NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — As Nashville continues attracting major companies and corporate investment, some people who already call the city home are asking what that growth will ultimately mean for them.
Oracle is already developing a major campus in Nashville, while Paramount has reportedly explored establishing a corporate presence in the city.
The potential for more companies to move into the area could mean new jobs, investment and higher-paying opportunities. But an economist and Davidson County residents who spoke with FOX 17 News say continued growth could also bring challenges, particularly if more high earners move into the area and add pressure to Nashville’s cost of living.
It’s part of a larger question facing a rapidly growing city: How can Nashville take advantage of new economic opportunities while making sure people already living here can keep up?
Economist: Corporate growth can bring both opportunities and challenges
Economist Dr. Julio Rivas told FOX 17 News that Tennessee can be attractive to corporations and higher earners because of its tax structure, including the absence of a state tax on wage income.
Rivas said major companies moving into the Nashville area can bring economic activity, but the arrival of workers from more expensive parts of the country can also change the local economy.
“Those big companies that are moving into Nashville — well, we have seen it before,” Rivas said. “There’s been some big companies that are moving into the Nashville area, and they keep on doing that.”
Rivas said people relocating from higher-cost areas may arrive with greater purchasing power than some existing residents.
“They will be able to come and buy property,” Rivas said. “That will be especially burdensome in property for some of the most desirable areas in town.”
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He said the concern is that people who cannot keep up with rising costs could increasingly have to look outside Nashville for housing.
“For the rest of the folks that are not as fortunate to make that much money, they will have to find housing elsewhere,” Rivas said. “That pushes people further and further away.”
Rivas said he hopes Nashville’s existing residents are also able to financially benefit as the city’s economy grows.
“My hope is that regular Nashvillians will also be able to catch up and to be able to afford the city,” Rivas said. “Because otherwise, if it becomes unaffordable for regular, long-time Nashvillians, well, things are going to change drastically.”
Davidson County residents weigh the opportunities and concerns
Those potential changes are also on the minds of some Davidson County residents.
Kiana Miller told FOX 17 News she is concerned about whether Nashville’s infrastructure and affordability can keep pace with the economic development already happening.
“I think of the price of living, of course, and how it’s already increasing as we are currently seeing this booming economic development in Nashville specifically, and how it doesn’t seem like the city is really growing as quickly as with that growth,” Miller said.
She questioned what continued corporate growth could mean for people already living in Nashville.
“I worry about the economic impact for natives or people that are already here,” Miller said. “What is the price of living going to look like? Are people going to be priced out of their homes, out of the apartments that they currently live in?”
Miller said her concerns also extend to existing small businesses and entrepreneurs trying to establish businesses in Nashville.
She questioned whether local and state incentives provide the same level of support for smaller businesses as they do when governments compete to attract large corporations.
But Miller also acknowledged another side of corporate growth: the possibility of higher-paying jobs.
“It’s interesting to think that bringing in other corporations, major corporations like Paramount, like you said, could increase the salary base of people that live here,” Miller said.
Her concern is whether those opportunities will actually reach people who already live in the city.
“Personally, I don’t think that it will actually exist in the native people that live here, the people that are currently here,” Miller said. “I think bringing these corporations in will simply bring other people from other places to the city to increase the wages, increase everything economically.”
Miller said she is unsure whether the arrival of those companies would encourage or provide enough opportunities for existing Nashville residents to pursue the new jobs.
Another resident worries about higher earners moving in
Another Davidson County resident, Nancy Stettin, said she believes Tennessee’s reputation as a business-friendly state is one reason companies are interested in moving here.
“I have a feeling a lot of them are coming because it is what they call a pro-business state,” Stettin said.
When asked how additional corporate relocations could affect people already living in Nashville, Stettin pointed specifically to the types of workers companies could bring with them.
“I have a feeling they’re going to be bringing in their own management, highly technical people,” Stettin said. “These people drive up the cost of housing.”
The residents’ concerns do not mean those outcomes are certain. How much a corporate relocation affects wages, housing or other costs depends on factors including the number and types of jobs created, who fills those jobs, housing supply and the broader local economy.
For Nashville, the debate highlights both sides of rapid economic growth: attracting companies can bring jobs, investment and additional economic activity, while residents are also watching to see whether they can afford — and participate in — the Nashville that growth creates.