From hosting a 150-person concert featuring an emerging musician to showcasing the work of talented Nashville artists, an Atlanta developer is re-imagining the ground-floor space of an apartment complex nearing completion in SoBro.

CF Real Estate Services plans to open creative center The Collective this fall at the 328-unit Olmsted Nashville, the apartment building that has taken shape in recent months at the corner of Fifth Avenue South and Peabody Street.

The Collective brings something unique to the neighborhood south of Broadway. Oftentimes, developers of large apartment or condo buildings divide the ground-floor for retail storefronts or use the space for resident amenities such as a fitness center.

“That was one of the things we knew coming into Nashville — we didn’t want to be the outsider and we really wanted to create a place that felt a true part of the Nashville creative culture that’s emerging there,” said Brett Oliver, director of development at CF Real Estate Services.

The Collective will be a two-floor, roughly 3,000-square-foot communal space open to the public, featuring live performances on stage, rotating art exhibits, space to work using the free WiFi or grab a coffee.

Oliver described the space as intimate and flexible. The stage can be taken apart and turned into a runway for a fashion show or a stage to showcase local artists. A musician who plans to live in one of the building’s apartment units is already planning to perform in the space monthly.

“The idea about The Collective, we want to open it to the public and residents and we want there to be activity morning, day and night. We’re going to have free WiFi and coffee down there to start,” Oliver said, adding the development team is in talks with a potential operator to open a coffee shop/bar in the space.

CF Real Estate Services worked with local artisans in designing parts of the Olmsted, including Luke Stockdale of Sideshow Sign Co., Nashville fashion designer Savannah Yarborough, Adam Gatchel of Southern Lights Electric and woodworking and design company 1767.

“That has been a lot of fun and they’ve played an incredible role in it. We think that’s going to be a big differentiator for us; the place feels like it has a soul rather than a heartless commodity apartment building,” Oliver said.

A key design feature at The Collective will be seven stacked concrete pipes, each weighing 18,600 pounds. People will be able to sit at tables inside the pipes to work, hang out or watch performances. The developers were inspired by a similar design feature at a building in Australia.

The Olmsted is pre-leasing its apartment units at a leasing office at 509 Lea Ave. The building will have studio, one, two and three bedroom apartments. The first units will be available in mid-October. Building amenities include an outdoor pool, fitness center, dog spa, workshop and roof lounge.

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