Multiple developments in the Nashville pipeline stopped in their tracks this year, but Nashville Yards continued to chug along.

Southwest Value Partners, led by Cary Mack, is the development firm bringing Nashville Yards to life. The 19-acre development at the entryway to downtown Music City includes two Amazon towers, the Grand Hyatt, the Union Station hotel, a future entertainment district and more. The project’s total price tag is estimated to exceed $1 billion.

As new development dampened across the city due to continued interest rate hikes, the downtown project continued to make significant progress over the course of 2023.

Here’s what happened at one of the city’s most highly anticipated developments this year and what to look for in 2024.

What’s in store for Nashville Yards in 2024?
In 2024, Nashville Yards will complete construction on the Pinnacle Tower and its 4,500-capacity music venue, which is a partnership between Southwest Value Partners and Anschutz Entertainment Group.

Construction on the development’s two residential buildings as well as the CAA Creative Office Building will continue throughout next year and are expected to be completed in early 2025.

As the buildings near completion, expect more retail and office tenant announcements throughout 2024.

What happened at Nashville Yards in 2023?
Major financing secured
In a time where many local developers are struggling to secure funding for their projects, Nashville Yards landed two major construction loans this year.

In August, Southwest Value Partners fetched a $241.3 million construction loan tied to two residential towers. Construction is currently underway on the two buildings, which will stand at 34 and 35 stories and collectively offer 673 units.

The development was also able to secure financing for its 2.46 million-square-foot entertainment district. In October, Southwest Value Partners and AEG landed a $211.97 million construction loan linked to its music venue and an office and retail building.

Mack previously told the Business Journal the property will contain at least eight residential towers by the time it’s complete, so future financing is not out of the picture.

Uncertainty around Amazon
The announcement of Amazon’s pledge of 5,000 jobs at the Nashville Yards development was a major economic development win for the city. As the company continues to determine its post-Covid work protocols, uncertainty has loomed over its space at the development.

The company’s first tower opened in mid-2021, and last summer, Amazon announced it was pausing work on the office floors of the second tower.

2023 was not void of new announcements from the e-commerce giant.

In February, Amazon announced it expected its employees to come back to the office starting in May. A month later, the company said it was going to be eliminating another 9,000 jobs companywide — a 50% boost to the cuts announced at the start of the year.

This year’s announcements hang fresh uncertainty over its downtown Nashville space.

Anchor office tenant announced
Nashville Yards added another anchor office tenant to its roster which already includes big-name players Amazon and Pinnacle Financial Partners.

The Nashville office of Creative Artists Agency (CAA) was the first office tenant announced in the development’s creative office building. The sports and entertainment agency signed a 75,000-square-foot lease in the building which will feature signage with the agency’s name.

CAA was not the only office tenant to stake a claim in the creative office building.

This month, AEG Presents announced it will be relocating its regional office to the building where it will handle booking and operating for the development’s forthcoming 4,500-capacity music venue.

Restaurant announcements
This year, Nashville Yards made strides towards becoming a major culinary destination.

In November, Brazilian steakhouse Fogo de Chão announced plans for an 8,500-square-foot restaurant on the ground floor of Nashville Yards’ creative office building. The restaurant, with locations across the world, will open in 2025.

Columbus-based Cameron Mitchell Restaurants announced it will be opening its first Nashville location in the development. The company revealed in September that Ocean Prime, an upscale steak and seafood restaurant, will open a 10,000-square-foot space in the Nashville Yards project in 2025.

Union Station hotel unveils upgrades
In October, Union Station Hotel Nashville Yards revealed the finished product from its multimillion-dollar facelift. The hotel underwent renovations to its 125 rooms and suites and hotel corridors which paid homage to the building’s former life as a train station.

These renovations are part of a larger plan, ongoing since Southwest Value Partners acquired the hotel for $56 million in 2020. Projects slated for 2024 include upgrading meeting spaces and the 250-capacity veranda, as well as enhancing the grand lobby with lighting, a new concierge desk and reception pods.

The historic hotel underwent more than a physical upgrade this year. Union Station Hotel announced a new general manager, Bill Simmons, in March.

Read the full story from Nashville Business Journal here.