A new Metro law on paycheck loan companies could soon be put to the test, as speculation mounts about the future tenants of a building in Donelson.
Currently, the building is an old Papa Murphy's restaurant on Lebanon Pike in Donelson, currently vacated.
But Metro Councilman Jeff Syracuse who represents the Donelson area said he's been made aware that the owner of several Tennessee Quick Cash locations across Nashville has purchased the old pizza restaurant building, leading him to believe a new check cashing location could be opening up there, potentially moving the location that is just down the road.
But Syracuse said that could be a problem after Metro Council passed an ordinance last year that says two check cashing businesses can't be located within a quarter mile of each other. There’s another check cashing business just across the street from the old pizza restaurant.
Syracuse said he was in support of the 2014 ordinance because he says check cashing businesses can trap people into a cycle debt with high interest rates.
“There's new businesses that come in and raise the quality of life,” Syracuse said. “These businesses don’t achieve that, and we just don’t want any more of them.”
Metro codes officials said many paycheck loan businesses across the country are changing their products slightly, now offering products called “flex loans.”
Syracuse hopes that’s not a ploy to get around laws that limit their location, like the one now on Metro's books.
Even though the city codes department said they haven't seen an application to change the old building into a check cashing business yet, Syracuse said he'll be ready to make sure whoever moves in will be following the law.
NewsChannel 5 reached out to Tennessee Quick Cash for comment about their potential move to another Donelson location, but they did not immediately return our requests for comment.
