Officials have approved design plans for a proposed retail complex near First Tennessee Park, home of the Nashville Sounds (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League).
There has been some new development surrounding First Tennessee Park in recent years, and more amenities are expected to be added down the road. One major plan for the surrounding area took a step forward Tuesday, when the The Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency design review committee granted final approval to the design of a proposed two-story retail complex.
Slated for what is currently a vacant lot adjacent to First Tennessee Park, the retail complex is one development concept in the works. Another planned project calls for an apartment complex overlooking the ballpark. More from the Tennessean:
The development is one of a pair of projects planned directly east of First Tennessee Park on Third Avenue North, behind the stands along the stadium’s left and center fields.
An apartment complex that would rise over the stands is also in the works.
Developers Chris and Tim Ward bought the land from their father, Sounds’ owner Frank Ward. Metro approved the project as part of a 2014 deal, in which the Wards will repay a portion of the stadium’s development costs with property tax revenues. They declined to discuss the project after the Tuesday meeting.
The city is subsidizing $600,000 in annual debt-service payments that the Ward developments will cover when they are operating, according to Metro’s finance department.
First Tennessee Park originally opened for the Sounds in 2015.