This was pointed out in the case of Marshall Bruce Co. v. City of Nashville, 109 Tenn. 495, 512, 71 S.W. 815, 819 (1903), wherein it was stated: "The provisions of the charter are mandatory, and must be obeyed by the city and its agents; and, if in conflict with an ordinance, the charter must prevail." See also Barnes v. Ingram, 217 Tenn. 363, 397 S.W.2d 821 (1965). In the more recent case of Wilgus v. The City of Murfreesboro, 532 S.W.2d 50 (Tenn. App. 1975), the Chancery Court for Rutherford County declared a zoning ordinance of the City of Murfreesboro as violative of the city charter and thus void. Article III, § 5 of the charter of the City of Murfreesboro provided with respect to zoning ordinances that "[n]otice of the adoption of such amendment, supplement or change in the ordinance shall be given by publishing such notice three (3) times in some daily or weekly newspaper of general circulation in the city."

Marshall & Bruce Co. v. City of Nashville , 109 Tenn. 495, 71 S.W. 815, 819 (1903) (emphasis added). See alsoBarnes v. Ingram , 217 Tenn. 363, 397 S.W.2d 821, 825 (1965) (same); State ex rel. Lewis v. Bowman , 814 S.W.2d 369, 373 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1991) ("It has long been the law in this state, as in many other states, that ordinances of a city are subordinate to the charter provisions."). As described in detail above, Ordinance 11590 amended the City Charter to require only two readings to pass an ordinance, and expressly repealed all laws or parts of laws in conflict with this provision.

We must construe together the portions of both the Charter and the Code of Ordinances dealing with the same subject matter. See 421 Corp. v. Metro. Gov't of Nashville and Davidson County, 36 S.W.3d 469 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2000); see also Barnes v. Ingram, 397 S.W.2d 821, 823 (Tenn. 1966) (construing the Charter and Ordinances together); Posey, 164 S.W.3d at 576-77 (same). Article 7, Section 53 of the City Charter vests the Board of Commissioners with authority to establish a retirement or pension system for the officers and employees of the Fire Department and the Police Department and to determine who may be included as members of such system.