Candidates Not Completely Sold On $100M Floodwall For Downtown Nashville

Nashville Mayor Karl Dean wanted to kickstart construction of a floodwall system to protect downtown before leaving office. But in June, Metro Council voted to cut funding for the $100 million project. 

Before the Council vote, we asked the candidates for mayor whether they supported the plan. Councilwoman Megan Barry ended up voting in favor of funding the floodwall, but she didn’t indicate that in advance. 

“You’re not hearing a yes, but you’re not hearing a no either,” Megan Barry said, when asked in April. “Ultimately, I want to understand in more detail what the actual plan looks like. $100 million is a lot of money.”

Construction bonds would have been paid off through Metro Water Services by ratepayers. No water rate hike was requested, but the multi-year project would likely have diverted funding from other sewer repairs or improvements.

“I’m not going to quibble with that as a priority,” Davd Fox said. “It’s an important economic area for us. It generates a lot of tax revenue.”

The Candidates, Uncut (in alphabetical order):

Megan Barry

David Fox