5 Best Condo High-Rises in Nashville

Shelley, thank you very much for your perspective as a person who has lived at both properties. I do have a couple of follow up questions and would love for you to address should you have time:

If the West End was not filling up with Vandy renters and was lived in by professionals, would you feel the same way about the building?

Does the absolutely gigantic floor plans at the West End make it easier to live in a condo compared to the smaller condos in the Adelicia?

Do you find that the location is fairly convenient to shopping, restaurants, grocery, dry cleaning on West End? In other words, is it easy to live at the West End compared to the Adelicia?

Any other insight would be very much appreciated and that you so much in advance.

Hi Dirk, I am afraid that I am not aware of any current precedent that would allow for such action. However, there is a very large case about to go to trial involving the Braxton condos that may set said precedent.

The NBJ reported today (4/9/2010) that CJUF had “take[n] the reins” of the Terrazzo project. CJUF has around $20M invested in the $68M project, per the report. What impact do you think this will have on Terrazzo pricing? Do you see another auction in the future? Crosland appears to be the big loser her, given the fact that the minor investor is now calling the shots.

I did see that article as well as a filing by CJUF/Bank of America on February 25th, 2010 that stated CJUF would be taking 100% of the net proceeds from any of the condo sales or 90% of the gross. I’m not sure that CJUF will be messing with the prices too much other than to continue a slow upward progression as condos continue to sell. I am guessing that Crosland has already collected handsome development fees along the way and will be just fine. I am sure Crosland had negotiated a percentage of the profit once all of the condos were sold, but I doubt that there is any profit to be split at this point. I am also wondering what Crosland is doing with their 40+/- acres off Charlotte as I don’t see a grocery or big box retailer pulling the trigger anytime in the next few years.

When I lived at the West End it was almost empty in all the adjoining condos and , of course, very quiet. But when it started to fill up after the auction, you could hear every sound in the other condos. So I guess I would say that either filled with professionals or students, I would still prefer the quietness of the Adelicia. I never heard the other residents there, not once.
I lived in a 2000+ condo at the Adelicia and at the West End it was approximately 2400 so the size was not an issue for me at either location. I did find more useable space at the Adelicia but that was due to the floor plan. Much of my space was not used at the West End.
I found the surrounding neighborhood at the West End much more industrial and much less desirable. It is surrounded by other lower priced apartments and rentals. And with the six lane West End, Walgreens next door, there was a lot of noise around the clock. The Adelicia is located on a side street with a much more neighborhood feel, even though they do have many restaurants & clubs nearby. The Adelicia had dry cleaning pick up by several companies. Not sure if the West End has this now but they did not offer it when I lived there. The Adelicia has a building dedicated fenced dog park that was very convenient for me. The West End does not. The West End had parking garage doors that were not very reliable. Residents are given a garage door opener like you would have for your home and these openers would sometimes work & sometimes not. That was very aggravating especially when coming home after a long day of work. Also each condo at the West End came with only one parking space. It wasn't a problem for me as I live alone but a couple would find this very challenging. My condo at the Adelicia had two spaces.
The security at the West End can't even be compared to the Adelicia. Having a front desk person AND a roving security person 24 hours a day is a big plus especially for a woman living alone. I never had to worry at the Adelicia. The West End has no one there after 6:00 p.m. other than residents.
But more than any other factor, when comparing the two properties, it was the noise. Street noise or neighbor noise was not heard at the Adelicia. At the West End I heard everything from neighbor's voices to ambulances & garbage trucks on West End.

When condos are built the developer has many options where sound attenuation is concerned. Unfortunately, many developers hire architects with little condo experience and even then don't spend the money to hire an experienced acoustical engineer to review the architect's design as the drawings progress. Neither code nor statute require the developer to do this as long as the architect certifies that it meets the minimum STC code rating, which by the way is the same for a low income apartment project as it is for a luxury high rise condo. And even if the developer did go to the expense to have the drawings reviewed (and attempt to achieve an STC rating commensurate with a luxury condo) most don't incur the additional expense to have the acoustic engineer make multiple visits throughout the project to ensure that the contractor is actually doing all the things required in the design. Caulking metal studs properly, installing proper sound batt insulation and avoiding back to back outlet placements are just some of the basic things that done right can make a huge difference. It's obvious expensive to have an engineer looking over the should of both the architect and the contractor (slowing things down at times when mistakes are found) and, sadly, many of the projects that were done in kind of a gold rush mentality just didn't worry about those details. I know from conversations with Brasfield & Gorie, the Adelicia contractor, that an Atlanta acoustic engineer was nipping at their heels throughout the buildout of the Adelicia. It sounds like it's paying dividends.

I think the two buildings aren't aimed at the same demographic. The people who live in Brentwood, with kids that have all gone off to college, and are looking for “home replacement” condos, will find the West End appealing (absent the auction that resulted in it being full of college kids). That has to be the logic behind the size and layout of those condos. The plan, it seems, was not very well executed.

The Adelicia is undoubtedly more of an “urban living” building. The intent at the Adelicia seems to have been to capitalize on the trendiness of the urban living movement, with high end fixtures, amenities, etc. It was a well executed plan, as well.

Coming from San Francisco, I definitely prefer the Adelicia to the West End. But, I could see my parents preferring the opposite. The fatal flaw in my logic is that the West End auction seems to have ruined that niche/demographic.

I have moved into the Adelicia. It is a great building, with very friendly people. I think I may go from renting to buying. My only complaint (and it is a small one) is that I can't figure out what all the wires coming out of the wall are for and/or go to. It is obviously pre-wired for audio/video (and seemingly whole-home distribution), but there are more wires coming out of the main wall than I can find terminations for. It is very frustrating.

I agree with you about the preferences of an older buyer but I think this developer missed the mark with, among other things, his location. I think most of those emptynesters not looking for the urban character of something like the Adelicia have tended to buy along West End on the other side of 440. I believe that area has been more of a source of competition for The West End than the Adelicia. And I think the 3 most recent projects in that area, The Jacksonian, West End Close, and Rochford's project across the street (can't remember the name) all have more appeal than TWE. For starters, those buildings are just more attractive and obviously were more thoughtful, architecturally. I think this is important when trying to appeal to an older, experienced buyer, though less so for the less affluent within that demographic. So in a big way I think TWE evolved (vis a vie the auction) into a project that appeals to the less sophisticated niche within that older buyer profile. Unfortunately though, the discount that finally made it appealing (or affordable) also attracted a bunch of investors who need the (apparently) rowdy young kids to make their returns work. As they say, you get what you pay for.

On a slightly different note, it doesn't appear there has been much, if any, selling going on there since the auction. Perhaps the developer will be forced to cut yet again to close out the remaining third of the building. We'll see.

Are you sure the Icon is not also LEED certified? I’m pretty sure it says that in their literature.

Hi Kendall, we must add 12|12 to the mix now that it is complete.