A shuttered North Nashville elementary school that has spent recent winters serving as an emergency cold-weather shelter could get a permanent second life as a sprawling community campus, complete with a public library, recreation space and as many as 25 housing units. The roughly 10-acre site at 3230 Brick Church Pike went before Nashville planners this week as part of a redevelopment effort years in the making.
The Metro Nashville Planning Commission considered the proposal on Thursday, November 12, and commissioners voted to return the project to the consent agenda after no opposition was raised, according to Fox 17. The proposed Brick Church Pike Community Campus would redevelop approximately 10 acres on the site, per the same outlet's reporting.
Beyond the library and recreation space, the plan calls for a permanent cold-weather shelter and permanent office space for Metro's Office of Homeless Services, according to WZTV. The proposal would also allow for up to 25 housing units on the property, the station reports.
A Years-Long Push Finally Reaches Planners
Councilmember Jennifer Gamble said the project has been in the works since 2022, Fox 17 reports, placing the Thursday planning session as the latest milestone in a multi-year push to repurpose the aging building. Under the plan, the existing school structure would eventually be demolished and rebuilt through multiple phases of construction, according to the station's report. No construction start date has been announced, and the project remains in the planning process.
The building has already been filling an urgent local need. It has served as a temporary cold-weather shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
Nashville's Shelter System Under Strain
The push for a permanent shelter location comes as Nashville's emergency cold-weather system has repeatedly been stretched thin. An average of 233 people took refuge in Metro's emergency shelter each night during one recent season, with more than 300 crowding in on multiple nights in a single week, according to the Nashville Banner. That same reporting found that local organizations had a combined capacity for only around 1,200 people during extreme cold, compared with 3,098 people experiencing homelessness in Nashville as of December 2024.
The strain has continued into more recent weather events. More than 1,400 people received shelter nightly across two Metro Office of Homeless Services overflow shelters and several other providers, including Nashville Rescue Mission, Room in the Inn and Launch Pad, during a winter storm, according to WSMV. The gap between emergency capacity and need has made a permanent, purpose-built facility like the one proposed for Brick Church Pike increasingly urgent for city officials and homeless-services advocates alike.
Other Cities Have Tried Similar School Conversions
Nashville wouldn't be the first city to turn a shuttered school into housing and shelter space for people experiencing homelessness. In Memphis, the Hospitality Hub filed a permit to redevelop the former Manassas High School site into what it calls Studio Village, according to The Commercial Appeal. That project is designed to provide temporary housing and case management for unsheltered families.
In Colorado Springs, a former elementary school became Hunt Family Housing, a 24-unit transitional apartment complex for families exiting homelessness, as reported by The Gazette. And in Tooele, Utah, the former Harris Elementary School now houses a 44-bed shelter with seven family rooms alongside roughly 66 permanent supportive housing units, according to Utah News Dispatch.
What Comes Next
For now, the Brick Church Pike proposal remains in Metro's planning pipeline, with no construction timeline, budget or operator confirmed. The commission's decision to send the item back to the consent agenda after Thursday's hearing suggests the project is moving forward without organized opposition, but further approvals and details are expected as the plan progresses.
