After several months of anticipation, the Metro Council officially passed a nonbinding resolution opposing The Boring Company’s Music City Loop airport-to-downtown tunnel project.
At a meeting that lasted for more than five hours, the council on Tuesday approved the resolution 20-15. Two councilmembers abstained.
The resolution was first proposed in December by At-Large Councilmember Delishia Porterfield and outlines concerns about the tunnel’s potential impact on the environment, public safety and city infrastructure.
Other questions have surfaced surrounding the tunnel’s accessibility for people with disabilities and some Nashvillians' desire for the Choose How You Move Initiative to be the main driver of transit policy in the city. Councilmembers also cited The Boring Company’s lack of transparency and engagement with the council.
Music City Loop continues to raise concerns from local officials over transparency, safety, environmental factors
The Boring Company met with the council's Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Feb. 19, during which councilmembers grilled the company’s officials with questions. At the meeting’s close, many councilmembers said they felt their questions remained unanswered as they continued to express frustration with what they say is a lack of accountability by the company.
Councilmember Olivia Hill made an unsuccessful attempt to indefinitely defer the resolution Tuesday night, noting her concern that the council opposing the project could lead to further tensions between the state and Metro — as has the looming Tennessee Supreme Court case attempting to cut the size of the council in half.
While an expected long line of Nashvillians spoke during public comment supporting Porterfield’s resolution, an increasingly vocal group of residents spoke in opposition to the resolution and in favor of the Music City Loop. These speakers included construction and trucking professionals seeking steady work as well as residents saying they hope the tunnel will help alleviate traffic. Others praised the project as an economic development opportunity funded by a private company, though some have noted that a proposed state oversight board would cost $5 million in taxpayer dollars.
The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry issued a statement Tuesday morning also opposing Porterfield’s resolution.
“This project has both local and regional significance and represents a major financial commitment and an important step towards addressing our transportation challenges,” the statement reads. “We are concerned that this resolution sends a message not only to The Boring Company but also to other businesses that could ultimately discourage investment and innovation in our state.”
Though the resolution was approved by the council, it’s effectively a symbolic measure. Drilling has already begun, and both the state and the Metro Nashville Airport Authority gave the company key approvals to continue operations last month. The tunnel will run under state-owned roads, allowing The Boring Company to avoid the need for Metro approval.
Sen. Charlane Oliver, Councilmember Delishia Porterfield sponsor resolutions against Boring tunnel project
Meanwhile, the state looks to cement further control over the Music City Loop through a proposed oversight board made up 11 members appointed by the governor and speakers of the Tennessee House and Senate.
In other business:
The council advanced a highly contested proposal for a commercial compatibility overlay district along Buchanan Street. The overlay, sponsored by Councilmember Brandon Taylor, was approved on its second of three readings, which followed robust public comment on the matter. The overlay would put limits on the kinds of businesses able to operate along Buchanan Street, restricting new beer/cigarette markets and payday lenders, as well as putting 2,640-foot buffers between auto repair shops, carwashes and liquor sellers. It would also put restrictions on bars and nightclubs and the noise coming from the venues. Some residents expressed concerns of gentrification and displacement, while others, including some business owners along Buchanan, expressed support.
Also on second reading, the council moved forward with two bills that would alter Metro code and rezone parcels of the East Bank to redevelop a scrapyard, which was sold to local investors for $245 million in August. The plan faced pushback from some residents who are worried the development, which they said potentially could feature a 40-story building, would essentially be an extension of downtown. There will be a third and final reading before the council on April 7, and the matter will be heard at the March 16 Metro Planning Commission meeting.
The council deferred voting on a resolution urging the Nashville Electric Service board to fire NES CEO Teresa Broyles-Aplin until June 2.
