NASHVILLE — City and department officials on Thursday celebrated the reopening of the East Convenience Center in East Nashville after what they described as the facility’s first major facelift in 24 years.

Council Member Sean Parker, representing District 5, welcomed residents and said the renovated site is open for business. “This beautiful new facility … is ready for business. So bring your stuff by,” Parker said, thanking crew members and on-site attendants who worked through the project.

Tracy Thurman, director of Nashville Waste Services, said the upgrades are aimed at improving customer experience and operational safety. She pointed to refreshed directional signage, a new booth for on-site attendants and a redesigned driveway and approach that officials say will make the center more accessible to residents and safer for employees.

“As our city grows, so must our infrastructure,” Thurman said. She described the center as the department’s most popular site and listed services available to residents, including composting, electronic-waste drop-off and hazardous-waste collection.

Thurman thanked staff and partners by name, including outreach leads Jen Herman and Sharon Smith, Metro Water and codes staff, and what she called adjacent partners in NDOT. She also introduced new operations leaders on site, such as assistant director Winters Patterson, superintendent Shane Draper and operations manager Scott Barrett.

Officials said the center handles substantial usage. “There’s 4,000 visitors that come here a month, and we’re diverting over 240 tons away from the landfill every day,” Thurman said, framing landfill diversion as the program’s central goal. She thanked the mayor and the city council for capital appropriations that helped fund the project and said the department will continue bringing forward related initiatives.

After remarks, officials participated in a ceremonial ribbon cutting. Event materials and a recording of the presentation are available through the city’s website at nashville.gov.

What happens next: officials said the upgraded East Convenience Center will continue normal operations and the department will pursue additional projects funded through municipal capital appropriations.