Garth Brooks teaming with Nashville to bring new police substation downtown

Matthew Leimkuehler, Nashville Tennessean
·2 min read

A new honky-tonk bar isn't the only Lower Broadway development on Garth Brooks' radar.

Brooks wants to team with city leadership to open a police substation to neighbor his forthcoming three-story entertainment space at 411 Broadway, according to a news release issued Monday.

The ever-popular "Friends In Low Places" singer would pick up the tab on developing the substation at no cost to taxpayers, the release said. The space hopes to provide resources for Metro police and Nashville Department of Transportation Multimodal Infrastructure to control traffic and safety in the bustling nightlife district.

The mini-hub deal relies on Metro Council support. If approved by council, Metro would authorize a commonplace condemnation for substation development in an alleyway space adjacent to Brooks' bar.

Outside of Garth Brooks’ new Lower Broadway bar and retail store at Friends In Low Places in Nashville , Tenn., Saturday, April 16, 2022.
Outside of Garth Brooks’ new Lower Broadway bar and retail store at Friends In Low Places in Nashville , Tenn., Saturday, April 16, 2022.

“Lower Broadway is an iconic destination ... but as Nashvillians know well, it can also create safety and traffic challenges that my office is working hard to tackle across multiple fronts,” Nashville mayor John Cooper said in a statement. It continued: "These additional resources will add new tools to reduce traffic and improve community safety downtown while continuing to prioritize other initiatives for neighborhoods and families throughout Davidson County.”

Known previously as Downtown Sporting Club, Brooks purchased 411 Broadway for slightly under $48 million in December 2021, according to public records — up more than $20 million from the building's $27 million price tag  in 2017.

For his downtown space, the seven-time CMA Awards' Entertainer of the Year partners with Nashville restaurant and bar staple Strategic Hospitality, which previously operated Downtown Sporting Club. Prior to Sporting Club, the building housed Paradise Park Trailer Resort.

Brooks said earlier this year he envisions for the bar "a classic honky-tonk that welcomes all encourages love and kindness while playing the greatest music in the world in the home of country music."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Garth Brooks teaming with Nashville to open downtown police substation