Starbucks Fleeing Washington
⭐️ Starbucks joins list of blue state refugees · Cars are driving themselves in Nashville · NES didn’t follow its own communication protocol · Much more!
Good afternoon, everyone. State and local leaders hope for job creation as Starbucks announces new office in Nashville... Have you seen a car driving itself?... NES failed to fulfill its own communication plan during ice storm... And much more!
The Battle for Nashville's Soul Join us Thursday, March 26th for a discussion with developer and advocate Chris Remke as we dig into the city's actions around zoning and property taxes. (Buy Ticket)
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Starbucks joins growing list of blue state refugees
From Megan Podsiedlik
Starbucks plans to open a corporate operations office in Nashville later this year. Governor Bill Lee has articulated that the project reflects Tennessee’s business-friendly environment, but is still in the dark about the actual job creation that will come from the endeavor.
"I'm not putting you off on this, but they haven't told us yet how many jobs are coming," Lee told NBJ. That said, the governor suspects the office could bring “hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs” to the area.
The company is relocating direct and indirect supply chain teams to Nashville as local and state leaders are hopeful it will fill new job openings locally. The headquarters will remain in Seattle. For now.
Meanwhile, Oracle is planning to cut thousands of jobs as it shifts resources toward building AI data centers to support major clients like OpenAI, Meta, Nvidia, and xAI. Much like Starbucks, boosters sold Oracle’s investment in Nashville as a reflection of the healthy business environment in the state. Unfortunately, time and time again, companies like Oracle and Ford have fallen short of expectations.
That said, it’s clear that business owners are searching for refuge. Starbucks' CEO Howard Schultz also announced that he’s moving to Florida, abandoning Washington as the state moves one step closer toward passing legislation to tax high earners.
✹ DOES NASHVILLE WANT YOU TO STAY?
The Zoning Phantom Leadeth the Taxman Zoning, land use, and property tax disputes have animated political discussions in Nashville since Mayor Freddie O'Connell first took office in September 2023.
Through his Substack, Built to Think, and organization, Save Our Nashville Neighborhoods, Chris Remke has emerged as the city’s most potent critic of the Metro agenda. He's effectively drawn attention to everything from Nashville’s inflated growth projections to the smoke-and-mirrors assurances given to homeowners about how upzoning would affect them, and most recently, the betrayal of local businesses now saddled with unwieldy tax bills.
Join us Thursday evening, March 26th, for a wide-ranging discussion on what Metro is trying to achieve and where they've gone wrong.
This event is for the benefit of The Pamphleteer, Nashville, and priced with that in mind. Bard-level subscribers receive free admittance.
LOCAL COLOR
🚙 Autonomous Vehicles Driverless Waymo’s hit the street ahead of autonomous rideshare offerings. Last week, I saw one of these driving across the Korean Vets bridge towards the Titans stadium, blow clear through a traffic light, and stop right in the middle of the intersection, clogging up traffic for those entering Korean Vets for an entire light cycle.
🗳 Ogles on the Attack As we careen toward August’s Congressional primaries, District 5 Rep. Andy Ogles seems to have adopted a jester-maxxing posture on social media, positioning himself to the right of primary challengers and on another planet in comparison to his likely Democratic challenger, Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder.
Starting with his declaration that “Muslims don't belong in American society. Pluralism is a lie,” Ogles’ posts doubling down on the statement brim with a devil-may-care humor typically absent his social media presence.
In one, he posts a picture of Memphis state rep. Justin Pearson liking his anti-pluralism tweet. In another, he writes, “There are 57 Islamic countries in the world (not counting the UK).” All this comes on the heels of Ogles’ introduction of a bill which seeks to ban immigration from Islamic countries.
✹ METRO COUNCIL WATCH
Who bankrolls your councilmember? We analyzed every donation to every council member to show you whether they're funded by their constituents or someone else. Higher grades go to those who raise more money locally. (Take a Look)
HEADLINES
- ❄️ NES failed to follow its own communication plan after ice storm. When hundreds of thousands of residents wanted to know when their power would be restored, NES failed to follow its own storm response communication plan that called for speedier answers. (Axios)
- ⚖️ Federal judge orders March 17 hearing for Colombian journalist now claiming ICE illegally arrested her in Nashville as retribution for reporting. U.S. District Court Judge Eli Richardson originally ordered the DOJ to provide a response to Rodriguez’s show-cause petition last week, but Rodriguez has since amended her complaint to include a First Amendment component, arguing the Trump administration illegally detained her in retribution for her critical reporting about ICE. (TN Star)
- 🎣 Tennessee’s prized record for a largemouth bass could be broken. Sequatchie County fisherman Darren Nunley caught a bass in Nickajack Lake on Feb. 28 that weighed 15.7 pounds. If confirmed, it would break the previous state record of 15.3 pounds. (Exchange)
- 📚 Downtown Nashville library confirms March opening. The Main Library will reopen March 30, during normal weekday operating hours of 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Tennessean)
- 🎒 Bill requiring public schools to gather data on student immigration status advances in TN legislature. The bill was introduced last year as part of a Republican effort to challenge Supreme Court precedent requiring public schools to enroll all children regardless of immigration status. (Lookout)
DEVELOPMENT
- Former Inn at Fontanel reopens after six years under new name (NBJ)
- Starbucks eyes Peabody Union for Nashville office (Post)
- Pie Town property eyed for mixed-use building (Post)
- SoBro property slated for tower sells for $22M (Post)
THINGS TO DO
View our calendar for the week here.
📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.
🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.
👨🏻🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide.
TONIGHT
🪕 Jeff Little Trio @ Station Inn, 8p, Info
💀 Tennessee Dead @ Tennessee Brew Works, 6p, Info
🪕 Bluegrass Night @ The American Legion Post 82, 7p, Free, Info
🎸 Kelley’s Heroes @ Robert’s Western World, 6:30p, Free, Info
📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.
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Today's newsletter is brought to you by Davis Hunt, Megan Podsiedlik, and Camelia Brennan.