Nashville’s airport authority voted unanimously Friday to begin renaming the city’s airport in honor of Dolly Parton, weeks after the country legend’s death.

The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority voted 6–0 to start the process, NBC News reported. The vote does not lock in a final legal name for Nashville International Airport (BNA). The board called it “the first step in a multifaceted process,” and the airport posted “It’s official!” when announcing the tally.

“While a final name has not yet been determined, we are working closely with the appropriate parties to thoughtfully determine how Dolly Parton’s name and legacy will be incorporated,” the authority said in a statement carried by NBC. It said more definitive implementation plans should come in the coming months.

Parton died Aug. 25 at age 80 after a brief cancer battle, her family said. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee thanked the board Friday and called the vote an “important step to honor her remarkable legacy.” “Dolly has always helped the world fall in love with Tennessee,” Lee said, per NBC.

WSMV reported that leaders want Parton’s name and Nashville in the final title, that the BNA call letters will remain for airline planning, and that airport CEO Doug Kreulen said the authority met Parton’s family Wednesday and wants something “she’d be proud of.” One option under discussion: Dolly Parton Nashville International Airport. Kreulen said the estate holds more than 600 copyrights tied to her name and music, so a business agreement is still required. The FAA also has to clear the rename.

Kreulen told WSMV the process could take at least a year — Memphis needed about 14 months after Frederick W. Smith’s death for its rename ceremony — and that cost estimates for signs and marketing run roughly $8–10 million. Board member and deputy governor Stuart McWhorter said during Friday’s meeting that the state legislature is willing to cover rename costs, WSMV reported.

A Change.org petition to rename the airport for Parton, launched before her death, had more than 175,000 signatures by Friday. Co-organizer Lydia Popovich brought a pink flash drive of petition names to the meeting and told WSMV she was “so proud of the state of Tennessee,” adding she wants an Imagination Library space in the concourse so kids can get books while they wait.

Airports rename for politicians and donors all the time. Naming a hub for a songwriter who built Imagination Library and a mountain tourism economy is the rare civic branding exercise that actually points at something people chose to love — and the copyright paperwork is a useful check on rushing a memorial into a logo.

Sources