KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knoxville City Council voted 8-1 in favor of including articles governing Middle Housing construction into the city's laws on Tuesday.
The ordinance adds several specific requirements for developers looking to build triplexes, duplexes and other kinds of low-footprint, multifamily housing — zoning guidelines that were previously absent from the city code. Before the new ordinance was approved though, there was intense debate between stakeholders in Knoxville.
"This plan is the least we need to do. This plan is absolutely needed," said Dustin Durham, who spoke in favor of the plan.
City leaders spent years drafting the plan after research highlighted Middle Housing may help address a shortage of available homes in Knoxville. The homes are meant to be built in walkable neighborhoods, located in specific sections of East Knoxville, North Knoxville and West Knoxville.
"We see a lot of activity in the market, and that's driving up prices because we don't have enough supply. But, we've got a whole lot of demand," said Andrew Roberto, the District 2 Councilmember.
The plan is not a guarantee that homes will be affordable in Knoxville. State law prohibits cities from passing rules on rent control, and developers would be able to charge any price they see fit for the homes.
"I do think we need a lot of options and variety all across the city. My concern with this is that it's primarily in low-income neighborhoods, and those neighborhoods are experiencing gentrification," said Deborah Thomas, who spoke against the Middle Housing plan. "I'm here because I like my neighbors, I've walked my neighborhood. I've built walking trails and painted footsteps on the sidewalks. We love our neighborhood, and we don't want to go anywhere."
Confronted with a housing crisis that made median-priced homes unaffordable for around two-thirds of Knox County, Roberto said he looked into the city's history for answers. He found that around a century ago, the downtown area was around four times denser than it is now, which he said indicated neighborhoods would be able to handle more Middle Housing construction.
A component of the Middle Housing plan is only allowing construction in areas that studies have shown have the infrastructure to support an increase in population.
"If you go back more than 100 years, there's actually four times more density in that area than there exists there today. So it can definitely handle what we're looking at for the missing middle," he said. "It really is tailoring what we're doing to infrastructure. And that's an important part."