Dr. Joseph Webb, CEO of Nashville General Hospital, told Scene sister publication the Nashville Post back in March that he’d wanted to get started on a new site for the city’s safety-net hospital before then. With new Metro Hospital Authority Board Chair Frank Stevenson now in place and a new mayoral administration well underway, perhaps 2024 is the year we’ll see big moves from the hospital, whose lease on Meharry Medical College’s campus is set to expire in 2027. The clock is ticking more and more loudly to pick a site and begin construction.
But there are a few things standing in the way. The Nashville General Hospital administration wants the city to donate a plot of land and serve as the guarantor. Additionally, the hospital is looking for an investor to help get the building off the ground, Webb told the Post in September 2022. An investor has yet to be named, and a plot of land has yet to be donated. Nashville General spokesperson Cathy Poole says the hospital will work to secure funding after the land is identified and acquired.
In February of last year, the hospital released renderings that included a separate tower dedicated to behavioral health. The renderings also featured a shorter, more spread-out design than the hospital’s current compact 11-floor setup. The new site could include housing to further diversify funding streams, Webb added at the time. The hospital originally eyed a MetroCenter plot home to soccer fields managed by the Metro Department of Parks and Recreation for its new locale, but has since said they are not limited to that site.
Meharry Medical College has pushed back against the move as well. When Nashville General announced new site plans in 2022, longtime partner Meharry bristled at the notion, but the two entities have since seemingly mended their relationship, with Webb later promising teaching opportunities at the new location.
Despite the hospital planning for years to move locations, communications with the mayor’s office and Metro Parks have stalled.
Poole says there is a meeting scheduled for mid-January. Says mayor’s office spokesperson Alex Apple: “A meeting with Dr. Webb is on the list of the many department head briefing meetings that we are in the process of scheduling. We anticipate that meeting soon.”
From housing and transportation to development of the East Bank, here are 11 stories to keep an eye on this year
