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A resolution appropriating an amount, not to exceed $50,000, from the Undesignated Fund Balance of the General Fund, for a grant to Music City, Inc., a non-profit organization, for the express purpose of restoring and rehabilitating the Elks Lodge.
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WHEREAS, the Elks Lodge, formerly known as Club Baron, is a historic music venue located at 2614 Jefferson Street that has served as one of Nashville's most culturally significant performance halls, featuring performances by legendary artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Little Richard, Ray Charles, B.B. King, Otis Redding, and countless others; and
WHEREAS, as one of only a small number of Black music venues in Middle Tennessee, the Elks Lodge has been a mainstay of North Nashville's vibrant musical culture for decades and, in 2016, was commemorated as a historic landmark; and
WHEREAS, though the Elks Lodge endured through a tumultuous history beginning in the era of segregation, it has succumbed to the ravages of time, natural disasters, and neglect; and
WHEREAS, the construction of Interstate 40 added another obstacle to the survival of the Elks Lodge, dividing the surrounding community and shuttering the clubs and venues that once thrived on Jefferson Street; and
WHEREAS, in March 2020, tornadoes caused severe damage to the Elks Lodge structure, and the building now appears on Historic Nashville, Inc.'s nine most threatened historic structures; and
WHEREAS, Mayor John Cooper and Music City, Inc., a non-profit organization formed by the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation, are endeavoring to provide funds sufficient to restore and rehabilitate the Elks Lodge to its former glory and stature; and
WHEREAS, Section 7-3-314 of the Tennessee Code Annotated states that metropolitan forms of government may provide financial assistance to a non-profit organization in accordance with the guidelines of the Metropolitan Government; and
WHEREAS, Section 5.04.070 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws provid...
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