Nashville Mayor John Cooper announces he won't seek second term

Nashville Mayor John Cooper will not seek re-election, he announced Tuesday morning.

Cooper's announcement opens the field for a 2023 mayoral race without an incumbent — a rare situation in Nashville, where most previous mayors have sought and secured a second term.

"In April 2019, we set forward a vision of Nashville that works for everyone," Cooper said during a news conference. "I laid out 51 policy proposals to tell the people of Nashville exactly what I would accomplish. A vision of safe neighborhoods with better infrastructure, beautiful parks and well funded public schools. And we have done all of that."

Cooper will focus on three areas for the remaining months of his term: public safety, Nashville's homelessness response and the redevelopment of the East Bank.

The decision also means Nashville will once again see a shift in top leadership for the fourth time in less than a decade following the resignation of former Mayor Megan Barry and David Briley's subsequent single term. Cooper, once an at-large Metro Council member, defeated Briley in the 2019 mayoral race. It was the first time since the formation of Metro government that an incumbent mayor lost a reelection bid.

Key moments: A timeline of Mayor John Cooper's administration and his time in Nashville.

The news comes at a pivotal time for Nashville leadership in the government and private spheres. Republicans in the state legislature are considering reshaping city government with a bill that would shrink Metro Council to 20 seats rather than 40. Butch Spyridon, Nashville's lead tourism executive for more than 30 years, recently announced he will step down as the head of the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp. in July. Ryman Hospitality Partners CEO Colin Reed stepped down from his role of more than two decades at the end of 2022.

Today's announcement also marks the first time in decades that a Cooper will not serve as a representative for Nashville residents. Cooper's brother, former Nashville Congressman Jim Cooper, did not seek reelection in 2022 following a Republican redistricting plan that split Davidson County into three districts.

Had Cooper sought a second term, he would have joined District 19 Council member Freddie O'Connell, Nashville economic development and affordable housing veteran Matt Wiltshire and At-Large Council member Sharon Hurt in the growing candidate pool.

A pandemic mayor

"In many respects, 2020 was itself a full term in office," Cooper said during a news conference Tuesday morning.

Cooper’s first term has been marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the March 2020 tornado, multiple floods, a courthouse fire during an outbreak of violence following a series of peaceful protests, and the December 2020 bombing of Second Avenue.His tenure has also included an overhaul of the city's finances, including a 34% property tax hike that sparked litigation with the Davidson County Election Commission. The state Supreme Court ultimately declined to hear the election commission's case, which was struck down in other courts.

The city now has a "rainy day fund" seven times higher than when Cooper took office, he said, and Metro Council recently approved a policy to protect it.

In his remarks Tuesday, Cooper championed his administration's push for higher investment in Metro Nashville Public Schools. Over his mayoral term, Cooper's capital spending proposals have included nearly $545 million toward Metro Schools. Recent city budgets included funding for a series of raises for teachers and school support staff, further bolstered by additional dollars Metro Council allocated toward MNPS support staff bonuses. The current budget committed to raising the minimum wage for Metro employees to $18 per hour.

"My term as your mayor has been in many ways two terms. It was a term of crisis and a term of investment," Cooper said. "A term to course correct and a term to move forward. A term of perseverance and a term of progress, and we have delivered."

While in office, Cooper also pushed for multiple development projects, including a vision for sweeping redevelopment of the Cumberland River's East Bank. Under his tenure, Nashville purchased the former Tennessee School for the Blind as well as the derelict Global Mall property for a yet-to-be finalized deal with Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The city also finalized an agreement with software giant Oracle, which will build a $1.2 billion Nashville campus on River North in East Nashville.

Cooper has been at the forefront of ongoing negotiations for a new Tennessee Titans stadium and an agreement with Bristol Motor Speedway to overhaul Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway. Both projects would lean heavily on revenue bonds for financing, a component that has drawn scrutiny from some council and community members. Cooper also renegotiated the terms of building a Major League Soccer stadium.

Cooper's administration changed the shape of Metro's departments, creating a Housing Division and the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure. The East Bank development plan, which he will continue to advocate for during his remaining months in office, ties directly into the city's transportation overhaul, Cooper said.

"The plan creates a powerful north-south traffic and transit spine that reconnects neighborhoods and will give transformational capacity to deal with traffic in the future," he said. "It will create a live, work, play environment that will propel Nashville into being the most livable city in America."

He has also supported efforts to rein in aspects of Nashville's downtown tourism industry including entertainment vehicles and downtown street vending.

Cooper has faced scrutiny over his handling of homelessness, with an April 2022 Vanderbilt poll reporting 37% of respondents "strongly disapproved" of his administration's approach. After months of tension between city officials and nonprofit groups over the best approach to serving Nashville's homeless residents, Metro Council approved a standalone Office of Homeless Services in June 2022. Metro Council member Freddie O'Connell spearheaded that effort with the goal of stabilizing homelessness policy and response between mayoral administrations.

During Cooper's term, Nashville has devoted more than $50 million in one-time federal pandemic relief funds toward "housing-first" programs addressing homelessness.

The same Vanderbilt poll resulted in an overall approval rating of 56% for Cooper, but 32% of respondents said they strongly disapproved of how he's handled property taxes and government spending.

"We've accomplished so much in the last 40 months, and it's true, there is much to get done," Cooper said. "We have created a platform for the next great chapter in our city's history."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville Mayor John Cooper announces he won't seek second term