By David Greider, Preservation Society of Nashville
As we step into 2025, Nashville finds itself at a crossroads. Three pieces of legislation are at our doorstep—two at the state-level (SB339 and SB340) and one locally (BL2025-742)—with the state-level bills pushing the timeline of the local bill. Yet, while these bills present challenges, they have ignited an important conversation about the future of historic preservation in our city—a dialogue long overdue.
In recent weeks, PSN leadership has been in deep discussions with Mayor O’Connell, Planning Director Lucy Kempf, MHC Director Tim Walker and other Historic Commission leaders, Council Members, neighborhood advocates, and downtown business owners. One thing is abundantly clear: everyone—regardless of their role or perspective—loves Nashville. And all agree that historic preservation must be a core part of our city’s future. The question now is: how do we make that happen in a way that aligns with Nashville’s broader development goals?
A Unified Approach to Preservation
Through our conversations with community stakeholders the Preservation Society has developed a straightforward community unifying key priorities that include:
✅ Protecting the Autonomy & Resources of the Metro Historical Commission
✅ Integrating Processes & Safeguarding Historic Zoning Functions
✅ Developing a Comprehensive Preservation Plan
The Road Ahead
On March 4, I had the opportunity to speak at the Metro Council meeting on these key priorities and their alignment with the most recent substitute bill for BL2025-742, which is leaps and bounds ahead of the original legislation. This revised bill ensures that the Metro Historic Commission and its staff remain autonomous, creates the Historic Zoning Administrator position within the Planning Department, officially codifies zoning staff roles, and directs 90-day demolition holds of historic properties under the authority of the Historic Zoning Administrator, not the Director of Codes Administration. These changes represent meaningful progress toward a balanced approach.
As the Metro Council prepares for the third reading of BL2025-742 on March 18, PSN underscores a crucial point: moving historic zoning staff under the planning department alone does not resolve the deeper, systemic issues at play. Instead, this moment presents a pivotal opportunity to strengthen preservation efforts in Nashville by allocating resources for expediting changes, supporting staff through these pending organizational shifts, providing tools for preservation efforts, and championing responsible development.
There have been countless people putting in countless hours into this issue. PSN thanks you. I thank you. Nashville thanks you.
I encourage everyone to never stop discovering, debating, collaborating, and problem-solving to be a city that embraces progress while safeguarding the places and stories that make us unique.
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