"We've already paid our dues with low-income housing."

It's definitely predictable. Nashville has been clamoring for "affordable housing" options for years and now, when plans to bring a boatload of homes into an area materialize, neighbors come out in force to NIMBY the project. I was somewhat shocked at the words of "Preacher" Marcus Jordan, who argued, ""Why not go to East Nashville, Madison, Bellevue, West Meade? We've already paid our dues with low-income housing." Since when is providing housing of any sort "paying one's dues?" I don't mean to malign the man and I'm certain he's got what he considers valid and appropriate reasons for leading the charge, but but he certainly doesn't sound like any of the preachers or ministers or Fathers I've worked with here in Nashville who go out of their way to help the poor and lower working-classes, the intended target group of this housing project. Now granted, I can understand the concerns of the neighborhoods already present; 450 homes is a huge number and the impact on the area will be serious, indeed. I can also understand and to some extent support Jordan's call to scatter the homes across the city. But from an economic standpoint, HFH simply won't be able to do that and be able to keep the costs from going through the roof. The goal here is to provide "affordable" housing, not simply "housing." In order to do that, one needs to make sure that every single effort to save money in order to pour it into the primary aspect of the project - homes - is taken. Neighbors are rightly concerned about the potential problems a large development will bring. But surely they also realize that often with new development comes - if one plans and negotiates correctly - improvements in services and roads, new jobs and a host of other improvements that often mitigate the impact the influx of new folks. Additionally, we're not talking about shoddy, shady, fly by night developers here. HFH has a proven track record and everywhere they've built, property values have increased; an important aspect at this point in time. Their work is top notch as well; take a gander at the house they recently constructed in East Nashville; I'd be proud to call it my own home and I'd wager that most folks who read this blog would agree. I admit I come at this from a bit of a biased perspective. I work daily to find affordable housing for my clients and know firsthand the gloomy prospects I'm going to encounter in that search. But one would think that folks in the surrounding neighborhoods would understand, perhaps better than most, the importance of being able to afford a home of one's own. It's hard for me to understand how a man who calls himself a preacher can come out against providing what I consider a basic human right to folks in his community, some of whom very well may be in his congregation. At a time when Nashville desperately needs a large influx of affordable housing, the last thing we ought to be doing is trying to kill the project. Surely there is a way to bring neighbors together to iron out the problems, address the fears and move forward with providing Nashvillians something desperately lacking in our community; abundant, affordable housing.

Nashville Habitat for Humanity project stirs unease

Neighbors worry about impact of 450 homes

By MICHAEL CASS • Staff Writer • September 6, 2008

(BILLY KINGSLEY / THE TENNESSEAN Marcus Jordan says he and other residents worry that Habitat for Humanity's plans for a 450-home neighborhood in northeastern Nashville, off Brick Church Pike, will bring more congestion and lower property values.)

Habitat for Humanity's plans to build a 450-home community in northeast Nashville are creating tensions in the area as some middle-class residents worry about an infusion of low-income housing.

Marcus Jordan, president of a homeowners association near Habitat's site, said members of 37 neighborhood groups are banding together to protest Habitat's plans. They'll meet with the organization's leaders Monday.

Residents, backed by their Metro Council members, say the development will create traffic tie-ups and safety issues and tax everything from retail stores to wildlife. They say homes worth as much as $200,000 could lose significant value.

"Why do they have to come over here and put all the drama by us?" said Jordan, 44, a preacher and apprentice funeral director. "People retired here for comfort and quiet, not for drama."

Habitat's Nashville area chapter announced last month that it will build Park Preserve off Ewing Drive and Whites Creek Pike. The 280-acre neighborhood, where the first homes will go up in July 2010, will be one of the largest in the nation for Habitat, which works to provide affordable homes for people who couldn't afford mortgages otherwise.

Chris McCarthy, president and CEO of the local chapter, said Park Preserve will fit nicely into the 37207 ZIP code. Habitat conducts background checks on all applicants for home ownership, whose annual income averages $27,000, and the agency listens to feedback from existing residents whenever it goes into an area.

McCarthy said home sales in the area since May have averaged $105,000, and Habitat's typical home in the nearby Timberwood subdivision appraises for $115,000. Timberwood, where Habitat volunteers will start work on another 14 houses this morning, will have 112 homes once it's built out by mid-2010.

Nashville Area Habitat for Humanity also has built Providence Park, a 138-home development in Antioch.

"In every community we've built so far, property values have risen, and the nearby neighborhoods have benefited," McCarthy said.

She said a 58-acre public park within the development will be a major draw. Overall, 54 percent of Park Preserve will be open space.

Councilmen concerned

The Metro councilmen in the area say they're concerned. Frank Harrison, whose district includes the Park Preserve site, said absorbing 450 low-income homes by 2016 will be "more than we can bear."

Walter Hunt, who represents a neighboring district, said he wouldn't "go against all those people" who oppose the project.

Harrison said he wasn't consulted before the city donated 60 acres to Habitat.

"It's going to affect everybody in a five-mile radius," he said. "I don't know if they've planned for all that."

Jordan, who leads the Claymille Station Homeowners Association, said the Habitat homes should be spread around the city, not concentrated in northeast Nashville.

"Why not go to East Nashville, Madison, Bellevue, West Meade?" he said. "We've already paid our dues with low-income housing."

But McCarthy, Habitat's Nashville chief since 2002, said she worked hard to find property that would allow the agency to pursue its vision efficiently.

"I looked in Antioch, I looked in Bellevue," she said while giving a reporter a tour of the Timberwood subdivision and the Park Preserve site. "But I'm trying to get the most affordable, largest block of land, because that's the best way to run this agency."

Habitat ultimately paid $2.2 million to buy 220 acres from Hardaway Construction.

McCarthy also said Habitat consistently works to address community needs. The organization paid for a needed turn lane near Providence Park in Antioch, and drivers in the entire area have benefited, she said.

Habitat also built houses with brick frontage in response to community input and developed a park, which it donated to the city.

Metro Planning Commission will consider a concept plan for the first phase of the Park Preserve project on Sept. 25.

Contact Michael Cass at 259-8838 or mcass@tennessean.com.