Music icon Dolly Parton, who passed away August 25 at age 80, will have Nashville’s airport renamed in her honor.
The Metro Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) board voted unanimously to approve the change, which followed weeks of public campaigning after Parton’s death. The airport will keep its BNA code, originally taken from its former name, Berry Field, but its official name will change; a new name has not yet been announced.
During the process to approve the renaming, the MNAA had to set aside its own policy requiring a person be dead for two years before a facility can be named after them.
The push began with a Change.org petition that started in January by Tennessee residents Lydia Popovich and Dan Dion, calling for the airport to be renamed Dolly Parton International Airport. The petition gained renewed attention after Parton’s death and has surpassed 150,000 signatures. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Nashville Mayor Freddit O’Connell both backed the proposal. Lee said in a statement that Parton’s life is “forever woven into the fabric of our state.”
Parton’s Dollywood Foundation is reportedly working with the airport on the tribute.
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