Nairobi High-Rise Zoning Dispute Heads to Supreme Court

A dispute over the construction of high-rise apartments in Nairobi’s Lavington area has reached the Supreme Court, placing the city’s zoning framework and development controls before the country’s highest court.

The case concerns three proposed 16-storey residential apartment blocks on a one-acre property along Mbaazi Avenue in Lavington. The development comprises 512 housing units and is being undertaken by Metricon Home Nairobi Company Limited.

The project has been challenged by Mbaazi Avenue Residents’ Association and Millennium Gardens Management Limited, who have raised questions about zoning restrictions, environmental concerns and the impact of the development on neighbouring properties.

Among the issues in dispute is which planning framework applies to the property. The residents have relied on earlier Nairobi zoning guidelines that limited residential apartments in the area to four storeys, while the developer has maintained that the applicable planning framework permits development of up to 16 floors.

The Environment and Land Court dismissed the residents’ petition in September 2024. The court considered the older 2004 zoning guidelines but found that they had been overtaken by changes in Nairobi’s urban development environment and that the Nairobi City County Development Policy, 2021 was applicable.

The residents subsequently challenged that decision before the Court of Appeal. In October 2025, the appellate court dismissed their appeal, after which the dispute moved to the Supreme Court.

At the Supreme Court, the applicants argued that the lower courts had failed to properly determine the applicable zoning and height restrictions. They also questioned the status of the Nairobi City Development Policy, 2021, arguing that evidence concerning its consideration by the Nairobi County Assembly could affect the case.

The Supreme Court considered the matter in March 2026 and confirmed that it had jurisdiction to entertain the substantive appeal because the dispute raised constitutional questions. However, the five-judge bench declined an application seeking orders to halt or restrict the development while the appeal proceeds.

The court also declined to admit additional evidence concerning the 2021 development policy. It held that the applicants had not adequately explained why the material could not have been obtained and presented during the earlier stages of the case.

The court nevertheless recognised that the dispute has implications beyond the parties involved. In its ruling, it noted that the public interest extends to residents of Mbaazi Avenue and has broader implications for Nairobi County’s zoning policy.

The developer has maintained that it obtained the necessary statutory approvals and licences for the project and that none had been revoked. It has also disputed claims that the development breaches planning, environmental or zoning requirements.

The residents, meanwhile, have argued that the development raises concerns including the effect of its height, excavation and density on surrounding properties and infrastructure. These claims remain contested in the ongoing litigation rather than being established findings against the developer.

The Supreme Court’s eventual determination of the substantive appeal will therefore have direct implications for the parties, while also providing further guidance on how Nairobi’s changing planning policies interact with older zoning controls.