Nashville officials are expecting thousands of visitors for the eclipse, water and sewer infrastructure needs are being addressed, and the music center is filling seats and spurring the economy.
"We got a lot of irons in the fire right now," said Nashville Town Manager Sandie Jones.
In this week’s installment of Ask The Mayor, Jones addresses these issues and more during a visit to Nashville Town Hall. Listen to the full conversation with Indiana Newsdesk anchor Joe Hren by clicking on the play button above, or read some of the questions and answers below. A portion of this segment airs 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. Wednesday on WFIU. Here are some highlights.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
Hren: Obviously, this is a tourist town and there's a lot coming up with the Eclipse. And I bet you guys are busy like everyone else - full mode on planning.
Jones: Oh my gosh - I should have kept track on how many Eclipse meetings that I've attended. From our emergency management, from our police, the fire, the businesses, the residents. There's just so many angles to look at. And we're pretty much expecting, like a great fall weekend doubled for that weekend. The hotels, Airbnbs are all booked, the state parks all booked. So we're excited to show off our town. But it's a lot all at once.
I think we're okay with the water and sewer. I mean, as long as the electricity continues, I think we'll be alright. The town did purchase or rented some extra porta potties for that week long event. Trash is going to be another big issue. So we've got extra trash facilities coming in. So some of it, you're going to be as prepared as you can be. And then you'll be like, oh, I did forget that one tiny bit, and we'll find out what that is.
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Hren: I really wanted to get to water and sewer on this show. I know there are a lot of improvements that need to be done in this small town that brings in thousands of people a year for tourism. Not everyone I assume is on septic, just due to the terrain. But how are the personal septic fields inspected or overseen here?
Jones: The septic fields is really a county issue. Okay, the town has its own wastewater treatment plant. And the exciting news is, we have been given the most generous gift from SRF (State Revolving Funds) for our wastewater, sewer rehab and improvements project plan. This is what we've been working on for at least two, three years now.
The engineers originally estimated it at $14 million, well then COVID hit and everything went crazy. And then it went up to $19 million. SRF, will you please give us some money? Sure, we'll give you this and I'm like, oh, that's wonderful. Now can we have a little bit more because that's still making my ratepayers pay a lot of money. And they're like, okay, and they did that. Then they I said, okay, just one more time, please. Is there anything left in that coffer? And they said, yes.
So we were looking at a pretty good significant 35% increase for our sewer customers, which is only like 777 of us. That was reduced thanks to the SRF down to 24.6% increase. It's still an increase, but it's not as much. That will allow for our treatment plans upgrades, we won't be treating the stormwater that goes in with all the rain. We'll be fixing some things which will allow us to take on more. So if we have some big apartment complex that wants to come in, a big convention center, we will have that capacity.
Hren: I remember talking to town consultant Dax Norton a while back, and I think the town got $6 million for a stormwater project because a lot of that clean water was going into the sewer system.
Jones: One project at a time, we do have our hands out to SRF for our drinking water project, which like most all communities in the United States, the infrastructure has just been there for so long, and we've not made inroads to fixing that on a large scale. So we'll see how that plays out.
But speaking of water we did partner with the state park, they are no longer treating their own water or their wastewater. And so SRF said, hey, would you mind partnering with the parks, so we did a project with them to hook them on to our water. So that's great for the state park, they don't have a problem now. And then, with the sewer project, there will be a new lift station installed so that we can take the other half of the park sewer.
Hren: And that's huge because you get another big customer. That's kind of a circle, right? You get more money, you can do more infrastructure.
Jones: Yeah. And that was huge. Water is hooked up.
Hren: Will all this encourage the growth that you want in this town?
Jones: Yeah. But growth sometimes is a particular word here, because we really cherish the quiet, the outdoors, the lack of hustle and bustle so to speak. But if we don't have growth, it's the same 100 people paying for everything. And so we're we're talking about how do we want to grow? In talking with our residents, talking with our business owners, so we're starting the process of that, too. We got a lot of irons in the fire right now.
Hren: Any more infrastructure needs being discussed? Paving, sidewalks?
Jones: We're constantly talking about sidewalks. I've been knocking on that door for a year now. I've talked to a couple different groups. So I'm circling wagons trying to get enough funding for our sidewalks. We already have a sidewalk master plan. So that helps. So the sidewalk and the entryway into town is something that that we're all looking at. Things don't go as quickly as I'd like them to go.
2024 Legislative Session Coverage - Indiana Public Media
Hren: Is there anything else on the state level that you're looking at, that you're hoping can help the town of Nashville?
Jones: I know one of the things that has been introduced is a bill to help get some funding for public safety because of the state park. We do not get those tax funds. And so our Sheriff's Department, from the county, the town police, the EMS, we're all paying for that. And we're looking to the state legislator to help us out and say, hey, we'll give you $1 a car or whatever it is, to help subsidize that.
Read more: Brown County Music Center set to donate excess profits to Nashville community
Hren: I saw a county commissioner meeting though, which I know is separate from the town. But talking about how the effects of the Brown County Music Center now is having on this area. There was a little bit of discussion whether or not the county should sell it. Do you have any opinion on that?
Jones: Do I have an opinion that I'm going to share? No. They're taking care of themselves now. They were filling seats, right. COVID hits, everything turns on its head. They're back to filling seats, and they just gave a whole bunch of money to our Brown County Community Foundation as well as the county according to the agreement, so they are going beyond what they really thought they were even going to be able to do even with COVID. So it's pretty exciting.
Hren: Any trickle down to the town yet?
Jones: Working on it. Yes. They're using the sidewalks. So, yeah, we're all just having to work together. I think Brown County back in the day used to be like, this is our thing and this is our thing. And I think now there's a sense of, hey, we're all in this together. Let's work together. And so that's exciting. That's steps forward.
