Columnist Locates an Eye of the Tiger

Whether Gail Kerr is rooting for May Town Center or not, it is a small step forward for her criticize one of Nashville's high rollers, even if she ignores those of us in North Nashville who oppose a new urbanist rape of agrarian Bells Bend:

Jack May answered his phone on the first ring yesterday. His answers were clipped: "We have said we are making this charitable donation. Most people don't want to get into their charitable donations in the newspaper."

So, could he shine new light on where the donation stands? "There is no new light to shed," May said.

Funny, he wanted the newspaper to print his statements before. Why won't anyone just answer the question?

TSU and North Nashville embraced May Town Center because of this unconditional present. If it turns out they were lied to and used, kiss May Town Center goodbye.

She's not exactly the queen of the fight, yet. However, we'll take what we can get.


UPDATE: At the City Paper, Nate Rau's scope of the project is not exactly comprehensive:

The project would require two bridges across the Cumberland River as well. The proposal has faced strident opposition from Nashville environmentalists, Council members whose districts would be directly impacted, and downtown Council members, who say May Town Center would detract from developing downtown.

Clarification, ace: the project requires two bridges and probably necessitates a third with growth. The opposition also includes organized neighborhood associations from all over Nashville, including the Scottsboro/Bells Bend neighborhood association. The only organization I know of that claims to represent neighborhoods and supports MTC is Jefferson Street United Merchants Partnership, which is actually more of a business group representing the sliver of properties along the Jeff Street corridor.


LATER UPDATE: Betsy Phillips roars much more impressively than Gail Kerr, but she has been practicing pouncing on the hapless May Town team much longer than the Tennessean columnist:

There's nobody affiliated with TSU today who gave public testimony about how wonderful May Town Center would be who had any room to stand today outraged that TSU doesn't have the land it was promised.

The May Town Center people lied on their zoning application about whether they'd done the proper archaeological surveys. They played fast and loose with the number and location of the bridges that will be needed to build their center. They compromised a TSU professor when they had him "survey" folks about their support for MTC when really he and his students were being paid to market the project. They can't even say how big the development will be, because it is whatever size they think the person asking wants to hear.

And all of that stuff has played out in the papers, where anyone can read it.

If you thought, "Well, with us, they'll play square," you are a fool. And you are a fool who'd better be calling the administration at TSU and the MTC development people until the land is actually in the legal possession of TSU. Because if you don't keep the pressure on these folks, you can't be sure they'll keep their word.

Indeed, there was way too much uncritical, wishful thinking in the greater TSU community about the intentions of The Man on May Town Center.