Relocation

A Beautiful Place to Live, Work and Play

Tennessee is one of the fastest growing states in America, with a population increase of almost ten percent since 2000.   Over the last decade, the Nashville area of Tennessee has experienced tremendous growth across industry sectors, including the major industries of health care, tourism, publishing and music.  High-profile businesses from across the country and the globe have moved to the Nashville area in the past few years, from ServiceSource, to Saks Fifth Avenue, to Backyard Burgers, to Nissan, to the Consulate-General of Japan.

Cost of living is one of the Nashville area’s major advantages. Residents benefit from an overall cost of living that is consistently below the U.S. average. Among major U.S. cities, Nashville has long had one of the most favorable climates for high levels of disposable income relative to costs.  The Nashville region’s business environment is characterized by a favorable geographic location, quality workforce, lower taxes, and growth opportunities enhanced by a diverse economy.   Nashville  is a center for the music, health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home to a large number of colleges and universities.  The Nashville area is a crossroads of American culture, and one of the fastest-growing areas of the Upland South.

A vibrant music scene and long history steeped in tradition have drawn people from all regions of the country. The state boasts that 76 percent of the largest urban centers in the country are accessible in less than a day’s drive, making it an ideal destination that is close to friends and family. Major medical centers, top-notch colleges and universities and active civic organizations further enhance the area and offer a great sense of community for citizens young and old.

Climate

Nashville has a humid subtropical climate with generally cool to moderately cold winters, and hot, humid summers. In the winter months, snowfall does occur in the area  but is usually not heavy. Average annual snowfall is about 5.8 inches, falling mostly in January and February and occasionally March and December.

The coldest temperature ever recorded in Nashville was −17 °F (−27 °C) on January 21, 1985, and the highest was 109 °F (43 °C) on June 29, 2012.

Cityscape

The downtown area of Nashville features a diverse assortment of entertainment, dining, cultural and architectural attractions. The Broadway and 2nd Avenue areas feature entertainment venues, night clubs and an assortment of restaurants. North of Broadway lie Nashville’s central business district, Legislative Plaza, Capitol Hill and the Tennessee Bicentennial Mall.  Cultural and architectural attractions can be found throughout the city.

The downtown area of Nashville is easily accessible. Three major interstate highways (I-40, I-65 and I-24) converge near the core area of downtown, and many regional cities are within a day’s driving distance.

Parks and gardens

 

The Parthenon in Nashville’s Centennial Park is a full-scale reconstruction of the original Greek Parthenon.

Metro Board of Parks and Recreation owns and manages 10,200 acres (4,100 ha) of land and 99 parks and greenways (comprising more than 3% of the total area of the county).

Culture

Although best known for its music, Nashville is a city filled with many dining destinations.. Thanks, in part, to Nashville’s  “foodie” culture, the city was ranked as the 13th “snobbiest” city in America according to Travel + Leisure Magazine.

Nashville has several arts centers and museums, including the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art, the Tennessee State Museum, Fisk University’s Van Vechten and Aaron Douglas Galleries, Vanderbilt University’s Fine Art Gallery and Sarratt Gallery, and the Parthenon.

Entertainment and performing arts

Ryman Auditorium

Ryman Auditorium – the “Mother Church of Country Music”
Nashville has a vibrant music and entertainment scene spanning a variety of genres. The Tennessee Performing Arts Center is the major performing arts center of the city. It is the home of the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, the Nashville Opera, the Music City Drum and Bugle Corps and the Nashville Ballet.  The Schmerhorn Symphony Center is the home of the Nashville Symphony.

As the city’s name itself is a metonym for the country music industry, many popular tourist sites involve country music,  including the Country Music Hall of Fame, Belcourt Theatre, and the Ryman Auditorium.  Ryman was home to the Grand Ole Opry until 1974 when the show moved to the Grand Ole Opry House, 9 miles (14 km) east of downtown. The Opry plays there several times a week, except for an annual winter run at the Ryman.

Numerous music clubs and honky-tonk bars can be found in downtown Nashville, especially the area encompassing Lower Broadway, Second Avenue, and Printer’s Alley,  which is often referred to as “the District”.

Each year, the CMA Music Festival (formerly known as Fan Fair) brings thousands of country fans to the city.

The Christian pop and rock music industry is based along Nashville’s Music row, with a great influence in neighboring Williamson County.

Major annual events

Event Month Held and Location
Nashville Film Festival – Weeklong festival in April. It features hundreds of independent films and is one of the biggest film festivals in the Southern United States.

Nashville Fashion Week – A city-wide celebration of Nashville’s thriving fashion and retail community and its vast array of creative talent — featuring local, regional and national design talent in fashion events and shows. Typically held in March or April, the event benefits the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

Country Music Marathon – Marathon and half marathon which normally include over 25,000 runners from around the world in April. In 2012, participation for the Marathon and Half Marathon surpassed 30,000 runners.

Veterans Day Parade – A parade running down Broadway on 11/11 at 11:11.11 am since 1951. Features include 101st Airborne division (Air Assault), Tennessee National Buard, , Veterans from wars past and present, military plane fly-overs, tanks, motorcycles, first responder vehicles, marching bands and thousands of spectators.

Iroquois Steeplechase – Annual steeplechase horse racing event which takes place in May at Percy Warner Park.

CMA Music Festival – A four-day event in June featuring performances by country music stars, autograph signings, artist/fan interaction, and other activities for country music fans.

Let Freedom Sing! – Held every July 4th at Riverfront Park, featuring a street festival and live music, and culminating with a large fireworks show.

Tomato Art Festival – Takes place in East Nashville every August.

African Street Festival – Takes place on the campus of Tennessee State University in September.

Tennessee State Fair – In September at the State Fairgrounds. The State Fair lasts nine days and includes rides, exhibits, rodeos, tractor pulls,  and numerous other shows and attractions.

Live on the Green – Every Thursday in September and into October. Live on the Green is a free concert series held by local radio station Lightning 100 and is located at Public Square Park.

Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival – A free annual event in Centennial Park, the first Saturday in October. Middle Tennessee’s largest multicultural festival includes music and dance performances, ethnic food court, children’s area, teen area, and marketplace.

CMA Awards – Usually held in November at the Bridgestone Arena and televised nationally to millions of viewers.

Sports
LP Field

LP Field
Nashville has several professional sports teams:
 Nashville Predators Hockey Team
 Tennessee Titans Football Team
 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racetrack
 Nashville Sounds Baseball Team
 Middle Tennessee Storm Basketball Team
 Nashville is also the home to NCAA college football Music City Bowl

Economy

As the “home of country music”, Nashville has become a major music recording and production center.  All of the Big Four record labels, as well as numerous independent labels, have offices in Nashville, mostly in the Music Row area.  Nashville has been home to the headquarters of guitar company Gibson since 1984.   Since the 1960s, Nashville has been the second-largest music production center (after New York) in the U.S.  As of 2006, Nashville’s music industry is estimated to have a total economic impact of US$6.4 billion per year and to contribute 19,000 jobs to the Nashville area.

Although Nashville is renowned as a music recording center and tourist destination, its largest industry is actually health care.  As of 2012, it is estimated that the health care industry contributes US$30 billion per year and 200,000 jobs to the Nashville-area economy.

In 2013, the city ranked No. 5 on Forbes’  list of the Best Places for Business and Careers.

Nicknames

Nashville is a colorful, well-known city in several different arenas. As such, it has earned various sobriquets, including:

• Music City, USA
• Athens of the South: Home to twenty-four post-secondary educational institutions, Nashville has long been compared to the ancient city of learning, site of Plato’s  Academy.  Since 1897, a full-scale replica of the Athenian Parthenon has stood in Nashville, and many examples of classical and neoclassical architecture can be found in the city.
• The Protestant Vatacan or The Buckle of the Bible Belt:  Nashville has over 700 churches, several seminaries, a number of Christian music companies, and is the headquarters for the publishing arms of the Southern Baptist Convention (LifeWay Christian Resources, the United Methodist Church (United Methodist Publishing House and the National Baptist Convention (Sunday School Publishing Board).  It is also the seat of Thomas Nelson, the world’s largest producer of Bibles.
• Cashville: Nashville native Young Buck released a successful rap album called Straight Outta Cashville that has popularized the nickname among a new generation.
• Nash Vegas or Nashvegas