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Musicians & Songwriters Are Fed Up As Nashville Officials Vote To Add Paid Parking To Music Row
The murder (of free parking) on Music Row.
It’s already nearly impossible to find a free parking spot in Nashville. Gone are the good ol’ day where musicians and artists could park near Broadway and walk down to make a buck. Now, those playing in Honky Tonks to entertain the millions of tourists that visit Music City every year have to try and come home with more money than they have to fork over for parking.
The historic Music Row area of Nashville will soon be feeling similar effects.
Nashville’s Parking and Traffic Commission recently voted to add a large amount of paid parking to Music Row. Previously, street parking was free in some of the areas. Now, over 200 parking spaces will now shift to paid parking in the historic district, and will primarily affect Chet Atkins Place, Roy Acuff Place, Music Square West, Music Circle East, Music Circle North and the southern most portion of 18th Avenue South.
The transportation officials that came up with the plan to add the paid parking say they went with those “side streets” because many people were avoiding the paid parking options on the main stretches of Music Row (you don’t say?). When the changes take affect, the previously free parking would shift to paid parking from 6 AM to midnight on metered roads. Nashville’s Department of Transportation stated that there are no plans to create exemptions for residents or business owners.
That’s a middle-finger to the people that hold up that area of town if I’ve ever seen one.
As you might imagine, those within the music industry were against the proposal from the very get-go. Many business owners in the area have claimed that foot traffic has already gone down in the area because of previously installed paid parking options. They fear this new rollout could lead to even more business complications, and that’s not even considering that the business owners will likely have to pay for parking themselves as the free options continue to dwindle.
The president of the Nashville Musicians Association, Dave Pomeroy, has done his best to fight against paid parking. He even started a petition, which has almost 2,000 signatures. And he told FOX 17 that this is just a plain and simple cash grab by the city of Nashville:
“Now they are going to try to make us pay. For every hour we work or play… it ain’t right. But they are doing what they want to do, because money seems to rule. If you’re writing a song, some songs take 20 minutes, some songs take 20 days with different writers. This is just a simple money grab from an area of town that generates an unbelievable amount of money for the city.”
That’s the saddest part.
For decades, the city of Nashville has been built upon the backs of the musically creative. Now, with free parking dwindling, and recent property tax hikes, Music City is making it harder and harder for aspiring artists – and anyone who could be viewed as the “little guy” – to afford to live and operate in Nashville.
The addition of paid parking might seem like a small burden, but it’s just another step away from the old Nashville that seems more like a fever dream than a recent memory.The post Musicians & Songwriters Are Fed Up As Nashville Officials Vote To Add Paid Parking To Music Row first appeared on Whiskey Riff.
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