The East Bank Development Authority on Tuesday signed off on a 15-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) agreement with Elmington Capital Group, giving a key boost to East Bank Flats, a 323-unit affordable apartment project planned beside the new NFL stadium. The 6-2 board vote authorizes authority-level incentive support but keeps the public money on ice until the project secures a Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. Developers and staff said the PILOT is designed to plug a financing gap tied to rising interest rates and higher construction costs.
According to the Nashville Post, the EBDA board voted Feb. 24 to approve the 15-year PILOT for Elmington, with Jimmy Granbery and Cameron Sexton casting the two no votes. The authority made its support contingent on the award of federal low-income housing tax credits that are administered by the Tennessee Housing Development Agency. Staff described the PILOT as operating like a property tax abatement that swaps standard property tax bills for a pre-negotiated payment to Metro. If the LIHTC equity comes through, officials said the agreement would still have to run the usual Metro Council gauntlet before it becomes final.
What East Bank Flats Will Include
The project is mapped out as a six-story, 323-unit multifamily building that Elmington says will keep its apartments income-restricted for at least 99 years. Plans also call for more than 12,000 square feet of retail space and an approximately 8,000-square-foot daycare. The proposed mix includes 80 units at 30 percent of area median income (AMI), 136 at 60 percent AMI, and 107 at 80 percent AMI on a parcel around 501 S. 2nd Street, according to filings and public renderings cited by Nashville Scene. Elmington is also pitching active ground-floor uses and neighborhood-serving retail that would knit the project into the broader public realm on the East Bank.
Why Developers Say A PILOT Is Necessary
Elmington representatives told the authority that PILOT agreements are a familiar financing tool for Low-Income Housing Tax Credit developments in Tennessee. They argued that the structure can help prevent an effective double taxation of LIHTC deals and can close gaps that have opened as borrowing costs climb. Developers and Elmington leadership said the predictable, pre-negotiated payment schedule is critical to making the numbers work in an environment of rising interest rates and escalating construction expenses, according to public comments reported by the Nashville Post. Before sending the PILOT on, some board members asked for more Metro-wide affordability data so they could better understand how the development’s deeper-income units line up with housing needs across the city.
Timeline And Next Steps
Elmington’s current schedule anticipates roughly two years of construction, with a groundbreaking window between late April and early May 2026 and an opening date in summer 2028, all dependent on financing and permits, according to timelines reported by WSMV. The EBDA made clear that its approval only activates if the project wins a slice of the state’s competitive LIHTC allocation. The Tennessee Housing Development Agency administers those federal tax credits, which are a primary equity source for LIHTC developments. If the credits come through and permits follow, the PILOT would continue through the authority’s process and then move to Metro Council for readings and final action.
What It Means For Neighbors
The East Bank Flats site sits on Metro-owned land and is one piece of a sweeping master plan as the city reworks about 550 acres along the Cumberland River. Nashville.gov describes the East Bank Development Authority’s charge as overseeing public infrastructure, land transfers, and the broader vision for new streets, parks, housing, and retail across the area. Supporters say that, if the financing stays intact, East Bank Flats could provide a sizable block of deeper-affordability apartments close to new jobs and transit options. The outcome, they note, now hangs on the THDA tax credit decision and the timing of Metro approvals.
For nearby residents, the big milestones to watch are the THDA Low-Income Housing Tax Credit announcements and the Metro Council readings that would follow EBDA’s conditional approval. If both line up, construction could start in the spring and, barring major delays, wrap up about two years later.
