DECEMBER 3, 2024

Today’s weather: Clearing and cold. HIGH 38, LOW 24

THE LEDE

Tennessee Makes a Power Play for New Nuclear Energy

Tennessee is investing heavily in new nuclear energy to meet its growing power demands and potentially gain a foothold in the small modular reactor (SMR) industry.

Gov. Bill Lee has deemed new nuclear energy to be the future of the state’s power supply and economy. In just two years, Lee has earmarked $60 million for the Tennessee Nuclear Energy Fund and formed the Tennessee Nuclear Energy Advisory Council to advise the state on growing the “nuclear energy ecosystem.”

“If America has a nuclear future, and they’re going to have to buy products and parts and components, we want to build them in Tennessee. If they’re going to be doing a lot of research, we want it done in Tennessee,” State Rep. Clark Boyd (R-Lebanon), who served on the advisory council, said Monday. “And if we can have more nuclear energy to replace our coal? Well, we’d like that too.”

FROM THE BANNER

BANNER & COMPANY: As the end of the year approaches, we revisit some of the best episodes of our weekly podcast hosted by Demetria Kalodimos. For our premiere episode, we broke from our one-on-one format to bring you an abbreviated — but nonetheless colorful and complicated — history of the Nashville Banner: a look at the days of a two-newspaper city, from people who lived it, day in and day out, in the storied newsroom at 1100 Broadway. This episode was released in April and features Kay West, Mary Hance, Bruce Dobie and more.

TSU LAWSUIT: A lawsuit filed in Davidson County Chancery Court on Monday alleges that Tennessee State University fired former District 28 Metro Councilmember Tanaka Vercher for refusing to follow procedure in the federal financial aid process in order to get federal funding early. Vercher alleges that during a meeting in August, school leadership attempted to pressure her into requesting the distribution of federal financial aid before she had completed a necessary step. According to the suit, she refused, and the next day she was fired. READ THE STORY

COUNCIL MEETING PREP: The Metro Council will meet Tuesday to discuss various issues, including MNPD’s request to deploy Fusus, a software program that allows business owners to provide access to their security cameras. The council will also consider a resolution to establish a new advisory committee to oversee Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s transportation improvement program and a resolution to issue bonds to pay for the projects included in the plan. Additionally, the council will consider settlements for two Metro lawsuits and a resolution to increase the threshold for competitive sealed bidding or requests for proposals. READ THE STORY

ON THE RECORD

SHELTER FROM THE COLD: With temperatures expected to drop below freezing throughout the week, Metro’s Office of Homeless Services announced that emergency shelters will be open to unhoused people on Tuesday night at least. For the rest of the week, a decision about whether to open the shelters will be made by noon each day. Emergency shelters were opened on three nights last week, officials said, serving up to 155 people each night. Mayor Freddie O’Connell also put out a call for volunteers to greet people seeking shelter at WeGo Central and direct them to a bus that will transport them to Metro’s shelter. More information is available at the Office of Homeless Services website.  — Steven Hale

EQUAL RIGHTS FIGHT: State Rep. Aftyn Behn announced an effort to pass the Equal Rights Amendment in Tennessee, wading into a convoluted effort to codify women’s rights. The proposed Constitutional amendment was approved by the U.S. House and Senate in the 1970s, but failed to get the 38 states required to ratify it until 2020. Even if Tennessee got the improbable three-quarter majority vote in the Republican-controlled state legislature, Tennessee’s endorsement would be unlikely to change the federal debate on the ratification. — Sarah Grace Taylor

NO ROOM FOR ERROR: Believe it or not, there is still a chance for the Tennessee Titans to make the playoffs. Barely. Following Sunday’s 42-19 loss to the Washington Commanders, Tennessee is one of eight NFL teams with less than a 1 percent chance to reach the postseason. Also included in that group are the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Titans’ opponent this Sunday at Nissan Stadium (kickoff is noon) in what effectively will be an elimination game, although even winning might not be enough to remain in playoff contention. “We’ve got to find ways to be more consistent so that we can have consistent results,” coach Brian Callahan said Monday. “And right now we don’t have consistent results, which is largely due to our inability to be consistent in things that matter in winning or losing football games.” The loss to Washington dropped the Titans to 3-9 and guaranteed a third straight season with a losing record. — David Boclair

BEST OF THE REST ($ indicates subscription required)

• CLOSED DOWN: There is one fewer burger joint in The Nations after an eviction at a locally-owned restaurant. (Nashville Business Journal) ($)

• VANISHING CASH: Tennessee’s Department of Tourism faces the possibility of significant cuts as federal pandemic relief funds, a boon to the budget in recent years, are about to expire. (Axios)

• START AT HOME: Housing advocates in Louisville took over a hotel two years ago as part of a fresh approach to the process of getting the unhoused back on their feet. (The Guardian) 

• TRAFFIC CONCERNS: Increased congestion from satellites and space junk in low orbit has led to a call for cooperation from countries and companies in order to properly manage it all. (Reuters) 

• GIVE AND TAKE: Many on the high-profile obesity medications report that they are much less interested in drinking alcohol. (NPR)

• BEST FOOT FORWARD: Brazil has become a world leader in creating polyester from completely recycled materials, a process that starts with waste workers, most of whom are women. (Time) 

• BURNT OUT: More than a year after wildfires devastated Lahaina in Hawaii, a number of factors have made it harder than ever for residents to recover. (NBC News)

Quote of Note

“I think for the number of times when it’s useful there’s probably more times that it’s not terribly useful, and I worry that we are building a society of hypochondria and over-monitoring of our bodies. I’m concerned that we will be encouraging people to monitor everything all the time, and see their doctor every time the machine thinks they’re ill, rather than when they think they’re ill.”

— Dr Helen Salisbury, a general practitioner, on the increased use of and reliance on wearable technology to assess health issues.