NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — If you’re ever in downtown Nashville, one of the first things you’ll see are people lined up for vendors. That could change to where you see fewer vendors on the city’s most famous roads.
Metro Traffic and Parking Commission will meet today to take up a proposal to push the “No Vending Zone" further. It would expand about a block further south and west of the main downtown tourist area. This request was made by newly elected councilmember Jacob Kupin.
This is a proposal that's not getting a lot of support from vendors who, in the past, told us they only add to culture of downtown and the experience of tourists.
Last February, former Mayor John Cooper signed a bill into law that limited where street vendors could sell in downtown Nashville's entertainment district. City leaders say the reason for the change is the congestion on the roads.
The rule means vending on public sidewalks within the district, including Lower Broadway, is against the law. Currently, sidewalk vending is not allowed from the Cumberland River to 8th Avenue and from Union St. to Korean Vets.
The commission meeting is at 3 p.m. today at the Howard Office Building.
There are still so many families in East Tennessee hurting following the floods from Hurricane Helene in September. That made this year's running of the Santa Train extra special for many families in the northeast part of the state. This special Santa Express has been making an annual run in part of Appalachia for over 80 years.
-Lelan Statom
