WeGo leaders working with nonprofit, city leaders to make affordable housing more accessible
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — As plans to upgrade transportation across Music City move forward, the question of affordable housing and how to make sure it’s accessible lingers. It’s on the top of mind for WeGo Public Transit and a Nashville nonprofit.
Brent Elrod is the managing director at Urban Housing Solutions, a nonprofit that develops and manages affordable housing for those in the low income, homeless, and workforce populations in Nashville.
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“We’ve got about 1,050 apartments that we manage ourselves. We either acquired or developed about 1,700 apartments in Nashville and almost every one of those is within a quarter mile of a bus stop,” said Elrod.
Elrod told News 2 as the city grows and plans of expanding transportation are on the table, the nonprofit is working with transit leaders to make sure people in affordable housing still have accessibility.
“Transit access has been one of the key criteria that we consider and look for whenever we’re acquiring a property or as we think about redeveloping a property. Transit access is so vital, so vital for the success of our communities,” said Elrod.
That’s why Urban Housing Solutions and WeGo are collaborating to identify how transit centers can be strategically placed to benefit those who need it.
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WeGo officials said as this collaboration has continued over the years, it’s increased significantly with the upcoming opening of the North Nashville transit center and as talks go forward on the mayor’s transportation referendum. Development teams from both the nonprofit and WeGo work to identify the best places for affordable housing to maximize accessibility.
“Affordable housing and transit just go hand-in-hand,” said Eric Melcher, the public information officer for WeGo. “Urban housing solutions project apartments and condos across the street from the North Nashville transit center. Previously, those folks had access to about 13,000 jobs within the transit reach, and now with our new transit service we’re offering, that’s really up 64,000 jobs.”
There are several factors that are also taken into consideration.
“Is it near a transit line? What are the stops like? Do the stops need to be upgraded? What are the sidewalks like? If you can’t get to transit, it doesn’t do you much good,” said Melcher.
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As the city grows and changes to transit move forward, Elrod told News 2 accessible transit to those in affordable housing is top of mind as a timetable is at play.
“That opportunity is only available on that initial development. Once a transit system is in place, it’s much harder to basically retrofit or re-create that opportunity for affordable housing,” Melcher said.
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