‘It’s become unattainable’: Nonprofit looks at how city leaders are working to improve affordable housing in Nashville
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — With rent skyrocketing in Nashville, more people are turning to affordable housing, but there can be a lot of red tape involved, and the options aren’t always conveniently located.
So, what are city leaders doing to address what’s become a decades-long problem?
“The Nashville is a booming ‘it city,'” described Michael Callahan Kapoor, the deputy director with Stand Up Nashville.
The bright lights and music easily draw you in, but there is another story that is often camouflaged.
“If you look underneath that, I think you see that there’s a lot of people that are struggling, that want a good life for their for their people and want to enjoy life, and they can’t because it’s become unattainable,” continued Kapoor.
‘Just overwhelming’: Nashvillians struggling to afford homes inside city limits
Stand Up Nashville has been sounding the alarm about a problem that’s been building for quite a while.
“The majority of people out here are just trying to make it and living check to check. Any little incident can set them back or put them into debt,” explained Odessa Kellly, the executive director of Stand Up Nashville.
Finding affordable housing within a budget has been an uphill battle.
“People been building all of this up and then other folks are coming in and displacing them, and having to drive in from Smyrna, drive in from Murfreesboro, from Clarksville, and stuff like that, so we’ve been seeing a lot more of that,” Kapoor said.
Kapoor isn’t the only one who has taken notice of the growing problem that is affordable housing. During last year’s local election cycle, affordable housing was at the forefront.
Before winning the Nashville mayoral election, Freddie O’Connell said during his campaign, “I think the biggest thing right now is the recognition that it’s just gotten harder to live in Nashville.”
As a candidate, O’Connell saw the need and was already looking ahead to the East Bank deal.
East Bank development project moving forward
The East Bank of the Cumberland River, which consists of 30 acres of city-owned land, is a step closer to becoming Nashville’s newest neighborhood. It’s part of a massive development plan surrounding the new Nissan Stadium.
“So you have 100 acres of public land, and right now we’re looking at around 700 affordable housing units,” described Kapoor. “It needs to be deeply affordable, there needs to be three-bedroom units, there needs to be two-bedroom units. You see that part of the conversation, and I don’t think you really saw that like five years ago.”
But if the problem is so obvious, what are city leaders doing about it?
“The reason that we have governance, the reason why we have elected officials and put them in these positions is that they’re supposed to have your back when you’re not looking,” Kelly said.
To meet housing demands, the city’s Affordable Housing Task Force estimates Nashville would need to add more than 53,000 new housing units by 2030, and 18,000 of them would need to be affordable.
“I think just the sheer numbers of how many units we need to build, how many people are working three jobs to try to make ends meet, the impact on families,” said Kapoor.
However, they said price is only one aspect of the problem.
“I’m sick of seeing it just being built studio apartments and one-bedrooms, because the biggest issue that we hear now are from families. We’ve got mothers who got two, three children, you know, working, contributing to society, just like everyone else. Where is the affordable or workforce housing for that individual?” questioned Kelly.
Metro Council is working to update codes to streamline the process of getting homes built, while still making sure they are safe. While that’s being discussed, there is still the problem of how those being pushed to the outskirts of the city are having to travel back and forth for work.
“We’re about to have a transit referendum. It’s another great opportunity to really think about how are we building affordable housing throughout Nashville,” Kapoor said.
On Friday, April 19, O’Connell announced his transit plans for the city, as he looks to expand Nashville’s bus system, sidewalks, and bike lanes. The mayor pointed out that those who live closest to transit save around $200 a year compared to households located further away.
“On big issues like this, when there is a lot of money involved it takes people really getting involved and people being civically engaged,” Kapoor said. “People think about it, but it’s not until there’s kind of a movement behind it that says, ‘No, we’re going to do this as a city.'”
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Stand Up Nashville has been looking into the issue of housing for years, and has created a series dedicated to the city’s housing crisis. The organization encourages anyone looking to get involved or learn more about your housing options to email INFO@STANDUPNASHVILLE.ORG.
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