Parker said the association asked the city for help and was told there was little it could do. Bobby Drakeford of the Historic Black Neighborhoods Coalition said the city doesn’t enforce deed restrictions. They are private agreements that owners must enforce in court.

That is expensive. Drakeford said the coalition has contributed toward the firm’s fees at a “very reasonable rate.” Parker said the association is asking residents for donations and dues. McAdoo said his firm does not discuss fee arrangements or litigation funding.

A bigger target

Drakeford, a lawyer and longtime developer, told the crowd that the larger goal is to change the Unified Development Ordinance, which took effect in 2023 and allows duplexes and triplexes in neighborhoods once limited to single-family homes. City officials have said the change would help affordability.

Drakeford isn’t convinced.

“I have not seen a duplex or triplex built in our neighborhoods that sell for the same prices as houses,” he said. “So the question is, who’s it affordable for?”

“I’m in the industry, but I’m more concerned about my neighborhood than my profession,” he said.

He warned that investor-owned homes in places like Hidden Valley could be torn down and replaced with three units.

“When it comes back, our neighborhoods will be ground zero for this,” he said.

Drakeford said it is unlikely the Snow White triplex would be torn down.

“It may not be permitted as three units,” he said.

He said restrictions can be weakened if violations go unchallenged, so neighbors must act quickly.

Hidden Valley neighborhood residents speak at community meeting Oct. 3, 2026Matthew Memrick

Residents speak

One resident said she has lived 26 years on a street where Four Corners is building and that her home sits in the middle of the construction. She said she and the parents at the elementary school have dealt with it for weeks.

Another resident said rising property taxes, which the resident blames on nearby duplexes and triplexes, are a concern.

Not every developer is an adversary, said Svenya Nimmons, the vice president of the Hidden Valley Community Association, who moved back to her childhood neighborhood after 30 years away. Some have partnered with the association, she said. But the pressure is growing.

“It’s a whisper that’s kind of getting a little louder than it was before,” she said.

For now, the triplex stands across from the school, and eight neighbors are preparing to go to court.