Clarksville council approves first reading for Frosty Morn senior housing PUD amid site concerns

Clarksville — The City Council on April 29 gave first reading to an ordinance to rezone a 3.24-acre parcel at the northeast corner of Frosty Morn Drive and Red River Street from M-2 general industrial to a Planned Unit Development, clearing the way for a 65-unit senior-restricted affordable housing project developed by SoCar with operations by Beacon.

The PUD proposal, presented to the council by planning staff member Mr. Tindle, would demolish an existing vacant food-processing facility and replace it with a multifamily building that staff and the planning commission recommend because it meets PUD standards, provides required open space and landscaping, and locks in design and parking commitments up front. Planning staff told council members the project is roughly 20 units per acre and provides about 39 parking spaces (roughly 0.6 spaces per unit), consistent with industry guidance for age-restricted senior housing.

The city’s director of Neighborhood and Community Services, Michelle Austin, urged approval at the public hearing, saying the PUD provides “a higher level of transparency and accounting” than standard multifamily zoning and ensures that “the plan that is provided and to the community is what gets built.” She said the project includes integrated services to help residents age in place.

Shannon Tudor, speaking for SoCar and Beacon, told the council the organizations have experience in the region and that the team recently submitted a tax-credit application to the Tennessee Housing Development Agency that they expect to hear about in late August or early September. Tudor said investor lenders will require a Phase I environmental and geotechnical study; if those studies recommend further work, the developer would perform Phase II testing and present mitigation plans to investors and regulators before closing.

Not all public speakers supported the site. Lois Bridal told the council she was concerned about locating frail seniors near factories that operate 24/7, citing pollution, noise and the lack of nearby stores, pharmacies and services: “A lot of the seniors . . . deal with respiratory issues. This concerns me,” she said, urging the council to reconsider the location. In rebuttal, neighborhood resident Ross Saint Louis said that if the project is paired with reliable transit—“if we can guarantee that there’s gonna be a bus stop right there”—he would support it.

Council members’ questions spanned environmental liability, contractor selection and rent calculations. The developer said remediation responsibility would be handled under the lease agreement by the developer if contamination is found, that general contractors on tax-credit projects must have THDA experience, and that tax-credit rents use HUD-based area median income (AMI) calculations (tax-credit projects commonly set income limits at 60% of AMI, with rents often calculated at roughly 30% of qualifying income).

After the public hearing, Councilman Streetman moved approval of the first reading; the clerk reported the vote as 11 yes, 1 no, 0 abstain, and Ordinance 70 passed its first reading. Council members and staff noted that the applicant must return to the planning commission for final PUD approval on second reading, where technical details such as fire-department connections and final site utilities will be finalized.

The council’s action advances a project the city says will add senior-restricted affordable units and integrate services, while opponents urged additional attention to site suitability and transit access. The project’s receipt of THDA tax credits and completion of required environmental testing will determine whether and when construction can proceed.