The idea for a tent shelter comes from the Internet, where Hire read about a Seattle man who grabbed the attention of city officials by organizing a tent city for 140 homeless people. Hire hopes for a similar response. Instead, he could get a court summons. Hire said applying for proper permits would be a waste of time. It's not up to code, and I never intended it to be.
Metro zoning classifies homeless shelters as multi-family dwellings.
They are permitted in 12 of 28 Davidson County zoning districts. Hire's property is in an area zoned for residential single-family units. I'll do whatever I can to help him do that. Associated Press content is Copyrighted by The Associated Press.