• PSA: This Wednesday all early voting sites will be open for the presidential preference primary. There are also a handful of local races on the ballot.
• After a few weeks of exchanging open letters, Nashville mayor John Cooper and Nashville SC have reached an agreement that will allow demolition to begin as soon as this week at Fairgrounds Nashville to make way for the new MLS soccer stadium. Among issues was “Parcel 8C,” an area between the proposed stadium and the speedway. ?
• The Save Our Fairgrounds group opposing the soccer stadium on the property has filed a lawsuit again seeking an injunction, repeating its arguments that the deal violates the Metro Charter and prevents the operation of the speedway and other existing activity. A judge ordered earlier this month for a trial later this spring to decide the merits of their previous case.
• The president of Watkins College of Art has been relieved of his duties of overseeing the college’s merger with Belmont University following weeks protests and questions about his attempts at fundraising for the struggling art college.
• A former employee of Tennessee State University’s admissions office has plead guilty to identity theft, student loan fraud and wire fraud charges. Police say that he stole more than $84,500 in student loan payments. ?
• A Metro Council member for the Antioch community says that recent violence in her district shows the need for a new police precinct, which has been proposed but not yet funded.
• A new report out by the Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation Compliance program shows that many construction companies and subcontractors are improperly classifying employees in order to avoid paying out on claims if those workers are injured on the job. ?‍♂️
• An occupational licensing bill that would remove requirements for dozens of professions such as home inspectors, contractors and barbers in Tennessee was referred to a senate subcommittee last week that doesn’t actually meet, effectively killing the bill for this session. The bill drew sharp opposition from organizations supporting the affected occupations.
• Tennessee could be the ninth state to ban single-use plastic bags after a study showed that the Tennessee River is among the most polluted in the world with micro-plastics. Last year the state prevented municipalities like Nashville from enacting their own bans.
• Discount carrier Spirit Airlines is opening an operations center in nearby Williamson County, bringing an estimated 345 jobs to Tennessee over the next five years.
• The Nashville Predators (29-22-7) rattled off three straight wins, starting with a strong 5-0 victory over New York Islanders (33-18-6) Thursday riding a Craig Smith hat trick and then back-to-back wins over the St. Louis Blues (31-17-10) 4-3 Saturday afternoon on the road and 2-1 at home Sunday evening to complete a surprising season sweep of their division rival. The Preds are back in the wild card hunt, hosting the Carolina Hurricanes (33-21-4) tomorrow night.
• A museum dedicated to the late country singer and television host Glen Campbell has opened at the corner of 2nd Avenue and Broadway, containing some of the multi-talented artists memorabilia and history. Admission is $15.
• The Nashville Ballet’s newest production titled Attitude: Other Voices explores gender identity both in the art form and in the world at large. ?

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