SB Equities

Conversations comparing Nashville to Cleveland cannot get very far before the subject of medical marts come up.  It’s no secret that Nashville is hot on Cleveland’s heels to develop the nation’s premier medical mart, so let’s see how the two stack up.  Nashville’s mart is projected be 1.5 million square feet and cost $250 million while Cleveland’s mart is projected to be 130,000 square feet and cost $425 million.  Both will be located in the central business district and at sites currently occupied by existing convention/meeting facilities.  Both will be developed and operated by experienced firms with oddly similar acronyms – Nashville’s developer is Market Center Management Company (MCMC) and Cleveland’s developer is Merchandise Mart Properties Inc (MMPI).  Cleveland seems to have the edge out of the gates, as their financing has already been secured (thanks to quarter cent sales tax increase that went into effect in 2007) and work is schedule to commence in October of this year.  Nashville will not be able to finance their center until a significant amount of pre-leasing is completed and, although they are touting a 2013 opening, there is no proposed start date. 

Rendering of NMTC

So, after seeing the site and immediate area in Nashville first-hand, what do I think?  I think that Cleveland better not squander their lead.  We spent our evenings eating and browsing around Broadway and each evening, were amazed at the throngs of people that were also out and about.  And my informal surveying (ie me striking up conversations and asking) would lead me to believe that at least half were there due to some type of meeting/convention.  Clearly, Nashville is already an established destination for meeting/convention activity and this, coupled with a more temperate climate and a pro-active business community makes them formidable competition.