A long-vacant Rutledge Hill building on Third Avenue South is finally showing signs of life again, with public records revealing plans for a new bar called The Third Sip. The two-story brick structure, a former church that has sat empty since the pandemic, is now being readied for a bar-and-lounge buildout.
What's planned
The Third Sip is slated for 629 Third Ave. S., with county business-license listings tying that name to the address, according to Davidson County Source. That filing serves as one of the first public signals that an operator is preparing to turn the long-dark storefront into a functioning bar.
Permits and signage
Public permit records show plans for two illuminated wall signs and related electrical work for The Third Sip at the 3rd Avenue address. Permit entries, including CASN 2025100835 and CAEL 2025105659, list a local contractor and indicate that the sign work is moving through the city permitting system, according to BuildZoom.
Historic past
The 627–629 block of Third Avenue appears in the Tennessee Historical Commission's inventory as the Primitive Baptist Church and sits inside the Rutledge Hill Historic District, according to the Tennessee Historical Commission. Reporting on the conversion also points to a LoopNet listing that dates the structure to roughly 1860 and notes the space was briefly used by an Anchor Fellowship congregation before 2020, per the Nashville Post. The building’s long history drives home the contrast between Rutledge Hill’s 19th-century fabric and the steady wave of new restaurants and bars reshaping the neighborhood.
Part of a changing neighborhood
The incoming bar slots into broader plans to ramp up dining and mixed-use activity in Rutledge Hill, where developers and design firms have floated a culinary-district concept and other restaurant-focused projects in recent permitting rounds. Local coverage has highlighted the neighborhood as a target for more food-and-drink concepts in the coming years, according to WhatNow Nashville.
What to expect next
There is no firm opening date yet. For now, the business-license entry and sign permits are the clearest public indicators that an opening is in the works. Locals watching the transformation of Rutledge Hill can keep an eye on county license rolls and the city permit portal for scheduling updates and additional filings as The Third Sip moves closer to opening its doors.
