Its growing pains have been marked by passenger pickup lines sometimes stretching well past a nearby interstate exit. The airport hosts country, jazz and bluegrass concerts and exhibits the work of local artists. In the 2023 budget year, the airport unveiled a new lobby, added more restaurants and live music, opened an additional parking garage and made progress toward an onsite hotel. Nashville officials say the state hasn't even complained about the board's performance, even during extensive airport expansions. Georgia lawmakers flirted with flipping the Atlanta airport's governance in 2019 but opposition sank the proposal. Mississippi's 2016 law to reconfigure Jackson's airport leadership structure remains blocked by an ongoing legal challenge. Due to FAA and court action, North Carolina’s 2013 law to shift control of Charlotte Douglas International Airport from the city to a separate regional board never came to fruition. Tennessee's situation isn't unprecedented. “Any state action is purely about politics.” “Nashville’s airport has grown very successfully over the years by the direction of this board, and that’s unquestionable,” Cooper said during a recent meeting of the mayoral-appointed board. Nashville Mayor John Cooper, a Democrat, has cried foul on the Republican change. The federal agency said it would keep recognizing the pre-July 1 board until the court rules. The state responded that Nashville can't make its claims because the airport authority is independent of the local government.Ĭity leaders, however, reached out to the FAA, which can veto certain changes to the airport's governance. In the meantime, the authority installed the new board members on July 1, saying it can't defy state law without a court order.Ĭiting the Tennessee Constitution, the lawsuit argues the state violated home rule protections by singling out Nashville without either a local referendum or a two-thirds metro council vote for the change. The city has sued the state over the changes to the airport authority, which manages, operates, finances and maintains the international airport and a smaller one in Nashville. The change was among several passed by legislators seeking to curtail the power of the Democratic city, whose metro council sunk a bid to bring the 2024 Republican National Convention to Nashville. We are trying to read between the lines a little bit.”Įarlier this year, Republican lawmakers approved plans for the state to make enough appointments to control the airport's board starting in July. I’m not sure how consistent the FAA is being in its communications with everyone. “There’s clearly some tension here among the parties about different issues and control. “We don’t really know how this is all going to play out,' said Nashville Chancellor Anne Martin. A decision over whether to block the law temporarily is expected within days. But the Federal Aviation Administration and the city contend the old board picked by Nashville's mayor still has power.īoth boards met at the same time last week across town from each other.Ī state three-judge panel in Nashville heard the dispute Friday, with assurances from multiple parties that the airport is functioning as usual. The nonprofit Metro Nashville Airport Authority and state officials argue that a new group of state appointees has lawfully taken over the authority's board. The confusion comes at a time when the airport is booming, its annual passengers having more than doubled over the past decade to 21.8 million by the 2023 fiscal year.

Under a new state law, there is no clear agreement now about who's in charge of airport operations. While Nashville International Airport hums to the tune of live music in a terminal filled with tourists and locals, this trendy gateway to Tennessee has quietly confronted an identity crisis.

Airport budget