Historic Nashville Issues Statement - Climax Saloon

As most of you know, Historic Nashville, Inc. (HNI) has been very active over the last week attempting to save the Climax Saloon/ Embers Building on Fourth Avenue from demolition. Because of your support, the developers, Metro Government, and the press paid attention to our concerns about the need to preserve as much as possible of Nashville’s old “Gentleman’s Quarter” and legendary Printer’s Alley. Initially, city financing was awarded for the development project with the understanding that both the Climax Saloon/Embers Building and the old Utopia Hotel would be preserved—two historic buildings badly in need of repair after decades of neglect. After the developers stated they could no longer save the Climax Saloon/Embers Building, HNI requested and Mayor Megan Barry ordered a stay of any demolition permit so that the community could respond and so HNI could gather more information about the integrity of the structure. Last week, HNI met with city officials and the developers for a discussion regarding the possible demolition of the building. HNI presented our concerns and our desire for full preservation of the site, and the developer shared an engineering report with us and brought their architects to the meeting so that HNI could ask questions of them. Mayor Barry invited HNI to a second meeting on Monday with her team and the developer in hopes of seeking a resolution, and we presented several recommendations to the city and the developer regarding how they might move forward. As a result, the developers have agreed to the following: • The entirety of the historic façade on Fourth Avenue, the rear elevation along Printer’s Alley, as well as a portion of the south elevation, will be removed, restored, and replaced using the original building materials; • Original fixtures such as mantle pieces, light fixtures, etc. will be salvaged and reused in the new interior; • A preservation easement on the façade of the Utopia Hotel will be donated by the developers to HNI, thus allowing the Utopia, which is being preserved in its entirety as part of this development, to be preserved by HNI in perpetuity, regardless of ownership; • Explore the possibility of creating a zone within the new interior that will recreate what the building looked like when it was in use around the turn of the century; • Explore the possibility of preserving the first twenty feet of the interior; • Fully and professionally document the building with measured drawings and large format photos before demolition. Based on these actions that will preserve the Utopia Hotel and portions of the Climax Saloon/Embers Building, HNI is no longer opposed to the project. We are grateful to Mayor Barry for taking the lead on this situation and brokering an agreement that will enable the project to move forward and preserve these unique and significant historic buildings in Nashville’s legendary Printer’s Alley. We are also appreciative of the developers’ willingness to meet with HNI and hear our concerns, and for their commitment to preserve these assets as well. We hope to build on the momentum of these events and ask you to support HNI by becoming a member so that we may continue to be a voice for smart preservation in Nashville. Without participation from concerned individuals like yourselves, our city’s unique history would not survive.