Design of proposed Westin tweaked

Design of hotel isn't changed much, but preserves Lower Broad buildings

Email | Print By Richard Lawson

Proposed Broadway elevation of the Westin

Developers seeking to put a Westin hotel on Lower Broadway made another run at the city last Friday with a slightly tweaked design.

The latest attempt from Denver-based Sage Hospitality Resources and The Barber Group of Springdale, Ark., doesn't look tremendously different than the initial plan. But the developers have made one major concession – saving the Trail West building in its entirety as well as a neighboring building on Lower Broad. Originally, the plan was to shave off the back of the building and build up.

Brad Robinette, a Sage senior vice president, said the idea was to maintain the two buildings so they are still contributing to Lower Broad as a historic district. With that change, the developers reconfigured the tower's design so that it is set back from Broadway better. The original design was an L shape; now it looks more like a T.

The design changes didn't alter the density. The developers are still looking at about 350 hotel rooms. The number of condominiums may increase from 38, though.

"The property is not cheap," Robinette said, adding that the density is necessary to make the project work economically.

Ann Roberts, executive director of the Metro Historical Commission, however, still isn't fond of the idea, even with the changes. Roberts has been vocal in her concerns that the project is too large for Lower Broad and that its construction would harm the area's historic designation. The recent changes aren't likely to dissuade her.

"They have made some changes in response to the concerns that were voiced earlier," Roberts wrote in an e-mail. "But from the preservation perspective, three National Register-eligible buildings would be demolished, and the buildings the plan retains would lose their integrity, that is, be made non-contributing, because of the massive 'addition' of a 19-story building...

"From a broader view, it is still too much building too close to Broadway and to Third Avenue, and it sets a dangerous precedent for that very special area," Roberts wrote. "The project would be very welcome elsewhere, but it's not a compatible fit for the Broadway National Register Historic District!"

The public will get more input on the design through meetings to be held at the Nashville Civic Design Center. "We are anxious to keep the process moving forward," Robinette said.