The insurance company that paid out more than $10 million to Metro Nashville after last year’s devastating downtown library parking garage fire is now suing to get that money back. Travelers filed the lawsuit in Davidson County Circuit Court against Nashville Downtown Partnership, its contractor Block by Block, and Block by Block’s parent companies, Mydatt Services Inc. and SMS Holdings Corporation.
The suit accuses NDP and Block by Block of negligence and gross negligence related to how fuel containers were stored inside the garage. While the Nashville Department of Transportation owns the garage, NDP operates it, and the insurer says that responsibility comes with accountability.
Investigators previously obtained video showing large empty fuel canisters, including propane tanks, sitting in a storage area where the fire is believed to have started. NDP later confirmed Block by Block had stored those canisters on the garage’s fourth floor. Open records requests revealed that neither Metro Codes nor the Nashville Fire Department Marshal ever issued permits for fuel storage in that space.
According to the 15-page lawsuit, Travelers alleges NDP failed to prevent the fire in several ways, including using the parking garage as a storage yard, building what it calls impermissible combustible storage structures inside the garage, allowing employees and contractors to smoke on the property, and failing to follow state and industry fire codes.
Beyond the negligence claims, the lawsuit also accuses NDP of breaching its 2017 contract with Metro Nashville. That contract reportedly required NDP to indemnify and hold the city harmless from any damages or legal costs tied to the organization’s own negligence or that of its contractors. The suit further states the two parties agreed not to make unauthorized changes to the garage.
The fire broke out on June 10, 2025, sending explosive flames tearing through the structure. The blaze caused serious structural damage, collapsing part of the garage and trapping vehicles inside for months. Car and truck interiors melted, rubber tires burned, and a ramp gave way. The Downtown Nashville Public Library was forced to close for nearly a year as a result.
Travelers is requesting a 12-person jury trial and is seeking more than $10 million in compensatory damages, plus attorney fees and related costs. NDP released a brief statement saying it does not comment on active or pending legal matters. Block by Block had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.
The downtown library is expected to reopen this weekend, more than a year after the fire shut it down.