The Metro Council didn't quite make it to midnight - surprising many observers who predicted Vice Mayor Neighbors would drop the gavel around 2 a.m. - but their six hour-ish meeting was nonetheless eventful.

On the racetrack: In the end, following a three-hour-plus public hearing, the council voted to approve an amendment introduced by Councilman Jason Holleman, which takes the language "demolition of racetrack" completely out of the bill, calls for the state fair to stay at the Nolensville Pike property through 2012, retains the expo center until a new location is landed and paves the way for the master plan to determine the best use of the property. A 40-acre park is already in store for fairgrounds land that falls within the city's floodplain.