What once was old can become fresh again, especially in a city that’s changing as quickly as Nashville. So when we noticed that several past Curious Nashville stories had become topical again, we decided to curate a little list.
These stories provide context and history — and some flat out fascinating tales — related to recent news developments.
We’re sharing these while our reporters are busy chasing down answers to a new batch of your questions about Middle Tennessee, and we’re always accepting more suggestions about what to explore:
How we got left with a nice station and no passenger train
A passenger train line has been proposed to connect Nashville and Atlanta, with other stops along the way in Tennessee, as part of the largest infusion of spending for Amtrak in decades.
But why doesn’t Nashville have Amtrak in the first place?
We used to. The service ended in 1979, leaving Nashville among the largest cities in the nation without such service.
The life and death of an old house in boomtown
Where do work crews take Nashville’s construction waste? That would be the Southern Services landfill in northwest Davidson County.
And it happens to be the subject of a pending court battle. A Metro agency rejected an expansion request from landfill owner Waste Management, which in turn sued the city.
While waiting for the judge’s ruling, you can catch up on the story of one home as it went from demolition to the landfill.
Why is it so hard to alter Confederate monuments in Tennessee?
Recent years have put high-profile decisions in the hands of the Tennessee Historical Commission, including removing the bust of Nathan Bedford Forrest from the state capitol.
The process to change a monument is complex. But other petitions could make their way to the commission this year, such as: a potential name change for Forrest Hall on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University, changes to the county seal for Williamson County and relocation of a Confederate statue in Centennial Park in Nashville.
The tragic origin story of the 1950s clock on Hillsboro High
At the end of March, Nashville bus riders will begin using the new Hillsboro Transit Center, which is nearing completion in front of Hillsboro High. Its climate-controlled waiting rooms and charging stations are being touted as a “first” for bus infrastructure outside of downtown Nashville.
The transit center also ties in with a multi-phase renovation for the school, which has also included a new library, parking garage and stadium.
One constant: the front façade clock that’s kept time for passersby since 1955.
An easily overlooked building is named after a remarkable advocate
This spring, the Randee Rogers Apartments will open with 100 units on Rosa L. Parks Boulevard.
They’ll be a mix of subsidized and market-rate apartments, as has become the model for the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency.
The redevelopment, which broke ground in February 2020, also means a fresh round of attention for the Randee Rogers. She’s the 1970s activist who became the namesake of a modest MDHA building on the property. Now her name appears more prominently above the new building’s glassy entrance.
Tony Gonzalez WPLN NewsMDHA’s Randee Rogers Apartments are expected to open in April or May.
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