City leaders ready for crowds as epic weekend in Nashville approaches

We are days away from games five and six of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but that’s not all.

It’s going to be an epic weekend in Nashville and Middle Tennessee with CMA Fest and Bonnaroo both in full swing beginning Thursday.

City leaders have been discussing how to handle the tens of thousands of people who will flood downtown Nashville.

They told News 2 they’re ready for the crowds, and tourists say they’re really enjoying all the excitement.

Joan and Bob Murray are visiting Nashville from Boston. They told News 2 their experience in Music City has been even more than what they were expecting.

“We have never been to Nashville before. It was completely serendipitous that we were here last night when everything was going on, so it was fun the energy was great,” said Joan Murray.

Freddie O’Connell is the councilman for District 19 where all the action will be happening this weekend.

This will be the first time so many major events have collided in Nashville all at one time.

O’Connell says the city has had ongoing conversations about how to handle the massive crowds expected this weekend.

“You might have heard the mayor announce on Preds Pride Day yesterday that they were tweaking some of the stuff about how downtown would work, they have closed off Broadway for some the Preds parties, and yes they are looking at things from a public safety standpoint, congestion standpoint, from how do we manage the traffic standpoint,” said O’Connell.

O’Connell says each group is stepping up to make sure their organizations’ celebrations go smoothly.

“CMA steps up and has responsibility for managing CMA Fest, The Predators organization is doing a lot to make sure Bridgestone Arena is accessible to everyone who is trying to attend the Preds game,” he said.

“You look at it and you’ve got the Stanley Cup game which is unique, there are 30 teams overall, 28 other cities want to be here. In the same spot, we happen to have a fantastic music festival going on at the same time, I think it’s going to be great,” said Tom Turner the CEO and President of the Nashville Downtown Partnership.

Courtesy of WKRN’s News 2