With a week full of 60-degree days in the forecast, the winter storm feels increasingly like a bad dream — stressful, but no longer real. Unless you’re dealing with a perilous half-broken tree in your yard, damage from a water leak, or a bank account that was gutted by hotels and rentals. For many, the stress is very present and ongoing.
WPLN News is continuing to keep track of updates about public assistance. Scroll down for some updates on that. But first…In the very first year of Curious Nashville’s podcast existence, we received a question about slightly falling-apart gold panels above the entrance of the Metro Courthouse, also known as City Hall.
Ten years later, we have finally have an answer.
WHAT TO KNOW
These golden portraits date to the 1930s and are overdue for maintenance. Credit: Rachel Iacovone / WPLN (file)The silhouettes are a bit abstract, IMHO, but WPLN intern Allyson Mao tracked down what they’re supposed to represent.
Each picture shows a famous lawmaker:
- King John of England, who signed the Magna Carta, establishing the ideas of a constitutional government under the rule of law
Moses, shown receiving the Ten Commandments from God in the Bible - Justinian, a Roman emperor who established the Justinian code, the foundation of the modern legal tradition
- There is a fourth golden panel on the back side of the courthouse, facing James Robertson Parkway, depicting Lady Justice.
Each of these shiny gold panels are actually made of sandblasted glass, and appear as etched glass indoors. The gold look outside was achieved using gold leaf and adhesive.
A report from Metro Artsin 2017 indicates that much of the history of the creation of these panels is unknown, beyond the fact that they were created in 1937 by artist David Harriton. But we do know that the conditions of these panels were “poor/fair” even back in 2017, and that the panels have “inadequate cushioning,” and they are covered in grime and “translucent paint.”
But the price tag for restoration is high: It was estimated at $250,000 back in 2017 — and that’s alongside a long list of sculptures and other artwork in need of attention. So the gold above the Courthouse/City Hall may continue to lose its lustre.Listen to Curious Nashville
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On today’s episode of the NashVillagerpodcast with host Nina Cardona 🎙️
Would you trust a winter forecast based on worms and spider webs? On this date in 2000, Tennessee lost Helen Lane, the remarkable weather forecaster who used old-fashioned observations of nature to make predictions — and became nationally known. Plus the local news for Feb. 17, 2026, and a feature on a local rapper who contains multitudes.
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MORE TO KNOW
- Longtime Nashville session musician Jerry Kennedy died last week at 85 years old. Kennedy’s work is immortalized in hits like “Stand By Your Man,” “Harper Valley PTA,” and the iconic opening guitar lick of Roy Orbison’s “Oh, Pretty Woman.” The Louisiana-born guitarist moved to Nashville in the early 1960s, thinking he’d be here for a short while. He stayed until he died. The CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Kyle Young, says Kennedy was “soft-spoken and understated, but his permanent impact on American music was anything but quiet.” [Shreveport-Bossier City Advocate]
- The court system in Nashville is creating a special process for people facing eviction because of the winter storm. If judges determine that tenants didn’t pay rent because of storm costs, they can be transferred to a special docket that will include help filing out applications for rental assistance. Evictions have been a significant concern after power outages forced people to find other places to stay, often bearing additional costs. There have been calls for landlords to hold off on evictions or late fees, but hundreds of evictions were filed in the first two weeks after the ice storm hit.
- More than 2,600 people applied to Nashville’s Emergency Winter Housing Assistance Program before applications closed. This program, administered by the Metro Action Commission, will give up to $2,000 to people under a certain income who experienced hardships like property damage, loss of work and unexpected expenses. The state has also requested a higher level of federal assistance, but that has not yet been approved.
FROM WNXP
Broemel is known primarily as the guitarist for My Morning Jacket, and Ramsey is a founding member of Band of Horses. Both have been pursuing various musical projects for the better part of three decades. Now, the longtime friends have paired up for a new endeavor, in an album called Celestun.
The duo’s debut album sounds exactly as expected — atmospheric and graceful with precise cohesion that only comes from master songwriters.Live at WNXP’s Sonic Cathedral
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