Random Tidbits

Both driving and walking this weekend, I noticed the following elements of Nashville's built fabric that are worth a mention:

* The under-construction Pinnacle financial center in Belle Meade (in front of the new Publix) is looking strong. Hastings Architecture Associates has given the building a handsome 21st century design. I'm digging it.

* The vintage brick building home to Smack and located on Elliston Place continues to see its east wall defaced with graffiti. The amount of spray-painted mess seemingly accumulates each month. Sad, as this old-school gem deserves the utmost of care.

* The little brick buildings on Church Street and across from the new-look YMCA are gone. LifeWay owns the land and had the structures demolished, citing their poor condition. No doubt, rehabbing would have been costly. But it could have been done. If downtown is lucky, what eventually replaces the fallen structures will be architecturally noteworthy. This writer, however, is anything by hopeful.   

* One of the best street-level urban views of Nashville can be enjoyed while standing at the intersection of Church Street and Fifth Avenue and looking both north and south. On a similar theme, check the views of the city from the Baptist Hospital crosswalk that spans Church Street. Quite something.

Pinnacle Cap Creates Visual Pop

With the exterior work almost finished for The Pinnacle at Symphony Place SoBro office tower, a key element is worth noting: the decorative cap illuminated at night. 

Most Nashville highrises offer modest (if that) tops. This design characteristic simply adds to the glaringly bland linear form of the city's skyline. Hypothetically, the AT&T Tower ("sunken" as it is on its site) rising from the lot at the southwestern corner of the Fifth Avenue and Church Street intersection would mitigate this "flatness" (as would, for that matter, Signature Tower). 

With the addition of Pinnacle, the skyline now boasts of a building with a eye-catching crowning element (either day or night), thus helping soften the visual monotony of the aforementioned skyline flatness.   

I have noticed that the Pinnacle crown is lit only on occasion. Check it out if you can. 

Demolition Hits Church Street Building

I drove along Church Street yesterday and noticed that an old-school brick building (across from the YMCA and next to the building that houses Venito's) is being demolished. A LifeWay official (LifeWay owns the building, which contained four spaces) confirmed today that the building is being razed due to structural deficiencies.

For now, the replacement will be a surface parking lot. 

How many times has Nashville seen the loss of a charming little pedestrian-scaled building -- only to be replaced by either a synthetic-stucco piece of junk or what may as well be a used car lot? With the rain falling as I type and another historic architectural piece of downtown Nashville soon to be no more, my stomach is upset. 

Details, and a commentary, to follow.

Good-Bye Grit

Nashville recently lost an old-school and gritty structure and seems likely to lose another.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation recently removed the steel, green 1960s-era pedestrian bridge that spanned Interstate 40 (a few hundred yards west of the I-40/Briley Parkway/White Bridge Road exchange). Although the bridge was likely rarely used by walkers, it nevertheless delivered a cool, big-city visual and was the type structure you commonly find in the traditional metropolitan areas in the densely populated North. With the removal, Nashville now has only three similar bridges remaining.

Next on the chopping block? Could be the 1950s-constructed building that was once home to the state's Department of Highways and Public Works. Located at the northwest corner of Charlotte and 22th avenues in Midtown, the building offers a slightly industrial vibe and plays nicely off a rambling old warehouse next door. Many of the building's windows are broken and the beautiful stone continues to gradually deteriorate. To see a quirky and underrated gem like this fall, while generic junk continues to rise throughout the city's core, would be painful.

  

Random Notes

Following are a few observations:

— 1700Midtown, the under-construction apartment complex sited about midway between Charlotte Avenue and Church Street (and on the eastern fringe of the Medical District), is taking shape. I noticed today a segment of the corrugated metal skin. In fact, when the full complement of metal cladding adorns 1700Midtown, it could rank as one of the city's three most industrial-looking residential buildings.

— A few weeks ago, I finally checked out the exterior design of the diminutive building home to Amun Ra Theatre (located on Clifton Street in North Nashville). The structure represents one of the best examples of a non-descript cinderblock building being given new life. 

— On the "re-inventing cinderblock buildings theme," a mural now adorns the west wall of the little building located on Halcyon in 12South and home to Halcyon Bike Shop. Very eye-catching.  

— The recently retrofitted Holiday Inn Vanderbilt is now sporting new signage on its walls, with the property's surface parking lot now getting a free-standing sign. The dominant signage color is lime. Risky and bold. Not sure, however, if I'll like it as time passes.

— Exterior work on 1914 Charlotte, a one-story medical office building in Midtown, is almost completed. I've got mixed opinions on the design, as the building offers nice brick detailing, an attractive color scheme and solid definition (via its shapes and materials). It also is built to the sidewalk at an intersection, another major plus. Of note, however, Charlotte Avenue is a major street on various levels and needs major buildings (that is, those of at least three stories). Furthermore, the design of the structure's entrance is questionable. Still, and compared to so many buildings constructed in Midtown from the 1960s through the 1990s, 1914 Charlotte is acceptable.

Glen Echo Lands a Sidewalk Segment

A modest segment of sidewalk is being constructed in Green Hills along the north shoulder of Glen Echo Road and connecting the sidewalk at Hillsboro Road to the sidewalk running in front of the Metro library along Benham Avenue.

So what's the big deal?

Simply put, this might be Davidson County's first new sidewalk — and by "new" I mean a sidewalk where there had not been one (and not merely a replacement for an existing sidewalk) — in at least six months. For about a year now, I have received each Friday, via email, the Metro Public Works project update list. And it has been months since I last recalled seeing the announcement of a new sidewalk in the county. As a man who drools at the sight of new sidewalk construction (yes, sad), I closely check the weekly report.

I could be wrong. So if you are aware of new sidewalk construction from the past year and within the county, please post a comment noting so.

  

Portman/ESa Hotel Tower Assessment

Based on the rendering (and I'm open to the thought that this tower might be fairly attractive and functional), the tower portion of the proposed MCC anchor hotel building reminds me somewhat of a much taller version of the 3322 Building at West End and Murphy Road. The latter sports an exterior design that has not aged particularly well.