Metro Council to vote on rezoning plan

Metro Council will consider at its meeting tonight a rezoning plan for the Riverchase apartment complex in East Nashville.

Why it matters: The fate of the property has become a case study in Nashville's affordable housing crunch.

Driving the news: The nonprofit advocacy group Stand Up Nashville negotiated with the developer Cyprus Real Estate Advisors, which is seeking to build a new complex with a mixture of market rate and affordable housing units, for a community benefits agreement.

• When the two sides could not reach a deal, the developer instead struck an agreement with the Urban League of Middle Tennessee. Stand Up Nashville sent a letter to Metro Council members over the weekend encouraging them to defer the rezoning plan.
• Stand Up Nashville wants more units available for poorer people.

Details: The Planning Commission unanimously recommended approving the project in February, but at the request of Councilmember Sean Parker, the rezoning proposal has been deferred four times.

The other side: Eddie Latimer, CEO of Affordable Housing Resources Inc., asked the council over email to advance the proposal. He lauded the developer for offering to make 17% of the 1,152 units in the new complex affordable.

Read tonight's full council agenda