Spotlight On: Angie Brady, Executive Director, Visit Clarksville
August 2025 — Angie Brady, executive director of Visit Clarksville, spoke with Invest: about growing Clarksville as a destination in the Nashville area. “When people come to Clarksville, they find we are affordable, family-friendly, and easy to navigate. The people here are genuinely nice and there’s an elevated factor of authenticity,” said Brady.
What changes over the past year have most impacted the organization, and in what ways?
When I came in January 2024, the full-service property downtown was in the midst of being renovated. The DoubleTree by Hilton Clarksville Riverview opened in the fall of 2024 and was a well-received change. We now have a 155-key, full-service property downtown across the parking lot from F&M Arena. There is a 500-space parking garage being built between the arena and the hotel.
Adding a Hilton DoubleTree hotel downtown will bring Hilton loyal travelers, as well as other visitors,to stay in Clarksville and experience our downtown.
How has the tourism and hospitality sector in Clarksville evolved over recent years, and what lasting shifts have you seen in visitor behavior?
In my 18 months of experience in Clarksville, I have learned that COVID-19 changed the way tourism did business. The convention and meeting side is still coming back. Clarksville leans into sports, whether it is youth tournaments or adult sporting tournaments. Sports came back quicker than other areas, and our occupancy and collections have been very strong. In the last 12 months, we have increased the number of sporting events we support by 12.5%. Each year we add five or six new events. We are a very small team of seven people with a $2 million budget. The amount of work that comes out of this office is tremendous. Clarksville does not currently have a convention center, so we have to be creative with the spaces we sell. We have to be selective about what groups we recruit because we don’t want to oversell.
What changes over the past year have most impacted the organization, and in what ways?
When I came in January 2024, the full-service property downtown was in the midst of being renovated. The DoubleTree by Hilton Clarksville Riverview opened in the fall of 2024 and was a well-received change. We now have a 155-key, full-service property downtown across the parking lot from F&M Arena. There is a 500-space parking garage being built between the arena and the hotel.
Adding a Hilton DoubleTree hotel downtown will bring Hilton loyal travelers, as well as other visitors, to stay in Clarksville and experience our downtown.
What unique strengths or opportunities do you see in this destination compared to other markets?
Clarksville hangs its hat on being affordable and only 45 minutes outside of Nashville. With youth sports and travel teams, parents are committed. When people come to Clarksville, they find we are affordable, family-friendly, and easy to navigate. The people here are genuinely nice and authentic. Being close to Nashville and its amenities offers opportunities for elevated, big-city experiences.
What investment areas or infrastructure improvements do you believe are most critical to sustaining tourism growth in Montgomery County?
The lack of a convention center is a challenge. This is my first destination marketing organization (DMO) that wasn’t its own 501(c)(6). Visit Clarksville, the chamber of commerce, and industrial development make up the Montgomery County Economic Development Council. We’re all working towards quality of life, but our audiences are different. We are serving overnight visitors, and if it’s good for the visitor, it is good for the community. My counterparts in our other partner organizations are working to bring in retail and industry. In the next five years, we will see the convention center come, and we’ll be able to sell it. We’ve spoken to six to eight different organizations looking to relocate their leisure or consumer shows. One wanted to host a boat show, but F&M Arena wasn’t built to be able to house fiberglass boats. When we build, we need to be strategic so we can house these large types of shows. We also want to be able to convert things we already attract, such as youth sports, to larger venues so they can grow their event. People travel for our cornhole tournament. The tournament draws over 400 participants from 19 different states, and it has outgrown its current space. Regional state-level meetings and conferences are looking for a new place to go. Clarksville can be that place. The convention center will have a connected full-service hotel, along with hopefully two other full-service properties. Being strategic takes time, and we are of the mindset that we want to do it right instead of quickly.
What are your top growth priorities for Visit Clarksville over the next two to three years?
Continuing to grow sports tourism is a top priority. We are a great location and have a fantastic relationship with our county parks and recreation department, which manages the fields we have access to. There was a change in leadership there, which required some righting the ship prior to my time here. We are fully staffed and continue to grow sports tourism by providing a high level of service to tournaments and an extra level of care. We are small but mighty, and will do all we can to roll out the red carpet within our capabilities. When we speak to our planners and organizers, they always say our sales team made them feel seen, took care of any issues, and were able to pivot and make accommodations.
We will continue to evaluate our marketing and make data-driven decisions. We invest in Zartico, a leading travel industry platform that provides data on visitors and where our marketing is being seen. We look at the key markets we are in, and we will pivot if we don’t see the results we want. Marketing is a long game, and you’re not going to see immediate results. You have to be consistent, thoughtful, and engaging. changed the way tourism does business.
The convention and meeting side is still coming back. Clarksville leans into sports, whether it is youth tournaments or adult sporting tournaments. Sports came back quicker than other areas, and our occupancy and collections have been very strong. In the last 12 months, we have increased the number of sporting events we support by 12.5%. Each year, we add five or six new events. We are a very small team of seven people with a $2 million budget. The amount of work that comes out of this office is tremendous. Clarksville does not currently have a convention center, so we have to be creative with the spaces we sell. We have to be selective about what groups we recruit because we don’t want to oversell.
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