Paramount Tower, 65-68 stories, approx. 750', 200 units, $240 million, Church Street Park

[MagicPotato]

43 minutes ago, Bos2Nash said:

As we have learned over the past couple generations, we should not be looking at initial cost as a measure for building efficiency. If we did, sustainable design and construction would never be a thing.

That is true, initial cost doesn't measure up to the entirety of building efficiency, but it does play some part in it. 

[smeagolsfree]

Height of our buildings is a touchy  subject here. Unfortunately, Metro seems to discourage building height here. And that is a question that goes back to Metros previous head of Planning. His name escapes me right now, but this is the guy that wanted everything to stairstep from the river and put a 30 story cap on a lot of the areas in SoBro and in the Gulch.

Some of the restrictions have eased a little but very little. The act of giving bonus height is a little stupid, because the are based on Setback, parking, and architectural design. You let the developers build in a larger area of the core based on what the market demands, not on what they can do on a small parcel of land and what Metro decides they will let them do.

Much of the lack of height is Planning's fault because of the strict height restrictions in place. Until that is changed we will not get many if any tall buildings as the only place with unlimited height is the CDB, which is a very small area, and eve then the FAA steps in due to lack of planning  on Metros location of the airport.

[Pyramid Scheme]

I read on e. nashville thread somewhere that  only single unit houses with a yard are allowed as close to downtown as 5 points. To me that seems to be even worse than height regs for same reason Tony Giarratana said why height is good, and that is density. Restricting areas to only single unit housing is probably among the worst things going on.

[AronG]

3 hours ago, Philip said:

I read on e. nashville thread somewhere that  only single unit houses with a yard are allowed as close to downtown as 5 points. To me that seems to be even worse than height regs for same reason Tony Giarratana said why height is good, and that is density. Restricting areas to only single unit housing is probably among the worst things going on.

It'd be great if they lifted the height restrictions downtown, but I totally agree that the single-family housing restrictions are a much bigger issue.  Having two 25-story buildings instead of one 50-story one isn't the worst thing to live with, but the gradual exclusion of the middle class, and now the upper middle class, from neighborhoods near downtown is a travesty. And it only exacerbates other problems like traffic and concentrated poverty.

You can see the zoning on the metro planning viewer here: https://maps.nashville.gov/ParcelViewer/. Plenty of areas even closer to downtown than 5 points are zoned R6 or R8 (minimum 6 or 8,000 sq ft lot per house). Music Row, Edgehill, Buena Vista, Edgefield...

If we care about affordable housing in Nashville we should update the base zoning everywhere inside the 440 loop (and throughout the street grid areas of East Nashville) to allow "missing middle" development. Everybody loves the areas of town that were built when this was allowed, but for some reason they act like it's going to ruin their neighborhood if it's allowed now.

[Pyramid Scheme]

3 hours ago, AronG said:

Plenty of areas even closer to downtown than 5 points are zoned R6 or R8 (minimum 6 or 8,000 sq ft lot per house). Music Row, Edgehill, Buena Vista, Edgefield...

Mass transit will never be feasible until nashville does away with that.

[MLBrumby]

So true ^^

[Ingram]

On 5/18/2018 at 11:46 PM, BnaBreaker said:

Hopefully it's something more along the lines of the bottom tower.  Maybe it's just me, but a residential tower just looks so out of place as a tallest building, unless it looks nothing like a residential tower.  It's the reason something feels off to me about Austin's skyline.

 

Miami and Austin buildings all look the same. A bunch of windows encased in unattractive frames.

It's good that Nashville avoided that look with The Sobro and 505.

[mattbhadley]

Tennesseean 'Breaking News' Headline -- Nashville Mayor David Bailey proposes altered Church Street park land swap.

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2018/07/26/nashville-mayor-david-briley-proposes-altered-church-street-park-land-swap/838430002/

 

Looks like the main change is Metro would now receive another piece of Giarratana owned land in the deal to build a new downtown park along James Robertson Parkway. Metro will use the $2 million that Giarratana will pay for the Church street land to build the park on the James Robertson Parkway land. 

Edited July 26, 2018 by mattbhadley

[Titans10]

So is this lot big enough for the smaller version of Signature?  Such a beautiful building that needs to happen!!

[henburg]

1 hour ago, mattbhadley said:

Tennesseean 'Breaking News' Headline -- Nashville Mayor David Bailey proposes altered Church Street park land swap.

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2018/07/26/nashville-mayor-david-briley-proposes-altered-church-street-park-land-swap/838430002/

 

Looks like the main change is Metro would now receive another piece of Giarratana owned land in the deal to build a new downtown park along James Robertson Parkway. Metro will use the $2 million that Giarratana will pay for the Church street land to build the park on the James Robertson Parkway land. 

Sounds like a win-win to me, and would alleviate the concerns of citizens thinking the city is giving away too much. 

Edited July 26, 2018 by henburg

[PaulChinetti]

Where is the chunk of land at on James Robertson?

[CenterHill]

It's the same Premier lot on James Robertson where the city was going to build the homeless service center.    Under the new proposal, that triangle shaped parking lot would now become a city park and the city would build the homeless service center on city owned property at 505 Second Ave N across from the jail.        So the mayor is hoping for better optics with the city giving Tony the Church St. park and Tony giving the city the James Robertson lot plus $2 million to construct a new city park on it.       Tony would be the developer of the homeless service center at the new location. 

https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2018/07/26/amid-criticismmetro-shifts-plans-for-downtown-land.html

Edited July 26, 2018 by CenterHill

[markhollin]

22 hours ago, PaulChinetti said:

Where is the chunk of land at on James Robertson?

 

With the size of this lot (notated with the red marker), I'm guessing the Homeless Service Center that includes 100 housing units is going to be at least 10 stories tall.  The brown patch to the left is the new Criminal Justice Center.  The Fire Dept. is to the right.

[Bos2Nash]

So we are going to move the transitional housing across the street from the jail? Not that it matters all that much, but seems a bit odd in the social scale of things...

[Neigeville2]

I think the building hugging the curve on that small lot looked really cool, much better than a small park in what's already an open flat area, and especially one likely to be used only by homeless people.

Edited July 26, 2018 by Neigeville2

[smeagolsfree]

It seems the only folks that want the park to stay are the homeless folks occupying the park during the day. Most of the TV channels are interviewing the nut cases saying the community is against it. They say they feel safe because there are police there, but the reason there is police there is because they are a lot of creepy people causing trouble among the few that may be trying to help themselves.

 

I don't think anyone other than the homeless wants that park there other than them. Its not really a park anymore. There is no grass, the fountain is now shut off, there is always trash everywhere, and there are mounds of their milk crates, shopping carts and the likes cluttering the park.

 

If anyone wants to go down and see how bad it is , I welcome them to take a walk on Church street. If they wanted a park they would have taken care of it, but all many of them want is a place to hang out cuss, act rude, and go use the library bathroom to shower in the sinks, etc. I could go on and on about the crap I have seen in that park. Some of which I cant even post on the board.

My rant is over.

 

[MLBrumby]

The new park would be even closer to the police.

[smeagolsfree]

Actually the new Metro Police HQ is being built down on Murfreesboro rd.

[Tennessine]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2018/08/07/controversial-land-swap-with-tony-giarratana.amp.html

From the article:

"Under the proposed deal, Metro would give Giarratana the city-owned Church Street Park, at 600 Church St., in exchange for a parking lot Giarratana owns at 301 James Robertson Parkway. As part of the deal, Giarratana would commit $2 million to turn that site into a park and use city funds to build a services center and apartment building for the homeless on Metro-owned land at the intersection of Second Avenue and Gay Street."

[PaulChinetti]

On 7/27/2018 at 2:21 PM, smeagolsfree said:

Actually the new Metro Police HQ is being built down on Murfreesboro rd.

I thought that was gonna be a Family and Civil Justice Center (some name like that)? It’s gonna be the full new HQ for Metro PD?

[Bos2Nash]

19 hours ago, nativetenn said:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2018/08/07/controversial-land-swap-with-tony-giarratana.amp.html

From the article:

"Under the proposed deal, Metro would give Giarratana the city-owned Church Street Park, at 600 Church St., in exchange for a parking lot Giarratana owns at 301 James Robertson Parkway. As part of the deal, Giarratana would commit $2 million to turn that site into a park and use city funds to build a services center and apartment building for the homeless on Metro-owned land at the intersection of Second Avenue and Gay Street."

I preface the following comment with this disclaimer:  I think the prospect of having a new, well developed, tower in the city is great!

I tend to think about how much the city could've gotten out of the market for this parcel. Hindsight will say that it is possible this land could've been a public bid that brought in more than the 2 millions cash + other services that Tony is using as compensation. Then again this does seem to be a trend for the city, the land for 5th and Broadway was sold for a mere 5 million for 6 acres of MUCH more prime land. I'm curious as to how the city assess the assets that they are selling.

[CenterHill]

14 minutes ago, Bos2Nash said:

I preface the following comment with this disclaimer:  I think the prospect of having a new, well developed, tower in the city is great!

I tend to think about how much the city could've gotten out of the market for this parcel. Hindsight will say that it is possible this land could've been a public bid that brought in more than the 2 millions cash + other services that Tony is using as compensation. Then again this does seem to be a trend for the city, the land for 5th and Broadway was sold for a mere 5 million for 6 acres of MUCH more prime land. I'm curious as to how the city assess the assets that they are selling.

From the article: 

 

Quote

 

Since the deal's initial unveiling in April, city officials have touted appraisals done of both the Church Street Park and Giarratana's parking lot in defense of the plan. Those appraisals value the Church Street park land at $3.65 million, and the 301 James Robertson Parkway site at $3.37 million. City officials have argued that the appraisals, done in November by Nashville's Neiman-Ross Associates Inc., show the equally-sized properties are similar in value.

 

So, using those numbers (valuations provided by Metro), the city transfers Church St. parcel valued at $3.65M in exchange for (i) JRP parcel valued at $3.37M, plus (ii) $2M from Giarratana to build new park on JPR land.     Of course, the accuracy of Metro's valuations is what CM Mendes and others on Council are questioning.   

 

Quote

 

Mendes, however, has criticized that argument, since Giarratana has already expressed his desire to build the city's tallest tower on the Church Street site if the deal is approved. Mendes believes using the income method — which is what his new legislation would require — would result in a higher appraisal of the land's value. Currently, the appraisals for the proposed park swap use a "comparable sales" approach, meaning the sites' values are pegged to recently sold properties with similar characteristics.

"My position is that, if the seller is the government and the government and the buyer know that the government is going to radically increase the density on the property in a way that the comparable sales do not reflect, you really need to make an effort at the income approach in order to see what the land is worth to the buyer," Mendes wrote in an email to the NBJ, after reviewing copies of the appraisals.

 

 

[PaulChinetti]

Pretty sure that's not how appraisals work at all. THERE COULD be huge development here in the future. It's worth 4.5 BILLION!!

[markhollin]

Tony says it will be called Paramount Tower and will be 60 stories with 200 residential units, and no parking garage in an interview at NBJ today.

Highlights:

• "I won't call it Paramount if I can't get above the 'Bat Ears' (referring to the AT&T Tower's spires). Paramount means 'superior' and 'above all'...I'm a purist in that sense," says Giarratana.
   
• "Gone are the days of doing a garage under a tower like this. It's not the direction we see downtown Nashville going," Giarratana said. "All the major towers in the big cities, it's valet."
   
• There are also space constraints. The Church Street Park property is not even 0.3 acres, and a tower built there would occupy an even tinier footprint. Giarratana said that's not enough room for the ramps necessary in a multi-level parking garage.
   
• In exchange for Church Street Park, Giarratana would commit as much as $7 million to create a park elsewhere downtown, on land he would give to Metro, and to overhaul the look of Anne Dallas Dudley Boulevard, which borders Church Street Park. Giarratana also would oversee construction of an 11-story building downtown that would contain 100 to 150 low-income apartments and a services center for the homeless. Metro would fund construction but not pay Giarratana developer fees.
   
• Giarratana has received public aid for many of his past projects. He and Metro officials say that will not happen this time. "It's expressly part of the agreement that there is no public participation," Giarratana said.
  
  More behind the NBJ paywall here:
  
  https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2018/08/08/giarratanas-latest-tower-dream-60-stories-200.html
  
  More details on the land swap here:
  
  https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2018/08/08/why-metro-is-still-pursuinga-land-swap-with-tony.html

[e-dub]

Here we go!