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What's Inside:
nashvilledowntown.com
The Core Purpose of
the Nashville Downtown
Partnership is to make downtown Nashville
the compelling urban
center in the Southeast in
which to LIVE, WORK,
PLAY and INVEST.
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Published bimonthly by the
Nashville Downtown Partnership
July 2007 |
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 A
Message from Tom Turner
The rapid expansion of the downtown
residential and commercial inventory underlines the immediate need to
develop a comprehensive retail strategy. This complex urban market requires
a diverse and high quality retail mix that serves office workers, visitors
and residents. After researching how best to achieve a distinctive retail
mix and analyzing the successes of other downtowns such as Austin, St. Louis
and Philadelphia, the Partnership set out to get the job done.
The third term of the Central Business Improvement District (CBID) begins in
January 2008, and the first year's budget includes funding to implement the
downtown retail strategy. In January of this year, we organized a Retail
Development Committee and began our search for a top retail consulting firm
to work with us on a merchandise mix plan. Tamara Dickson (Vice President,
Economic Development) is managing this important project.
Board Chairman Rob McCabe and other Board members have worked tirelessly the
past six months to secure the necessary funding for this downtown retail
strategy. Today, we already have $121,000 committed this year for this
incredibly important initiative - with many groups extending their
investment for each year through 2009.
We would like to recognize the following
three-year investors:
MarketStreet Enterprises
Fifth Third Bank
Regions Bank
FirstBank
Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell &
Berkowitz, PC
Crosland Tennessee
Village Real Estate and Core Development
Services
Bass, Berry & Sims PLC
Giarratana Development, LLC
Novare Group
SunTrust
Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis
Music City Suites
Additional 2007 investors include:
After an RFP process, the Retail Development
Committee selected Downtown Works, a specialty practice group of Washington,
D.C.-based Economics Research Associates (ERA) and next week, their team
will be in downtown Nashville to begin the work. We look forward to an
interactive process with downtown stakeholders and are confident that by
early 2008, a full-time retail recruiter will be on the job in downtown
Nashville.
This is a team effort - and without generous financial support of these
twenty contributors, we could miss this critical and time-sensitive
opportunity.
Thomas D. Turner
President and CEO
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 Constructive
Approach to Downtown
Aggressive Panhandling
Aggressive panhandling has a negative impact
on downtown visitors, residents and businesses and often involves behaviors
that are illegal. The Nashville Downtown Partnership has documented feedback
on this growing problem in annual surveys of downtown businesses and
residents. Employees, residents and visitors want to feel safe on downtown
streets and sidewalks.
After exploring available options and researching approaches used in other
cities, the Public Space Committee recommended a public education campaign
focused on this issue. The Board of Directors endorsed this approach in late
2006.
The "Please Help. Don't Give." initiative was launched in early July, after
several months of planning and programming. A town hall meeting on May 30
had almost 100 participants.
The Partnership has already provided free one-hour training sessions for
over 150 staff members from downtown restaurants and clubs, hotels, office
buildings, businesses, churches, visitor centers, as well as residents, the
clean and safe team, Partnership staff, shuttle drivers, Public Space
Committee members, and members of the Urban Residents Association. An
additional training session is also scheduled this week for over 120 staff
members of the Schermerhorn Symphony Center and other groups have requested
on-site training. To schedule a training session for your group, call
743-3090 or email
pleasehelp@nashvilledowtown.com.
Posters, flyers and information cards are available from the Partnership. To
preview these print pieces, order a supply, or find information on community
service organizations, visit
www.nashvilledowntown.com/pleasehelp.
This campaign only addresses panhandling. Comprehensive programs are needed
to deal with the broader issues related to homelessness, poverty, addictions
and mental illness. The "Please Help. Don't Give" initiative encourages
support of community organizations and agencies that provide services in
these areas. An excellent resource is the Park Center Homeless Outreach
Worker's blog.
For additional information on this topic, see
"Downtown needs to end panhandling" (Gail Kerr in 6/24/07 Tennessean)
and
"'Please Help. Don't Give' offers constructive solution to panhandling"
(Tom Turner in 7/2/07 Tennessean) and
"Just
say no: Downtown business group unites against panhandling" (7/11/07
Nashville City Paper).
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A Groundbreaking Summer for Downtown Nashville
In The Gulch, Griffin Plaza is now under construction, following a
groundbreaking event in June. Crosland is developer of this 10-story
mixed-use development including 150 rental units, 32,000 square feet of
gallery-style retail space and a five-level underground parking structure.
June 27 was the groundbreaking date for the new $18.9 million Downtown
YMCA Burkholder Center (at the corner of McLemore and Church streets). A
striking glass façade will link the old and new Downtown YMCA facilities in
its prominent location at the entryway to the Church Street corridor.
July 11 was the groundbreaking for the first Class A office building in
SoBro, The Pinnacle at Symphony Place. Atlanta-based Barry Real
Estate is the developer of this 29-story, 500,000 square-foot building
scheduled to open in 2010. Key tenants are Bass, Berry and Sims and Pinnacle
Financial Partners.
Additional residential groundbreakings are expected later this summer,
including Signature Tower and Direct Development's Rolling Mill
Hill Phase I condominium project.
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Current Outlook for Downtown
Residential Growth
The
2007 Downtown Residential
Report has just been released by the Nashville Downtown Partnership.
Tamara Dickson (Vice President, Economic Development) says the bottom line
is that downtown Nashville's residential demand continues to be strong and
that additional growth is sustainable. Even with 1,180 units currently under
construction, another 807 taking reservations or contracts and 1,191
planned, the report concludes that downtown Nashville could absorb an
additional 1,115 units by 2010.
The report includes detailed data on seven downtown residential
neighborhoods, with statistics on units currently online, under
construction, taking reservations or contracts, and planned. The current
enthusiasm for downtown living got a relatively late start in Nashville, and
peer cities such as Charlotte and Indianapolis have much larger downtown
residential bases.
One of the most striking changes in Nashville's downtown residential
landscape is that currently 49% of the housing inventory is rental and 51%
purchase, compared to 2004, when 83% was rental and only 17% purchase. By
2010, this ratio is projected to be 32% rental and 68% purchase.
The 2007 report describes the need for
additional workforce housing in the downtown market. The Metropolitan
Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) has extended Tax Incremental Financing
(TIF) to residential developments that offer 20% of the units at or below
80% of the area median income. In Nashville, this 80% is equivalent to a
one-person household earning $34,500 annually or a two-person household
making $39,400. The incentive has now been included in the development
agreements for twelve downtown residential projects. Even as the workforce
housing supply is growing, the market potential continues to expand at an
even greater rate. The Nashville Downtown Partnership has formed a committee
to explore ways to promote additional workforce housing in the downtown mix.
Findings of the 2007 Downtown Residential Survey are also
now online and summarized in the
Downtown Residential Report. With 2,100 surveys distributed, the
response rate was 15%.
The success of the fourth annual LIVE IT UP! Downtown Home Tour (a
cooperative venture of the Downtown Partnership and the Civic Design Center)
also confirms the growing interest in living downtown. The initial tour in
April, 2004 attracted over 700 people, with an economic impact of $5.7
million in sales and leases. With steady growth each year, the tour in April
2007, brought over 1,400 people downtown and produced an economic impact of
$16.8 million (28 units sold and 8 leases).
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New Downtown Businesses
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The Big Bang.
411 Broadway
#201. 242-9131. Dueling piano bar.
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Fire Finch. 305 Church Street #102.
942-5271. Boutique.
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Green Clean Team.
415 Church Street. 415-4346 or 975-3631. Residential and commercial
cleaning service.
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Hampton Inn & Suites.
310 4th Avenue South.
277-5000. Hotel.
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Lost Boys Center & Gallery.
535 4th Avenue
South. 256-8302. Art gallery.
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Lot 7 Restaurant & Lounge. 125 12th
Avenue North. 251-9519. Lounge, restaurant and nightclub.
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Mod Metal. 162 8th Avenue North.
244-6807. Metal art work gallery and retail shop.
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The Standard Cafe. 162 8th Avenue
North. 254-1277. Cafe and coffee shop.
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Windows on the Cumberland. 515 2nd
Avenue South. 251-0097. Live music venue.
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NDP
Staff Contact Information
Tom Turner, President and CEO
Sally Connelly, Executive Vice
President
Erin Clements, Bookkeeper/Office Assistant
Tamara Dickson, Vice President, Economic
Development
Andrea Hutchinson, Communications Director
Russell Payne, Vice President, Operations
Bill Abraham, Clean & Safe
Manager
Carson Caldwell, Shuttle Manager
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615.743-3099 (f)
www.nashvilledowntown.com
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