After some minor snags and slight alterations, construction of Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Restaurant & Bar has been approved by Nashville’s Metropolitan Historic Zoning Commission:

Plans for singer and beach lover Buffett’s Margaritaville project will move forward with its signature parrot logo perched atop a 16.5-foot sign along downtown’s honky-tonk row.

The $10 million restaurant also will get windows that open to let in fresh air, despite earlier concerns by preservationists that such a design wouldn’t be historically accurate for the area.

On Wednesday, the Metropolitan Historic Zoning Commission, accepting most of its staff’s recommendations, approved the façade of the beach-themed restaurant at 322 Broadway.

Commissioners also allowed a key sign planned for the corner of Fourth Avenue South and Broadway to rise a foot higher than under normal design guidelines.

Earlier this year, Buffett’s Orlando-based Margaritaville Holdings leased the 18,000-square-foot site from Corner Partnership with plans to open a restaurant by December.

Developers initially had proposed to the commission’s staff a height of 25 feet for the sign. They later scaled that back to 16.5 feet. The staff recommended a foot less, but Buffett and company got those 12 inches back in the end.

“There’s still a concern that it sets a precedent, but we tried to craft our motion so that we were as specific as can be,” said Ann Nielson, chairman of the commission that governs the look of buildings in the city’s historic district.

The staff also felt that letters that light up one at a time on a sign didn’t meet the Broadway Historic District guidelines. But commissioners said the sign is OK since there are other brightly lit signs in the district.

Developers had insisted that windows that open to catch an occasional breeze were critical to the restaurant’s image and Buffett’s plans.

View artists renderings of the restaurant and bar here and check out the official site at www.margaritavillenashville.com.

Documents posted online by the Nashville Metro Historic Zoning Commission say that with a few minor modifications, Margaritaville’s plans for a restaurant and bar at the former site of a Planet Hollywood on Broadway will be approved:

The windows and signs proposed by Margaritaville’s developers should be approved with conditions, the staff said in materials posted online in advance of the commission’s April 21 meeting.

“The existing display windows are not original,” the analysis says. “Based on other historic storefronts and the attached historic image, each bay of the façade had one sheet of clear glass. The applicant proposes to replace the existing non-historic display windows with a folding clear glass wall. …

“Although each window is actually multiple panels of glass, together they will read as one large piece of glass. Staff recommends approving these windows as a test case to determine how well they simulate the character of a storefront window once installed and to assess their durability before approving this system for any other projects.”

The documents posted online have several artists renderings of signage and overall look of the restaurant. Notice that the official logo has a Nashville flair to it.

Here are other pictures from the documents:

After competing plans were presented to the Hollywood, FL city commission, Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville was chosen over Planet Hollywood for a plot of land on the broadwalk:

The site of the new Margaritaville will be just south of Johnson street, across the beach from the broadwalk. The city commission believes it will be a big draw and create more redevelopment in the future.

“I guess if it’s good for tourism, and the people that enjoy that kind of stuff,” said John Ricci, who often performs at the Hollywood Beach Theatre. “But I thought they did a good job with the park.”

People who feel an attachment to Hollywood Beach are a bit skeptical of the news. People like Ken and Deb Golden who met there twenty-five years ago.

“I loved the beach the way it was, like 25 years ago” said Deb Golden. “So the more built up it gets, I don’t know.”

The City of Hollywood is only now beginning negotiations with Margaritaville, so it may be a while before all the parrotheads come to town. But the good news for anyone who enjoys Hollywood Beach, is that the new development will also include a renovation of the band-shell.

And in just a few weeks, a new trolley service will start. It will take passengers between the beach and downtown Hollywood.

Jimmy Buffett is expanding his business empire once again, though this time on a much grander scale. According to Gulf News, Buffett’s Margaritaville Enterprises will build a mega resort on an artificial archipelago in the Persian Gulf just off the coast of Dubai:

United States-based Margaritaville Enterprises announced today plans to build a resort and casino on an artificial chain of islands off the coast of Dubai, similar to the Palm Islands.

“We are very excited to bring the Margaritaville experience to the Middle East,” said Tom Rosenbaum, director of operations for Margaritaville Enterprises. “It’s a big step for us, going from the U.S. and the Caribbean to halfway around the world. But we feel the Margaritaville brand will enjoy strong success in the tourist haven of Dubai. It’s really the perfect next step for us.”

The $1.5 billion dollar project will feature one main island and 23 separate, smaller islands. From the air, the archipelago will resemble a margarita glass. The main island will feature a 200,000 sq. ft. casino, a three-story Margaritaville Cafe, and number of shopping and entertainment centers. A four-lane road will connect the main island to the mainland, but the individual islands will only be reachable by boat or underwater, clear tunnels connected to the main island. The 23 islands will have a range of lodging options, from small cottages to large villas.

The islands will be built with sand dredged from the Persian Gulf in the same manner as the Palm Islands. The earth work is scheduled to begin late this year and is expected to take four years to complete. Once the islands are “built,” construction on the resort itself will begin. Final completion for the project is 2016.

This won’t be Buffett’s first foray into casinos. A Margaritaville Casino & Resort is being built in Biloxi, Mississippi, though construction is currently stalled due to the poor economy.

Update – What day is it today?

Jimmy Buffett made a surprise stop at his Margaritaville Cafe in Panama City, Florida on Wednesday night and played a few tunes with Mac McAnally and the Barry Fish Band.

(photos from Pier Park)