IDB ad hoc committee reviews Denver housing targets and Nashville zoning tools to expand affordable housing

The Industrial Development Board’s ad hoc committee discussed Sept. 10 how Denver’s recent housing strategy and local zoning changes in Nashville could inform Nashville’s unified housing strategy and the board’s potential role in supporting affordable housing. Committee members reviewed Denver targets for preserving and producing income‑restricted housing, reducing evictions and moving unsheltered people into housing, and discussed local zoning tools such as single‑stair approvals, new RN/RL form‑based districts and a voluntary affordable housing bonus.

Committee members said Denver’s planning effort set measurable five‑year goals and paired those goals with specific programs. As summarized at the meeting, Denver added about 120,000 residents and 56,000 households from 2010 to 2019, a roughly 22% household increase, and later launched an “expanding affordability” effort and a five‑year plan through the Denver Department of Housing Stability (HOST). Denver’s publicly stated targets cited by the committee included increasing the share of income‑restricted homes from 7% to 8% of the housing stock; preserving thousands of ownership and rental units (the…