• Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
Smart Cities Connect
  • About
    • Team
    • Media Kit
    • Contact
  • Verticals
    • Community Engagement
    • Digital Transformation
    • Smart Mobility
    • Urban Infrastructure
    • Urban Operations
  • Events
    • Webinars
  • 2021 Smart 50 Awards
    • 2021 Smart 50 Awards Application
  • Resources
    • Videos
News Ticker
  • [ January 27, 2021 ] Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Launches Public Awareness Campaign Around Ransomware Digital Transformation
  • [ January 27, 2021 ] TOMI Launches Mask Detection Function, Reactivates Pedestrian Detection and Counting Community Engagement
  • [ January 26, 2021 ] Gothenburg Conducts Five Month Autonomous Electric Shuttle Test Smart Mobility
  • [ January 25, 2021 ] Nottingham, England Develops Intelligent Energy Management System Digital Transformation
  • [ January 22, 2021 ] Dallas Receives $4M From DoT For Smart Transit Technology Testbed Smart Mobility
HomeUncategorizedNashville: Shaping A Boom Town Into A Smart City

Nashville: Shaping A Boom Town Into A Smart City

February 9, 2017 Laura Benold Uncategorized

Nashville realizes that the smart city race is a marathon rather than a sprint. That doesn’t mean they are resting on their laurels. Rather, they are taking a cue from others and approaching progress holistically. Chief Information Officer Keith Durbin is crafting a robust strategic plan around smart city technologies along with the community, Mayor Megan Barry and newly appointed Chief Strategy Officer Brian Kelsey.

“First and foremost, we’re interested in data and infrastructure and laying that groundwork. We’re really focused there and on establishing a base layer,” Durbin said.

This summer, the city will launch a multi-channel 311 communications system allowing citizens and residents to share ideas, thoughts and suggestions with the Metropolitan Government through a single portal. The city will be able to track and close communication loops as needs are met, decisions are made, and projects are undertaken.

“We want feedback from the community and to bring a diverse set of people to the table,” Durbin explained. “You can have the smartest city in the world, but if you have people who are afraid they won’t be heard or who can’t access city benefits, it’s incomplete.”

Nashville’s project pipeline is impressive and it will rely heavily upon input from citizens and a mayoral advisory committee, Connected Nashville, to establish priorities and ensure inclusion. Transportation, a priority for both the Mayor and the community in this burgeoning city, will receive much attention as Metro Nashville is both a Transportation for America city and one of five cities selected for the Bloomberg Aspen Initiative on Cities and Autonomous Vehicles.

The city has its eye on inclusion but hasn’t forgotten the national conversation and hopes to be part of it through organizations such as MetroLab Network, which encourages city-to-city collaboration, as well as US Ignite, which aids cities in establishing themselves as smart gigabit communities. Durbin described a visit to Washington, D.C. where he learned about a public private partnership model in that city that they may be able to replicate in Nashville over time.

While Nashville hasn’t been known as a technology or start-up hub in the past, the city hopes to attract and encourage start-ups through a stronger procurement program, an innovation corridor, and an ever-developing partnership with both Vanderbilt University and Middle Tennessee State University.

“We are trying to be organized and methodical but not rigid when opportunities present themselves,” Durbin said.

In 1962, when its current model of local government was established, Nashville was a town of 200,000 people. As one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country, it’s experiencing growing pains and the challenges that come with change. However, strong progressive leaders and focused strategists such as Durbin and Kelsey will take Nashville to its next phase of development as one of the nation’s smartest cities.

Learn more and interact directly on Twitter: @nashvillemetgov.

  • city spotlight
  • community engagement
  • Governance
  • inclusion
  • infrastructure
  • spotlight
Previous article
Next article

Related Articles

Led By The Will of Innovative Community Members and Driven By A Collaborative Region, Boulder Does It Best

Miami and CIVIQ Smartscapes Install Communication Devices in Transit System

Smart Communities Address Transportation, Housing, Flooding Challenges

Stay in the know:

Tweets by smartcityc

Archives

  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
Stay connected
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use

© Copyright 2021 Smart Cities Connect, Produced by TechConnect