Now there's two more reasons to go out in Nashville. More than $1 million has been poured into upgrades on well-known Midtown bars Tribe and Play to enhance visual appeal, ambience, and customer experience.

Dowdle Construction Group and Allard Ward Architects renovated 10,000 square feet of space within the bars’ buildings on Church Street.

The newly upgraded Play area is a dance bar that will present weekly drag shows. The bulk of the renovation involved increasing the size of doorway openings to improve the flow of these spaces.

Tribe is a lively cocktail bar featuring a DJ booth, TVs, pool table and a large outdoor deck/patio area.

“This involved a good amount of structural work to ensure that the two separate buildings with different build types are supported and structurally sound,” said Dowdle Construction Principal Chase Manning, who managed this project.

The new design for Play is extremely colorful, from teal-colored concrete floors to a bar with rainbow lighting. It also boasts upscale finishes, including wood accents, granite countertops and open wood ceilings, which are the original trusses with tongue and groove decking.

“We are very excited to finally open up these new and improved gathering spaces, which have become so important to Nashville’s LGBTQ+ community,” said owner Joe Brown.

“Dowdle’s extensive hospitality portfolio here in Nashville is what drew us to them, and we could not have asked for a better team to carry out this project.”

Dowdle Construction Group has built or renovated over 45 restaurants and bars in Nashville in the last five years, including Milk and Honey, Hi-Fi Clydes, Dogwood, Party Fowl, STK and more. “It was a pleasure to make these much-needed improvements to Tribe and Play,” said Manning. “We believe in building spaces where all members of the Nashville community can come together.”

About Dowdle Construction Group

Dowdle Construction Group is a Nashville-based general contractor specializing in both public and private sector commercial construction. For over 30 years, Dowdle has built a reputation for conducting business with integrity, honesty, and a commitment to communicating and working through the details. Dowdle’s collaborative projects have been recognized for their excellence by the Urban Land Institute Nashville, the Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville, the American Institute of Architects local chapter and other industry organizations. For more information visit dowdleconstruction.com.

Photos: Brian McCord, Realty Pictures, LLC