Council OKs East Nashville Site for New Sheriff's HQ

NASHVILLE, TN — The Metro Council unanimously approved an East Nashville site for the new administrative headquarters for the Davidson County Sheriff's Department at its meeting Tuesday night. The $20 million facility will be built on property already owned by the sheriff's office near the James Cayce Homes.

The 60,000 square foot facility will locate at the current location of the Jerry Newson Center on Fifth Street. The Newson Center, which houses the warrants, records and training divisions, will be torn down to make way for the new headquarters, which will consolidate sheriff's personnel currently spread throughout the county. The site will also include a 14,500 square-foot training center and 200 parking places.

Sheriff Daron Hall had originally wanted the new headquarters on property owned by his department on Harding Road in southeast Nashville, but backed off after stiff resistance in the area thwarted a plan to relocate the Criminal Justice Center —and its inmates — to Antioch. Rather than relocate the jail, it is now undergoing a $113 million renovation.

Councilman Brett Withers, who represents the area, said his constituents are in favor of the project, because it will complement the Envision Cayce project designed to revitalize the public housing project. He told The Tennessean most of the pushback against the sheriff's project came from people who were hoping for a mixed-use project on the Newsom Center land, though, he said, that was probably not feasible given the restraints of the site.