Dan Heller – The Man Behind the Curtain
This is an article I wrote for The East Nashvillian magazine.
Who is Dan Heller?
You have probably dined inside one of his development properties. You have likely shopped for eclectic or vintage treasures within one of his renovations. You may have even strolled through a beautifully landscaped courtyard that was his brainchild – all without knowing the man behind it all. So who is this modest wizard behind the curtain? Meet East Nashville developer and resident small business champion, Dan Heller.
A native Nashvillian, Heller lived in Colorado for twelve years where he worked as a broker in commercial real estate, then moved back to Middle Tennessee in 1995. Heller moved to East Nashville, buying a 630 square foot “fixer-upper” in Inglewood for $45,000. Over the next few years, he bought the building that houses M&M Furniture and the house that is now Village Pub, both for what would now be considered bargain prices. He then patiently and methodically acquired several more parcels nearby like the new shop Old Made Good, and the main strip of commercial buildings on McGavock Pike. As a result of his foresight and faith in East Nashville, the formerly blighted intersection of Riverside and McGavock has now become a hot spot for dining and shopping in the ‘hood.
Known today as “Riverside Village”, the corner is seen as an alternative destination to Five Points and a favorite gathering place for neighbors and visitors from all over Nashville. It’s Heller’s most visible project because of its size and its many changes, always with a focus on all-local businesses – a crucial element, Heller says, of the area’s success. What was once a shady storefront is now the well-respected, East Nashville School of Music. A few doors down, Mitchell’s Deli and Sip Café, once an auto accessories store and beauty shop, respectively, draw more and more customers every year not only for the great sandwiches and ice cream, but for the beautifully landscaped courtyard and community garden. And on the corner, Watanabe offers sushi and Asian cuisine, a far cry from the run-down abandoned market that it replaced. As a result of the economic flux and community convergence on this once quiet corner, Riverside Village proudly played host to the 1st annual Inglewood Cherry Blossom Festival for the first time this year, a community event that neighbors hope to see grow larger every year.
Heller got to know East Nashville through another prominent developer, March Egerton. Heller and Egerton have known each other since the 7th Grade and, after going different directions, both moved back to Nashville around the same time. Heller says that March was the reason he chose East Nashville. Egerton had been blazing his own trail over here for several years developing the buildings that now house Bongo Java and Margot, Marche, PizzeReal, the Chop Shop and many others. “March is uncannily accurate in his predictions and has an amazing track record of success in high risk ventures and creating value in the neighborhood. I respect him a great deal for that,” Heller says. Egerton encouraged Heller to explore East Nashville and partnered with him on some projects: The Watanabe building in Riverside Village; the building that houses Pied Piper Eatery/Fairytales Bookstore; and the Kingston Building on Gallatin and Ordway where No. 308/Sherwin Williams are located.
“Of all the people I talked to about East Nashville and Inglewood who had no familiarity with what is going on over here,” says Egerton, “Dan is possibly the only one who believed me enough to do something about it. He has good instincts and is adept at finding the right tenants – ones that are qualified, eager and have an interesting viable business idea.”
You’ll most often see Heller, at all hours of the day, talking on his phone or to visitors in the area. He loves giving “the tour”, walking people around the village, singing the praises of all the business owners. “That place has great stuff!” Heller says, pointing to Thrifty Threads, a new ladies consignment shop across from the Village Pub. His support for area small businesses goes beyond his own investments. Heller includes Bailey & Cato’s BBQ, A Bark Above, Thrifty Threads and others on his Riverside Village website, even though he does not own the buildings those stores are in. “We’re in the same community, we’re neighbors. Let’s support each other. The rising sea raises all the boats.” Unfortunately, not all small businesses succeed and it pains him personally when they don’t. Heller says a common mistake some new businesses make is opening too soon without a clear plan or adequate capital reserves. Even the smallest decline in revenue or unexpected increase in costs immediately puts the business in jeopardy. “It’s easy to overestimate revenue and underestimate costs, especially in the excitement of starting a new business.” Heller says. “But it pays to be especially conservative in making projections because things rarely go as well as planned.”
Heller employs this experience and expertise to advise small businesses in the area, often brainstorming through problems and working through marketing plans with receptive owners. In that way, Heller has provided not just physical space, but helps incubate small businesses. Some succeed and stay, others expand or move to another space in the neighborhood, and the ones that fail are replaced by someone else with hopes of success. It’s an evolving process with surprising twists and turns. One recent example includes Bagel Face Bakery, located just outside the courtyard gate. With its growing success in Riverside Village, Bagel Face is currently moving to its own, larger building on Main Street. But the space won’t be vacant for a single day. The adjacent business, Olive & Sinclair Chocolate, Co., will be expanding into the space immediately, effectively doubling their size to meet demand. “These are great, new businesses that know how to execute. It’s exciting to see.”
A Small Business Advocate
In addition to providing personal guidance and support to small business, Heller has also stepped out as an advocate. Heller made the news in 2008 when he helped Matt Charette get his restaurant Watanabe open in the prime corner space in Riverside Village. Charette ran into a problem with the city and the water “capacity fees” being charged. “Matt called me and said ‘Dan we have a problem that’s going to stop our restaurant from opening.’ It turned out Metro was charging $42,000 to turn on his water. The line was there. No digging was required. That fee was simply to turn on his water.” Heller wrote an op-ed in The Tennessean, led a neighborhood petition drive, lobbied city council members and, through his councilman Erik Cole, arranged to meet Mayor Dean to discuss the problem with Charette and Egerton. “The results were positive”, Heller says. “Once everyone in Metro realized how these fees were killing new restaurants and other small businesses and slowing development in East Nashville and elsewhere,” he says, “our city leaders stepped up to fix it quickly. I really applaud Mayor Dean for getting behind that. “In the end, City Council voted to lower the water fees by 75%, a move that Heller says continues to save small businesses city-wide millions in start-up costs every year.
Not surprisingly, Matt Charette is a big supporter of Heller’s and calls him a “community visionary”, but initially had to be convinced about the space for Watanabe. “The place was just a disaster when Dan started talking to me about it, I just didn’t see it,” Matt says. “It was only after I saw what else he was doing in the area that it made sense. Dan’s whole vision is about improving this neighborhood. He is willing to invest in parts of it, like the community garden, that are not going to see a financial return. But he does it anyway and we are all better for it.”
Heller strives to create spaces that are constantly improving. In 2009 he was awarded the East Nashvillian of the Year Award by his peers at the Historic East Nashville Merchants Association for his redevelopment efforts. Heller brought his first form of inspiration to the ceremony, his father, now 89 years old and his mom, now 82. He cites his parents as role models for who he is today – his dad still working as a home builder, a business he started when he was 68. Heller himself is uncomfortable being praised but says he loves being a part of this process that neighbors have responded to with such warmth. “People often express to me what seems like an emotional attachment to this neighborhood and all the great businesses that have come here. There’s a tangible feeling of community ownership that I really love.”
What’s next for Dan Heller and East Nashville?
Heller’s next endeavor takes the idea of “community ownership” to a new and truly innovative level. He and several other neighbors have formed a non-profit organization to build Urban Green Lab— Nashville’s first-ever community center dedicated to sustainable living. Envisioned as a gathering place for all neighbors to come for hands-on workshops in urban gardening and other activities, it will also be a place to see small-scale theater, film and musical performances. Once built, Urban Green Lab will also tie-in to S.T.E.M (science, technology, engineering and math) curricula, an attractive offering for East Nashville parents with kids in area schools. The facility will be almost entirely “off the grid” with geo-thermal, solar and rainwater collection systems, community composting, and a commercial kitchen available for rent. The group is raising $1.5 million to build the center on the vacant lot at Maxey and McGavock and have already received a great deal of support from many sources. Heller is deeding the nearly half acre commercial property to the non-profit as a gift to the organization in order to get the project going. Heather Langford is working with Heller on Urban Green Lab. She says, “Dan cares deeply about this community and continually finds ways to give back and involve others.”
“I am really proud to be a part of Urban Green Lab and to be working with so many talented people from the community. I love having the opportunity connect with people in very productive ways.” Heller says. And as for the neighborhood? We might not always recognize the vast contributions Dan Heller has made to the area, but through our heightened sense of community and opportunity, we recognize and salute Heller’s visionary work and are proud to call him our own.
