Drawn-out Second Avenue remodel poses challenge for business owners: 'It's a gut punch'

The phone rang at 6 a.m. on Christmas.

Frank Miller ignored it the first few times. It was an automated call from the security system at Cerveza Jack's, the bar he manages. Odd, but not abnormal.

Then the text messages started rolling in.

By the time Miller arrived at Second Avenue on Dec. 25, 2020, large portions of the historic street were reduced to rubble and debris by a homemade bomb that detonated early Christmas morning, damaging 65 buildings containing homes and businesses.

Three years later, reimagining the three blocks between Broadway and Union Street continues at a pace that worries Miller and other business leaders. They're excited about what the thoroughfare will look like but wonder if their establishments can financially hang on long enough to enjoy it.

"I can see the end product," Miller said. "I hope we can see it through."

For now, the stretch of 2nd Avenue from Broadway to Union and the State Capitol is a patchwork of heavy construction, thriving businesses and vacated buildings still scarred by the bomb's devastation. Numerous businesses struggle to lure customers wary of torn-up roads and heavy equipment.

It's about to get tougher.

Starting in January, the latest phase of Second Avenue construction will close a stretch of the throughfare where Cerveza Jack's sits, leaving open limited sidewalk access. Miller fears his customer base — tourists — may shy away from venturing down a seemingly closed street.

And declining venues in the downtown entertainment district impact everyone, from owners and managers to back-of-the-house staff, waitstaff and bartenders.

“It’s a gut punch,” said Miller, who has been on the management team at Cerveza Jack's since it opened in 2018. “We all see the plans. We all would like to be there when it’s done.”

The Second Avenue construction timeline: 'Who is thinking of us?'

The plan, created through collaboration between city and public stakeholders following the Christmas Day bombing, will create an improved streetscape, an effort to propel Second Avenue into a new, pedestrian-centric era.

Sparkling conceptual renderings of the finished product include outdoor dining space, new crosswalks, sidewalks and a two-lane road. Below the surface, critical water and sewer infrastructure is also being modernized.

Metro is taking on streetscape construction one block at a time. Crews broke ground on the North block — between Church Street and Union Street — in May and plan to complete it by late Spring 2024.

The next phase will tackle the block of South Second Avenue between Broadway and Commerce Street, where many of the most active businesses are located.

The middle block, which suffered some of the heaviest damage, will come last, giving those property and business owners more time to negotiate with their insurance companies.

“This is hard work,” said Michelle Scopel, a senior project manager with Metro Development and Housing Agency. Scopel oversees the ongoing construction, encompassing everything on the street and public right of way.

“It's hard for businesses. They've gone through the pandemic, they've gone through personal tornado damage (in 2020) if they had that at their own space, and then of course this blast, and here we go under construction at their front door."

MDHA is targeting to have Metro's work on the South block completed in 2025.

While Metro's construction timeline for its responsibilities on Second Avenue remains intact, Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell said he understands the street's rehabilitation may not be progressing as quickly as people would like. During his tenure as a council member serving downtown Nashville (2015-23), O'Connell visited with property owners and was disappointed to see "how unwilling some of the insurance companies were to negotiate in good faith with property owners there," he said.

Barrett Hobbs, who owns Doc Holliday's, a restaurant on Second Avenue, worries the affected businesses have been forgotten by city and state officials who could help them through financial challenges.

"Somebody needs to ask the city and the state: 'What are you willing to do to make sure these businesses make it?'" Hobbs said. "Who is thinking of us?"

Drawn-out insurance deliberations pose hurdles

The Christmas Day bombing has affected businesses and residents differently over the past three years.

Betsy Williams, a co-owner of the Rhea building, has had a particularly long trek through the insurance process. Williams had lived in the building for 15 years at the time of the blast, and ran a vacation rental business out of nine apartment units.

She said she recently entered into mediation with her insurance company, continuing three long years of negotiating for a reasonable settlement.

"I think it would be in the best interest of the insurance industry to complete all of the settlements as quickly as possible for those property owners," O'Connell said.

At Doc Holliday's, Hobbs said he is one of the lucky ones. The restaurant has been able to alter its profit model to save enough money to build up a cushion for the period of time the street is closed. And he's been pleased with the communication, transparency and leadership of MDHA through the process.

That doesn't mean it's not a challenging scenario.

"It is a horrific business situation," Hobbs said. "You might as well put our businesses on an island and blow up the bridge."

The only entities that aren't taking a hit, he said, is the city collecting property taxes and the state collecting liquor-by-drink taxes.

"There's no legislation at the city or state level to help us," Hobbs said. "Is anybody going to do anything for these people?"

A new era for Second Avenue

Each privately-owned building on the street has its own timeline for construction plans, Scopel said. The best she can do is stay in close communication with the street's stakeholders, paying particular attention to keeping those who are still dealing with insurance claims up to speed on Metro's progress.

But one advantage of building the new street in sections is the ability for people to see the vision take shape along the way, Scopel said. The completion of the North block this coming spring will provide a glimpse into the avenue's future.

"We're really excited to do that, for people to have an example," Scopel said.

While the street is closed on the South block, an eight-foot walkway will be kept clear for customers to access businesses. Miller emphasized the need for that walkway to be clean, safe, well-lit and easy to navigate for pedestrians. He also said it is imperative for messaging to be clear to visitors and locals alike that the restaurants are open for business.

"I think its just about continuous and polished messaging," Miller said.

First Avenue improvements and beyond

O'Connell said Metro has most of the preservation elements that it wants to see in place on the historic stretch. The complete separation of the sewer system under the street is a time-consuming process, but important to the area's long-term infrastructural needs, he said.

Funding is secured for the Second Avenue project and construction to-date is on budget, Scopel said. City leaders are also considering future improvements to First Avenue, though implementation is likely far off.

One plan from a private developer includes an open-air arcade connecting First and Second Avenues.

Parts of Riverfront Park have also gone decades without updates, said Tom Turner, president and CEO of Nashville Downtown Partnership.

Turner views the Second Avenue project almost like a bookend to Broadway. It's a puzzle piece in the overall footprint of downtown's entertainment district, while also preserving a historic part of Nashville.

"That’s where the city started," Turner said. "That's (the original downtown) Market Street, where commerce was conducted for so many years. Products came off the river and went through the buildings. It’s the commercial genesis of the Nashville that we have today."

Despite its identity as Nashville's commercial birthplace, First Avenue has long been underutilized in the eyes of business and city leaders.

"When the bomb happened, there was one business with an address on First Avenue," Turner said. "Clearly what we were doing at that time was not working. We can get First Avenue, the riverfront and Second Avenue all working together. They are complementary."

Hobbs, Miller and other business owners, though appreciative of the grand vision, are still taking things one day at a time.

"The good part is if we could fast forward, I think the stakeholders have a great plan in place that will give us a chance," Hobbs said. "The economic boom in that area will be like nothing we’ve ever seen before."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Second Avenue project update: Businesses stay open during road closure