Nashville Preservationist Quits Local Preservation Board Rather than Serve with May Town Center Developer, Tony Giarratana

Fletch Coke explains her decision to the Historic Nashville, Inc. Board:

Since I am firmly opposed to the development of the May Town Center in Bells Bend, I can no longer serve on the HNI Board with the developer Tony Giarrantana.

I'm sad but not surprised by this decision. The acquisitive culture among Realtors and developers is often at odds with that of preservationists, and sometimes the latter have to do something drastic to shake up the playing field. Historic and archaeological value may not easily convert to dollar signs for cash out.

I also wonder if Giarratana sits no this board not because he is sincerely interested in preserving, but because he intends to redefine preservation so that it contains nothing more than the appearance of preserving historic and pre-historic treasures. A superficial notion of preservation greases up the conversion of historic value to monetary gain.