Omni Nashville Hotel

Anchoring Luxury

On September 30, 2013 the South Broadway area of downtown Nashville officially opened the doors of the prestigious Omni Nashville Hotel to the public. This was not an ordinary ribbon cutting ceremony of another box hotel. Mayor Karl Dean, who struck a public-private deal with officials from Omni Hotel & Resorts three years ago to bring it here, held giant scissors and snipped the ribbon to officially welcome the new hotel at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Korean Veterans Boulevard, across the street from the new convention center and connected to the adjacent Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum (Garrison, 2013). This was the birth of Nashville’s convention center headquarter hotel which has been talked and debated about for over ten years.

The idea of Omni Nashville was conceived the moment a group of Nashville leaders came together over ten years ago and began the conversation on how to turn Nashville into a lively conventioneer and tourist hub. The study of the relocation of the convention center to its current location in downtown Nashville on Commerce Street would soon be accompanied by talks of which illustrious hotel would complement the vision of the Nashville brand and attract the convention market along with museum tourists.

The Right Hotel for Music City

Nashville leaders knew that the Music City Center hotel convention headquarter hotel would need to be more than just an ordinary hotel. Building the brand of Nashville was at the forefront of these leaders minds and they were very strategic at which partnerships would be the best for the city. In their quest for the ideal luxury convention hotel, city leaders had researchers compared hotel exhibit spaces with other major convention centers and hotel exhibits in Louisville, Dallas, Orlando and Washington, DC (The Music City Center For Nashville’s Future, pdf, 2006). As the word of the hotel search spread some well-known and not so well- known hotels sent in proposals to the city for consideration of becoming the “chosen one.” A few companies that sent in proposals include: Peabody Hotel Group, Renaissance Nashville Hotel, Marriott International and Turnberry Associates (owners of two hotels in Nashville: Hilton Nashville Downtown and Union Station Hotel), (The Music City Center For Nashville’s Future, pdf, 2006).

Challenges and Collaboration

The project of the convention center campus was passed under Mayor Purcell and was continued into Mayor Dean’s term. Mayor Dean pushed hard for this project and really felt the weight of the magnitude of this undertaking (Omni Nashville Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, 2013).

In 2009, when the economy was at one of its lowest points, Omni hotel owned by TRT Holdings Inc. entered into talks with Mayor Dean and the city about becoming Nashville’s convention center headquarter hotel, while there were other negotiations still on the table (Omni Nashville Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, 2013). The land where Omni Nashville is currently located was a parking lot owned by Tower Investments who was offering a price that other hotel companies were not willing to pay for the land. In 2010, the city selected Omni Resorts and Hotels to be the headquarter hotel along with the Music City Center, stated Dan Piotrowski at the opening ceremony. The Omni showed how serious it was by agreeing to purchase the 3.105 acres of land from Tower Investments located just south of the Country Music Hall of Fame for $180 per square foot equaling $268 million (Tower Investments). With construction already underway on Nashville’s new $585 million center in 2010, the city agreed to chip in substantial dollars to get the center a hotel, viewed as crucial to the well-being of the facility (Garrison, 2013). Butch Spyridon, president of the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau, said “It was a smart, strategic move…it shows they’re serious.” Mayor Karl Dean stated at the opening ceremony that after talking with Robert Rowling, chairman of TRT Holdings, in a meeting while working through the final agreement about Omni going forward, after leaving that meeting he “truly understood what having the weight of the world removed from his shoulders felt like.” (Omni Nashville Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, 2013). The Omni was able to deliver and ease the mind of Nashville leaders.

One of the challenges the hotel faced was collaborating with its neighbor the Country Music Hall of Fame in integrating the two buildings together on a piece of land located between the two buildings and owned by the Metropolitan Government. The Omni Nashville’s and Country Music Hall of Fame Museum’s design team created a unique collaboration in which the two worked together to integrate the two buildings seamlessly (D. Piotrowski, personal communication, March 27, 2014). “There is a ninety-seven page document that details the integration deal of the two buildings which are connected at the lobby, meeting room and pool levels. In the document the Omni has representation, the Hall of Fame has representation and the Convention Center Authority has representation,” stated Mr. Piotrowski.

Omni Today

Robert Rowling stated at the Omni opening ceremony that the Music City Center, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Omni Nashville Hotel projects represent and investment of over a billion dollars (Omni Nashville Robbin Cutting Ceremony, 2013). Dan Piotrowski, General Manager of the Omni Nashville, said one of the goals of the city of Nashville and the Omni hotel was “with the connection between the Omni and the Country Music Hall of Fame, Nashville will have a convention center headquarter hotel that embodies music city a destination unlike any other in this country,” (Omni Nashville Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, 2013).

Omni promised the mayor and the city this four and half star hotel would be spectacular and special. The Omni delivered on every one of its promises while being on time and on budget. It exceeded and more than doubled its goal of small, minority and women owned business participation in the construction of the hotel (Omni Nashville Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, 2013). Since that time, crews from Brasfield & Gorrie worked around the clock to complete construction of the hotel approximately three months ahead of schedule and on-budget. Throughout the process, the architectural and design teams including HKS Hill Glazier Studio and Looney and Associates ensured that the property captured the distinct culture and character of Nashville in the hotel design (Hotel News Resource, 2013).

Omni Nashville also spent construction dollars with local businesses. Fifty percent of the total construction budget was spent locally and it also created more than six hundred and fifty jobs, in which over four hundred and fifty of those positions were filled by Davidson County residents (D. Piotrowski, personal communication, March 27, 2014). Omni Nashville is now Nashville’s number two private employer (D. Piotrowski, personal communication, March 27, 2014). Job creation and local economy growth was another one of Nashville city’s leaders goals when taking on the convention center campus project. Governor Haslam stated, “Omni does things big and right,” while giving a speech at the opening ceremony. Nashville is establishing itself as one of the preeminent leisure and convention destinations in the country – the level of interest and enthusiasm in The Music City is unprecedented,” said Mike Deitemeyer, president of Omni Hotels & Resorts (Hotel News Resource, 2013).

Incentives to the Texas-based hotel company for the $268 million hotel include a 62.5 percent property tax discount for 25 years; a combined $59 million in tax increment financing for land purchasing and Omni’s connector with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum; and an additional $103 million in incentives over 20 years from tax revenue the hotel produces (Garrison, 2013).The Omni states on their website “the design of the hotel is a modern expression of the city’s distinct character, incorporating natural materials, exposed steel and regional limestone.

The multi-story hotel and expanded museum share meeting and entertainment space and bring additional restaurants and retail venues to this dynamic destination in downtown Nashville.” Marty Dickens, chairman of the Convention Center Authority stated, “It makes our city an even greater destination for tourist, for people all around the country and in fact all around the world.” (Omni Nashville Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, 2013).

Hotel Highlights:

100% non-smoking luxury hotel
800 luxurious guest rooms and suites
Over 80,000 square feet of meeting and event space
Conveniently located in downtown Nashville, across from the Music City Center and seamlessly integrated with an expanded Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Signature three-meal Southern restaurant, Kitchen Notes
Live entertainment venue, Barlines
Bob’s Steak & Chop House
Bongo Java Coffee Shop
A signature Mokara Spa and state-of-the-art fitness center
Rooftop urban pool deck with spectacular views
Full service Business Center
LEED Silver Certified NC (New Construction)