NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As Nashville rebounds from the pandemic, it almost seems like the city's growth never stopped.
New construction seems to always be popping up with cranes dotting downtown’s skyline. One well-known local developer says if you think things have changed over the past six or seven years, you ain't seen nothin' yet.
Tony Giarratana remembers when people thought his ideas were too big and bold for Nashville - not anymore.
The long-time developer now has a birds' eye view of the ever-changing downtown skyline -- from his 44-hundred square foot penthouse apartment high atop 505 Church -- one of his most recent achievements.
He also has his eye to the future. Giarratana recently announced plans for a 45-story luxury residential tower on the Korean Veterans circle. That's in addition to two towers soon to rise on Church Street, not far from Amazon's new offices.
Add to the mix other big-name companies including Facebook and Oracle and he knows more will come.
"This is just the initial drop in the bucket if you will. These companies draw a tremendous amount of other companies that service them, that are in their orbits," Giarratana said.
Those companies attract young, creative workers - people who want to work AND live downtown.
So, what helped to start the Nashville boom?
"Music City Center was one of those very pivotal events in Nashville's history. That Music City Center catapulted our hospitality industry to the envy of every other city, every other city in the country," Giarratana tells NewsChannel 5.
"They came here for a convention, experienced Nashville, and went huh, that's a nice place, let's think about coming here to live."
And that's exactly what's happening, much to the dismay of many longtime residents who worry about traffic and congestion.
But Giarratana says rapid development in our urban core rather than outlying areas will actually help.
"So if you're, if you're living, working and playing downtown, you're not part of the problem you're part of the solution," he said.
It's a solution Giarratana -- and now developers from around the world -- obviously believe in.
And if you think it's hard to keep track of the massive hotel, office and condominium projects rising today he says just wait.
"What's coming I think is going to make what's happened the last 10 years, blush. The next 10 years is going to be more significant than the last 10 years in terms of transformation of Nashville particularly downtown Nashville."
