Press, elected officials and city VIPs packed into the Nashville Public Library’s ornate Reading Room downtown for the 62nd State of Metro Address on Thursday morning. Mayor Freddie O’Connell emphasized points of progress, like first steps on his signature public transit overhaul, as well as pressing needs — particularly a worsening city housing crisis — in the annual update to the Metro Council and city leaders.
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O’Connell stressed optimism and teamwork amid stiff city headwinds. His office followed a strong referendum victory in November with a slate of citywide transit improvements in March. Last month, the mayor installed Sabrina Sussman as his Choose How You Move executive, a long-awaited hire. Each infrastructure improvement will give the mayor something concrete to point to when asked what he’s done with the extra sales taxes Nashvillians pay at the register.
Repeatedly, the mayor returned to basic government functions like emergency responders and codes inspectors, seeking to connect City Hall’s suited bureaucracy to issues that “touch the lives of our residents each day” — a sentiment paraphrased by O’Connell throughout the hourlong speech. In an oblique reference to criticisms of his predecessor, former Mayor John Cooper, O’Connell proudly boasted about the city’s pothole-patching and trash pickup.
The first big moment of spontaneous applause came with O’Connell’s shot at the federal government. He didn’t call out President Donald Trump by name, choosing instead to firmly state that the city has lost faith in the federal government.
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“We’re not standing idly by while the federal government tries to cut funding that’s legally ours,” said O’Connell, referencing active lawsuits brought by the city against the Trump administration. “We’ve told them, ‘We’ll see you in court.’”
With transit improvements underway, O’Connell indicated that his office’s broader priority will shift to housing. The city just reappraised existing homes in Davidson County, a step that precedes a tax rate adjustment officially filed today in the mayor’s proposed budget.
“The median home in Davidson County is now 45 percent more valuable than it was when last appraised,” said O’Connell, addressing perhaps his most immediately controversial decision. “And that means when we set the new tax rate, many of us will have increased costs, even as we’re setting the lowest overall property tax rate in Nashville since 1972.”
O’Connell’s new tax rate will be higher than the default rate dictated by Tennessee’s revenue-neutral tax retirement. It will be lower than the current Davidson County tax rate, and the new rate will result in more property tax revenue for the city.
Conservative protesters gather outside the Nashville Public Library during Mayor Freddie O'Connell's State of Metro Address, May 1, 2025
Outside, conservative protesters rallied against a tax increase they’ve been expecting for weeks. The small sidewalk throng erupted for the occasional passing honk.
A steady stream of analysis and reports has come to the same conclusions about the city’s strained housing supply — Nashville needs thousands of new homes quickly.
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“Nashville, it’s time to move on housing,” O’Connell said to loud cheers.
His proposed budget includes $45 million for housing-related projects. He touted new affordable housing, like an expected 300 units on the city’s East Bank, and called on partnership and investment from the private sector. Real progress will hinge on aspects of the city’s zoning code that have limited where and how new homes can be built. O’Connell told the room that it is time to reevaluate the city’s zoning code, previewing potentially contentious negotiations in the Metro Council that could facilitate denser development in historically single-family neighborhoods.
Overall optimism shot through the speech, as O’Connell referenced polls that show a more favorable view of the city from residents.
“Together we resolve that a great city must move forward,” O’Connell said as he neared his conclusion. “If we get all of this right — the way we move, how Metro works and coming together to celebrate the place we live and welcome others who’ve discovered it — Nashville will become an ever-easier place to stay.”
