Committee debates limits, transparency for RN/RL neighborhood zoning in housing bills

A Nashville planning committee spent its meeting reviewing proposed amendments to housing and infrastructure bills, focusing on restrictions and transparency measures tied to new neighborhood-scale zoning categories labeled RN and RL. The discussion covered four main amendments — a proposed 30% cap on RN/RL on a block face; a requirement that applicants declare a maximum number of units at application; a mandate for two community meetings before public hearing; and a required infrastructure and fiscal-impact report — but the committee took no votes and deferred action to a later meeting.

Why it matters: The amendments aim to balance neighborhood concerns about rapid density changes with the city’s goal of adding housing. Committee members and planning staff debated legal, procedural, and practical effects, including whether the zoning code is the right place to prescribe where zoning districts apply, how to make any numeric limit enforceable, and whether added…