Getahn Ward

gward@tennessean.com

Bridgestone Americas plans to move its corporate headquarters from the airport area to a new office tower that developer Highwoods Properties would build south of Broadway.

A formal announcement is planned Tuesday on the site at Fourth Avenue and Demonbreun next to the Encore condo tower, according to sources familiar with the project.

The tire maker is expected to receive an unspecified amount in incentives from Metro and the state. Residents of the Encore, meanwhile, are watching closely for details.

"The concerns I have heard are how is this going to impact values, sunlight over the pool and the amenity deck, and what is the projected timeline for construction," said Amanda Coaker, Encore property manager.

Highwoods, the Nashville area's largest office landlord, recently purchased the roughly 1-acre rectangular site from developer Tony Giarratana.

Under Giarratana's original plans for the property, a mixed-use tower called Sheet Music would have risen 36 stories and included more than 600,000 square feet.

Two months ago, The Tennessean reported Bridgestone was exploring moving its headquarters downtown and seeking 400,000 square feet in a new building.

The U.S. subsidiary of Tokyo-based Bridge-stone Corp. had considered an office high-rise planned as part of redevelopment of the Nashville Convention Center. Bridgestone also looked at the SoBro property, which Highwoods and Giarratana reportedly had pitched jointly to potential office tenants.

A boon for downtown

A Bridgestone move would be a big boost for downtown's central business district. The company has roughly 1,000 corporate employees mostly at its headquarters at Highland Ridge Tower at 535 Marriott Drive.

Bridgestone occupies nearly 90 percent of that 282,101-square-foot building, where its lease expires in 2017.

State officials are expected to participate in the groundbreaking at the SoBro site, which is bounded on the north by Demonbreun, west by Fourth Avenue South, east by Almond and the south by Molloy Street.

For Highwoods, the office building would mark the latest expansion of its holdings in the Nashville area. A year ago, the Raleigh, N.C.-based company paid $152 million for the Pinnacle at Symphony Place office skyscraper near the Encore in SoBro.

Other projects Highwoods has in the works include developing a 200,000-square-foot building at its Seven Springs development near Brentwood to be mostly occupied by insurance giant AIG. The company also plans to develop up to 1.4 million square feet of office space planned in up to seven buildings as part of the Ovation mixed-use development in Cool Springs.

Reach Getahn Ward at 615-726-5968 and on Twitter @Getahn.