NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Metro Council gave its third and final approval to move forward with the East Bank development deal Tuesday night, securing plans to transform the area around the new Nissan Stadium.
It was approved unanimously, with the exception one abstention from Councilwoman Quin Evans Segall on a separate TPAC resolution, due to conflict of interest.
Boston-based developer The Fallon Company must stick to several stipulations outlined by Metro Council, including abiding by a certain number of affordable housing units.
What area around the new stadium are we talking about, exactly?
The plan is for Fallon to redevelop 30 acres of the East Bank known as the "Initial Development Area" or IDA. This map shows you an outline of those 30 acres, which includes the new stadium footprint. You can also see where the current stadium sits in relation to the plan:
What will be on this campus and where will it go?
Here's a look at a draft map for the IDA land included as part of an exhibit packet to Metro Council.
- Affordable housing. Fallon is on the hook to build 1,550 housing units with varying ranges of affordability. Three hundred 100% affordable residential units will be built within the first phase of construction and will include space for daycare. Units will be constructed on Parcel G, Parcel D, Parcel F and Parcel A. Units on Parcel A would sit atop a new transit hub.
- Parking. The Tennessee Titans will develop and receive revenue for parking on Parcel B. Metro has a commitment to the Titans to develop 2,000 parking spaces which would sit on Parcel C and/or Parcel B.
- Transit. The new East Bank Transit Center on Parcel A would include space for a WeGo bus hub, scooters and bicycles.
- Hotels. No more than three hotels can be built on the campus, but this rule does not include a potential hotel on Parcel B if all residential requirements are met.
- Office Space. Tenants would work in office space on Parcel G. If no market-rate tenant is found within ten years of site availability, another hotel could go here that wouldn't could toward the three hotel maximum rule.
- TPAC. This area noted on the map is Parcel E is where the new Tennessee Performing Arts Center will be built, but this is not part of The Fallon Company's East Bank development plan. However, TPAC and Fallon will collaborate to extend and redesign the landing of the Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge to include a pedestrian and bicycle path.
- Open-air plaza. This space is right beside the new stadium on Parcel C.
Tell me more about housing.
The agreement Metro made with The Fallon Company requires Fallon to deliver 1,550 housing units "with a mix of affordability." Here's a look at that mix:
- Within two years: 300 affordable housing units with space for daycare
- Within six years: 400 additional units including at least 40 affordable units
- Within nine years: 550 additional units including at least 55 affordable units
- Once work is complete on James Robertson Parkway: additional 300 affordable units developed atop the planned East Bank Transit Center.
Sounds like a lot of housing units — but what kind of prices are we really talking about?
Fallon has committed that 695 of the 1,550 units will be classified as affordable. When calculating affordability, Metro is going by the Area Median Income (AMI) as its metric. The federal government defines AMI for Davidson County as a 10-county metro area that includes Rutherford and Williamson Counties. In 2023, the AMI for all households in this area was listed as $102,500. The Metro Government lists the unit prices by percentage of the AMI... we did the math for you:
- 400 units will be priced at $61,500 and below. At least 100 of those units will be around $30,750.
- 200 units will be priced at $62,525 - $82,000.
- 95 units will be priced at $82,000 and below.
Who's paying for this massive project?
According to Metro Nashville, "there is a mix of public and private funding to help finance the infrastructure within the IDA." When it comes to the TPAC redevelopment, the state provided TPAC with funding to move while TPAC and Metro entered a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the Center to make its home on the East Bank.
What happens next?
Construction can't happen right away, and changes could still be made to the overall design. According to a preliminary development schedule included in Metro documents, construction on affordable housing and hotel development wouldn't begin until June of 2026. The new Nissan Stadium is anticipated to open for the 2027 season.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
