The Metro Council has kicked off budget talks for fiscal year 2027, and support for affordable housing was among the top concerns expressed by residents at a Tuesday night's meeting.
About three dozen people headed to the podium during the meeting’s pre-budget public comment period, which stretched on for over an hour.
Some Nashvillians pleaded for the council to allocate $30 million to the Barnes Housing Trust Fund, a Metro initiative dedicated to affordable housing developments. The initiative received $16 million in funding from Metro during the FY 2026 budget cycle. Funding for the program was pushed for by leaders of groups like Habitat for Humanity of Greater Nashville and Rebuilding Together Nashville — groups that receive grants from the Barnes fund.
“We just recently opened our application process in Antioch for the next 12 homes we’re going to build,” said Sherry Stinson, chief public affairs and communications director at Habitat for Humanity. “And within 15 minutes, we had 5,000 applicants, and it crashed our system. So how bad is our need for affordable housing? That’s 15 minutes' worth. That says a lot.”
A crowd of residents involved with nonprofit Stand Up Nashville advocated for $35 million to be allocated toward what they’ve dubbed the “I Want You to Stay” investment package. Within the package, $20 million would go toward a 50-unit mixed-income housing development. The package would also include funds for rental assistance, legal support for evictions and a $2 million emergency fund to suspend WeGo Transit fares during crises, such as extreme weather events.
Representatives with the Nashville Hispanic Bar Association and the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands also advocated for Metro’s continued support of eviction right-to-counsel initiatives.
O'Connell notes utility will be 'held accountable' regarding power restoration efforts, issues executive order to form storm-response commission
Some residents cited the recent historic winter ice storm that caused more than 200,000 households to lose power, which limited the ability of some Nashvillians to work and subsequently pay rent. As of Tuesday night, more than 11,000 households remained without electricity.
“People may be getting their power back, but the impacts of the storm are still ongoing,” said Shani Glapion of Stand Up Nashville. “Our neighbors are now worrying about how rent is getting paid, amongst other things. Rental assistance would help them with a chance to breathe after a stressful experience that was outside of their control.”
Effects from the winter storm became a theme throughout Tuesday night’s meeting, as some residents bashed Nashville Electric Service’s response to the outages and preparations for the weather event. Others channeled their frustration toward Metro officials.
Some pushed for accountability measures to be taken in regard to NES leadership and Metro’s response and oversight. Others requested a rent moratorium as the city continues to recover.
“When emergencies like this happen, they aren’t just weather emergencies,” said Cade Wooten, an organizer with Stand Up Nashville. “They highlight all the parts of our physical and social infrastructure that aren’t up to par. And in this case, the city has not responded with anything close to the urgency the moment demands.”
The council passed a resolution recognizing Metro employees for their efforts during the storm.
In other business, the council once again deferred consideration of a resolution condemning The Boring Company’s Music City Loop tunnel project. This comes as officials with The Boring Company are set to talk with Metro leaders during a Transportation Infrastructure Committee meeting on Feb. 19. As a result of the deferral, the council will take up the resolution opposing the tunnel during its first meeting of March.
