Tennessee Firearms Assoc. Inc.

Anyone in the Nashville area know if the Opryland Hotel & Convention Center is posted or not?

Thanks

The last time I was there back in Dec it was not posted. I do not know if it has changed since then.

While staying there however if you walk over to the Opry Mills mall it has the red slash stickers on the doors.

Wouldn't the fact that alcohol is served in the restaurants preclude carry? I thought the law prohibits carry in a building where alcohol is served.

I figure it is kinda like carrying in a grocery store that has a post office in it. The resturaunts that are in the hotel are not actually part of the hotel just residing in them. Kinda like ruby Tuesdays being in the mall.

I may be off base but I am sure somebody can clear it up.

Unfortnately, The Ruby Tuesday analogy is correct, however the outcome is not as expected. There is no carry of weapons allowed at the entire Opryland complex. The restaurant is inside the hotel, however since they do serve alcohol for consumption on the premises, carry it outlawed on the entire premises, this means Restaurant, Hotel, even the parking lot.

Hopefully this will be changed this week with the passage of HB0962 and the associated Senate Bill. Change the law is what we have to do, and this is the year to get it done. Write your Tennessee Representatives and the rest of them too. Write your Senators and the Governor and demand a YES vote on HB0962 and SB1127 so we can carry within restaurants that serve alcohol providing that we are not drinking.

We need calls on this one, today, the vote may occur on Thursday!

Opryland Hotel is NOT "posted" as per TCA regs. In fact, they don't have any "no weapons allowed" signs on their property at all.

The alcohol question is an interesting one, as the bars & restaurants there are clearly marked as such & one must enter some sort of gate/door to each one where alcohol is sold.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about it IF I were not sitting in one of their alcohol-serving sections, i.e. walking around the hotel.

When watching the Legislature in the House, the Opryland Hotel was mentioned and the question was posed about Handgun Carry at the Hotel, and the opinion was stated by Representative Todd that it was their understanding that the entire hotel complex was "No Weapons". Now this is just what was stated in the house judiciary committee based upon the opinion of Representative Todd so you can give that whatever creedence it deserves based upon that.

Personally, I doubt that carry is restricted based upon the letter of the law, but it seems that there is some confusion about the Hotel.

It is not uncommon at all for legislators to be factually wrong when statements are made. Likewise, its even more common for them to be wrong about the current state of the law that they think they are changing or the effect of the law that they are proposing.

I don't know about Opryland without checking but I am pretty sure BassPro is OK.

AMEN! I cannot believe some of the things I have heard on the floor that are stated as fact, and they aren't even close to it.

I don't thing Opry Mills Mall is posted. I usually look for signs. I carry in the mall all the time and usually enter through Bass Pro. I was made once in Bass Pro and one employee just asked what I was carrying. I told him, he told me what he usually carried and I went about my business. Of course, We don't enter any of the restaurants in the mall that serve alcohol. We visited the hotel at Christmas time and I carried there as well. Again, I didn't notice any signs and we did not dine in any of the restaurants that serve alcohol.

i live almost next door to opry mills, and have carried without even thinking about it, couldn't even tell you if it was legal or not, i got to stay on my toes better, but this whole thing with the restaurants and work sites is just a set up waiting to happen, i'm sure the bad guys never bother to ask ,investigate or even care, it sucks that criminals seem to have more rights than the just, no wonder cops have such a hard time staying honest

The signs must be sort of inconspicuous. I'm usually looking for signs and I haven't noticed any.

Update:

We finally got home from our Easter weekend event at the Opryland Hotel complex. While there, I checked many of the entrances, [but certainly not all] for the proper posting per T.C.A. and found that there were NO signs posted declaring firearms prohibitions. These entrances included the Cascades entrance/check-in doors and the entrance into the Delta ballroom & convention area.

So, would I be correct in assuming that it is permissible to carry concealed at the Opryland Hotel complex visitor rooms, meeting facilities, and common areas as long as the individual carrying doesn't "enter" a restaurant venue that serves alcohol (most do however)?

As a side note, we also went into Opry Mills via the tool store entrance on the river side of the mall and there were NO firearms prohibitions signs on these doors as well.

Any thoughts or comments?

I went to Opry Mills on Saturday and I specifically looked for posted signs. I entered through the entrance between Macaroni Grill and Barns and Nobel. I checked every square inch of the entrance doors and the only signs were no smoking. They did not have any firearms signs posted.

Once I entered the mall, about 15 feet to the right of the entrance there was a poster. The top of the poster read “OPRY MILLS MALL a smoke free facility” It then had a numbered list below it. I have passed this sign a million times before and never read it, but I stopped today. Item number 6 on the list read “It is prohibited to carry a firearm openly or concealed with or with out a permit on the property.”

This is obviously not ICA with TCA. It does bring up a good question. Can I be subject to penalty if I carry on the property since it is not posted properly? Also there are restaurants in the building at Opry Mills that server alcohol, so should you be carrying there anyway?

Typically, a non-compliant sign would defeat a criminal charge but could still be the basis for the property owner/manager asking you to leave the property under the criminal trespass doctrine.

As for restaurants in large multi-tenant structures, I take the position (at least until the law changes) that the prohibited place is only the section under the control of the restaurant - not the entire structure.

Anyone been to visit the Opryland Hotel after reopening from the flood restoration to see if it is posted? It wasn't posted prior to the flood.

Thanks!