jent103

Just an update on the state of tourist attractions in Nashville, for anyone planning a trip in the coming months (or inspiration for anyone who isn't!). Though some areas of town will take months to recover, the main areas of interest to visitors are quickly getting back to normal. A full list of attractions' statuses can be found at the Convention & Visitors' Bureau site (http://www.visitmusiccity.com/visito...on_attractions), but here's a quick synopsis of some of the big ones:

Unaffected, reopened or expected to reopen this weekend:
- Honky-tonks (Tootsie's, Robert's, the Stage)
- Country Music Hall of Fame
- Ryman Auditorium
- Frist Center for the Visual Arts
- Bluebird Cafe
- The Hermitage
- NashTrash Tours
- Bridgestone Arena (formerly the Sommet Center)
- TPAC
- Our great local restaurants (and we have many)
- CMA Fest (formerly known as Fan Fair, aka the time when a whole bunch of country artists perform over four days) will take place as scheduled in June. Even better, *all* the proceeds this year go to either music education or flood relief.

Closed:
- Wildhorse Saloon & BB King's
- Opryland, Grand Ole Opry and Opry Mills: This was the tourist area most affected by flooding. The hotel will be closed for 3-6 months. I'm not sure of a timeline on the mall, but it will be awhile. Opry performances will still go on, just at different venues. The show Tuesday night was at War Memorial Auditorium downtown; this weekend's and next Tuesday's shows will be at the Ryman. Both of those venues are really fantastic and have been former homes of the Opry.
- Nashville Symphony: Though the main floor was not flooded, the Schermerhorn had a lot of flooding in the basement, resulting in the loss of two grand pianos and two components of the organ, among many other things. They are working to move events to other venues while they renovate. Check nashvillesymphony.org for updates, and come see it when they're done - it's an amazing facility.

Things have been rough and there is much work to be done, but we need to get back to normal - and that includes our tourists on Lower Broad and elsewhere! Y'all come see us. We're a friendly bunch.

abram

Thanks for the update!
Our plan is to visit in late Ocotber. I hope the Opryland Hotel is open, because I'd like to see it--but if it isn't, that's not enough to make us change our plans. I'm really excited about the trip: Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Great Smokey Mountains NP, Chattanooga.

musicfan

Well, considering I just got back (and just in time too!) I probably won't be coming down again very soon, but I wanted to say I LOVE Nashville and have so many wonderful memories of the fun I've had there. It's a beautiful city, the people are friendly, and if I could live anywhere else besides where I do now (or San Francisco, which, barring a lottery win, will never be affordable enough) it would be Nashville.

Erinkath626

Thank you for the update! I was planning on coming there next weekend for my bachelorette party. We have been trying to assess the situation to see if we should still visit or not. Do you have any recommendations for specific places that are accessible for us to visit? (similar to Wildhorse Saloon). We know the city could sure use our tourism dollars at this point and we would be happy to contribute to benefits, etc. We just are not sure what to expect as far as entertainment and are also concerned about the water supply situation. We planned on going to honky-tonks, potentially going to Cowboy Town, Monells, etc. Can you please offer any advice? My vacation is obviously not important compared to clean water and the lives of Tenesseans, but any updates are helpful. Thanks in advance!

starrs

Yay! Good news!f

1.7M was raised at last night's telethon. Info on contributing $$$ is here -
http://www.wsmv.com/news/23449372/detail.html

jent103

Thanks for the support and good wishes, everyone (and thanks for providing the link, starrs!). Gaylord held a press conference about Opryland today. According to the paper, the gist is that they won't know a timeline for reopening until they get the water all pumped out - they're estimating that in another 10 days they'll have a good idea of a timeline. They plan to have it open at least by the end of the year. You can find more information here:

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...amage+detailed

Update on the water (for those of you who weren't following the first thread, one of our two water treatment plants was flooded, so we in Davidson County and a few surrounding towns are on water conservation orders until it's repaired): Basically, there are several things that need to happen before they can bring it back online. (The Tennessean has all the info if you're really curious.) They are not saying how long this process could take. So if you're coming to town over the next couple of weeks (I so hope it won't be that long!), do keep an eye on that situation. Our water is safe to drink, shower, etc. However, if you are here during this time, we would really appreciate your help in conserving water. Or at least in perpetuating the fantasy that our two-day-old hair isn't greasy and our unlaundered clothes look fresh out of the dryer.

Erinkath, the Wildhorse *might* be open again by next weekend. My understanding (I don't know this for a fact) is that they're just trying to get the water pumped out of that building. If they can do that and they didn't have too much damage, they may open soon. However, I don't know how badly things were damaged. What is different about the Wildhorse from the other honky-tonks that you're trying to replicate elsewhere? I'm not sure about Monell's, but I do have a friend who lives very close to the Germantown location (closest to downtown) and her place was not affected, so most likely it's open.

jent103

This is a great roundup of the current situation by the ladies of Nashvillest.com, who have been doing an amazing job keeping us up to date with accurate information (and a sense of humor).

http://nashvillest.com/2010/05/08/he...rt-flood-2010/

nancy161

Hi jent103, thanks for the update! We drove through Nashville a couple days ago to Murfreesboro, and were glad that I40 was all clear. Are you affected by the flood near where you live?

jent103

I'm really not - my neighborhood looks fine, other than some broken-up potholes! It has amazed me how some areas look completely normal and others look - well, they look like disaster zones. The worst hit areas around Nashville are Bellevue, Antioch, Bordeaux, Pennington Bend (near Opryland), and some subdivisions in Franklin. There was definitely major flooding in other parts of town, but those are the most concentrated areas.

By the way, good news on the water front - we were informed yesterday that we are allowed to do "essential" laundry and dishes! Things are looking up, my friends. Williamson County (Franklin) had their water restrictions completely lifted late this afternoon. Nashville's second treatment plant is still offline, but hopefully soon...

bc

Hi jent103,

Glad to hear things are looking better...but so sorry about all of the havoc wreaked on your city...with of course the loss of life being the most tragic. We will be in Nashville in mid-June. We have reservations at Guesthouse Inn & Suites on Music Valley Drive. We have heard from them that they did not suffer any damage, but they are supposedly one mile from the Opryland Hotel, which suffered extensive damage. I have heard that area of Nashville was hard hit, so I am concerned about our hotel. Do you have any insight on this? Thanks.

jent103

bc, I don't know specifically about that hotel, but I know not everything in that area was significantly damaged. Our paper actually had an interview last week with someone who runs a minigolf course near Opryland. He's losing a lot of business because everyone assumed the whole area was badly flooded.

The Opryland complex is right on the river (it's where you go to get on the General Jackson showboat), so they suffered a great deal of damage. The neighborhood north of there, Pennington Bend, also had tons of damage. But there are areas all over town where one street was completely flooded and the next street over was fine. So if your hotel says they are okay, I don't have a reason not to trust them, especially if you're not coming till mid-June. They may be on higher ground or something like that. Roads are back open, so you won't have trouble getting to other parts of town. Actually the traffic might be a lot better than usual, since the Opryland hotel, the Opry and Opry Mills will all still be closed!

bc

Thanks so much for the response. I guess it is hard for us to comprehend that some businesses (like the minigolf place) could be unhurt, when you see so many horrific pictures on the news. We are certainly looking forward to our trip.

jmcdo

Thanks for the links; we are planning a trip this summer. We live in St. Louis so we can empathize about the flooding.

I just went to Visitmusiccity.com and learned about the Nashville Rising concert. I am crushed that we can't go until the following week!! If you will be visiting Nashville on June 22, you have to go to this website even if you aren't a fan of country music: http://www.nashvillerising.org/ Maybe I can ship my youngest off to camp a week early...

jent103

jmcdo, I'm sure that concert will be awesome. For anyone who's not into country or just wants to hear some other great local musicians, our independent radio station and several Nashville artists (more rock-y) have put together a compilation "album." You can download it for whatever you want to pay at Noisetrade.com - all donations go to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee's Tennessee Emergency Response Fund, which goes to areas affected by the floods all over Middle Tennessee.

May I specifically recommend Andrew Belle and the Civil Wars?

https://www.noisetrade.com/wrltlightning100#

jent103

Just an update: The Wildhorse is planning to reopen June 4.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...SS01/100520076

Apparently downtown tourism has been a little quiet this month - they are open for business!

jent103

Another quick update, for anyone searching for Opryland news: Gaylord held a press conference today regarding the state of the Opryland complex. As of now, they are projecting that the Opry House will be open October 1, and the hotel will be open November 15. (The Wildhorse and General Jackson will be reopening this weekend. Still no word on Opry Mills mall.) Sadly, they will have to let many employees go in a couple of weeks, but I'm impressed that they kept paying them for six weeks.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...-700-employees

In definitely good news, the second water treatment plant is now back and running at half capacity - should be full capacity by the end of the summer. Water restrictions are now completely lifted!

trvlgirlmq

Please don't be impressed that Opryland kept paying the employees because many of them were still working to earn their paycheck; my sister included. My sis had to learn she was fired from the news. They sure didn't handle taking care of their employees well. I hope my sis finds a job soon and a much better one.

jent103

trvlgirlmq, that's interesting and very sad for your sister - I'm sorry. I know some of the Opryland staff is continuing to work (horticulturists, business, etc), but had assumed that the others had not been able to work the last month or so. My mistake.

trvlgirlmq

I've been a little sensitive about this since yesterday and galled on her behalf and all the other employees who, even if it wasn't their job, pitched in with cleanup and such and now get nothing. Instead of telling these people that their jobs will be waiting they have to reapply and go through an interview again. Makes me so mad. Her manager still has a job and got to keep 2 of the staff. One of the people has been there less than a year and got to keep the job while the others with years of time and experience didn't. I'm just venting here so I don't do it in front of her since she is upset enough!