Nashville mayoral candidates seek contrasts, take jabs in first televised debate

The gloves have started to come off in the Nashville mayoral race. 

After months of maintaining civility, the top mayoral candidates have turned up the heat in an attempt to differentiate themselves and prove they are the best person for the city's top job.

Mayor David Briley and his main challengers — state Rep. John Ray Clemmons, At-Large council member John Cooper and retired Vanderbilt University professor Carol Swain — took the stage Tuesday night in the first televised debate of the election. 

They began the evening disagreeing on whether Nashville is headed in the right direction and then tackled a host of key issues — from taxes and schools to juvenile crime — facing the city.

Swain was the only candidate to directly say Nashville is "absolutely running in the wrong direction." She likened spending by city leadership to that of "drunken sailors," while closing out the evening saying she's the only candidate who does not come from a political dynasty. 

Briley said the city was fundamentally going in the right direction but that there need to be changes, as did Clemmons and Cooper.

Clemmons said too many people have been left behind in the city's "unprecedented prosperity," while Cooper said Metro needs to focus on restoring trust and building plans that "people believe in." 

The debate, sponsored by The Tennessean, NewsChannel 5 and Belmont University, came just a week after the Metro Council narrowly rejected a proposal to increase property taxes, choosing instead to adopt Briley's budget. 

City spending and how the city is run was front and center during the debate, held at Belmont's McAfee Concert Hall. 

The tax increase, opposed by Briley, would have increased the tax rate by 49.8 cents to generate about $154 million in new revenue, enough to cover a cost-of-living pay increase promised last year to Metro employees and about $50 million more for the Metro Nashville Public Schools district.

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Briley takes jab at Cooper

Briley, who has been mostly on defense as he seeks reelection, was first to take a personal jab. He criticized Cooper for not presenting his own budget up against the mayor's this year. 

“You’ve touted your experience as a Williamson County developer as being what’s so special about you being our mayor. … Your expertise surely would have given you the opportunity to present your own budget to the council and set the city in a different direction," Briley said, adding that leadership should have compelled him to do so. 

He also connected Cooper to the incentives the Metro Council approved earlier this year for Amazon and AllianceBernstein, saying he approved both deals, despite speaking against incentives. 

Meanwhile, Cooper, who had supported the incentives with an ask for funding from Music City Center, attempted to put the blame for the budget back squarely on Briley, saying only the mayor can influence it.

He also brought up the cherry blossom debacle later in the night, likening it to the city's scooter issue. They've become a symbol of Metro's focus on tourists rather than residents, he said. 

Clemmons took a chance to go after the two Metro elected officials, citing how he supported raising property taxes to fund education and supported the Community Oversight Board that voters approved last year.

The mayoral election is Aug. 1, with early voting beginning July 12. 

WATCH FULL DEBATE: Nashville's candidates square off in first televised debate

Should the city raise property taxes next year?

The current tax rate is $3.155 per $100 of assessed value in the Urban Services District. It's the lowest rate in the history of Metro government, coming under 1968's $5.30 rate.

The last property tax increase came when former Mayor Karl Dean pushed through a 53-cent jump in 2012. Because the city has raised taxes just once in the last decade, Nashville’s tax rate is among the lowest in Tennessee and in the nation compared with peer cities.

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Supporters of an increase argued that it would address the city's core revenue problem and fulfill commitments to Metro employees and deliver desperately needed funding for schools. Those opposed said it would further hurt many low-income residents. 

Clemmons stood out among the four as the only candidate who supported a budget that would raise taxes by nearly 16%, which Briley adamantly opposed.

Briley said the budget pushed by the council “was the wrong way to go about addressing compensation.” That is why, he said, he asked the school board to make a full assessment of what teacher pay should look like. 

Briley said he is committed next year to have a budget that funds Metro schools as well as Metro employees. 

Swain she would “definitely not” support a tax hike next year, pointing out high revenues for the city. Instead, the city needs to cut spending, she said. 

“We need to find out where the money is going and where the waste is,” she said. “We have leaders who cannot say no … they spend like drunken sailors.” 

Cooper agreed that there has been mismanagement of money and that there needs to be an evaluation of efficiencies in Metro departments. He said property taxes, though the easiest source of revenue for the city, are not the only source. 

“There are sustained revenue sources that can be garnered back to the city,” he said, adding that the city needs to bring back investments from the city for “vitally needed services.” 

“This past week Nashville families lost to the status quo,” Clemmons said, reminding the crowd that he was the only one who supported the budget that called for a property tax hike. 

“The Briley/Cooper budget deprived working families of a better quality of life,” he said, adding that he will be fully committed to do what is “right” next year.

Candidates weigh in: Is Nashville headed in the right direction? Not all mayoral candidates agree. Here’s what they said. | Plazas

What's your plan to turn around Metro schools?

Education continues to be one of the top topics in Nashville politics, especially after a tumultuous last year. In April, a split Nashville school board parted ways with Director Shawn Joseph after his short-lived and polarizing tenure.

The board has mostly agreed to push city leaders for increased school funding, especially after a year in which teachers lashed out over wages they say haven’t kept up with the cost of living in Music City. Educators have protested through marches and “sick-outs.”

Even after the added pressure by teachers and board members, the city funded a $28.2 million increase to the district’s budget, or about $48.5 million less than the board’s ask.

The candidates agreed on the urgency needed to improve public education in Nashville. Cooper said Nashville schools need more revenue sources in the future and that as mayor he’d direct half of the city’s new money to go to schools.

Cooper also said more money should go to teacher salaries.

“Ultimately half of Metro’s new money needs to go to schools, and schools need to spend half of its money on educator pay,” Cooper said. “Right now only 27% is going to teacher pay.”

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Briley agreed that not enough kids are successfully graduating from high school in Nashville. But he also said he didn’t want the debate about the future of MNPS to cloud the success of children in the system — pointing to the 11 students who graduated at the top of their class this year but began their education with English as their second language.

But Briley, who has moved to take a more hands-on approach with Nashville schools, said improvement is needed.

“Twenty-seven percent of third graders are reading at grade level, and that’s a tragedy for our city,” Briley said.

Clemmons, whose children attend Nashville public schools, credited teachers for doing amazing things across the city despite low pay and not enough resources. Clemmons said it’s time for Metro and the mayor’s office to “stop pointing fingers and blaming everyone else.”

“It’s time for us to start taking responsibility and showing some leadership, take ownership of what’s happening in our community,” Clemmons said.

Swain, a retired political science and law professor, said that as an educator she cares about and wants to be involved with holding the school board accountable for how it spends its money.

“They get almost $1 billion. In fact, you can round it up to $1 billion, and yet we’re not getting the kind of results that we deserve,” Swain said.

How should the city tackle juvenile crime?

While juvenile crimes are down overall, the share of 13-year-old suspects accused of "serious crimes" has almost doubled, according to data from Nashville's juvenile court.

The surge has caught the attention of the police force and Nashville's juvenile court, with their focus intensified after the shooting death of Nashville musician Kyle Yorlets.

Five young people, ages 12 to 16, have been charged with homicide in the case.

Police and juvenile court officials can't say for sure why there's been a surge in the number of 13-year-olds charged with serious crimes. But they agree it is a pivotal age when a confluence of factors can increase the risk of illegal activity. Some have pointed out the lack of community programs and places for kids that age to go.

The candidates lauded Juvenile Court Judge Sheila Calloway and her work on the Nashville Youth Violence Summary Report. Clemmons said as mayor he would implement the six major suggestions in that report and start with increasing access to educational opportunities.

Swain said the city needs to work with families and enforce values in young people. She called restorative justice “political correctness” and argued that leaders are not telling young people what they need to hear.

“I’ve spoken with law enforcement, with the sheriff, many young people who’ve committed crimes. They’re back home before the police officer fills out the report,” Swain said, adding that judges are “too liberal” when it comes to sentencing.

Cooper said no one is doing better work than Calloway, but by the time children end up in her court “it’s too late.” He said the government should support nonprofits that work on juvenile crime issues by making it easier for them to get grant money.

Briley disagreed with Cooper and said he doesn’t think “it’s ever too late to intervene in the life of a child.”

He touted his work with Calloway to make sure she has resources she needs.

“A young person’s first encounter with the juvenile justice system is normally not something serious, it’s normally skipping school,” Briley said. “And that’s generally a sign of something bad going on in the family, or in the home, or with the child. Judge Calloway needs more resources. She needs a different facility to better assess those young people, and I’m committed to making sure she gets it.”

How should the city encourage affordable, workforce housing?

While Nashville’s recent growth has brought jobs and opportunities, home prices have nearly doubled in the past six years. Combined with scarcer home inventory, rising interest rates and population growth, the boom has left behind many lower-income residents. 

It’s been a painstakingly slow process under the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency to achieve the vision of vibrant urban neighborhoods with a mix of affordable and market rate residences. 

Briley announced in March that the city will commit $500 million for affordable housing as part of the Under One Roof 2029 initiative, a new plan to address Nashville’s growing housing crisis. The goal is to create at least 10,000 mixed-use units over the next decade. 

The plan has been one of Briley's biggest talking points when citing some of his biggest achievements in his short time as mayor. 

Cooper criticized the plan, one that he credits compelled him to run against Briley, saying it is not the “right return of investment” of Metro dollars. Each unit, he said, should not cost the city that much. 

He said he would take his experience in business, development and real estate to handle the large investments and land use. 

Clemmons called it “inexcusable” that two teachers living together in the same household can’t afford to live comfortably in the city. Affordable housing, he said, should be tackled holistically by increasing wages, recruiting better jobs, addressing poverty and improving access to public transportation. 

“I take great issue with the current mayor, who stood downtown and said there is no affordable housing crisis,” Clemmons said. 

But his “holistic” approach to affordable housing is similar to that of Briley’s, as he looks to increase wages, recruit better jobs and improve access to public transportation.

Clemmons, though, is the only candidate to say he will support a public referendum for transportation in his first ye, if elected mayor. 

He is also calling for $50 million to fund the Barnes Fund for Affordable Housing for the next five years, income protection for Section 8 vouchers and creation of a land bank for housing development use. 

Swain is pushing the idea of “blue-collared housing” that she says will focus on residents making $50,000 a year or less. She said she has a vision to work with the 2,000 Metro parcels to build workforce housing using modular technology. 

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Yihyun Jeong covers politics in Nashville for USA TODAY Network - Tennessee. Reach her at yjeong@tennessean.com and follow her on Twitter @yihyun_jeong.

Top quotes from closing statements

"I will make sure that as we move forward, we don't just get bigger, we get stronger. That is what Nashville is all about." — Mayor David Briley

"At the end of the day, we need to be working to ensure that every child across this entire city has an equal opportunity to succeed." — State Rep. John Ray Clemmons

"This is the moment to re-balance our city's priorities. ... We get our finances right, our city's future is unlimited." — At-Large council member John Cooper

"I am asking you to try something new. I am an outsider. I stand for integrity. I stand for transparency. I stand for efficiency." — Retired Vanderbilt professor Carol Swain