Life in downtown Nashville
Unpopular opinion time from someone who actually lives downtown.
Tourism
For the most part, I am unbothered by visitors to downtown. Most come to have a good time, listen to great music, dance a bit and enjoy food and drink. They are good people looking for a fun respite from work and daily life. They usually stick to Broadway, 12 South and the usual haunts so they are easy to avoid unless you care for some people watching. Sure they are a little clueless but I travel quite a bit and can understand it takes them longer to navigate in a new city. Having said that, there are a handful of instances that will send me into a blind rage.
- Urinating or defecating in the street, bushes or sidewalk.- Yes, I have seen it all. Well dressed gal in a large party hiking up her skirt to drop a deuce in some bushes. Quasi cowboys whizzing on just about anything that is stationary. The squat and plop. Unless you are a toddler, or have a chronic or uncontrollable illness, there is no excuse. I may start page with photos to shame the guilty.
- If you are taking a ride share, the middle of the road, active driveways, and sidewalks are not the place to load and unload. There are other humans on the planet and we just want to get to the supermarket or carry on with our daily lives without having to wait for Connie to shuffle across the backseat and stumble out.
- Stop and take a look around. Seriously, do a 360. See an apartment building in your view? Then that is someone’s home and they are highly uninterested in hearing you woo hoo after 10 pm. Save it for Broadway.
Suburbia
If you live in the suburbs and “avoid downtown at all costs” please stop complaining that a restaurant or business you frequented in 1992 is closing its doors. Your rose colored memories will not pay the rent so unless you care enough to frequent a business, spare me your tales of old Nashville. There are vibrant, local businesses that need your patronage so stop complaining and stop by to purchase something. They may not be the same as you remember but there are fantastic folks.
The Greenway is Making the City More Walkable
Four times a week I walk 5 or 6 miles around downtown. The greenway means I can avoid dangerous street crossings from Rolling Mill to Salemtown. It is very sketchy sometimes and the trails need consistent monitoring as unhoused encampments pop up regularly which means running a gauntlet of distressed individuals, unsanitary situations and scary dogs. The greenway and trails are terrific but need constant monitoring. Politicians take a photo op when they are opened but never revisit. If they used them regularly, like residents, they would better protect the shared spaces.