High-End Infills in Nashville

Zachary Thomas says he loves solar power, but that it doesn’t make sense in Nashville, Tennessee, where his company, Woodland Street Partners, is based. Because the company is committed to building homes with green features that will save homebuyers money, solar panels don’t make the cut since the Music City experiences fewer solar days and greater overall shading. Instead, “We include things that make the biggest impact and save the most money,” Thomas says, ticking off alternative eco-friendly elements such as radiant roof decking, cellulose and foam insulation, upgraded Energy Star windows, and high-efficiency HVAC systems. “We offer a full slate of green features with less than a two to three percent increase in construction costs.”

Woodland Street Partners focuses on high-efficiency residential construction, including historical infill projects in metro Nashville and some future mixed-use projects. Thomas founded the company with Brett Diaz in 2007 and credits its success to its efficiency and its ability to adapt and thrive in an economy that has spiralled downward. “Our company has always had to operate efficiently,” he says. “We couldn’t have loaded cost structures. We had to build cost-effectively. At the core of it, we’re building a product that people want.”

Homebuyers have been very receptive to Woodland Street Partners’ designs and the firm’s affordable green products, and Diaz and Thomas have become particularly known for their complementary historical infill projects. “We’re attracted to historic areas and like the challenge of blending the designs to make sure they fit into the neighborhoods,” Thomas says. “Homeowners can find green, and they can find infill, but rarely can they find them combined.”

Woodland Street Partners’s designs include a mixture of one-, two-, and two-and-a-half-story homes in mission, bungalow, and Craftsman styles. “We’ve gone out of our way to avoid replicating and repeating the same plan,” Thomas says. “We’re not tract builders; we’re interested in building more custom products for people.”

Woodland uses high-quality finishes, plenty of architectural details, and third-party inspectors. “We’re trying to create homes that are going to be sound investments for people,” Thomas says. “We offer homes that may cost $50,000 less than our competitors that are better built and more technically efficient.”

The company is currently the developer, builder, and financier of Nouvell, a development in Nashville. Nouvell comprises 15 homes of approximately 1,800 square feet in the $225,000–$250,000 price range, and they will likely achieve LEED Silver certification. “We’re trying to provide LEED levels of performance without being bank-breakers,” Thomas says. “They are the most cost-effective LEED-certified homes that I know of in the city. There’s nothing exceptional about selling $500,000 homes that have some LEED features.”

It’s this constant striving for eco-conscious design that’s still economical that has helped Woodland Street Partners average 15–20 spec and custom projects per year while growing by approximately 300 percent annually. And because of this, soon, the company plans to add employees and move into a new office in downtown Nashville. Once there, the firm can further its commitment to continuous improvement and education. ABQ