2017Reimagining Sobro

6th and Peabody

Reimagining Sobro

6th and Peabody
Nashville, TN
Completed in: 2018
Client: YEE HAW Brewing and Ole Smoky Moonshine

Gathering
Placemaking
Development

Nowhere in Nashville is changing more rapidly than the downtown neighborhood known as SoBro (South of Broadway). One- and two-story former industrial sites are gobbled up and torn down at rapid pace to make room for new 10 to 20-story hotels, apartment, and office towers, especially in the blocks adjacent to new Music City Center convention center. As a departure, this project involves the rehab and repurposing of a portion of an existing campus that was once home to an area auto dealership in the 1960’s. The intent is to create an entertainment district within the existing urban fabric - just one block from the convention center - that attracts both locals and tourists alike. The first project in this project involves adaptive reuse of an 11,000 sf auto repair shop into a bar and live music venue.

The existing building is salvaged and repaired, maintaining the solid masonry walls, barrel-vaulted ceiling with steel bow trusses, and existing steel industrial windows. New additions include an entry vestibule with box office and a lighted marquee and canopy that combines inspiration from both from vintage art-deco theaters of the 30’s with the Route 66-style service stations of the 60’s. The project involves a partnership with YEE-HAW Brewing Company, and Ole Smokey Tennessee Moonshine Company. A future phase of the project involves creation of a beer garden in a former asphalt parking lot, and distillery and brewery operations, a bottle shop retail presence, and a tasting room as part of the adaptive reuse of a second 6,000 sf building directly adjacent to the property. Plans also include a new pedestrian greenway connection through the site to create direct connection to the convention center.