Nashville Bits and Pieces

[markhollin]

Nashville is poised to hit a five-year high of new apartment openings as developers struggle to keep up with record demand.

Around 9,620 units are expected to come to market in Greater Nashville by the end of the year. The figure would mark a 40% increase from 2021, according to a report from RentCafe.

More at NBJ here:

https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2022/08/30/nashville-apartment-construction-record.html

[PaulChinetti]

BUUUUILLLLLD!!!

[Bos2Nash]

Love on the Green is returning this weekend. Road/Lane closures were posted in my office building and thought I would share for anyone trying to get around downtown this holiday weekend. 

We do have a meetup n Saturday as well, so keep this in mind if you’re planning to attend.

 

[markhollin]

Marriott Inc. is considering Nashville for its five-star St. Regis Hotels & Resorts brand.

Butch Spyridon, CEO of the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp., confirmed the effort recently during an interview with local sports talk host George Plaster.

In early 2020, U.S. News & World Report named Regis New York the best hotel in New York City. Similarly, multiple media sources rank St. Regis among the top hotels in the nation.

Spyridon said there are expected to be more than 40,000 hotel rooms operational in Davidson County by year's end.

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/development/five-star-hotel-brand-eyes-nashville/article_3011ded4-2975-11ed-93a4-17c83e8340e7.html

[titanhog]

3 hours ago, markhollin said:

Marriott Inc. is considering Nashville for its five-star St. Regis Hotels & Resorts brand.

Butch Spyridon, CEO of the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp., confirmed the effort recently during an interview with local sports talk host George Plaster.

In early 2020, U.S. News & World Report named Regis New York the best hotel in New York City. Similarly, multiple media sources rank St. Regis among the top hotels in the nation.

Spyridon said there are expected to be more than 40,000 hotel rooms operational in Davidson County by year's end.

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/development/five-star-hotel-brand-eyes-nashville/article_3011ded4-2975-11ed-93a4-17c83e8340e7.html

Where does that 40k rooms rank us in the US?  I know a few cities have over 100k (like Vegas, NYC, maybe Orlando?)

[PaulChinetti]

Saw this, this morning. Looks like Council Persons (Council people?) Sledge and O'Connell are going to introduce a no parking minimum ordinance for the Urban Zoning Overlay.
 

 

[nashville born]

1 hour ago, titanhog said:

Where does that 40k rooms rank us in the US?  I know a few cities have over 100k (like Vegas, NYC, maybe Orlando?)

Funny you should ask.  After reading the NP article this morning, I went in search of similar answers.  Haven't found exactly where we fall yet, but I did see a reported top ten list.  You might be as shocked as I was to see were NYC sits currently.

Top Ten U.S. cities by number of hotel rooms

Source: Hotel News Now article with August 2013 Smith Travel Research with line bar graphic

1. Las Vegas, Nevada

• 169,100 existing rooms
• 0 in rooms construction
• 14,600 rooms in planning phase
• 183,700 total rooms forecast (#1)

2. Orlando, Florida

• 119,800 existing rooms
• 2,600 rooms in construction
• 2,200 rooms in planning phase
• 124,600 total rooms forecast (#3)

3. Chicago, Illinois

• 108,700 existing rooms
• 1,500 rooms in construction
• 4,800 rooms in planning phase
• 115,000 total rooms forecast (#5)

4. Washington D.C.

• 106,200 existing rooms
• 2,900 rooms in construction
• 7,900 rooms in planning phase
• 117,000 total rooms forecast (#4)

5. New York New York

• 106,000 existing rooms
• 12,600 rooms in construction
• 11,500 rooms in planning phase
• 130,100 total rooms forecast (#2)

6. Los Angeles-Long Beach

• 97,200 existing rooms
• 2,400 rooms in construction
• 4,700 rooms in planning phase
• 104,300 total rooms forecast (#6)

7. Atlanta, Georgia

• 93,900 existing rooms
• 900 rooms in construction
• 3,600 rooms in planning phase
• 98,400 total rooms forecast (#7)

8. Dallas, Texas

• 78,200 existing rooms
• 1,000 rooms in construction
• 4,300 rooms in planning phase
• 83,500 total rooms forecast (#9)

9. Houston, Texas

• 74,700 existing rooms
• 1,800 rooms in construction
• 7,600 rooms in planning phase
• 84,100 total rooms forecast (#8)

10. Phoenix, Arizona

• 62,100 existing rooms
• 500 rooms in construction
• 3,900 rooms in planning phase
• 66,500 total rooms forecast (#10)

https://loyaltytraveler.boardingarea.com/2013/10/09/top-ten-u-s-cities-by-hotel-rooms/

 

1 hour ago, PaulChinetti said:

Saw this, this morning. Looks like Council Persons (Council people?) Sledge and O'Connell are going to introduce a no parking minimum ordinance for the Urban Zoning Overlay.
 

 

That could be BIG...

[BnaBreaker]

1 hour ago, PaulChinetti said:

Saw this, this morning. Looks like Council Persons (Council people?) Sledge and O'Connell are going to introduce a no parking minimum ordinance for the Urban Zoning Overlay.
 

 

Yes!  Bout damn time!

[PaulChinetti]

Huge even @nashville born though I wonder how banks will be about loaning developers money who have plans with no parking.

[Nash_12South]

Pardon my ignorance, but would this cover commercial and residential developments?  Commercial, I kinda get, residential would be a no.

[andywildman]

Just now, Nash_12South said:

Pardon my ignorance, but would this cover commercial and residential developments?  Commercial, I kinda get, residential would be a no.

What it means is that apartment buildings don't have to build a required 1 spot per unit or 1 spot per bedroom when they build. Most builders will still build parking (same as they do in the downtown core - DTC, where parking is optional today), but some won't build parking (see Alcove on Church St.), and some will build fewer parking spots. That lets the market determine the parking needed, and lets people build neighborhoods and areas that don't require cars for daily life.

[Bos2Nash]

2 hours ago, PaulChinetti said:

Saw this, this morning. Looks like Council Persons (Council people?) Sledge and O'Connell are going to introduce a no parking minimum ordinance for the Urban Zoning Overlay.
 

 

In a different group setting the other week CM O'Connell hinted at such an effort. CM O'Connell also mentioned a possible effort to move through a reworking on the Bonus Height program within the next year.

I would also like to point out that CM Sledge loves to promote when things change for his benefit. He has been working towards minimizing parking (which is good, I agree) requirements, but when an amendment to the zoning code limits residential density in two mixed-use zoning policies and then he is approached with an SP to regain some density he chooses not to support it at all. Politics are so fun.

27 minutes ago, PaulChinetti said:

Huge even @nashville born though I wonder how banks will be about loaning developers money who have plans with no parking.

It'll take quite the seismic shift for lenders to change habits. 

As of right now the hardest use to park is Office. Residential you can easily make arguments about less parking due to other means. Whether that is an inefficient bus system, our incomplete bike system, ride sharing, there are many tools in the tool kit for residents living within the UZO. Offices are extremely hard to park both from a zoning perspective, but also from a leasing perspective. Many leases are looking at 3 or 4 parking spots per 1,000SF of office space. Many workers are still driving in from the outer counties so from a leasability and actually making money parking is still going to end up being a thing. 

7 minutes ago, andywildman said:

What it means is that apartment buildings don't have to build a required 1 spot per unit or 1 spot per bedroom when they build. Most builders will still build parking (same as they do in the downtown core - DTC, where parking is optional today), but some won't build parking (see Alcove on Church St.), and some will build fewer parking spots. That lets the market determine the parking needed, and lets people build neighborhoods and areas that don't require cars for daily life.

We can all cheer Alcove for it's no parking, but in reality the parking garage across the street at Prime has an extra big garage because of a shared parking agreement for Alcove. It has parking, just not on the site itself. CM O'Connell mentioned a second large project downtown without parking but I don't know where he is referencing, can anyone else point to another large scale development without parking?

[andywildman]

33 minutes ago, Bos2Nash said:

We can all cheer Alcove for it's no parking, but in reality the parking garage across the street at Prime has an extra big garage because of a shared parking agreement for Alcove. It has parking, just not on the site itself. CM O'Connell mentioned a second large project downtown without parking but I don't know where he is referencing, can anyone else point to another large scale development without parking?

We're looking at 511 parking spots in Prime for 714 apartments (356 in Alcove & 358 in Prime) plus a retail spot (in Prime). IMO, that 0.7 spots/unit is worth cheering for.

IIRC, one of the full-block developments in Rutledge Hill was claiming that a residential tower had "zero parking" but it's like Tony's towers where the rest of the development has a few extra spots "just in case."

[Nash_12South]

I still wonder at how long is the list of folks who can happily go without a car, in Nashville? How is life in a small 600 sf apartment in one of these towers, with minimal storage for things like groceries, or your golf clubs? How often do you visit your parents in Little Rock, your sister and her adorable kids in Huntsville, your best friend in Chattanooga? Take the bus? Fly? I have worked with several young, hip, trendy folks, living downtown, who have lasted about 3 months without a car. Their dating lives were challenging.

Edited September 1, 2022 by Nash_12South

[PaulChinetti]

Eh when I dating, we were taking Lyfts everywhere. Still do that now when we go out. 

I do wonder how visiting works, my parents live up in Woodlawn, def have to drive there. If you are from out of town and have to fly to Chicago to see your fam, it wouldn't be as bad. 

 

Though we are down to using one car like 90% of the time based on our 2nd car sitting out there with a dead battery haha.

[Nashvillain]

2 hours ago, PaulChinetti said:

Huge even @nashville born though I wonder how banks will be about loaning developers money who have plans with no parking.

If downtown (which hasn't had parking mins since 2010 I believe) is anything to go by, they won't be very generous

[Nashvillain]

15 minutes ago, Nash_12South said:

I still wonder at how long is the list of folks who can happily go without a car, in Nashville? How is life in a small 600 sf apartment in one of these towers, with minimal storage for things like groceries, or your golf clubs? How often do you visit your parents in Little Rock, your sister and her adorable kids in Huntsville, your best friend in Chattanooga? Take the bus? Fly? I have worked with several young, hip, trendy folks, living downtown, who have lasted about 3 months without a car. Their dating lives were challenging.

But shouldn't people have the choice? Let developers figure out how much parking is needed. Let people buy a unit without parking if they want. Sounds rational. As opposed to the current system where we have an absolute glut of parking and owners and renters pay for a spot--or multiple spots--whether they use them or not. 

At some point, Nashville will put pressure on driving. Congestion pricing. No free on-street parking. Removing lanes. These changes are coming (slowly because 'Murca), but the status quo is untenable. 

[Nash_12South]

I'm all for folks having the choice, never said otherwise. We will shift to having only one car, soon, but we'll still need a car. Our driving was drastically reduced after moving to 12 South. I just stick by my experience with having known very green, very minimalist people, who still begrudgingly maintain a car. 

 

[MontanaGuy]

50 minutes ago, Nash_12South said:

I'm all for folks having the choice, never said otherwise. We will shift to having only one car, soon, but we'll still need a car. Our driving was drastically reduced after moving to 12 South. I just stick by my experience with having known very green, very minimalist people, who still begrudgingly maintain a car. 

I'm probably going to buy one of those high rise condos downtown within the next year and won't need to drive very often but I'll still need a car to get to certain places because there simply isn't any other way to get there.  And because of that necessity I'll have to get a place that comes with one parking spot.  I have a 2018 Honda with just over 7,000 miles in four years and I could sell it for almost what I paid for it which I would gladly do if we had an extensive light rail in Nashville! 

[Bos2Nash]

17 hours ago, Nashvillain said:

At some point, Nashville will put pressure on driving. Congestion pricing. No free on-street parking. Removing lanes. These changes are coming ... but the status quo is untenable. 

Removing lanes will be inevitable, especially with an eventual (crossing my fingers) and inevitable transit system. No matter how cynical we all are (justifiably so) there will need to be a shift at some point and that will probably lose lanes. 

Congestion pricing I don't see happening before 2040/2050. NYC is the only city in the US to even propose implementing such a policy and I don't think it has been implemented as of yet. I do not see the political willpower at the city level and I do see the political willpower on the state level to block such a move.

[Nashvillain]

1 hour ago, Bos2Nash said:

Removing lanes will be inevitable, especially with an eventual (crossing my fingers) and inevitable transit system. No matter how cynical we all are (justifiably so) there will need to be a shift at some point and that will probably lose lanes. 

Congestion pricing I don't see happening before 2040/2050. NYC is the only city in the US to even propose implementing such a policy and I don't think it has been implemented as of yet. I do not see the political willpower at the city level and I do see the political willpower on the state level to block such a move.

You're right about congestion pricing being a non-starter with state government and, as far as I'm aware, it's not even on anyone's radar in Metro (kind of like purchasing the tracks through the Gulch before CSX removed them went over everyone's head except Rookzie's). I'm just trying to project optimism and thinking that things (local and state politics) can change faster than we anticipate

[PaulChinetti]

1 hour ago, Nashvillain said:

You're right about congestion pricing being a non-starter with state government and, as far as I'm aware, it's not even on anyone's radar in Metro (kind of like purchasing the tracks through the Gulch before CSX removed them went over everyone's head except Rookzie's). I'm just trying to project optimism and thinking that things (local and state politics) can change faster than we anticipate

Just frame it as a tax on the city folk. Done and done, passes unanimously. 

[Nashvillain]

2 minutes ago, PaulChinetti said:

Just frame it as a tax on the city folk. Done and done, passes unanimously. 

Lol, they'd have to be pretty dense to buy that when it would obviously be just as much a tax on suburban/exurban commuters. But, hey, could be worth a try!

[smeagolsfree]

Kiss Emporis goodbye! They were sold to Co-Star and just ended all volunteer-based entry. A big mistake for both parties as Co-star will rely on paid folks to enter the information from either Richmond or San Francisco.  I wonder who will enter the towers for all of the other countries in Asia as there will be multiple languages that will need to be spoken as well as Arabic, Spanish Vietnamese, Korean, German, French. This is not counting on what is happening in every one of those cities not to mention low rise buildings.

I am sure you will be able to access for a price and they will fine no one want to access old out of date information. Their little monkeys behind the keyboards will not be able to find all of the information because they are not in the cities to find out.

Bad move all the way around.

[citywatcher]

Big CONGRATS To Locust Restaurant for being named Food And Wines restaurant of the year!!!!Nashville has a very great food scene. With Awards and recognition like this, it can only get better.

My Apologies, wrong page. Should have been in the Accolades thread.

Edited September 13, 2022 by citywatcher