Council members may try to stop Music Row seizure

By CHAS SISK • Staff Writer(Tennessean) • July 22, 2008 The Metro Council may take up debate on whether eminent domain should be used to seize a Music Row property under a proposal now being drafted. At least two council members have asked the council’s attorney to draw up a bill meant to put a stop to eminent domain proceedings against Joy Ford, the owner of a small record label and music publishing business. The bill would eliminate the redevelopment district that includes Ford’s property at 23 Music Circle E., said Michael Craddock, who represents the city’s fourth district in North Nashville. Craddock said he was briefed on the bill’s contents by Jon Cooper, the council’s attorney, when he contacted Cooper to discuss ways the Metro Council could stop the eminent domain proceedings against Ford. Cooper told him such a bill had already been requested, Craddock said. Because he is not the bill’s sponsor, Craddock did not know when — or if — it would be brought before the council. Cooper confirmed that he had been contacted by more than one council member to discuss Ford’s situation, but he said he was bound by confidentiality rules from discussing the bill’s contents until its sponsor is prepared to introduce it. By Craddock’s account, the bill would appear to remove one of the underpinnings for the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency’s petition to take Ford’s property through eminent domain. The MDHA argues that Ford’s property can be considered blighted because it lies within a redevelopment district. That district was created nine years ago to spur a turnaround in the area at the northern end of Music Row, but Ford has repeatedly turned down offers to sell her property to developers.

Hello District 29 Neighbors:Tomorrow is the Day!

It's that time of year again to get geared up for the Great American Clean-up 2008, hosted by the Alliance of District 29. The attachment has some detailed information about FREE Shredding services, the clothing drive, household furniture & appliances drop-off and much more all on May 24, 2008 from 8am to 1 pm with a food fun and fellowship from 1:30 to 3:30 pm. Read on....see you Saturday, May 24, 2008. I would appreciate your help to share this worthwhile community event with other District 29 residents. Gratefully, Vivian Wilhoite Metro Council, District 29 Visit http://www.blogger.com/www.vivian-29.blogspot.com for up-to-date information in and around District 29. Committed to keeping you informed! Phone: (615)589-2003 Email Address: mailto:589-2003/vivianwilhoite@comcast.net . Please take a look at what is planned for this day on the link below. District_29_Clean_Up_2008.pdf

Metro program aims to change nonprofit grant process

By MICHAEL CASS • Staff Writer (tennesseam) • May 8, 2008 Nashville nonprofit organizations have about three weeks to apply for $2 million in Metro government grants under a new program Mayor Karl Dean announced today. The "community enhancement grants" will be available to groups working in three areas: domestic violence ($750,000), education/aftercare ($750,000) and community service ($500,000), which the program defines as services "that enhance the lives of Nashvillians and the community in which we live." Dean aides have previously mentioned the American Red Cross and Second Harvest Food Bank as examples of community service agencies. Dean said the city needs a new, less political system for awarding grants to nonprofits. “We have a number of nonprofit agencies that offer vital services to our community, many of which government itself cannot provide and would not otherwise be available. This grant program will ensure that those are the services our resources support and that funding decisions are based on needs and results,” the mayor said in a news release. A panel of reviewers selected by the mayor, the vice mayor and the chair of the Metro Council's Budget and Finance Committee will evaluate applications and make recommendations to the mayor, who will submit a budget amendment for the council's final approval as part of the city's operating budget, Dean spokeswoman Janel Lacy said.Lacy acknowledged that applicants who are turned down by the reviewers could lobby council members for funding in the final budget. She said the program could change in future years "depending on how this year goes." Applications are available today on page 11 of this web site: http://www.nashville.gov/finance/CEF/docs/CEFHandbook.pdf.. They're due at 4:30 p.m. on May 28 and will be reviewed June 10-12. "Pre-application training meetings" are scheduled for May 15 and 16. Times and places for the training sessions weren't announced.

Predators get new arena lease with Metro

By MICHAEL CASS • Staff Writer • April 15, 2008 The Nashville Predators have a new lease at the Sommet Center - one their owners say will give them a better chance of succeeding in Nashville - after a decisive Metro Council vote tonight. The council voted 30-8 for the new agreement, which comes after months of negotiations. It will give the hockey team's owners more money for managing the facility and more incentives for booking top events there while also protecting the city's investment in the Predators more effectively. A group of mostly local investors bought the Predators last fall from Craig Leipold, who said he lost some $70 million in nine-plus years. The Predators trail the Detroit Red Wings 2-1 in a first-round playoff series that continues Wednesday night at the Sommet Center.

Predators' lease proposal questioned

'Seems like a blank check,' Metro councilman saysBy MICHAEL CASS • Staff Writer Tennessean) • April 9, 2008 A handful of Metro Council members asked tough questions about proposed arena lease changes for the Nashville Predators on Tuesday, a week before their final vote on the deal. Council members asked how they could sell multimillion-dollar annual subsidies of the pro hockey team to middle-class and poor constituents; why the cap on arena operating losses that the city would pay is set at the 2006 level, which is more than $2 million higher than this year's projections; and whether other cities are on the hook for such losses when a sports franchise also serves as the facility manager. (A 2003 audit by KPMG LLC said Metro's arrangement is unusual.) "It just seems like a blank check," Councilman Phil Claiborne of Donelson said after the council's Budget and Finance Committee met with city attorneys and finance officials. The Predators' new, mostly local owners say they need a new, more generous deal at the Sommet Center — which the team's sister company operates for the city — to have a chance of succeeding financially and keeping the team here. The proposal negotiated by Mayor Karl Dean's administration would increase payments and incentives to the Predators while also protecting the city's investment more effectively, supporters say. At-large Councilman Charlie Tygard said Nashville is "considerably different" than it was before major-league sports teams arrived in the late 1990s."I don't want to go back to those previous days, quite frankly," Tygard said. The full council is expected to vote on the lease when it meets next Tuesday.