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5th & Broadway | 501 Commerce | NMAAM | 34 story apt, 26 story office, + 183,000 sq. ft. of Retail


MidTenn1

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I like the idea of incorporating the NMAAM at that location. It provides a counter narrative to the music scene in that district. I think vistors & residents who may not normally frequent that area will have a desire and reason to do so now...funny how representation and inclusion can bring that about.

Edited by CityHeart
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I know there are some who would rather see the NMAAM stay at the original location at the Bicentennital mall on Jefferson, but - putting the design aside - I think it will get a ton more visitor traffic at the Broadway location, which will benefit the museum in the long run.    The target audience is not limited to African Americans.   I'm not African American, but I would go in a heartbeat.   That history and the stories behind it hold as much, if not more, appeal to me than the country music museum down the street.    Like ParkAve, I don't hang out on lower Broad either, except to go to the occasional hockey game, but I work downtown and would make a point of going.    And the MCC will bring in lots of visitors of all types who will be very interested in checking out the NMAAM (...in 2019).      

Edited by CenterHill
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Been a long time since I've posted.  Been lurking.

 

What I like about having the NMAAM in that location is that in all actuality, country music and AA music history are closely intertwined in so many ways.  They are really cousins to one another and it would be nice to showcase them side by side and show both caucasians and African-Americans the roots of each style of music so we all can see the similarities...and not the differences.

 

And...I personally would like to see something in that area to bring in a more diverse crowd...not just country music fans.

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And...I personally would like to see something in that area to bring in a more diverse crowd...not just country music fans.

 

I'm with you.     And you know what, I think the tourist and convention crowds milling about downtown are already more diverse than just country music fans.  Not necessarily racially diverse (that needs to improve, too), but diverse in their tastes for entertainment.    It's just that Lower Broad is sort of heavy on honky tonks and boots and there are not a lot of alternatives.    For every convention goer who goes out and hits Roberts, I'll bet there's another who stays in the room looking for something else to do.    Cultural / educational actvities like the NMAAM would bring a lot of those people out of the hotels and from surrounding areas.  

 

I also like the pairing with the House of Blues, btw, if that happens and I really hope it does.  

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Renders, because I'm a masochist.

 

gwEzBXr.jpg

 

From this angle it kind of looks like they took the new convention center and ironed it to get rid of the "rolling hills" effect. The cladding material and popout balconies seem to be ripped directly from the music city center design vocabulary. Maybe I'm just thinking this because of the way that it responds to the sloping terrain of 5th Ave like the MCC does with Demonbreun.

 

If I were a retailer looking for some good curb appeal for window shoppers- I don't think I'd find much to covet in this building. Looks pretty opaque. I just don't see much on the street level to engage and delight pedestrians, which is my biggest complaint about the structure currently on this site.

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Realistically this thing will be better than the current CC no matter what. It has blank walls on Broad and 5th, cuts off 6th Ave, puts a loading dock on Broadway, has little activation on Commerce, and is generally ugly.

 

That said, I think the Broad/5th facacade at this point is pretty rough looking. Not a fan of all of the cantilevers. I personally think the tower is pretty cool looking and will certainly make a huge visual impression on the south side. 

 

I think it is a little concerning how inward-facing they designed it to be; they really did create a sort of urban lifestyle center. Presumably they'll try and draw in "destination retail," but I doubt Hermes or Louboutin would want to make their first location Lower Broad rather than Green Hills. Hard to believe they'll get financing for an office project that big without Metro guarantees or pre-leases. 

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The Tennessean is running a slideshow of the five submitted proposals for the old CC.   You'll cry when you see two of them... to think that Emery's F-ugly tower design captivated the judges (hmmmmmm, I just don't get it).  Attached article does give the rubric for selecting the finalist.

 

 

Can't post the link. I will start using my laptop which has the Chrome platform.  But that will take a while.

Edited by MLBrumby
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This makes me sad. Looks like the winner probably checked the most boxes on the city's evaluation while being the worst overall proposal. Some of these would add so much more to the neighborhood. Retracting my previous post (two above) this is plain depressing. 

 

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=DN&Dato=20131209&Kategori=BUSINESS01&Lopenr=312090075&Ref=PH

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F***. Just f***.

 

Every single one of those proposals is better. Not just a little better, but substantially.

 

The Trammel Crow design is modestly attractive. Nothing spectacular, but I think it would fit in very well. If this were the proposal, I would definitely endorse it.

 

I don't like the Rubicon design too much...at least for that location. Its mass is nice...but I think it's a little too dominant for the site, which requires at least some subtlety and restraint. But I would be totally cool with it if they plopped that in the giant hole on West End.

 

The Hart-Reed/Chartwell design isn't overly attractive, but I think they got the usage closer to right.

 

I personally think the REI proposal is fantastic, and the best use for the site. I'd probably tweak the facade on Broadway a little bit, but other than that, I like the modest Broadway height and the high rise portion in the back. It's not much of a skyline impact (boo hoo), but it would be a tremendous street level impact, which is what that site calls for.

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I personally think the REI proposal is fantastic, and the best use for the site. I'd probably tweak the facade on Broadway a little bit, but other than that, I like the modest Broadway height and the high rise portion in the back. It's not much of a skyline impact (boo hoo), but it would be a tremendous street level impact, which is what that site calls for.

 

I'm with you! The REI proposal seamlessly continues the streetwall from lower broad and does an excellent job addressing the street from the pedestrian's point of view. I too like the modest frontage height for this location, which is respectful of the historic structures along Broad. Although the REI proposal is not shattering any height records or making a statement (that would probably look dated in 10 years anyway), it is good urbanism and its form provides a basic structure that could be repurposed over and over again for years to come. The beauty of architecture with goods bones is that it can be adapted to meet the needs of its time, unlike the single use megablock widescrapers that become obsolete after 25 years of use.

 

b5dj3nj.png

Edited by chelovek
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I still like the tower in the project selected more than any of the alternatives.  However, the base of the project selected, which is significantly more important than the tower, is significantly worse in the project selected than any of the alternatives.  The commission really dropped the ball on this one.  The base they chose looks like a mall from the 1960's on one side, and a collection of blank walls on the other. 

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yeah, the REI design would have been ideal for this site, with Chartwell as a close second.   both are appropriately human-scaled and actively engage the pedestrian on all street-fronts.     what a colossal mistake and missed opportunity to rectify the street-killing big box effect we've lived with for 20+ years and seem about to repeat for the next generation.   

 

the selection criteria were listed in the paper.    only 30% was weighted to the design, which explains a lot.   

 

can someone explain the difference between "experience" and "qualifications"?    seems if you score high on one you score high on both - boom there's 40%.    and how did Trammel Crow not score high on experience, qualifications and financing?

 

detailed plan 30%

experience 20%

qualifications 20%

financing 20%

minority participation 10%

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Trammell Crow was my favorite visual too... and that would have been a big "GET" for the city.  Trammell Crow would have put lots of resources into it.  It seems to me that Emery's contacts with city leaders gave his partnership with C-W an edge.  Plus, C-W had a lot of success with Pinnacle.

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I'm with you! The REI proposal seamlessly continues the streetwall from lower broad and does an excellent job addressing the street from the pedestrian's point of view. I too like the modest frontage height for this location, which is respectful of the historic structures along Broad. Although the REI proposal is not shattering any height records or making a statement (that would probably look dated in 10 years anyway), it is good urbanism and its form provides a basic structure that could be repurposed over and over again for years to come. The beauty of architecture with goods bones is that it can be adapted to meet the needs of its time, unlike the single use megablock widescrapers that become obsolete after 25 years of use.

b5dj3nj.png

It's a shame that we won't be getting this one. This is 100000% better than what was approved.

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