State Board Begins Dividing Broadway Tax Revenue

Governing Nashville is an effort increasingly shared between the city and state, particularly when money is involved. Mayor Freddie O’Connell joined former Gov. Bill Haslam, city tourism honcho Deana Ivey and several business leaders Thursday for the first meeting of the Joint Capital Tourism Board. State lawmakers created the nine-person body a few months ago to handle revenue generated in downtown Nashville’s Tourism Development Zone.

The TDZ has generated oodles of tax revenue since its creation in 2009. Gains far exceed mandatory uses of the cash — mainly, to cover bonds that financed the Music City Center — thanks to Nashville’s Broadway bonanza. State lawmakers transferred a $300 million chunk to the East Bank Development Authority. The Joint Capital Tourism Board will handle the rest, including at least $30 million annually for Nashville to pursue tourism “mega events,” in the words of comptroller Jason Mumpower, who presented to the board at its meeting Thursday. Other statutorily approved uses include capital improvements and costs related to downtown public safety and cleanliness.

“You’re going to have a new pot of money every December for 15 years or more,” Mumpower told the group. “That’s going to be a significant pot year after year if everything keeps coming along — big responsibilities.”

Schools, Facilities, Roads at Center of Mayor’s $544.7 Million Spending Plan

New elementary school, fire stations, jail complex make up O’Connell's annual allocations for city projects across Davidson County

O’Connell introduced a new capital spending plan this week with a message of fiscal restraint. The two realities — a bustling downtown generating surplus tax cash and a surrounding city counting its pennies — raised questions about true governing control in Nashville. Speaking to media on Friday, O’Connell reflected on the inaugural board meeting and state government’s persistent influence over Nashville finances. 

 "We are in an environment where the state is very often making decisions about cities that cities are not asking for themselves,” O’Connell told reporters. “In that environment, we look to do the very best we can for Nashvillians given the ways in which our hands are tied.”

He then praised state lawmakers’ generosity, specifically the recent $300 million transfer to cover East Bank infrastructure that has allowed “neighborhood-scale investments” around Davidson County. 

Bill Miller, who owns several Broadway businesses including Nudie’s Honky Tonk, repeatedly steered the conversation toward business grants, eventually prompting Ryman Hospitalities chairman Colin Reed to suggest a conflict-of-interest policy for members. 

“What’s going to be left for the businesses?" Miller said at one point. "The one thing we haven’t brought up today is the businesses on Lower Broadway. The economic driver that keeps the hotels filled. That are an attraction for conventions. I think that’s one thing that hasn’t been mentioned, but I’d like to request that everyone think about that, because those businesses are struggling.” 

“The last straw was the property tax increase,” Miller continued, with O'Connell sitting just a few chairs away. “It’s a very real thing. We should not ignore that. Minuscule margins — I’m not being dramatic.”

Comptroller Mumpower also listed law enforcement patrols as a potential use of the tourism dollars. Policing downtown has been a gray area for state troopers, who made a string of arrests two years ago that targeted unhoused people near Riverfront Park. The Tennessee Highway Patrol has jurisdiction across the state, and a 2022 felony camping law brings serious penalties for individuals deemed to be living on public property. 

The JCTB continues lawmakers’ interest in supplementing public services downtown. Approved uses mirror the Nashville Downtown Partnership, an effort led by business leaders that receives Metro funding for various downtown beautification and patrol jobs. The NDP faced intense scrutiny from Metro councilmembers this year for its use of advanced surveillance technology, policy toward unhoused people and role in 2025's library garage fire, which NDP leases. Reed suggested inviting an NDP representative into the board’s future deliberations.