A Few Questions With

Councilmember Jeff Syracuse, District 15

BY JUDITH TACKETT

Jeff Syracuse is a second-term Councilmember representing District 15. He is termed out, but has already announced his run for an at-large seat.

The Contributor talked with Syracuse as part of a series called A Few Questions With where we interview council members about their district’s most pressing issues.

Councilmember Jeff Syracuse, District 15

How would you describe District 15 and your constituents?

District 15 is often called the hospitality gateway for Nashville. We are just north of the airport with the vast majority of hotels and motels that support the airport. It’s third out of 35 districts in terms of Metro revenue, and it has some of the most welcoming neighborhoods.

I often describe how I manage the district in thirds: the Elm Hill Pike — Donelson Pike corridor that has some industrial offices and hotels/motels; the Pennington Bend-Opryland area; and then the heart of Donelson around the plaza and all the neighborhoods around it.

What are the main issues you hear about from your constituents?

I hear a lot about quality-of-life issues including the desire for sidewalks and pedestrian connectivity to link our neighborhoods to our central business district. Local small businesses have been very successful over the past decade and folks want more of that.

You are the new chair of the Metro Council’s Public Health and Safety Committee. What’s on top of your agenda for this committee this year?

As I come into the role of chair of Public Health and Safety, jumping on a treadmill that’s already going at 85 mile per hour so to speak. I’m getting up to speed on addressing the fentanyl crisis in a robust way, on the homelessness issue and being able to ensure we are putting the right dollars in the right place in a sustainable way, and on the co-response model as it expands across the county.

The co-response model is a partnership between Metro Police and the Mental Health Cooperative to ensure that police are not the only ones to address all issues, especially those that are mental health and medical calls and not necessarily crime related. That model is happening, and the data shows it is working. I have high hopes that this will continue to be successful as it expands beyond the North and Hermitage precincts to others.

How can Metro Council help address Nashville’s fentanyl crisis?

We need to react quickly and robustly to this crisis. We need to get the test strips out there. It may be a sensitive issue, but people picking up drugs from the streets may not know it is laced with fentanyl. With test strips people can see immediately whether their drugs are laced with fentanyl and hopefully we can start reducing the skyrocketing deaths that are occurring from fentanyl.*

The other thing, and the Health Department is starting to look at that, is to transition a position or two within the Health Department to be more of a clinical position. So that the Health Department can help with the treatment in getting people who are in active addiction off of it.

From a long-term perspective, we have opioid settlement dollars that are coming into Nashville. We have the opportunity to use these dollars to focus on interventions and be more proactive with education. (Nashville is receiving $23 million over the next 18 years.)

As a music business industry insider, how should the city move forward to preserve the creative spirit of Music City?

Nashville’s growth is at such a rapid pace that there is a level of anxiety that we haven’t seen. The downside of rapid growth and development is that it starts to steam roll over the special culture that developed very organically over the years that has made us the place where people want to come.

We’re seeing cracks in our foundation as Music City as creatives are going to other places that are affordable and our small business owners, particularly our small, local independent venues are not as stable as they used to be as they are being redeveloped or run by a corporation instead of a local business owner. We have to be more proactive in protecting a major part of what has made Nashville a unique city.

There are cities from London to Austin that understand the economic impact of their creative ecosystems, and they have been more proactive about protecting their culture and understanding its economic impact. The perfect example is Austin that just passed a $5-billion budget and within it was $30 million that supports small, independent local venues, historic preservation, and other cultural assets.

What is the next step you would like to see to move in that direction?

In the budget that Metro just passed, the Office of Music, Film and Entertainment was created. We used to have the Music City Music Council, which was a partnership between the music industry and the Mayor’s Office. It had good advocacy and accomplished some things for the music industry, but it was not a sustainable organization with strong governance. To have someone dedicated in the Mayor’s Office is a good first step to help push our creative economy forward whether that is securing film projects, or working with the private sector to look at building more affordable housing for creatives, or forging more public-private partnerships to support local independent venues.

Why did you make the decision to run for an at-large Councilmember seat?

I largely have achieved what I set out to do in Donelson with the new library serving as a civic anchor in Downtown Donelson, with a robust regional transit center that could possibly include a new 50 Forward Center and also include senior affordable housing. So, the future is very bright for Donelson, and as I look at my community service and I see how our growth and development is starting to impact the working creatives that truly make this city, there is a lot that we can do and that I want to focus on from a broader level. We have to protect that dream of a songwriter or musician who comes to Nashville to make it. That speaks to who Nashville is as Music City, and I want to be able to support that at a Metro Council at-large position.

Finally, what would you like to see as the city’s next steps in regard to moving forward on solving homelessness?

The recent announcement from the Mayor of investing $50 million in federal funds is a good first step in helping to start the robust investment that we need to really tackle this issue. The big question that I have going forward is what is the right amount of investment we need to make to ensure that we make consistent progress?

We need improved data collection. We need more robust street outreach teams and wraparound services. that are part of permanent supportive housing development that are coming online, are going to be critical. We have to treat each individual with human respect and dignity and provide them the services they need to get on their feet and to lift them up.

*According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), more than 150 people die every day from overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Drugs may contain deadly levels of fentanyl. Per law enforcement, the drug is impossible to see, taste or smell.