Jump to content

Nashville Bits and Pieces

smeagolsfree

By smeagolsfree
in Nashville

 Share

Recommended Posts

jmtunafish Burg

jmtunafish

Posted
Posted (edited)

As a native Atlantan, I know just how much my hometown was more embarrassed than lifted by hosting the Olympics.  In my mind, that was the worst three weeks to be in Atlanta in my lifetime (I heard the Civil War was pretty bad).

I don't know.  I was living in Atlanta at the time and loved having the Olympics there.  Then again, I didn't live right in the middle of the city so I didn't really have to worry about the traffic and transport mess that the Olympics created.

I would also argue that it wasn't that big of an embarrassment, either.  In the short term, maybe, but over all it really boosted Atlanta's image globally.  To this day school kids all over the planet know that Atlanta hosted the Summer Olympics, and it's now listed among places like Paris, London, Beijing, Sydney, Athens, Barcelona, et al.  The Centennial Park bombing is hardly mentioned anymore.  In addition, all kinds of improvements were made to Atlanta:  an expanded international airport terminal, improved bus network, spruced up downtown, new athletic facilities all over the metro (and particularly for Georgia Tech and the Atlanta Braves), new dorms for Georgia Tech and Georgia State, widened freeways and roads, and more.  I don't remember where it was, maybe in the AJC or the Atlanta Business Chronicle, but I read some report that tried to quantify how many international companies and organizations set up shop in Atlanta after the '96 Olympics, and it was very, very impressive.

At any rate, I don't think it's that much of a stretch for Nashville to host the Olympics although I don't think it'll ever happen.  Still, Nashville already has a host of athletic facilities thanks to the plethora of colleges in the area, most of which are in the central part of the city.  In fact, I bet that Nashville has more athletic arenas with at least 4,000 seats than most other big cities in the country, what with Bridgestone, Municipal Auditorium, Memorial Gym, plus the arenas at TSU, Belmont, and Lipscomb.

Who knows how many thousands of additional hotel rooms will be in the area by then.  Tennessee has a pretty large number of corporations that could sponsor/underwrite a lot of the venues/events (FedEx, AutoZone, Nissan, Bridgestone, HCA, CHS, LP, Pilot, International Paper, Volkswagen, UnderArmour, Nike, and I'm sure others I can't think of at the moment).  And hosting the Olympics might just be the one thing that would spur the state legislature to finally pony up the money for some light rail lines in Nashville.

At any rate, while I do think it's a really long shot, particularly when there are places like Houston and San Francisco would also want to host the games, and it's doubtful that Nashville's airport will have many international nonstop destinations other than London, it's not really a stretch for Nashville to be able to pull it off.

Edited by jmtunafish
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 13.6k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Popular Posts

PaulChinetti
PaulChinetti

So Nashville added another resident last night... Turner Wallace Chinetti 9 pounds 6 ounces. 20 inches.  Mom and baby are doing great! He’s ready to argue about scooters, height re

PaulChinetti
PaulChinetti

Took this yesterday.  Wanted to make it longer but it was quite windy yesterday. Some random thoughts...  How much room there is between Lafayette and the Interstate

colemangaines
colemangaines

After watching the video Ron posted somewhere (can't remember which topic) about the most stagnant skylines in the US, I wanted to do some research into which skylines have been the most dynamic and g

Posted Images

CenterHill Town

CenterHill

Posted
Posted (edited)

Heard Boston's mayor interviewed today.   He said Bostonians are asking if they are still going to get ("get") all of the transit, housing and other infrastructure improvements the city committed to as part of the Olympic bid.   His answer was a solid yes, the city needs to do all of those things anyway by 2024 to keep up with projected growth.  This is a mayor who feels like he had public opinion on the side of these major projects as part of the bid and that the support will be there absent the Olympics.     The interview pointed out that the city is not without its vocal naysayers who were against the Olympics as a huge financial boondoggle and will continue to oppose big spending projects.  

Edited by CenterHill
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
nashvylle City

nashvylle

Posted
Posted

I will say this. 2024 is about the same time that the Titans lease is up on the current stadium. They will certainly be playing the "build us a new one or else" game. So, not that that would justify a bid, but the timing would work out quite well for that particular item. 

I thought we had a 30 year lease... so 2030?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
tragenvol Hamlet

tragenvol

Posted
Posted

I just noticed that Boston pulled its bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics because they couldn't get a guarantee from the IOC that there would not be cost-overruns that the city/state would owe in the end.

Just wondering...do you guys think Nashville could ever host an Olympics?  The U.S. is looking for another city to throw together a bid by September...with LA and SF mentioned.

Is Nashville ready now to go for something like this...or sometime in the future?  Or...is it not worth it?

In the early 80's Mayor Fulton reached out to the USOC with great interest for Nashville to host the games...the bid went to Atlanta.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MLBrumby Metropolis

MLBrumby

Posted
Posted

I actually remember reading an article in the AJC back around 1990 from an interview with Billy Payne, who said he was inspired to seek the Olympics entirely because Nashville was doing so.  His quote was, (something like) "If a podunk place like Nashville can bid for the Olympics, then why can't Atlanta. We'll beat 'em."  I remember because I was going to school in Nashville at the time.... made me laugh. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MLBrumby Metropolis

MLBrumby

Posted
Posted

Beaman Park expansion..   http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/2015/07/28/nashvilles-beaman-park-poised-568-acre-expansion/30792957/

"Other recent acquisitions include 591 acres purchased last spring in the Cane Ridge area for a new park in southeast Nashville; 448 acres added to the Warner Parks system last fall; the addition of the 600-acre Stones River Farm in 2012; acquisition of the 132-acre Cornelia Fort Airpark to Shelby Bottoms in East Nashville in 2011; and the purchase of the 181-acre Ravenwood Country Club in Hermitage, also in 2011."

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Nathan_in_DC Burg

Nathan_in_DC

Posted
Posted

Beaman Park expansion..   http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/2015/07/28/nashvilles-beaman-park-poised-568-acre-expansion/30792957/

"Other recent acquisitions include 591 acres purchased last spring in the Cane Ridge area for a new park in southeast Nashville; 448 acres added to the Warner Parks system last fall; the addition of the 600-acre Stones River Farm in 2012; acquisition of the 132-acre Cornelia Fort Airpark to Shelby Bottoms in East Nashville in 2011; and the purchase of the 181-acre Ravenwood Country Club in Hermitage, also in 2011."

 

I initially read that as the car lot, not the park, and about flipped my s*&%.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
donNdonelson2 Town

donNdonelson2

Posted
Posted (edited)

I was walking by the City View apartment building on Rolling Mill Hill during the EW&F performance. Sounded pretty great (and plenty loud) up there. I wonder how the folks who hated the bridge lighting are enjoying the concerts? "Nights Of Patio Peace Past. Pity!" (Newspaper headline suggestion)

Edited by donNdonelson2
incorrect building name
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.