State board begins dividing Broadway tax revenue

Governing Nashville is an effort increasingly shared between the city and state, particularly when money is involved. Mayor Freddie O’Connell joined former Gov. Bill Haslam, city tourism honcho Deana Ivey and several business leaders Thursday for the first meeting of the Joint Capital Tourism Board. State lawmakers created the nine-person body a few months ago to handle revenue generated in downtown Nashville’s Tourism Development Zone.

The TDZ has generated oodles of tax revenue since its creation in 2009. Gains far exceed mandatory uses of the cash — mainly, to cover bonds that financed the Music City Center — thanks to Nashville’s Broadway bonanza. State lawmakers transferred a $300 million chunk to the East Bank Development Authority. The Joint Capital Tourism Board will handle the rest, including at least $30 million annually for Nashville to pursue tourism “mega events,” in the words of comptroller Jason Mumpower, who presented to the board at its meeting Thursday. Other statutorily approved uses include capital improvements and costs related to downtown public safety and cleanliness.