By Don Mooradia, dmooradian@nashvillecitypaper.com
April 13, 2005
There’s a mini land rush happening in Nashville.
Builders, real estate agents and potential homebuyers are looking for empty lots in desirable neighborhoods so they can construct new homes on them, a process called infilling.
Most everyone in the hunt, including the bankers financing some of the projects, seems pleased with the results.
But the trend is not without its detractors, those who oppose the filling of every nook and cranny with housing that sometimes changes the look, feel and/or value of a neighborhood.
Nonetheless, the trend appears to be in full swing now, and the reasons for it are fairly straightforward.
Rick Bernhardt, executive director of the Metro Planning Department, said there is a strong desire among residents to reduce commuting time. People are seeking homes in more central locations to free up the hours they spend behind the wheel.
He also pointed to the fact that residential infill is occurring in Nashville’s more traditional neighborhoods. These neighborhoods are attractive because they have a mix of uses, diversified housing and are within walking distance of services, retail and activities.
Mandy Wachtler, a broker with the Pilkerton Company and a vice president of the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, said real estate agents sometimes drive prospective homebuyers around a desirable neighborhood even if it is short on housing – or if clients like the neighborhood but want something bigger or newer than is available in the existing housing stock.
“Realtors see and understand the need and so do the builders,” Wachtler said.
With low interest rates and a hot housing market, Wachtler said, people in the real estate business conclude: “Let’s give them a new product.”
And that is where Nashville’s infill trend is, with new homes being built in hot markets such as Green Hills and Germantown.
“The theme here is that for decades we’ve defined high quality of life as life in the single-family home on a large lot in the suburbs,” said Bernhardt.
While Bernhardt and others agree that that lifestyle is still very popular, some people want an alternative.
“We’re seeing more residents who are defining quality of life a bit differently, and living in a traditional neighborhood or urban setting is appealing to them,” he continued. “The trend toward residential infill is meeting this new definition of ‘quality of life.’”
The type of infilling varies from single-family homes to multi-family buildings to apartments, condos, townhouses and loft conversions.
Andrée LeQuire, partner with Scott Chambers in Germantown Partners LLC, developed eight individual homes surrounding a courtyard on a half acre of land at Fifth Avenue North near the intersection with Madison Street in Germantown. Those homes were completed in 2004. Prior to that, GP developed on the east side of Monroe houses and a mixed-use building. Now the company is about to begin work on a project called Monroe, eight “shared-wall” townhouses on a third of an acre anchoring the southwest corner of Fifth Avenue and Monroe. Those projects took advantage of empty land, and Germantown Partners has other similar projects in the works.
“Banks are very, very interested in these kinds of projects,” LeQuire said. “They understand the emergence of downtown living and are willing to work with both the developers and those who want to buy the homes.”
Area bankers apparently agree.
“We’re not pioneers, but if it’s in the right location and if we see some momentum in that area, it can be a good investment for the bank,” said Scott Brady, first vice president at NBC SunTrust.
John Gregory, executive vice president and COO with Nashville-based community bank Capital Bank & Trust, said the company is “very pleased” with the results regarding infill projects it has been involved with. “From an economic point of view, it has been very, very successful for the builders and developers we work with,” Gregory said.
“Banks don’t loan unless it seems like a safe proposition,” said Richard Exton, partner with Manier & Exton Real Estate Appraisers and president of the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors. “And banks aren’t going to continue to loan unless the houses are selling well.”
However, it did take time for some banks to catch on. Rogan Allen, a Green Hills native who has been building and renovating homes in the area for many years, said some bankers had to see the trend before they were convinced infill projects were sound investments. “Some weren’t very open-minded,” he said, adding that mindset now has changed.
Fitting in
The residential infill process is not without controversy, though.
On one side of the issue are people who believe that, as property owners, they have the right to do with their land and buildings as they see fit as long as it is within the codes and zoning of the area.
On the other side are those who believe the existing look, feel and use of a neighborhood should be protected.
Currently, there are discussions going on about these kinds of issues in several parts of the city, notably in the Belmont-Hillsboro area, where Metro Council approved a conservation overlay for parts of the neighborhood last week, and in the Crieve Hall area, where some residents want assurances regarding the type of housing that would be permitted there.
“I’ve seen both sides of it,” said Michelle Cummings, director of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhoods. “The city encourages housing, whatever housing fits, especially if it is affordable,” she said.
However, there are some basic guidelines. “It’s very important that the building fits in with the other neighborhood buildings,” Cummings said.
Gene TeSelle, a longtime member of Belmont-Hillsboro Neighbors, which represents the interests of the popular neighborhood, said that one of the prime concerns regarding infill or new construction is to make sure the existing zoning regulations are followed.
But the aesthetics of a building are certainly important, too. “There’s the matter of taste. Some houses are built with so many ‘faux’ traditional elements that they end up looking kind of schlocky,” he said.
Most observers agree that land — even the smaller parcels — in the most popular areas is running low. This is especially true in Green Hills, West End and areas around Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, according to Wachtler.
“In the established neighborhoods, the lots that are left may have been difficult to build on,” GNAR’s Exton said. “Many times, that’s the case.”
But don’t expect that fact to slow the infill trend. Some areas likely to continue to be hot or to get hot soon, according to observers, are: East Nashville (the Five Points area in particular); Germantown/Salem Town; parts of Sylvan Park; Crieve Hall; Seven Hills; the Julia Green Elementary School area; and Waverly-Belmont/12 South.