Metro staff say 30 acres, $100 million in capital and contracts would move to new East Bank Development Authority under proposed IGA

Mister Mendez of the mayor’s office told the East Bank Stadium Committee that Metro intends to transfer about 30 acres of the East Bank’s initial development area, an adjacent plaza and previously approved capital spending authority to the East Bank Development Authority under an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) now scheduled for committee review on May 6.

The move would also assign several existing contracts — including the 99‑year master development agreement, program management and engineering contracts and agreements related to shared parking and coordination with the Titans — to the authority, Mendez said. The IGA would let the authority hire staff, set compensation for its employees and execute the assigned contracts while Metro would retain ultimate policy control over land use, debt and capital spending.

Why it matters: the package consolidates operational responsibility for the East Bank’s initial build‑out in the authority while Metro intends to retain policy control and legal limits on the authority’s powers. Metro staff described a financial “waterfall” that would pay the authority’s operating costs first, build a one‑year reserve, repay Metro for interim operating support and return any additional surplus to Metro unless the council later approves a change (for example, a taxing or improvement district) allowing the authority to retain capital proceeds.

Key details from the committee presentation

- Assets to transfer: Mendez said Metro owns roughly 130 acres on the East Bank but is proposing to convey roughly 30 acres that are subject to the previously approved master development agreement, plus an adjacent plaza and the site of the…