Nashville Bits and Pieces

[MLBrumby]

I find it interesting that Nashville lagged its peers in offices downtown (big HQs and established offices, etc.), and about 20 years ago it was destined to be surpassed by all of them for downtown development (i.e. high-rises). Funny thing happened on the way to the forum!  In that time, things sort of turned around, and residential and hotels/mixed use became "king" in urban cores.  That's where I think Nashville caught up to its peers and even surpassed many of them.  I look at my hometown with all its supertalls and how dead it is after dark (sigh!).  Downtowns are not the core of 9-5 workers anymore (or at least as much) as for places that host 24-7 lifestyles/activities. I think that's the real story of Nashville over the past 10 years, and it will be for the foreseeable future.  I recall 15 years ago when those on this forum lamented that Williamson (and other) County(ies) were taking the momentum away from the CBD.  Translation was that big corporations would build the biggest towers, and all of Nashville's biggest firms were moving to Williamson County.  Yet that all changed over the past decade, and went into hyperdrive with the WFH trend. 

Edited February 4, 2022 by MLBrumby

[Rick Dalton]

COVID changed everything. Nashville is well positioned IMO.

[MLBrumby]

Here's a (possibly) overlooked nugget of news.  One of the city's top financial executives, Jerry Johnson has announced his retirement. He spent 20 of his 31 years with UBS in Nashville. UBS is one of Nashville's largest employers. 

From the NBJ:  https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2022/02/04/ubs-market-head-jerry-johnson-to-retire.html 

[smeagolsfree]

Looks as if Nashville will be featured in an upcoming episode of Jason Mamoa’s new show “On The Roam” as he was seen in Nashville with American Pickers’s Milk Wolfe.

https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/jason-momoa-went-to-nashville-and-hung-out-with-american-pickers-mike-wolfe-and-there-are-photos

[tragenvol]

23 hours ago, smeagolsfree said:

Looks as if Nashville will be featured in an upcoming episode of Jason Mamoa’s new show “On The Roam” as he was seen in Nashville with American Pickers’s Milk Wolfe.

https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/jason-momoa-went-to-nashville-and-hung-out-with-american-pickers-mike-wolfe-and-there-are-photos

Not only was Mamoa in Nashville, but in Red Boiling Springs as well!  Red Springs or Red Bowlin if you prefer.

Edited February 7, 2022 by tragenvol

[markhollin]

New flood maps show more areas at risk in Davidson County. According to the new data about 1,000 new homeowners are in the 100-year flood plain — meaning homes have a 1% percent chance of flooding in any year. Affected homeowners will be notified.

More at WPLN here:

https://wpln.org/post/under-new-maps-a-thousand-more-nashville-homes-are-officially-in-the-flood-plain/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2022.02.08 NASH&utm_term=NASHtoday Subscribers - MASTER

 

[smeagolsfree]

I really don't want to get into this can of worms, but Metro is responsible for a lot of the problems here as areas are flooding that never flooded before because of developments allowed by Metro and the fact that Metro is not doing due diligence with the impact of hydrology studies. They are giving developers, especially SFH developers everything they want. 

SFH development typically have a lot more run off than a multi-unit development because of the number of streets involved which contribute so much more to rainwater runoff and flooding. There are some places in the US that are outright banning SFH construction in favor of multi- family homes. With this, you can require LEED certification, thus rainwater collection, rain gardens, cistrons, retention ponds, recycling of rainwater, pervious pavement and any number of things to cut down on runoff.

I would be in favor of Metro requiring any new SFH subdivisions to be Gold LEED certified or they must do Gold LEED Multihousing in its place. This should have been part of the plan of Nashville.

I am sure I will get some feedback on this, but it is common sense and maybe some smart person at Metro will see it. I am pro development but some of these developers need to be put in their place as well.

[Bos2Nash]

Well if the state hadn't shot down the impact fees on developers, maybe Metro would have a bit more funding to actually do an infrastructure overhaul to allow for additional runoff. I couldn't tell you how much the runoff coming out of Lockeland Springs SFH developments is, but it is probably pretty negligible compared to river heights. The flooding has some pretty wild variables that factor into it (not to mention upriver variables that metro has no control over) and SFH is probably pretty low on that totem pole. There is LEED for Homes, FYI, and there are plenty of other sustainable practices and programs - like Passive Haus - that could assist with SFH. The zoning as well is a balance between the existing neighborhoods (which is really where the SFH are being built) and needing to ad density with appropriate stormwater management is a line the city needs to walk. That is also part of the discussion about eliminating or minimizing SFH zoning.

FWIW, Nashville has some pretty stringent stormwater management requirements from what I heard from the Civil Engineers at my last job. Depending on the amount of disturbance for a parcel, many SFH projects don't need to do a "grading plan" which would trigger alot of those regs. As a result SFH is less regulated, is more affordable to put up and you also do not need a registered architect to do the majority of the house design. Residential is a lot less regulated than commercial construction in general (this is a nationwide thing) and with the market in Nashville the way it is, doing SFH is probably the only way any smaller shop developer is going to make money.

[smeagolsfree]

32 minutes ago, Bos2Nash said:

Depending on the amount of disturbance for a parcel, many SFH projects don't need to do a "grading plan" which would trigger alot of those regs. As a result SFH is less regulated, is more affordable to put up and you also do not need a registered architect to do the majority of the house design. Residential is a lot less regulated than commercial construction in general (this is a nationwide thing) and with the market in Nashville the way it is, doing SFH is probably the only way any smaller shop developer is going to make money.

I think that is a lot of the problem as a lot of the SFH' were put up in areas where there are great views, i.e., hills, along rivers, creeks, exacerbating the problem with the runoff. That is probably where Metro has failed to control a lot of these issues. I know there has to be a plan for the subdivisions, but how many are required to have retention ponds in Metro? I know it is a pretty strict requirement in Brentwood & Franklin, but I have not seen it as much in Nashville. 

I have seen it more in the industrial developments in Nashville around the Industrial Park that is on the Rutherford/Davidson line.

[markhollin]

Nashville growing in the luxury real estate realm:

https://www.tennessean.com/story/money/2022/02/08/nashville-tennessee-real-estate-four-seasons-penthouses-units-sold-luxury-market/6670179001/

[jmtunafish]

The Nashville MSA had 30,469 new housing starts in 2021 which places it 11th in the country.  The top 20:

1. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX - 76,909
2. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX - 69,053
3. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA - 58,035
4. Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ - 51,923
5. Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX - 50,772
6. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA - 39,296
7. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD - 37,449
8. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA - 30,967
9. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA - 30,814
10. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL - 30,533
11. Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN - 30,469
12. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO - 30,004
13. Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC - 28,309
14. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV - 27,075
15. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI - 25,742
16. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL - 25,350
17. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL - 24,826
18. Jacksonville, FL - 22,725
19. San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX - 22,229
20. Raleigh-Cary, NC - 21,649

https://www.census.gov/construction/bps/

[MagicPotato]

2 hours ago, jmtunafish said:

The Nashville MSA had 30,469 new housing starts in 2021 which places it 11th in the country.  The top 20:

1. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX - 76,909
2. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX - 69,053
3. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA - 58,035
4. Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ - 51,923
5. Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX - 50,772
6. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA - 39,296
7. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD - 37,449
8. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA - 30,967
9. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA - 30,814
10. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL - 30,533
11. Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN - 30,469
12. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO - 30,004
13. Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC - 28,309
14. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV - 27,075
15. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI - 25,742
16. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL - 25,350
17. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL - 24,826
18. Jacksonville, FL - 22,725
19. San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX - 22,229
20. Raleigh-Cary, NC - 21,649

https://www.census.gov/construction/bps/

It's crazy how Nashville is building as many home as cities that are nearly 8 times bigger (Los Angeles). 

[PaulChinetti]

Are there regulations where NES can install poles? They are installing one across the street from me and they just drilled it right into the sidewalk.

I guess f-you if you have a wheelchair, stroller, or want to walk two abreast!

[Sean blackdog]

4 minutes ago, PaulChinetti said:

Are there regulations where NES can install poles? They are installing one across the street from me and they just drilled it right into the sidewalk.

I guess f-you if you have a wheelchair, stroller, or want to walk two abreast!

[colemangaines]

6 minutes ago, PaulChinetti said:

Are there regulations where NES can install poles? They are installing one across the street from me and they just drilled it right into the sidewalk.

I guess f-you if you have a wheelchair, stroller, or want to walk two abreast!

If I remember right from my construction days, the ADA recommends 5 ft wide sidewalks but the minimum required is 3 ft. If a section is 3 ft wide then you need a wider "passing" area every so often. But my experience living in Midtown is that there's a whole host of junk (NES poles, ground boxes, etc.) that effectively blocks the sidewalk to be less than 3ft wide. Not sure how that's OK.

[smeagolsfree]

Metro and NES do not follow their own regulations regarding ADA compliance. I have seen them build a brand-new sidewalk and put a pole right back in the middle of the sidewalk.  I think they believe they are somehow exempt from the rules. 

I think what happens is the line crews go out and say we need a pole here and say x marks the spot and dig and just do it and don't ask anyone. 

[subkyle]

ADA requires a 36” wide passage. I’d totally measure it and report if it’s not at least the minimum. In my business we use to have lawyers looking for even the smallest ADA violations so they sue. 

Edited February 10, 2022 by subkyle

[PaulChinetti]

I sent it over to the council person. They said they will have someone come look at it.

[Flatrock]

3 hours ago, PaulChinetti said:

Are there regulations where NES can install poles?

IDK, but it seems like utilities and railroads can pretty much do whatever they like if it falls within their respective easement/R.O.W....with little accountability or oversight.

Edited February 10, 2022 by Flatrock
Add info

[PaulChinetti]

Got 'em. 

We will see how long it takes until the problem is remedied. 

[smeagolsfree]

1 hour ago, PaulChinetti said:

Got 'em. 

We will see how long it takes until the problem is remedied. 

I think the workers doing the work are the blame. They have one set of rules and ignore the other set of rules. Glad they got dinged.

[PaulChinetti]

All the other poles on the street are like that so I’m sure they did it because of that. But that’s not a good reason ha

[Pdt2f]

3 hours ago, smeagolsfree said:

I think the workers doing the work are the blame. They have one set of rules and ignore the other set of rules. Glad they got dinged.

Idk, if boss man tells them to put it there they put it there. I’m not going to blame the grunts because planning this kind of stuff isn’t their responsibility. Someone higher up got lazy and hoped nobody would notice. As a man of heft I appreciate our very own Paul Chinetti making sure that I get my full three feet of clearance  

[AsianintheNations]

Awesome work getting this addressed! In the Nations on 51st near Kentucky Ave, I saw a crew tearing up the old sidewalk, crossing my fingers that this is to move it farther from the street so that the telephone pole there is also not smack in the middle of the sidewalk.

On the other hand, I was walking along Charlotte Ave near the Richland library branch and there was literally a sawed-off 2-foot chunk of a former telephone pole just dangling in mid-air from the cables. The rest of the pole was just gone, except a snapped-off stump on the ground. I'm not sure why I didn't snap a photo of this. With a little wind, I could've gotten clocked on the side of my head.

[PruneTracy]

It's time for another (or the only) installment of Things Prune Tracy Thinks About on His Lunch Break.

505 (formerly 505 CST) often advertises the Aerie penthouse as the tallest residence in Nashville. While this is true, it's carefully worded. Is it the highest residence in Nashville?

I went back and measured the ground elevation at 505, a topic long debated on that building's thread. The elevation of Church Street in front of 505 is about 503 feet, and the building is 523 feet tall. We'll be generous and say the penthouse is 1,026 feet ASL.

I worried for a minute about being inexact, but in the end it doesn't matter. There are two houses in Oak Hill immediately north of Radnor Lake that sit at about 1,140 feet ASL and are thus the highest residences in Nashville. These are higher than both 505 and other high-rises in the county on hills, such as Wessex Towers and Skyline Medical Center. They are also higher than the architectural height + ground elevation of the AT&T Building, which made me wonder for a minute if they were the highest structures in Nashville, until I remembered that broadcast towers exist. (So that honor goes to the nearby WSIX-FM transmitter in nearby Forest Hills, at 1,804 feet ASL.)

As an aside, the higher (and larger) of these two houses would go for about $7.8 million according to Zillow, at 6 bedrooms, 7 baths, and 10,600 square feet. If you combined the two penthouses at Aerie 505 (one has already sold, so hypothetically) you'd have 6/7 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms, and 8,100 square feet, but it would set you back a little short of $13 million. We really need to do something about the affordability of living in the stratosphere in downtown Nashville.

As a second aside, I did not realize how prominent the hills around Radnor Lake really were, especially given they are in the middle of the basin. I think Nashville's high point might be the highest between here and the Ozarks, it seems to be tied with Flanigan Hill in Maury and Giles County as the westernmost point of this height in the state. In any case odd that it rises above the western Highland Rim.