One of Vanderbilt’s iconic brick towers on West End is being imploded Saturday morning at 9 a.m.
Those wanting to shoot video or photos of the implosion of Carmichael Tower No. 3 will be limited to any area outside the blast zone perimeter. Partial views can be found on West End Avenue at both 23rd and 25th Avenues.
West End and Elliston Place will be closed between 23rd and 25th avenues. They are scheduled to reopen at 9:45 a.m.
A live stream of the event will be available at vu.edu/towers, a website highlighting the history of the four Carmichael Towers structures through photos, video and more. In addition to the live stream, Vanderbilt will be providing video of the implosion, following the event that morning.
The implosion of the 14-story tower will last approximately seven minutes and will be overseen by Layton Construction, LLC and Controlled Demolition, Inc.
There will be a total of 374 charges.
To commemorate the event, Vanderbilt has also created merchandise available at https://vanderbiltuniversity.ignitecx.com/TowerImplosion.
MTSU study: exporters had ‘tough’ 1st quarter
Tennessee exporters “eked out” a small increase during a challenging first quarter, according to the latest “Global Commerce” trade report from
“The first quarter of 2019 was another tough slog for Tennessee exporters,” says Dr. Steven Livingston, professor of political science and international relations and contributor at MTSU.
“Since total state exports were at almost $8 billion, this was less than a 1% gain.”
The state ranked 23rd nationally in its performance for the quarter.
Tennessee ran into declining car sales in both Canada and the U.S., producing substantial losses in its automotive-related trade.
The state’s exports to China were off 15%, while exports that appear on foreign tariff retaliation lists also suffered.
Gibson Foundation to give away a guitar a day
Gibson Guitar has announced it is re-launching the Gibson Foundation, a 501(c)3) committed to introduce, inspire and amplify the power of music
Since 2002, the Gibson Foundation has provided thousands of guitars and donations in excess of $30 million. Working directly with partner affiliations to drive future action, the goal of the Gibson Foundation is to make music matter to more people across the globe, one guitar at a time. Gibson will also engage with their artists and various industry partners to support and grow music culture by ensuring that guitarists and guitars remain a driving force in music.
As a starting point, Gibson have committed to giving a guitar-a-day away over the next 1,000 days. 100% of donations to the Gibson Foundation go directly toward giving the gift of music, re-affirming Gibson’s commitment to giving back, empowering music culture and encouraging the creation of music.
Gibson also recently announced it will move its headquarters to Cummins Stations from the airport area.
Fiat Chrysler honors Bridgestone Americas
Nashville-based Bridgestone Americas, Inc. has been named Sustainability Supplier of the Year by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.
The recognition highlights Bridgestone and its ongoing efforts to adhere to social, ethical and environmental principles throughout the organization’s entire supply chain.
Bridgestone was honored alongside 18 North American suppliers for its commitment to FCA its continuous efforts to provide innovative products that meet the needs of consumers. Bridgestone has supplied premium tires for various FCA brands, including Jeep and Ram.
The FCA award celebrates recent environmental and sustainability achievements made by Bridgestone, including a water savings project implemented at the company’s passenger and light truck tire plant in Joliette, Quebec, a land donation of the Bridgestone Nature Reserve at Chestnut Mountain in East Tennessee and the launch of the company’s Global Sustainable Procurement Policy.
Publication lauds BluWave as ‘unique solution’
The “Mergers and Acquisitions’’ publication has named Brentwood-based BluWave as a top resource for private equity funds and their portfolio companies in its June 2019 issue.
In its annual Dealmaker’s Guide to Service Providers, BluWave is profiled as a unique solution helping private equity funds and business leaders assess opportunities and build value in an extremely competitive environment.
In the article, BluWave CEO Sean Mooney discusses his background as a private equity partner, the difficulties of creating value for companies in today’s market, and why he founded BluWave to address the challenging requirement of utilizing third-party resources to perform due diligence and drive growth.
SphereCommerce partners with Radix
Nashville-based SphereCommerce, LLC, is partnering with Radix Health to provide secure online payment processing technology for clients of Radix’s patient intake solution, DASHin.
Radix Health is a provider of cutting edge patient access and patient experience technologies. Its DASH suite of solutions helps medical groups, health centers, and health systems see their patients, faster; its DASHin solution enables integrated patient intake so that patients can complete registration before they arrive to see their provider. With this new partnership, patients now also will be able to pay their copay or balances directly from their mobile phone before their appointment.
This partnership will enable health care practices to further engage their patients in a way that is meaningful to them.
Nashville sixth on top meeting destination list
In Cvent’s latest list of top U.S. meeting destinations, Nashville placed sixth behind Orlando, Las Vegas, Chicago, Atlanta and Dallas.
Cvent, a market-leading meetings, events and hospitality technology provider, says the list was compiled based on meeting and event booking activity across Cvent’s venue sourcing sites, including the Cvent Supplier Network.
“Business events add $1.5 trillion to the global GDP and because of this positive economic impact, the cities featured in this year’s Top Meeting Destinations lists have put significant time and resources into attracting more group business to their locales,” says Chris McAndrews, vice president of marketing for Cvent Hospitality Cloud.
New fares for WeGo bus service Aug. 2
The costs for WeGo Public Transit’s fare and multiday passes will increase for the first time since 2012.
In June, the agency’s board of directors approved recommended service and fare change proposals. Beginning Aug. 2, each one-way trip on regular bus service will be $2. Prices for all multiday passes, including discounted passes, also will be adjusted.
Changes to WeGo’s paratransit service fares include an increase from $3.40 to $3.70 per trip for the agency’s traditional Access service, and an increase from $6 to $7 for the first 14 miles for WeGo’s Access-on-Demand service.
Fare changes include (old cost, new cost):
One-day: $1.70, $2
All-Day: $3.25, $4
Seven-Day: $16, $20
20-Ride: $32, $40
31-Day: $55, $65
One-Ride Access $3.40, $3.70
One-Ride Access on Demand: $6, $7
Change cards, originally proposed to be eliminated in conjunction with the fare increase, will now continue to be issued until Dec. 31, 2020. Information
Covenant Surgical adds Arizona health centers
Covenant Surgical Partners, based in Nashville, has announced a partnership with Arizona Centers for Digestive Health, the state’s leading provider for full-spectrum gastrointestinal care.
With this agreement, Covenant adds 11 new practice locations and two state-of-the-art ambulatory surgery centers to its expanding national portfolio.
“Working with Arizona Centers for Digestive Health and its integrated care model represents the future of Covenant,” says Lew Little, CEO of Covenant Surgical Partners. “Our values are aligned and we share a commitment to the highest quality patient care.”
Known regionally for end-to-end gastrointestinal care, AZCDH is a highly-dynamic gastroenterology group founded by former Mayo Clinic physicians who strive to provide patients with the full gamut of care under one roof – from reflux, to cancer prevention, to inflammatory bowel disease and more. Currently, they employ 17 fellowship-trained, board-certified physicians.
Churchill Mortgage announces expansion
Churchill Mortgage, a Brentwood-based provider of conventional, FHA, VA and USDA residential mortgages across 46 states, has expanded to Omaha.
Churchill’s newest addition to its operation will allow borrowers to attain the resources needed to make better mortgage decisions.
“By providing the right tools, like Certified Home Buyer and Rate Secured, and a world-class experience, our borrowers are able to secure their home with peace of mind. We look forward to growing our team and our relationships with the local community.”
In Omaha, homes sells faster than any other large metro city in the United States, according to a national analysis by real estate franchiser Re/Max. With an average of just 32 days on the market, Omaha’s housing market is fiercely competitive. In comparison, the national average is 59 days on the market for homes in other large metro areas in the United States.
Gill, Harris to headline All for the Hall in L.A.
All for the Hall’s Los Angeles benefit will feature Country Music Hall of Fame members Vince Gill and Emmylou Harris, along with Luke Combs and Sheryl Crow.
The event will be held Sept. 17 at The Novo in the L.A. Live complex and benefits the Hall of Fame and Museum’s education programs.
Gill has hosted or co-hosted every All for the Hall concert since he founded the campaign in 2005.
Now in his 18th term as president of the Hall’s board of officers and trustees, Gill launched the All for the Hall initiative by encouraging country artists to contribute the proceeds from a performance to benefit the museum.
Harris is the winner of 13 Grammys, three CMA awards and two Americana awards, and she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2008 and presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy in 2018.