Top Knot Vintage Comes to Nashville and Is Here To Stay

By Kristie Patterson

MTSU Raider Shakedown Reporter

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Top Knot Vintage has come to East Nashville, specifically to 307 N. 16^th St. and they don’t plan to leave.

Top Knot Vintage has brought a refreshing new element of vintage to fashion lovers around the East Nashville area since the beginning of March 2016.

            The owner, Taylor Sorrell, originally started the business as a traveling pop-up store. Eventually, he was approached by the owners of another vintage clothing store in Nashville called Local Honey who asked to enter a partnership and sell clothing in his store.  Top Knot Vintage has grown tremendously over the last few months, and according to Sorrell, there are no plans to slow down.

Sorrell says there might be expansion plans in the future. The short-term goal is to move to a bigger space located in Nashville and long-term is to open up multiple locations in bigger cities across the U.S., such as New York City, Los Angeles, etc.

Sorrell who is originally based in Nashville Tennessee, has a love for true vintage, but he struggled to find actual vintage.

“Everything was either too western, old school or overpriced,” said Sorrell.  He started collecting pieces, and his house became covered in clothing. Top Knot Vintage was born when he decided that he needed to do something with his vintage inspiration.

            In addition to being a popular vintage spot to look for unique fashion statements, Top Knot Vintage brings in new discoveries each week. Sorrell’s main focus is to find real vintage items that other Nashville stores don’t find locally or for a good price. Although similar to stores such as Buffalo Exchange and Local Honey, there is a different element brought to Top Knot Vintage.

 “Mostly ‘90s style clothing, but some ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s are mixed in, too.” Said Sorrell, when describing TKV. The clothing that we pick is all personally curated by us, so we have quality control. I would describe our clothing as vintage threads with modern fits.”

            This brand new store offers great fashion that is affordable and one of a kind. For more information, the Top Knot Vintage Instagram’s page @topknotvintage shows a visual of what their store brings to the table.

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Railroad Workers Fear for their Jobs

By Ryan Barry

            NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Many Chessie-Seaboard X Transportation workers in Nashville are concerned about the stability of their jobs after two major production facilities shut down last month, leaving hundreds unemployed.

            The major railroad shipping company CSX Transportation is cutting back on production costs by removing two facilities responsible for maintenance and service of CSX train engines and railcars. The Erwin rail terminal was the first to be shut down, followed by the termination of the mechanical shops in Corbin.

            Nashville CSX machinists and railyard employees wonder what’s to come after CSX shut down their facilities in both Erwin and Corbin, Tenn., leaving nearly 500 people unemployed or in transition. Some employees from Corbin and Erwin may be eligible to transfer to other CSX facilities in higher demand across the region, such as Nashville, which would complicate matters for those that work there already.

Photo by Ryan Barry

            “We’re not really afraid that it’s going to happen here or that we’re going 
to get laid off,” CSX machinist Joseph Barry said. “It’s just that now there are experienced people from Corbin that could be transferred here, and that means we’ll be lower on the totem pole, which is bad news if they need to let people go.”

            A new deal is being discussed that would combine the machinist and pipefitting crafts into one master-engineer craft to compensate for the workers being shifted from the closed facilities. This deal has caused some unions to step away from the company while others stay. “We wanted to walk away, but if it means helping people keep their jobs, then we’ll see this through,” a union representative said. The representative wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the relationship among the union, the workers and the company.

            The official reason for the downsizing is a lack of need for repairs following a decline in coal traffic through the region. There are other implications that the downsizing of assets is signaling a potential merger in the near future, but that is currently unconfirmed.

            For more information about this story and news relating to CSX, go to the official website at www.csx.com.

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RENOVATION OF BELCOURT THEATRE TO BEGIN

 By Emily Anderson

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Belcourt Theatre in Nashville plans to temporarily shut its doors on Dec. 25, 2015 for an expected five-month renovation project.

 The Belcourt Campaign was started around early September of this year to raise funds to renovate the 90-year-old building. The goal of the campaign is to reach $4.5 million from gifts given to the theatre, as well as contributions from pledges. These funds will be used for campaign costs, equipment and furnishings for the new theatre and construction fees. So far, a little over $3 million have been collected.

The Belcourt is a widely admired theater in the Hillsboro Village area of Tennessee’s ever-growing state capital. It first opened in 1925 and re-opened in 1999 as a non-profit institution. The theatre provides the community with a wide variety of independent and classic films. The building, while aesthetically pleasing, is too small for the theatre’s popularity and is in need of refurbishment.

The blueprints for the renovation show larger theatres with new screens and improved sound systems to enhance the audience’s experience. The entrance and ticket booth are expected to be more accessible for patrons that require mobility devices. Bathrooms will also be made larger and more accommodating to movie-goers. A second-floor is also to be added, which will include a classroom for film education, as well as gathering rooms for pre- and post-screenings.

                            Image provided by The Belcourt Campaign

According to Brooke Bernard, the development director at The Belcourt, the renovation is too complex for the theatre to stay open during construction time, as there are no original blueprints available. The campaign has hired Tuck-Hinton Architects and R.C. Mathews Contractor to do the construction. These businesses have “planned the most effective, efficient construction schedule” for the renovation. Bernard says the building is expected to stay closed from January 2015 to June 2015, but the theatre is working with local businesses to show screenings when they are able.

Patrons still have a few weeks to enjoy the selection of films offered at The Belcourt Theatre. “Reservoir Dogs” is scheduled to play two days in a row at midnight after Thanksgiving weekend. More festive films like “Gremlins” and “Die Hard” are scheduled to play in December prior to the theatre’s renovation.

For more information on the renovation of The Belcourt Theatre, ways to donate, and a calendar of showings, visit www.belcourt.org.

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Nashville hosts seventh annual ‘Vision Walk’ to fight blindness

By Bryan Ros

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The city of Nashville presented its seventh annual “Vision Walk” on April 20 at Bicentennial State Park, raising more than $45,000 to aid in funding retinal disease research as members hope to find a cure.

Members gather as they wait for this year's "Walk" to commence.

            Members of the successful foundation gathered at the park that morning hoping to make a difference by participating in the seventh annual walk around Bicentennial State Park. According to the event Manager Natalie Linton, the walk not only signifies the support for such a great cause, but it also serves as a celebration of raising almost $50,000 in funds towards degenerative retinal disease research.

             “I have a mission,” Nashville Chapter President Peggy Mitchell said. “And all of you here today are proof of that. Your support is truly wonderful.”

            Mitchell suffers from Usher syndrome, which causes both hearing and vision loss, but she claims that she is not letting that get in the way of her mission to find a cure for blindness together with the chapter members of Music City.

            Each year, new groups form with team names based on close family members or friends suffering from a form of eye disease to work together to raise money for the Vision Walk Foundation. Aside from the walk that gets spirits running high, the event also presents a “best T-shirt contest” for the most spirited team who gave it their all in fundraising for a possible future cure.

"Vision Walkers" begin by walking under the balloon arch.

            “This is my sixth year attending,” said Dot Johnson, a senior citizen from Franklin. “Our pastor’s daughter suffers from an eye disease, so he’s the one that got us all involved one year, and we were hooked. It’s just such a great cause.”

Johnson attended with about 45 other members of her church, Franklin United Methodist, and her group alone fundraised approximately $11,000 towards the cause.

Mitchell spoke about how anyone interested in attending chapter meetings is more than welcome as they can provide a support mechanism for any family member or close friend suffering from a degenerative eye condition.

The Vision Walk Foundation has fundraised a total of $470,000 since the first “Walk” in 2007. For information on participating in next year’s “Walk”, visit www.fightblindness.org.

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