We Watch State of the Metro So You Don’t Have To

Though we sort of slept through the State of the Metro address this morning, we did manage to catch it on TV. At any rate, the reactions around town have been mixed, but the overall consensus is the same: We’re short on cash. Mayor Dean announced this morning that all departments would be operating with significantly smaller budgets this year with the exception of Metro Public Schools, which will receive about half of the $1.58 billion budget. Why? To put it simply, things aren’t going real well. The school system as a whole is facing the possibility of a state intervention within the next two years if they continue to fall short of meeting No Child Left Behind requirements–something that Dean says is “not something we want to happen.” No kidding.

Between that and the 200 layoffs, it was a pretty grim address. He did try to focus on the positives, such as the $1M proposal for a new DNA crime lab for the Metro Police, Maplewood High School’s football state championship outing, and Nashville being chosen as one of two cities for an Alternative High School pilot initiative (we’re not really sure what that is, either.) Pith In The Wind isn’t buying it, though, saying he played up the smaller issues to skirt around the revenue shortfall.

On a related note, we feel like we almost have to send you over to News Channel 4 to watch the wonderfully awkward video segment on the address. Lots of awkward lulls, and also, if you’re one of the 5,000 Nashvillians between the ages of 16 and 24 who’s not in school, Channel 4 thinks you’re a “very hopeless and very dangerous” person. But don’t fret- Nashvillest is here for you.