 11th Street Attorney Whitney Kemper and partners have acquired 90 percent of both sides of the block between Russell and Fatherland streets, as well as commercial parcels on Fatherland, and have a gentleman's agreement to take over Bill Martin's grocery when he's ready to retire. This area, which has the potential to be the commercial "zipper" between Edgefield and East End, has for years been a neighborhood hangout for boozers, prostitutes and gamblers. Architect Rich McCoy is drafting plans for a mixed-use village combining office, retail and residential and estimates groundbreaking to begin in summer 2005. Near Easters can hardly wait. Christine Kreyling

Best New Urban Plan: The Plan of Nashville A product of the Nashville Civic Design Center, this 50-year vision for the central city paints a picture of tree-lined boulevards instead of clogged arteries and highways, greenways and neighborhoods along the Cumberland River, and a downtown with citified dwellings and its own elementary school. Teams of local design professionals took the results of a series of community workshops involving over 800 Nashvillians and shaped the plan, which has been translated into a book by NCDC staff and this journalist. Due out in November, the book is not a literal blueprint so much as a map to guide future investment along progressive paths. Christine Kreyling

Best Opportunity to Transform Downtown (Let's Try Not to Blow It): The Thermal Site Now that the thermal plant has been demolished, Nashville finds itself with 11.5 acres of land right smack downtown, in a strategic location that connects the riverfront, the Broadway/Second Avenue entertainment district, SoBro and road and pedestrian links to East Nashville. The possibilities are endless—parks, housing, hotels, recreation, commercial space, civic buildings, transportation facilities—and could transform downtown. But the very wealth of possibilities means that the options can come in many combinations that could work out extremely differently. The city needs to try to work out what mix of uses we most need on this site, and how it will work to the best benefit of everything around it—not just accept a few proposals and see which of those look good. We owe it to ourselves to have goals for this land. And that requires planning. So far, we've seen a "we all know what the options are, let's just get something done" approach that seems pragmatic but in practice promises more in unintended consequences than in results that meet civic interests. This is exactly the kind of process that could end up with a bunch of surface parking lots or a self-enclosed event facility that drains rather than adds to the vitality of the central urban core. Dave Maddox

Best Place to Become a Born-Again Libertarian: Any Roadway in Nashville Ever since Chief Ronal Serpas took over the police department last spring, his force has been out in, well, force. Everywhere. If you haven't been busted yet for surpassing one of the city's many lower-than-necessary speed limits, you probably will be soon enough. What started as perhaps a well-intentioned effort to increase highway safety has become a textbook case of overblown Nanny Statism. What's more, it's actually making the traffic situation worse. Our real problem, after all, is not people driving everywhere too fast; it's people unable to drive anywhere at all due to traffic congestion, something not at all helped by the presence of a police car on the side of the road every few thousand yards or so. (And while we're on the subject of congestion, this whole business isn't exactly doing wonders for the efficiency of our local courts.) Meanwhile, Tabitha Tuders is still missing. Priorities anyone? Roger Abramson

Best Clean Bathroom at a Music Venue: The Five Spot For female concertgoers there's nothing more dreaded than using a club bathroom. Sticky floors, no toilet paper and gross seafood odors are the disgusting norm. Not so at The Five Spot in East Nashville. The bathroom is like one in a hotel—clean and fully stocked with the essentials. The floor and toilets are spotless (no need to squat). Best of all, next to the sink is a bowl of potpourri. The clean welcoming feel extends from the bathroom to the rest of the club. Across from the bar are comfy chairs and a sofa that create a mini-den. Add friendly waitresses who clean off bar tables while the audience enjoys bands playing, and you'll never want to leave. Marie Yarbrough

Best Place for Free Wi-Fi: Panera Bread on 21st Avenue Wireless Internet is one of those things that makes you appreciate being alive in the 21st century. Free wireless Internet is that much better. While places like Borders and Kinko's make you pay through the nose for the privilege of surfing on your laptop, others, like Bongo Java and Portland Brew, let you do it for the price of a cup of coffee. The new Panera Bread store on 21st Avenue, though, has the best deal in town. That's because you can get unlimited refills of coffee, which means you can order a mug of joe and surf-sip-refill all freaking day long for just under a buck-and-a-half. Of course, this takes some willpower to accomplish, since Panera also has all sorts of goodies to munch on. Like me, you'll probably break down soon enough and plunk down a few bucks for some lunch and something sweet to munch on for dessert. Which is, of course, the whole reason they offer the free wi-fi in the first place. Roger Abramson

Best Good Ol' Boy Sheriff in Middle Tennessee: Truman Jones Jr. At a time when Rutherford County seems to be overrun with a growing number of faceless subdivisions and strip malls, it's reassuring to know that the sheriff continues to provide so much local color that he could've walked straight out of a Southern Gothic novel. This has been a banner year for Jones, a walking example of a law unto himself. Last March, he threatened litigation against the editor of the MTSU campus newspaper and allegedly ordered background checks on its staff, who'd labeled his department a "merry band of thugs." In June, The Tennessean sued Jones after making repeated attempts over eight months to gain access to public records of prisoners who've died on his watch. One inmate reportedly was denied medical attention for six straight days before dying of bacterial meningitis. Last summer Jones sued the county for additional funding to hire further personnel and purchase new vehicles, even though commissioners had suggested he reduce operating costs by reorganizing the top-heavy administration of the sheriff's department and preventing misuse of funds. Given his enduring role in laying down the law, perhaps the county courthouse should reserve a space where Jones' record can someday stand right next to the plaque commemorating Nathan Bedford Forrest. Bill Levine

Best Cooking Instructor: Margot McCormack Margot, of her eponymously named restaurant in East Nashville's blossoming Five Points area, gathers her culinary followers in her restaurant from time to time for cooking classes. I've taken five or six of them, and while I can honestly say I don't think I've yet to make a decent hollandaise at home, I am successfully pan sautéing trout with a cherry tomato/chopped onion/herb topping. Which sure beats Hamburger Helper. The classes essentially pull you into Margot's physical and mental space, where there's no such thing as a recipe. What she teaches you is a general body of knowledge, use of the best available ingredients, gut instinct and ineffable but important considerations such as the weather outside. Oh, and always throw in lots of butter. Bruce Dobie

Best Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Space for a Shopping Mall: The Factory in Franklin Once home to a variety of industrial age companies (Dortch Stove Works, Magic Chef, the Jamison Bedding Company), The Factory at Franklin was ultimately abandoned. But the rambling, red-brick structure, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is only six blocks from downtown Franklin, ultimately found salvation as a shopping mall at the hands of investor Calvin LeHew. Inside the structure these days you'll find dozens of locally owned and operated retail establishments ranging from restaurants and foodie stores (Viking Culinary Arts and Gulf Pride Seafood, for instance) to clothing shops, jewelry outfits and an entire wing dedicated to showcasing the works of individual artists. Suburban shopping malls generally give me the willies, and something about Cool Springs to me just ain't right with the world, so it's with a sense of genuine relief that I know I can visit a new retail destination only minutes from Cool Springs' strange epicenter and feel good about the world. Bruce Dobie

Best Nashville-Area Athlete You've Never Heard Of: Andrew Bumbalough Outside of Steve McNair, there's no Nashville athlete more dominant in his sport than Brentwood Academy harrier Andrew Bumbalough, who on an average day could probably beat any high school runner in the country. Last year, he was the top underclassman at the ultra-competitive Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in San Diego. He followed that by running a blazing 8:46 two-mile during the subsequent track season—making him the fourth fastest junior of all time. Not resting on his considerable laurels, he then proceeded to dominate the Tennessee state track meet, winning the 3200 and 1600 and finishing second in the 800. After a low-key summer of training, he launched his senior season by setting a three-mile course record at the Tennessee Classic at Edwin Warner Park, putting nearly a minute between him and the next fastest finisher. This kid can run. No doubt Bumbalough can set his sights on winning NCAA track and cross country championships and has as good a chance as any other American teenager of running in Beijing in the 2008 Olympics. Of course, he competes in an unpredictable and often unforgiving sport, and who knows what the future might hold. So let's stick to what we know: Bumbalough is a great high school athlete, and, we should add, a really good kid to boot. Matt Pulle

Best Walk-Through Neighborhood: The "Tree Streets" of 37212 From Primrose to Magnolia and Hazelwood to Linden, the sidewalk-lined "tree streets" that course between Belmont Boulevard and Hillsboro Pike are a stroller's delight. Over rolling terrain and under cooling shade, walkers can meander through Civil War battle sites along Cedar Lane, house-browse along Brightwood Avenue, even zig-zag block-by-block toward a well deserved "pint stop" at Boscos brew pub in Hillsboro Village. Traffic among the tree streets is virtually nonexistent, and the denizens almost always wave. Marc Stengel

Best New Park: Shelby Dog Park Aside from the new Shelby Dog Park, where four-leggeds can be footloose and leash-free, it’s been an anti-pooch year. Proposals in the Metro Council to ban four-leggeds from Sevier Park, for example, rallied the animal friendly troops and created months’ long antagonism between the pro- and anti-canine sides. Ultimately, that effort failed (though dogs are seen much less these days at Sevier). But it left a sour taste in the mouths of dog lovers all across the city. Fortunately, in an unrelated development, we got thrown a bone, so to speak, with Shelby Dog Park. Let Rover roam its confines, but do remember to pick up his poop. Matt Pulle