NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The public is sharing their thoughts on the new $2 billion Tennessee Titans stadium for the first time.
On Monday night, dozens lined up inside East Nashville High School to voice their support and concerns as the stadium deal continues to move forward.
Though there’s a big price tag, Mayor John Cooper has pitched the project as being a great deal for residents, stating they will no longer pay for stadium costs through taxes.
“We’ve seen a lot of changes in the East Nashville neighborhood in the last 17 years and I think the new stadium and surrounding development would be yet another positive change for the community,” said one East Nashville resident. “The proposed project seems to provide an opportunity to keep our property taxes at bay.”
Some spoke positively about how the former Nissan stadium land could be used to benefit the public.
Others proposed questions like: How many events will need to be held for a return on investment? If renovating the current stadium would cost just as much as building a new one and how the city infrastructure will support growth.
“Everybody makes promises of what this is going to do, but where’s the political will to actually deal with some of the major problems?” asked a resident.
“What I fear is we’re going to have the shiny object, the stadium, and then ‘worry about the transit later’, ‘worry about the infrastructure later’, and I fear that we’re headed down the wrong path and we’re headed toward increased traffic and increased gridlock,” said a resident.
The Metro Council is expected to review the terms of the Titans deal at the next meeting and vote on increasing hotel tax to help pay for the project.