A pile of rubble remains after the demolition of Fuddruckers over the weekend to pave the way for new development. A shopping center with T.G.I. Friday's, Jason's Deli and the Bank of Nashville will replace the vacant lot left by Sala Thai and Fuddruckers.
Fuddruckers closed summer 2005 and neighboring restaurant Sala Thai abruptly closed last September, leaving almost an acre of vacant property on the corner of 21st Avenue and West End.
Carl Storey III, a broker with Baker Storey McDonald Properties, said the redevelopment will allow the new businesses a stronger base to fill a niche in the community.
"Our targeted clientele are Baptist (Hospital) faculty, local Nashville businessmen and, of course, Vanderbilt students, faculty and staff," Storey said. "We hope the new retailers will serve an important demographic group."
An article published in The Tennessean in December about the new development said the construction represented a surprising departure from the West End real estate market that previously had been targeted toward Vanderbilt students.
Mike Schoenfeld, vice chancellor for public affairs, said the western corridor is changing rapidly with new shopping areas, hotels and restaurants to accommodate the influx of business near the campus.
"It is not surprising that new contractors want to use the land," Schoenfeld said. "These are prime retail spots that have been underutilized in the past."
The Tennessean article reported that the new development is an "example of a changing West End real estate market" geared more toward local Nashville business people, while students like sophomore Mika Coffman think the new development targets students.
"I don't see why it won't work for Vandy students as well," Coffman said. "Though it may be designed for upscale clientele, Vandy students in some ways really will be frequent consumers, especially if T.G.I. Friday's and Jason's Deli get on the Taste of Nashville program so students can eat there on the card."
Kendra Abkowitz, an Arts and Science senior, said she thinks the new development is beneficial to Nashville residents.
"As long as it's something that's proactive to Nashville and helpful to citizens here, then I think the redevelopment is overall a good thing - definitely better than the pile of rubble that's there right now," Abkowitz said.
Schoenfeld said the new additions will cater to the Vanderbilt community and receive a lot of traffic from students and faculty.
"Tastes at Vanderbilt are pretty sophisticated," Schoenfeld said. "Also, because of the location, there will be considerable retail and traffic to whatever new businesses are presented in that area."
Storey said the architects designing the new development have been instructed to include architectural features found on Vanderbilt's campus to make the structure more homogenous to the campus.
"We hope that Vanderbilt faculty and students will be as integral a part of our customer base as the campus is in the design of our project," Storey said.
