Nashville to Tampa: Hey, nice Riverwalk you got there. How’d you do it?

Back when Bob Buckhorn was mayor of Tampa, there was another city on the move that practically kept him up at night: Nashville.

“To me, that was our toughest competition in the emerging Sunbelt City tier — great competitors for talent, for corporate relocation,” said Buckhorn, the two-term mayor from 2011-2019. “I literally got up every day worrying how we were going to beat Nashville.”

So maybe there’s a little local pride over Nashville’s recent interest in Tampa’s Riverwalk — the 2.6-mile pedestrian path along the downtown waterfront that’s only taken, as the local joke goes, seven mayors and 45 years to complete.

Ashly Anderson, an urban designer who until recently was spokesperson for the Tampa Downtown Partnership, said when Nashville officials came to town in recent years, Tampa showcased its Riverwalk “heavily.”

“They were impressed,” she said.

A waterfront formerly shrouded by buildings now sees more than 100,000 runners, walkers, bikers and partiers a month. Tampa’s Riverwalk links parks, museums, bar and restaurant venues and emerging downtown neighborhoods. It serves as a gathering spot for city celebrations, including the upcoming River O’ Green Fest in March.

More than 600 miles from Tampa sits Nashville, also known as Music City. Last year, Nashville made Conde Nast Traveler’s readers’ choice awards as one of America’s 10 friendliest cities, famous for its honky-tonks and hot chicken. Nashville has also become a go-to destination for bachelorette parties, according to Brides Magazine.

According to a 2021 U.S. Census estimate, Nashville’s population stood at 678,851, with Tampa’s at a slimmer 387,050. On a 2022 list of biggest U.S. cities by population, Nashville was 21st, with Tampa at 52.

And both cities have downtown riverfronts getting some attention.

Nashville’s own Downtown Partnership visited Tampa last year and they were “just astounded by Tampa’s transformation,” Buckhorn said. Officials from there — where the Cumberland River runs through downtown — invited Buckhorn to speak at their annual meeting last fall about how Tampa’s Riverwalk successfully, if slowly, evolved.

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Tom Turner, president and CEO of the Nashville Downtown Partnership, described the west side of their river as an existing neighborhood and “an entertainment district with world-class, only-in-Nashville entertainment.” The east side has “a significant number of surface parking lots and an NFL stadium,” he said — Nissan Stadium, where the Tennessee Titans play.

During his visit, Buckhorn toured the area with Nashville Mayor John Cooper. The similarities, he said, were striking: Like Tampa in the past, the city had not focused on its waterfront.

Buckhorn told Tampa’s tale to a crowd of about a thousand — “coming from the ashes of the recession to where we are now,” he said, pointing to his city’s expansive and ongoing growth in and around downtown. He also talked about the importance of having “a champion” like Tampa Bay Lightning owner and downtown developer Jeff Vinik. “Very few cities have a Jeff Vinik,” Buckhorn said.

Said Cooper in an emailed response to the Tampa Bay Times: “Reshaping and activating a riverfront is no small feat, and I am thankful for former Mayor Buckhorn’s wisdom and insight.”

Of interest in Nashville on the east side of the river is the football stadium and a proposal to tear it down and build a new, enclosed stadium — with an eye toward nearby development, including housing and green space.

“With our expansive East Bank Vision Plan, Nashville’s riverfront can become one of the best in the country,” Cooper said. “Our plan will connect neighborhoods with greenways and bikeways integrated into development, and create new paths for commuters on both sides of the Cumberland River.”

“After generations of turning our city’s back to the river, Nashville is poised to embrace our waterfront as a connector and a place for residents and visitors alike to enjoy,” he said.

Buckhorn called it “a blank slate there that could really be transported into something special” — maybe like Tampa’s developing Water Street area with its live-work-play vibe.

“We look forward to more energy and excitement on the river and everything that brings to the city,” Turner said. “Much like you’ve seen there” in Tampa.

The two cities’ rivers have differences in topography. For instance: Anderson, who also made the trip north, said because Nashville doesn’t have buildings right at the water’s edge, they may not face some of Tampa’s engineering challenges that required building part of the Riverwalk over the water.

Still, the Tampa boosters said, there were lessons to be shared about engaging downtown businesses, convincing people who had given up on the waterfront of what could happen there and activating the space with plenty to do.

“The goal is to show if you build it, they will come,” Anderson said.

Nashville’s Turner said a riverwalk “just increases the investment confidence potential of the city, much like it’s done in other cities, and Tampa’s no exception.”

“It’s magical, but I don’t know if there’s a lot of magic,” he said. “It’s accepting the responsibility and the hard work to get it done, and you all did it.”

For Nashville, he said, “I think the potential is practically unlimited.”

Tampa’s Riverwalk recently placed second on USA Today’s 2023 readers’ choice list of the 10 best riverwalks in America. Tampa beat out Boston and San Antonio, Texas, but was edged out of the top spot by the Detroit International RiverWalk.

The city is now moving forward with plans that would expand the Riverwalk by 5 miles, connecting it to more neighborhoods west of the Hillsborough River. Officials are also exploring the idea of opening a cruise ship terminal when there’s not a ship in port to extend the path to the north.

Mayor Jane Castor has referred to the Riverwalk that curves along the edge of the river and the shipping channels as “the city’s charm bracelet.”

Anderson said the Tampa contingent did “humble-brag” a bit on “how the Riverwalk has become the heart of our community,” pointing to huge gatherings for the Super Bowl, winning the Stanley Cup and other events. Tampa showed off some “fun footage” of such happenings, she said.

“They were certainly jealous about that, we could tell,” she said. “It’s now another venue to celebrate your community.”