How Far Should Nashville Go To Protect The Character Of Honky-Tonk Row?

The Metro Council is now mulling an ordinance that seeks to regulate new retail development in downtown Nashville around Lower Broadway. Credit: Bobby Allyn / WPLN

A long line of people snaked down the length of the Metro Council chambers Tuesday night, all of them wanting a say over how a divisive new ordinance would define what new businesses are welcome on Lower Broadway. And whether a Walgreens store will open up there has emerged as a flashpoint in the debate.

Councilwoman Erica Gilmore’s proposal is much praised by preservationists. If a retail store wants to set up shop on Lower Broad, it says, they have to have a music venue — otherwise, two-thirds of their merchandise has to promote Nashville.

The new restrictions also forbid chain stores from colonizing any real estate in and around honky-tonk row.

The aim, according to supporters, is to preserve the iconic, money-making fabric that is Lower Broadway, a strip that has become one of the city’s most recognizable cultural exports.

“The goal of this bill is to enhance those things that are uniquely Nashville,” Gilmore told WPLN. “So when change comes, it’s in the spirit of Nashville.”

Yet developers say the rules are too restrictive and would discourage significant investment. Real estate broker Richard Jones is working to bring Walgreens to 3rd and Broadway, where a boot shop now sits. He said the proposed regulations are arbitrary and unfair.

The site at which a Walgreens could soon be built. Credit: Bobby Allyn / WPLN

“It would be the saddest show in Nashville at 4 o’clock on a Tuesday afternoon, some poor soul singing at a Walgreens,” Jones said of the music venue requirement. “But there’s going to be other sad shows. If there are other retailers that come along, they’re going to have to do the same thing.”

Though Walgreens has adapted in other cities, Jones said. For example, one of their stores in Las Vegas has slot machines. He said Walgreens “does just fine culturally — South Beach Miami, New Orleans, coastal communities along the Carolinians. And through our beloved country.”

Even if they were to introduce live music at the store, Jones said placing limits on retailers — as the ordinance calls for — is not a smart business practice. As Jones put it: “Are we as a community wanting to tell retailers what they can and can’t sell?”

Others, like bar owner Barrett Hobbs, said having no regulations at all could eventually erode the street’s character. “If we just crack the door, then we’ll become Music City USA Anywhere.”

Many current stores along Lower Broadway don’t follow these proposed rules, but they would be grandfathered in.

After a 40-minute debate on the measure, Councilwoman Gilmore pushed off a vote for a month, during which time the proposal will likely be re-examined.