RN and RL Zoning: Tools Without Rules
Article by Christopher Remke, AIA (ret) • 3.5 minute read
Metro Nashville is considering new zoning classifications: Residential Neighborhood (RN) and Residential Limited (RL), pitched as “tools in the toolbox” to provide more housing choices. The Housing and Infrastructure (H&I) Study promotes the idea that “Neighborhoods are not complete without a diversity of choices” (H&I Study, 2025).
The talking point is familiar: Nashville faces a housing crisis of 91,000 units (A forecast on shaky ground?), and RN and RL will diversify housing supply. But this framing skips over two critical facts:
• If all technical requirements of a rezoning application are met, can the Planning Department reject it—and if so, on what basis? While the Planning Commission may appear to have broader latitude, it is not always clear when or how they would choose to reject. If an application is denied, the applicant can still request that the district Council Member introduce an ordinance. At that point, what is the basis for the Council Member to decline offering the ordinance?
On the other hand, if the Council Member supports the project, sponsors the ordinance, and—through councilmanic courtesy—the Council approves it, what protections exist for neighborhoods? Conversely, if the Council Member refuses to sponsor, or even recommends rejection, yet councilmanic courtesy prevails and the rezoning is defeated, what grounds justify that rejection?
The risk is that disapproval based only on personal or neighborhood opposition may not be sufficient to withstand a legal challenge. This lack of clear guidance and criteria sets the stage for potential litigation. Given that the written frameworks originate with NashvilleNext and the Community Character Manual, what is Metro’s plan for managing this uncertainty?
Ultimately, the answer is not clear. But before any new zoning classifications are adopted, this gap must be resolved. The tools need rules.
• Nashville already tried this once. Beginning in 2010, supplemented in 2015, “Missing Middle 1.0” policies, HPRs, infill, and the NashvilleNext General Plan produced a nationally record-setting number of for-sale homes, but resulted in a net loss of 27,000 affordable homes while driving up land costs and property taxes.
Now, without updated planning rules or infrastructure studies, the city is rushing to pass Missing Middle 2.0, which is sure to accelerate displacement as noted in the Unified Housing Strategy (UHS 2025).
1. The Missing Guardrails
Metro Council Members' Pitch: “We need these tools now. The details can follow.”
Reality: The Community Character Manual (CCM), the document that defines how zoning fits into neighborhoods, has not been updated to include RN and RL and their multi-tool options.
Questions to ask:
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Without an updated CCM, what criteria will be used to deny rezonings that technically comply but destroy neighborhood character? If Metro rejects an application without clear criteria from NashvilleNext, what justification exists to defend that decision in court? This is a breeding ground for litigation.
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Why vote and adopt these new tools before policy maturity, infrastructure, and transportation studies are complete?
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Other cities spent years developing policies and programs to reduce neighborhood impacts and ensure opportunities for workforce and low-income housing. Nashville has skipped these steps, offering zoning incentives without generating tangible benefits for lower-income residents. Once again, what is the rush?
2. The Illusion of Local Control
Metro Council Members' Pitch: “These rezonings require Council sponsorship. I will protect my district.”
Reality: Once a rezoning request is sponsored, the tradition of Councilmanic Courtesy ensures near-automatic passage.
Is trust enough? Who will be the next Council Member? If the Council is reorganized, how will outcomes change? Did Councilmanic Courtesy protect “The Nations”? Why should any neighborhood find this lack of preparation reassuring, especially given the major shortfalls from Missing Middle 1.0 (2010 to now) that remain unaddressed, with no evidence of intention to correct them?
Questions to ask:
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If my Council Member ignores constituents, what protection do we really have?
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Why is my Council Member not required to hold community meetings for rezonings, including text changes? They should be!
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Why are planning officials being used as substitutes for elected leaders who are by oath obligated to honor “neighborhood voice”?
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Once rezoned, why is development allowed by right without future public input?
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For example, cottage rows and multiplexes can be placed next to existing R or RS zones. At what point does adding “diversity” fundamentally change character? The CCM does not address this adequately.
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Housing capacity could increase by hundreds of percent, yet we are told character will be preserved. How do you justify that?
3. The Economics of Affordability
Metro Council Members' Pitch: “Increasing supply lowers costs.”
Reality: Nashville’s apartment vacancy rate is above 10%. The Unified Housing Strategy (UHS) 2025 states that the real deficit is 15,000 workforce and low-income units, not overall supply. Meanwhile, for-sale housing inventory already exceeds demand, and prices continue to rise, especially when density increases. (The Missing Middle Swindle: How Nashville Lost 27,000+ affordable homes)
Questions to ask:
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Why push upzoning when it only produces high-end housing?
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Is hope a strategy? Show me a city where these methods have produced affordability without subsidies or zoning giveaways (such as density).
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Why should we expect RN and RL to succeed when 15 years of similar policies eliminated affordability, fueled inflation, and made Nashville the nation’s number one gentrifier?
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Where are the displacement protections recommended in the UHS 2025?
The Bottom Line
“Diverse housing options” is code for eliminating single-family protections. Safety nets vanish under Councilmanic Courtesy. Infrastructure planning is incomplete. Policies recommended by the UHS 2025 are not in place. Transit is unfunded and uncertain.
What is the rush?
RN and RL are not solutions. They are tools without rules.
When you speak to your Council Member, ask the questions above. And please share the answers you get, because the public deserves to hear not just the talking points, but to shine light on the dance.
Links to Related Content:
Nashville Planning Department - Draft Standards for RN and RL
RN and RL, Nashville Planning Department - Presentation Boards
4 things every Nashville homeowner should know about the proposed zoning
How middle housing and zoning changes could reshape Nashville’s Neighborhoods
About the author:
Christopher Remke [AIA ret], Real Estate Programs Analytics with Capital Projects Strategy Support, Advisory, Leadership and Strategy Advisory, Capital Projects Navigation and Mapping for Opportunities, Risks, Critical Paths, Sequencing, and Foundations First Advisory.
Chris also serves as President of Save Our Nashville Neighborhoods (SONNinc.org). SONN believes that people are the community, and community should be at the heart of the planning process.
SONN’s approach is centered on:
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Fostering Stakeholder and Policy Maker Understanding: Creating workshop-style forums where neighbors and planners can LISTEN and work together to co-design solutions.
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Centering Neighborhood Voices: Ensuring the people most impacted by housing policy, particularly working-class families, have a primary role in shaping it.
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Building Consensus: Moving beyond top-down directives to build a shared, data-driven understanding of Nashville’s true housing needs, leading to more durable and equitable policies.