Illustration generated with Canva (not a photo of BNA)
Nashville International Airport is going office shopping. The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) has sent a letter of intent to buy BNA Corporate Center, the twin six-story office buildings at 402–404 BNA Drive. The roughly 40-year-old pair totals about 230,000 square feet (Groundbreak's project file lists 232,430 SF). The goal is to give the airport's own offices somewhere to go when the 309-acre site for a second terminal is cleared.
A letter of intent is not a closed deal. No purchase price, seller or closing date has been made public, and MNAA's land deals typically go to its board for approval before a purchase agreement is signed. The airport has been plain about the logic, though. As quoted by the Nashville Business Journal: "It was going to cost us $300 million to do what we hope to get away with for $50 million." The plan is to buy the two buildings and gut them. That tells you a lot about where the airport is headed and what it means for the office and land market around it.
What's being planned
Terminal 2, part of what the airport calls Beyond New Horizon, is planned for the south side of the campus next to the existing terminal. According to Groundbreak, it would add five concourses and double the gate count from 70 to 140. Construction is expected in four phases, with completion targeted for 2038. It sits inside the airport's broader New Horizon expansion program, valued at about $3 billion.
Several occupants on that 309-acre footprint, including the authority's own operations, need new homes before construction can start. Buying an existing office building next door is faster and more predictable than building new.
Terminal 2 at a glance: gates from 70 to 140, five new concourses, 309-acre site, four phases to 2038, about $3B New Horizon program, MNAA letter of intent on about 230,000 SF of office. Sources: Groundbreak, MNAA.
What it means for Airport North and South office
The airport submarkets are value-oriented office: older suburban buildings, easy interstate access and rents below urban core and Cool Springs levels. A single 230,000-SF purchase is meaningful at that scale.
Less multi-tenant supply. If the deal closes and the airport fills the buildings with its own staff, roughly 230,000 SF comes out of the leasable pool. Existing tenants there would likely need to relocate over time.
Relocation demand nearby. Tenants displaced from the Terminal 2 site and from BNA Corporate Center will look first at nearby Airport North, Airport South and Donelson space. That is a tailwind for owners of well-kept older buildings.
A pricing signal. A public buyer choosing to buy and gut 1980s-era office rather than build new is a useful data point at a time when older suburban buildings are trading at deep discounts elsewhere in the metro. The roughly $50 million figure covers purchase and renovation together, so watch for the actual price once it becomes public.
What it means for nearby land
The airport has been assembling land well beyond this deal. Recent MNAA board packets show letters of intent on parcels along Murfreesboro Pike and Harding Place, including about 7 acres for $2 million and about 10.75 acres for roughly $2.64 million, funded from a land acquisition capital project. Some of that land is tied to long-range runway planning.
Expect more acquisitions. Owners of parcels near the airport's planned footprint should assume the authority is a possible buyer.
Airport overlay rules matter. Sites near BNA often carry the OV-AIR airport overlay, which can limit height and use. Underwrite to it before you bid.
Service and logistics demand. A decade-plus construction program, plus more gates, supports demand for hotels, parking, flex, industrial and service retail along the Murfreesboro Pike, Elm Hill Pike and I-40 corridors.
Takeaways
Tenants: If you lease near BNA, check your term and renewal options now. Displaced users will compete for the same space.
Owners: Older airport-area office with good parking and access may see better demand than the broader suburban office market suggests.
Land investors: Know the airport's master plan and overlays before you buy, and treat MNAA as a buyer and a neighbor.
Everyone: A 2038 finish line means this plays out over a dozen years. Plan for phases, not a single event.
Sources
Groundbreak Nashville: MNAA Moves to Acquire BNA Corporate Center for Terminal 2
Nashville Business Journal: Airport makes offer on two office buildings to tee up new terminal (subscription)
Thinking about leasing, buying or selling near the airport? Contact CBS Realty to talk through what Terminal 2 means for your property.
