Metro Legal's response to the ruling:

“While we have reviewed the case, we need to consider the impact of the case further. It is an important case for governments and will be very valuable in providing guidance on the way to handle zoning issues in the future. We feel that it is of great importance to the Metropolitan Government that the Court confirmed that the pending legislation doctrine applies to historic zoning matters. Further, its guidance on when the doctrine becomes applicable is very helpful.”

As originally reported:

Metro Nashville continues to lose in its battle with Harding Academy. This time, the verdict came from the Tennessee Supreme Court.

The high court ruled that the city's revocation of demolition permits was improper and ordered the city to reissue the permits. "Because the city unlawfully revoked the demolition permits, the plaintiff is entitled to reissuance of the permits, notwithstanding the subsequent enactment of a zoning ordinance that could prohibit demolition," the opinion states. "The plaintiff must be given a reasonable opportunity to demolish the structures when the city reissues the permits."

NashvillePost.com is attempting to reach counsel for each side to determine for certain whether the ruling says what it appears to say: That Harding Academy is now free to begin demolition.

An appeals court had affirmed Davidson County Chancery Court's ruling that the city had acted arbitrarily and capriciously in revoking the permits and affirmed that court's ruling to reissue the permits. But a footnote stated that the ruling didn't necessarily mean Harding Academy could carry out the demolition.

In the order delivered by Judge Janice Holder and joined by the other three judges, the court stated that it agreed to hear the appeal because of that footnote, stating that it caused confusion.

After working through its analysis, the court stated, "We conclude that under the facts of this case it would be unjust to order that Metro reissue the demolition permits to Harding and then not allow Harding to rely on those permits to demolish the nine structures."

Harding had been issued nine permits to demolish homes next to its campus to build a recreation field. The Belle Meade Links neighborhood objected and Mayor Bill Purcell ordered the permits to be revoked. Emily Evans, before being elected to the Metro Council, was among the leaders in fighting Harding's efforts and was joined by the Metro Historical Commission. After the permits were revoked, Councilwoman Lynn Williams introduced an ordinance to implement an historic conversation overlay, which subsequently passed. Metro had argued that since the overlay application had been filed with Metro Planning, the "pending legislation ordinance" applied.

The high court disagreed. It took the view that an ordinance was not pending because it hadn't been introduced in council before Harding applied for the permits. Further, the court didn't view the application at planning as sufficient for the legislation to be considered pending. The Historic Zoning Commission had not submitted written recommendations on the overlay until after Harding had applied, the opinion stated. The court added, "The zone change application filed with the Metro Planning Commission and the subsequent notice of a public hearing simply occurred too early in the historic zoning process to justify use of the pending ordinance doctrine to revoke Harding's permits."

NashvillePost.com is attempting to reach counsel for each side to determine for certain whether the ruling says what it appears to say: That Harding Academy is now free to begin demolition.