Getahn Ward

USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

On Tuesday, MDHA's design review committee approved conceptual design of the project.

Demolition of the old Nashville Convention Center is expected to start in the current second quarter.

A rendering shows large signage for the planned National Museum of African American Music on Broadway and Fifth Avenue.

Plans include a 32-story residential tower and a 25-story office building.

The development team behind the $430 million Fifth + Broadway mixed-use project planned for the old Nashville Convention Center site received conceptual design approval from a city board on Tuesday.

OliverMcMillan and Spectrum | Emery, however, still have to address concerns that members of the Metro Development and Housing Agency's design review committee raised. Those included the width of sidewalks and how the project upon completion could affect movement of pedestrians and car-traffic flow in the area near the entrance to Lower Broadway's tourist district.

"That's always our main concern — ...how are we going to enjoy that building on the ground?," MDHA official and design review committee member Joe Cain said after the meeting. "...This is a very large entertainment area and it's going to be larger now. They've still got work to do."

Developer Pat Emery of Spectrum | Emery said financing is in place for the Fifth + Broadway project, which will involve building on roughly 3.1 acres of the 6.2-acre former Nashville Convention Center site at 601 Commerce St.

The development team's presentation to the design review committee showed components such as a 32-story residential tower and also a 25-story office building that will face Commerce Street. Overall, Fifth + Broadway is expected to include 375,000 square feet of commercial class-A office space, more than 350 residential units and 183,000 square feet of retail along a newly designed pedestrian street plus the Renaissance hotel with expanded meeting spaces.

A rendering submitted to MDHA as part of the Fifth + Broadway package shows large signage for the planned National Museum of African American Music on both Broadway and Fifth Avenue.

Fifth + Broadway construction manager Skanska has applications pending for permits for demolition and excavation of the former Nashville Convention Center structure.

Under the most recently announced timeline, demolition is scheduled to begin in the current second quarter with rerouting including of electricity already underway at the site to avoid disruption to any services from blasting. Nashville-based Gresham Smith and Partners is the architect for Fifth + Broadway.

Vertical construction of the retail, museum, residential and office spaces was targeted to start this fall with the retail spaces expected to be complete in late 2019. The residential units are expected to come online in that same period with the Class A office tower slated for occupancy in late 2019 or early 2020.

In other business Tuesday, the design review committee deferred a decision on exterior modifications sought to a portion of the ground floor of The SoBro apartment tower at 205 Demonbreun St. where European-style coffeehouse Café Intermezzo is planned. The issue has to do with plans to expand outdoor seating unto the sidewalk, especially during the summer.

The committee also approved MDHA's own plans to pave land that the agency owns at 400 First Ave. S. to create roughly 130 surface parking spaces for employees of tech support company Asurion and pubic parking for events.

The parking spaces are needed in part because of the city's obligation to providing parking for Asurion after closing of the pending sale of a parking lot near the Trolley Barns office-retail complex to a developer that plans an 25-story residential tower. The grassy land that will be paved is immediately west of the Metro Nashville District Energy System offices across from Ascend Amphitheater.

Reach Getahn Ward at gward@tennessean.com or 615-726-5968 and on Twitter @getahn.