Nashville Bits and Pieces

[Nashvillain]

2 hours ago, andywildman said:

TL;DR: We need more development types permitted; Nashville needs a cohesive, long-term strategy to accommodate this growth; we need to keep encouraging council members to support development.

I agree with the need for missing middle, and that there's no panacea. And it's difficult to thread the needle of Development within existing (plus feasible future) infrastructure and political will. Regardless, the toolbox is a little too limited right now:

• Downtown high-rises (include midtown here, largely rentals, but some condos at pretty exorbitant cost to cover rising construction expenses)
• 5-over-1 construction along the Pikes and in previously industrial zones (largely long-term rentals, see areas like Dickerson Pike and Wedgewood Houston)
• HPR (two-for-one lot splits) development (smallest step in incremental density, though there's still more meat on this bone in various parts of town)
• Greenfield detached house development in the edges (Century Farms, Bellevue, Joelton)

A lot of the townhome projects or mid-density multifamily development close to downtown ends up going to STR, which is probably the largest reason Nashville's unaffordability has passed Atlanta. Putting "no STR" stipulations in SP zoning is helpful, but not enough to resolve a lot of our larger zoning code limitations.

The bigger-picture issue here is the need for a broader vision, which includes:

• Rapid-transit right-of-way on pikes (no small feat given our state's antagonism)
• Transit oriented development and bonus density (permit 15-story towers outside of Midtown - in Inglewood and Madison and Antioch - like Green Hills has)
• Gradual density increases (double existing density in the entire UZO, eliminate RS zoning county-wide, turn Historic Overlays into Design Overlays)
• Form-based neighborhood commercial on all intersections across the Urban Services District
• A real bike lane network, both downtown and within the 440 / Briley loop... This is critical not just for bird scooters downtown but also enabling everything from biking to mobility scooters

I see councilmembers at varying levels of support for incremental density in Davidson county. O'Connell is obviously pro-development in his DTC district. Sledge in 17 has shown an interest in exploring more housing types (see tweet below). Parker in 5 & VanReece in 8 have generally demonstrated a "build more, but protect existing residents" attitude, which has struck a really nice balance in my opinion. Benedict in 7 (my CM) generally reflects her constituents' preferences, which is "keep density on the pikes and out of my neighborhood." I give that middling marks - it's better than some other council members who are more obviously in favor of development that is "not in my district".

Dude, you should run for council

[colemangaines]

Put this together this past weekend: The approximate location of almost all of Nashville's 300+ ft buildings colored by age. You can clearly see the shift in which areas are being developed, as well as how much things picked up around 2010.

[smeagolsfree]

13 minutes ago, colemangaines said:

Put this together this past weekend: The approximate location of almost all of Nashville's 300+ ft buildings colored by age. You can clearly see the shift in which areas are being developed, as well as how much things picked up around 2010.

I could have saved you the work on that. 2010 was the year of the flood and the year that the convention center started. There was a huge uptick in building permits that year.

The CC was the catalyst of most of the downtown construction and then all of the Gulch and Midtown construction to follow. That is also when a lot of large residential projects in the core started to take off. There was a huge uptick in 2013. That was a big year for announcements and the year the CC was completed. I remember having a conversation with William that year about if we were about to go into a boom or not. I told him I thought we were and that it was a synergy that would feed on itself. When it starts, then there would be no way of saying when it would stop. It would be like Austin or the booms we had seen in similar cities in the past and what we had hoped for back in the mid 2000's that never happened.

That was when we were in envy of Charlotte and Atlanta and a 20-story building would get everyone excited. Ii think a few of you remember those days. Skyscrapergeek and a few others can recall the mood at the time and the feeling of the group in 2010 and 2013 when things started to pop and the conversations we were having at the meets.

[MagicPotato]

The thing is, was the CC the catalyst of our growth? Would we still have grown as quickly if we never built the CC?

[colemangaines]

I chose 2010 because I've always felt Pinnacle's completion was the "symbolic start" of our current growth spurt. But Pinnacle was the only tower completed between 2007-2015. Some fun numbers:

 

If every building on that map is approved and completed by 2026 (which is obviously very generous), then the buildings completed in 2016-2026 will comprise 83% of the total skyline, with buildings completed 1957-2015 comprising the remaining 17%. If 1 out of 10 of those projects fall through, the stat is down to 77%.

[downtownresident]

The Cooper administration continues to bleed talent, the top two officials within the Metro Codes Department are leaving, joining a private law firm, per the NBJ: https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2022/05/10/metro-codes-officials.html

 

[Bos2Nash]

10 minutes ago, downtownresident said:

The Cooper administration continues to bleed talent, the top two officials within the Metro Codes Department are leaving, joining a private law firm, per the NBJ: https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2022/05/10/metro-codes-officials.html

  I don't know if we can really blame Mayor Cooper for this departure. Some can try to blame the current administration all we want, but I'd be willing to put money on this has been a long time coming. I would say this current administration has been putting us in much better situations than the previous two (which are the ones I've experienced).

[markhollin]

Prisma Nashville, a print logistics company, will expand its Davidson County operations by moving to 2947 Brick Church Pike (former home of Quad/Graphics) and grow its staff to 109 more jobs in the next 5 years.

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/marketing/printing-logistics-company-to-create-100-plus-jobs/article_6604b572-d144-11ec-8c65-6bd503ae2ada.html

[Melrose]

22 hours ago, Bos2Nash said:

  I don't know if we can really blame Mayor Cooper for this departure. Some can try to blame the current administration all we want, but I'd be willing to put money on this has been a long time coming. I would say this current administration has been putting us in much better situations than the previous two (which are the ones I've experienced).

Actually, there are a number of Metro department leaders jumping ship very much because of Cooper's endless micromanaging and also his threats to fire them for not doing exactly what he says....

[markhollin]

In early May, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce led Metro and business leaders on a three-day study of San Diego’s economic-development programs.  This was the chamber’s first Leadership Study Mission in three years and it keyed in on how to create “deep prosperity,” a catch-phrase used to describe the process of creating wealth opportunities for all segments of the community. 

The focus on inclusion was a turn from traditional economic-development discussions about courting successful companies or acquiring high-skilled talent. 

More at The Tennessean here:

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2022/05/11/nashville-economy-leaders-discuss-inequality-infrastructure-overload/9718774002/

[andywildman]

On 5/12/2022 at 4:59 AM, markhollin said:

In early May, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce led Metro and business leaders on a three-day study of San Diego’s economic-development programs.  This was the chamber’s first Leadership Study Mission in three years and it keyed in on how to create “deep prosperity,” a catch-phrase used to describe the process of creating wealth opportunities for all segments of the community. 

The focus on inclusion was a turn from traditional economic-development discussions about courting successful companies or acquiring high-skilled talent. 

More at The Tennessean here:

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2022/05/11/nashville-economy-leaders-discuss-inequality-infrastructure-overload/9718774002/

Good. Nashville’s problem is now not about courting high paying jobs but instead housing everyone who wants to live in the city. 
 

How good of an example is San Diego?

[markhollin]

Nice feature on Tony Giarratana and his vision for downtown behind The Tennessean paywall. In it, he speaks of a new 31 story affordable housing tower he has in the works somewhere near Church Street. 

Giarratana LLC is investing $1 billion to build four high-rises in the heart of the city that will transform the skyline. 

"The city needs density," said Giarratana, who has already built four Church Street high-rises among other local projects in his 40-year career. "In my opinion, tall buildings create a more walkable environment and prevent urban sprawl. Tall residential is good for the city, it doesn’t hurt anybody."

- - -
"He’s not afraid to pioneer something new," says Morgan Stengel, his VP of Development. "It actually motivates him when people tell him something can’t be done."

- - - 

While working on the 505, Giarratana went so far as to negotiate with the Federal Aviation Administration to reroute planes to allow a 750-foot-tall building downtown. The 1010 Church tower will be the first to take advantage of the height allowance.

"He loves a puzzle," his wife Lisa Giarratana said. "He has great vision and he can see a site and say: 'I’m imagining this…' but I’d never have seen it. He thrives on problem-solving."

His wife and colleagues also cite his creativity in deal-making.

For example, he often negotiates perks that will add to synergy between residents and businesses downtown. He’s helping to rebuild the aging downtown YMCA next to 1010 Church into a six-level modern facility opening in fall 2024.

When he opened the 31-story Viridian in 2006, it was heralded as the first luxury-living tower in Nashville’s recently-rezoned residential downtown. He offered H.G. Hill five years free rent to open a market in the Viridian because downtown was a food desert.

"He has continuous self-improvement," Nashville Downtown Partnership CEO Tom Turner said. "I would describe him as inquisitive. He’ll ask questions about how to make something better instead of assuming he already knows."

His approach to design rests on adding touches to "surprise and delight" residents, Giarratana said. He bought high-speed Mitsubishi Electric elevators, installed heated floors in bathrooms, built internet infrastructure, and doubled down on design.

- - -

Next, Giarratana wants to help solve Nashville's growing affordable-housing crisis. He's working with state and local leaders now to develop a market-based method for low-cost, high-quality housing.

While he's created affordable housing for several projects, he's searching for a way to make it work on a large scale and with luxury offerings. The first of these concepts would rise near his many Church Street developments.

- - -

He believes he's hit on a meaningful solution to Nashville’s growing affordable-housing crisis.

Government-based programs to stimulate low-income and workforce housing have failed to create enough affordable units in cities like Los Angeles and San Diego. But he’s pursuing a market-based approach in collaboration with the state to encourage developers instead of penalizing them. 

He’s planning a fourth affordable-living tower near the YMCA campus. He wants to build a series of towers that are a "self-sustaining solution to affordable housing."

The first 31-story building would be in his own backyard on Church Street, according to his pitch. Designs are based on luxury buildings and include varied styles to differentiate the units.

If it works, like many of Giarratana's big ideas, it could be game-changing.

"My goal, and it’s not fully baked – I’m speaking to the state and city – is to do this building and prove that this works. Instead of having to go beg for money, we’re not going to take any fees. The fees earned in the building stay in the affordable-housing program. And the success of this first building funds the next two buildings. And the success of those two buildings funds the next four buildings."

To those who question his unique idea, he says: "Think out of the box, man."

More at The Tennessean here:

https://www.tennessean.com/in-depth/news/2022/05/16/tony-giarratana-llc-investing-1-b-transform-downtown-nashville-skyline/9701369002/
 

[Luvemtall]

Tony, Tony , Tony .. he’s our man… if he can’t do it…then no one can!! 

[Rick Dalton]

Really seems like a cool guy

[donNdonelson2]

I’m one who is not fond of this city’s habit of renaming streets. Quiet frankly, I hate this trend! But I would be a big supporter of the institution of a program of the designation of “honorary” street names (like Chicago). The first I suggest is that Church Street be designated “Honorary Tony Giarratana Street!”

[MLBrumby]

2 minutes ago, donNdonelson2 said:

I’m one who is not fond of this city’s habit of renaming streets. Quiet frankly, I hate this trend! But I would be a big supporter of the institution of a program of the designation of “honorary” street names (like Chicago). The first I suggest is that Church Street be designated “Honorary Tony Giarratana Street!”

LOL... I catch your point, and agree with your dislike of renaming streets. 

Nashville is one of the worst at changing street names willy-nilly. Designated honorary names (without officially renaming streets) are quite common in large cities because official name changes create issues:

1. Costs businesses and residents money to change their addresses on ads, business cards, letterheads, official documents, etc.

2. In Nashville (and other cities) it disrupts the sequential order of numbered street names, which is helpful in large cities for people unfamiliar with the area. Also helpful in estimating distance and direction from one point to another (X blocks away).

3. Adding ornamental/honorary signage to existing street signs/posts is also less expensive than renaming a whole street/segment for a municipality. For hundreds of years, large cities have created plaza areas to name for their most prominent sons/daughters. 

[MagicPotato]

3 hours ago, markhollin said:

Nice feature on Tony Giarratana and his vision for downtown behind The Tennessean paywall. In it, he speaks of a new 31 story affordable housing tower he has in the works somewhere near Church Street. 

Giarratana LLC is investing $1 billion to build four high-rises in the heart of the city that will transform the skyline. 

"The city needs density," said Giarratana, who has already built four Church Street high-rises among other local projects in his 40-year career. "In my opinion, tall buildings create a more walkable environment and prevent urban sprawl. Tall residential is good for the city, it doesn’t hurt anybody."

- - -
"He’s not afraid to pioneer something new," says Morgan Stengel, his VP of Development. "It actually motivates him when people tell him something can’t be done."

- - - 

While working on the 505, Giarratana went so far as to negotiate with the Federal Aviation Administration to reroute planes to allow a 750-foot-tall building downtown. The 1010 Church tower will be the first to take advantage of the height allowance.

"He loves a puzzle," his wife Lisa Giarratana said. "He has great vision and he can see a site and say: 'I’m imagining this…' but I’d never have seen it. He thrives on problem-solving."

His wife and colleagues also cite his creativity in deal-making.

For example, he often negotiates perks that will add to synergy between residents and businesses downtown. He’s helping to rebuild the aging downtown YMCA next to 1010 Church into a six-level modern facility opening in fall 2024.

When he opened the 31-story Viridian in 2006, it was heralded as the first luxury-living tower in Nashville’s recently-rezoned residential downtown. He offered H.G. Hill five years free rent to open a market in the Viridian because downtown was a food desert.

"He has continuous self-improvement," Nashville Downtown Partnership CEO Tom Turner said. "I would describe him as inquisitive. He’ll ask questions about how to make something better instead of assuming he already knows."

His approach to design rests on adding touches to "surprise and delight" residents, Giarratana said. He bought high-speed Mitsubishi Electric elevators, installed heated floors in bathrooms, built internet infrastructure, and doubled down on design.

- - -

Next, Giarratana wants to help solve Nashville's growing affordable-housing crisis. He's working with state and local leaders now to develop a market-based method for low-cost, high-quality housing.

While he's created affordable housing for several projects, he's searching for a way to make it work on a large scale and with luxury offerings. The first of these concepts would rise near his many Church Street developments.

- - -

He believes he's hit on a meaningful solution to Nashville’s growing affordable-housing crisis.

Government-based programs to stimulate low-income and workforce housing have failed to create enough affordable units in cities like Los Angeles and San Diego. But he’s pursuing a market-based approach in collaboration with the state to encourage developers instead of penalizing them. 

He’s planning a fourth affordable-living tower near the YMCA campus. He wants to build a series of towers that are a "self-sustaining solution to affordable housing."

The first 31-story building would be in his own backyard on Church Street, according to his pitch. Designs are based on luxury buildings and include varied styles to differentiate the units.

If it works, like many of Giarratana's big ideas, it could be game-changing.

"My goal, and it’s not fully baked – I’m speaking to the state and city – is to do this building and prove that this works. Instead of having to go beg for money, we’re not going to take any fees. The fees earned in the building stay in the affordable-housing program. And the success of this first building funds the next two buildings. And the success of those two buildings funds the next four buildings."

To those who question his unique idea, he says: "Think out of the box, man."

More at The Tennessean here:

https://www.tennessean.com/in-depth/news/2022/05/16/tony-giarratana-llc-investing-1-b-transform-downtown-nashville-skyline/9701369002/
 

I'm getting Al Capone vibes from the photo  , 

Edited May 16, 2022 by MagicPotato

[Bos2Nash]

Quote

The first 31-story building would be in his own backyard on Church Street, according to his pitch. Designs are based on luxury buildings and include varied styles to differentiate the units.

If it works, like many of Giarratana's big ideas, it could be game-changing.

"My goal, and it’s not fully baked – I’m speaking to the state and city – is to do this building and prove that this works. Instead of having to go beg for money, we’re not going to take any fees. The fees earned in the building stay in the affordable-housing program. And the success of this first building funds the next two buildings. And the success of those two buildings funds the next four buildings."

I know Tony G is a good friend of the forum and I don't want to make it seem like I am ungrateful for what he does within the city, but I feel like this should be said (regardless of the developer really).

So let me take a very over-simplified translation to this "innovative" approach. As a developer, this would be cutting into the developer's profit margin to build quality housing (market rate level, which some could argue is below the quality level many government funded projects are at) and the traditional developer fees would essentially be wiped away in order to make the construction more affordable on the back end. As a result of those developer fees not playing a role in construction and rent, that would allow revenue streams to then help pay for two structures, then four structures and so on and so on. 

So how is this different with just including affordable housing in their otherwise "luxury" apartment towers. If this "innovative" approach is to isolate off affordable/workforce income levels from the other income classes, we are actually going backwards in time while densifying our city. Don't get me wrong, it isn't just one opinion that "tall buildings create a more walkable environment and prevent urban sprawl. Tall residential is good for the city, it doesn’t hurt anybody," it is a simple fact of the urban environment around the world. Where tall buildings don't create good environments is when we slice apart the population into income classes and segregate the living environments. 

It is almost like the city had a way to get developers to do this all along and folks with certain powers said "no way, jose".

[MLBrumby]

30 minutes ago, Bos2Nash said:

I know Tony G is a good friend of the forum and I don't want to make it seem like I am ungrateful for what he does within the city, but I feel like this should be said (regardless of the developer really).

So let me take a very over-simplified translation to this "innovative" approach. As a developer, this would be cutting into the developer's profit margin to build quality housing (market rate level, which some could argue is below the quality level many government funded projects are at) and the traditional developer fees would essentially be wiped away in order to make the construction more affordable on the back end. As a result of those developer fees not playing a role in construction and rent, that would allow revenue streams to then help pay for two structures, then four structures and so on and so on. 

So how is this different with just including affordable housing in their otherwise "luxury" apartment towers. If this "innovative" approach is to isolate off affordable/workforce income levels from the other income classes, we are actually going backwards in time while densifying our city. Don't get me wrong, it isn't just one opinion that "tall buildings create a more walkable environment and prevent urban sprawl. Tall residential is good for the city, it doesn’t hurt anybody," it is a simple fact of the urban environment around the world. Where tall buildings don't create good environments is when we slice apart the population into income classes and segregate the living environments. 

It is almost like the city had a way to get developers to do this all along and folks with certain powers said "no way, jose".

Calling balls and strikes!   

Ditto on the not wanting to sound "ungrateful" (or hurting Mr. G's feelings),  but I hope/think he is big enough to take the criticism,  If he actually does have vision, as Mrs. G claims, then why did he destroy the Tennessee Theater to replace it with the atrocious Cumberland, only exceeded by Haven?  I assume it was a very good commercial (profitable) move, but not any vision there.  IMHO that would be the hottest concert venue downtown if standing today, even with a nasty stucco apartment tower above it. Granted, AEG figured that out 20 years later. So Mr. G effed-up that one, although I applaud most of his efforts since then. If he was involved in the one* between Sobro and the Bridgestone tower then that's the third worst building built downtown in the last 25 years. 

Edit: I think it's called Encore

Edited May 16, 2022 by MLBrumby

[downtownresident]

25 minutes ago, MLBrumby said:

Calling balls and strikes!   

Ditto on the not wanting to sound "ungrateful" (or hurting Mr. G's feelings),  but I hope/think he is big enough to take the criticism,  If he actually does have vision, as Mrs. G claims, then why did he destroy the Tennessee Theater to replace it with the atrocious Cumberland, only exceeded by Haven?  I assume it was a very good commercial (profitable) move, but not any vision there.  IMHO that would be the hottest concert venue downtown if standing today, even with a nasty stucco apartment tower above it. Granted, AEG figured that out 20 years later. So Mr. G effed-up that one, although I applaud most of his efforts since then. If he was involved in the one* between Sobro and the Bridgestone tower then that's the third worst building built downtown in the last 25 years. 

Edit: I think it's called Encore

Calling Encore the third worst building built downtown is a bit of a stretch. Retail wraps 3/4 sides of the building with three very popular restaurants, Starbucks, liquor store, etc (minus loading dock entrance on Malloy), condo lined parking garage along third(and largely lined with glass otherwise).
 

While Encore is nothing special, it’s at least concrete and glass on the exterior.  I’d say the Westin, 222, Broadstone Gulch, Aspire in the Gulch, Haven, Drury Inn, Tri Brand Marriott, Holiday Inn Sobro, the Hyatt Place in Sobro, Tru Hotel Sobro, and Broadstone Sobro would all rank below Encore aesthetically, and that doesn’t take into account the impact on the street level with the amount of retail space that is crammed into Encore’s ground floor. 

[14themoney24theshow]

Actually, Encore is by Symphony Hall.  The Cumberland is on Church Street.

[14themoney24theshow]

Cumberland is his worst project by far but was his first and the city's first downtown in many decades so the risk was high.  Kudos for him for taking the risk.

[Rick Dalton]

While some of that may be true, 505 / Prime / Alcove are three of the best looking towers in the city. He has leveled up. Nothing built in the 1990-2008 period looks good today. Bad era for aesthetics IMO.

[downtownresident]

7 minutes ago, natethegreat said:

While some of that may be true, 505 / Prime / Alcove are three of the best looking towers in the city. He has leveled up. Nothing built in the 1990-2008 period looks good today. Bad era for aesthetics IMO.

Absolutely, his current designs are killer, but there’s been a whole lot of ugly built during the last boom that look worse than the Viridian and Encore do. 

[dmillsphoto]

1 hour ago, 14themoney24theshow said:

Cumberland is his worst project by far but was his first and the city's first downtown in many decades so the risk was high.  Kudos for him for taking the risk.

Welcome to the forum, and agree that the Cumberland was a big risk at the time he built it. And, it proved to be a success in his vision for what downtown can sustain. Is it ugly? Yep. But, without it, maybe the fire never gets started for downtown residential.

 

But I still have to agree with B2N on this one, especially on the isolation of income classes part. I'm not sure if he intentionally meant for it to be that way, and he'd likely deny if asked. But, for something to be forward thinking and innovative, it really really shouldn't be in the dystopian/classist fashion. Which is, in my opinion, what his current vision is.