The proposed non-binding Term Sheet for a new $2.1 billion football stadium tries to avoid calling a new charge to stadium users a tax. The Term Sheet uses the word “rent” instead. Let’s explore why the Mayor and the team are tossing this fake.

Now that the proposed non-binding term sheet has been out for a few weeks, it has become clear that the total stadium project cost is not known at this time. The term sheet describes a deal to build a stadium for $2.1 billion, and also stockpile “hundreds of millions” of tax dollars for future stadium improvements, build a “Stadium Village” with an unknown cost, and build “Campus Infrastructure” with an unknown cost.

The Metro Council received a copy of the proposed non-binding term sheet for a new football stadium on October 20. Here are some thoughts after a first pass through the document.

Many of us continue to look for more context for how to think about the upcoming stadium proposal from the Mayor’s Office and the Tennessee Titans. I tracked down some information about the value of the Las Vegas Raiders before and after their new stadium deal in Las Vegas. In the Forbes annual ranking of NFL team values, the Raiders went from #31 in 2015 ($1.4 billion) to #9 in 2022 ($5.1 billion). How did the Raiders’ new stadium play into that?

The Mayor is holding a press briefing today to discuss development on the East Bank. He’s likely not going to mention a football stadium. If he does, I think he will claim that East Bank development and a new football stadium are two entirely different, separate things. That’s silly. The two are closely linked. Their planning and finances will overlap deeply.

The Metro Council has a busier than usual agenda on August 2. Here are the things I’m watching.

Where does that leave us? Is the idea of the Metro Council passing convention legislation dead forever? There are three things that would get my attention about a possible change in circumstances.

We are one week away from the Metro Council’s next meeting on July 19. The deadline for timely filing legislation for that meeting has passed without anyone re-filing the RNC contract legislation. I think the effort to get the city’s approval to bring a 2024 national political convention to Nashville is dead in the water.

The upcoming August 4, 2022, election is the Davidson County general election, the state and federal primary election, and a referendum on 4 proposed Metro Charter amendments.

Many of you know that the Council was active in working on tax increment financing (TIF) reform last term. Last week, a June 30, 2022, deadline passed. As a result, absent further action by MDHA and the Council, no new TIF loans are allowed in these 8 redevelopment districts.

I have heard from non-government sources that part of the deal to bring the RNC 2024 convention to Nashville is that the RNC or the host committee will be purchasing additional equipment for the Metro Nashville Police Department.

The Metro Council is being presented with an ordinance sponsored by Councilmember Robert Swope for first reading on July 5. The ordinance would approve a contract with the Republican National Committee for Nashville to host the RNC’s 2024 national convention. You can email the Metro Council at CouncilMembers@nashville.gov. Let them know how you feel. Ask them to not co-sponsor or vote for this.

The Council will decide the FY23 operating budget on June 21. The Mayor proposed a $2.97 billion budget. The final approved budget will be slightly smaller at $2.95 or $2.96 billion. This post will give a roadmap for what Budget & Finance Committee Chair Burkley Allen has proposed in her substitute budget, what other Council members are proposing as amendments, and the major remaining issues.

There is lots of talk this week about the cost of building the infrastructure for a new East Bank neighborhood. The talk is being driven by last Friday’s release of the Mayor’s proposal annual Capital Improvements Budget, or CIB.

The football stadium discussion so far has regularly omitted details about the fact that Metro’s local option sales tax will be pledged to support Sports Authority revenue bonds to renovate or rebuild the football stadium. I have been asked if I am sure Metro sales tax dollars will be pledged to support stadium revenue bonds. Yes, I’m sure. State law passed in 2021 is clear on this.

Nashville’s annual operating budget process has started. I spent some time today looking over the proposed budget. I’ll share links to what I’m looking at and some early observations.

In February 2021, the Metro Council created the Special Bombing Review Commission to review and investigate the circumstances surrounding the suicide bombing in Nashville on December 25, 2020. Yesterday the Commission issued its final report to the Mayor and Vice Mayor. Because I was the lead sponsor of the legislation, they sent me a copy of the report.

I had to be at a court hearing for a law client this morning and missed most of the State of Metro address. I’ve watched the whole thing now.

The current Mayor and Metro Council are creating a budget problem for the future. I’ve mentioned the issue several times during Council Budget & Finance Committee meetings. So far, I’ve failed to get the administration or my colleagues to see the issue or act on it.

Global Mall docs