🥫 Why our food bank is 700,000 lbs lighter

⭐ Our Lack of Michelin Stars

Nashville has no Michelin-starred restaurants. Why? On the City Cast Nashville podcast, we’re chatting with food and travel contributor Margaret Littman about which restaurants deserve that coveted star. [🎧 City Cast Nashville]

• News broke yesterday that Michelin is launching a new guide to the American South, including Tennessee. [Eater]

🥫 Federal Cuts Impact Food Bank

The Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee will see a 30% reduction in aid from the USDA in the next quarter, which amounts to 700,000 pounds of food. These aren’t financial cuts, but rather a reduction in food delivered by the federal government. 1 in 8 Middle Tennesseans face food insecurity. [NewsChannel 5]

🌳 Uniting West Nashville’s Forests

A new conservation group aims to officially create the Western Highland Rim Forest, connecting Radnor Lake, Bells Bend, Beaman, and the Warner Parks with other wooded areas in West Nashville. Currently, state documents refer to the forests as separate, but changing the name to indicate one continuous forest could lead to better protections. [Nashville Scene]

🏥 Former CEO’s Big Settlement

At its Tuesday meeting, Metro Council approved a six-figure settlement with former Nashville General Hospital CEO Dr. Joseph Webb, as well as $10 million in supplemental funds to keep the hospital afloat through the end of the year. [Nashville Banner]

• Inside the recent controversy at Nashville General Hospital [🎧 City Cast Nashville]

RiverGate Mall has been a personal family gathering place since its beginning. As the mall faces an uncertain future, I wanted to look back at its history, and remember it as the vital community hub it once was.

RiverGate Mall’s Beginnings

RiverGate Mall opened Oct. 6, 1971, with 37 stores, including Cain-Sloan, Castner Knott, JCPenney, Jo-Ann Fabrics, McCrory, and Walgreens. It cost $25 million to build, and was the largest mall in Tennessee until Hickory Hollow Mall opened in 1978.

When RiverGate Mall opened, my Madison-based parents were ecstatic. In their teens, the mall immediately became a place to hang out with friends. Shortly after its opening, my mom got a job at World Bazaar, the World Market of the ‘70s. My dad frequented Ireland’s and still misses their steak and biscuits.

The Mall as a Community Hub

RiverGate Mall was built during the mall boom, when hundreds of malls in city suburbs began dotting the landscape across the U.S., and remained popular for decades. The original concept of a mall emphasized a combination of communal spaces and shopping, where communities could gather to shop, eat, and visit, while later malls built in the ‘80s and ‘90s focused primarily on consumerism.

RiverGate Mall hosted many community events, from milking contests to performances. It also became, like many malls, a vital third space for teens like my parents.

All four of my grandparents also loved RiverGate Mall. Two of them would meet at the mall with friends to exercise, bringing small weights to power walk its entire length, gossiping the whole time. They did this up until their 90s, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and I know I’d still be able to find them there doing their fastest walk while exchanging the latest gossip if they were still alive.