With many American cities seemingly unwilling to upzone and increase density, some states are now considering laws that bypass local zoning and allow property owners to build more densely — in some cases just for properties near frequent high-capacity transit routes, and in some cases citywide.

 

Washington State is currently considering two house bills that would permit:

 

Quote

Up to sixplexes on all residential lots within a half-mile of a major transit stop in cities with populations of 20,000 or more.

 

Up to fourplexes on all residential lots elsewhere in cities of 20,000 or more.

 

Duplexes on all residential lots in cities with populations of at least 10,000.

 

 

On February 4th, the Cincinnati Planning Commission will review a proposal to remove density requirements within Multi-family, Office, Commercial, Urban Mix, Manufacturing, and Riverfront zoning districts. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to reduce the existing parking requirements or modify single-family zoning at all.

 

https://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/planning/planning-projects-and-studies/active-ongoing/proposed-removal-of-density-restrictions/

one step at a time. I think this council will at least tackle parking requirements

This whole thread is outstanding - a YIMBY messaging guide for audiences across the political spectrum. Many more examples in the thread than the few I posted here. 

 

 

 

Environmental groups blocked the upzoning policy in Minneapolis 

 

https://www.startribune.com/court-minneapolis-ordered-to-cease-implementation-of-2040-plan/600182511/

 

4 hours ago, Jukeboxer said:

Environmental groups blocked the upzoning policy in Minneapolis 

 

https://www.startribune.com/court-minneapolis-ordered-to-cease-implementation-of-2040-plan/600182511/

 

You forgot to put the quotation marks around “environmental”. Blocking this policy is climate arson, and no one who participated in blocking it can be called an environmentalist in good faith. 

I thought the environmentalism model was "think globally, act locally".  It's amazing how many "environmentalists" can't think beyond their backyard.

5 hours ago, Jukeboxer said:

Environmental groups blocked the upzoning policy in Minneapolis 

 

https://www.startribune.com/court-minneapolis-ordered-to-cease-implementation-of-2040-plan/600182511/

 

NIMBYISM and rent control. The perfect combination to exacerbate an affordable housing crisis

Cancel Zoning

If we want to fix the housing-affordability crisis, segregation, and sprawl, zoning must go.

 

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/06/zoning-housing-affordability-nimby-parking-houston/661289/  (Warning: 2-article-per-month limit before paywall.)

 

Boring though it may be, zoning has real-world effects that are dire. Between mandating parking garages and banning apartments, it has made infill development prohibitively difficult in many American cities. And in suburbs across the country, it has made the starter homes we so desperately need—think townhouses and homes on small lots—effectively illegal to build. If Americans want a fairer, more prosperous nation, zoning has got to go.

 

The housing-affordability crisis is, at its most basic, a problem of supply and demand: A lot of people need homes, but not enough are being built, resulting in rising prices for existing supply. New homes aren’t going unbuilt because of developers’ ignorance or a lack of land—developers are desperate to build in expensive cities, and they can always build up when they can’t build out. Instead, homes are going unbuilt because of zoning.

 

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Nothing surprising to most regulars on these boards, I'd expect, but good to see this issue of zoning within urban core cities (as opposed to just in suburbs) getting some direct attention.

The only issue I have with abolishing zoning entirely is that it can lead to poor urban design. Even if we build more housing and bring prices down, I would argue it could be a net negative if the new development is mostly strip malls and isolated towers with no street life or single family housing near city centers.

 

I think zoning can provide positive benefits if it's aggressively urban - encouraging density, discouraging car dependency, encouraging street activation, etc. Without rules and/or incentives, developers may choose the most profitable development regardless of how it impacts the city's long-term goals. The problem is that currently the zoning codes in most cities encourages suburban style developments, and outlaws urban development. If that were reversed, I think zoning could be better than abolishing zoning.

 

I also wouldn't assume that just because - as the article points out - Houston has built 14 times more housing than San Jose, that abolishing zoning is the solution. I bet they are still building mostly single-family housing on the outskirts of the city. The article points out that Houston builds almost as many apartments as LA. But for a city that builds more housing in total than LA every year, building almost as many apartments is not really something to hang your hat on and point out as a huge accomplishment.

 

The huge increase of housing in Houston is likely not just because they have no zoning codes. Austin builds about 2.5X the housing per capita as Houston. San Antonio and Dallas build an almost identical number of units per capita as Houston. All of these other cities in Texas have traditional Euclidean zoning. Here are a couple of graphs showing different Texas cities. Houston isn't punching above its weight in new units per capita compared to other cities in Texas. First graph is per capita, second graph is total units.

 

 

ETA: I pulled these graphs from a source cited in the article: https://housingdata.app/

I did not realize that the case that established zoning as constitutional originated in Euclid, OH.  Apparently the term “Euclidean Zoning” IS, in fact, related to the city of Euclid, OH - that was new for me.

Also import to note that the property in question ended up industrial anyway.

 

Columbus is revamping its zoning code. Hopefully, the new code will allow Additional Dwelling Units (ADU). A two story garage off an alley was built recently in my neighborhood. The building permit specifically stated a dwelling unit was not allowed. That's a shame because it would be a nice source of income for the homeowner.

 

Here's an update from Chicago which launched an ADU pilot program 6 months ago:

 

https://chicagoyimby.com/2022/11/deep-dive-into-chicagos-additional-dwelling-unit-adu-ordinance-after-six-months.html

 

 

1 hour ago, Pablo said:

Columbus is revamping its zoning code. Hopefully, the new code will allow Additional Dwelling Units (ADU). A two story garage off an alley was built recently in my neighborhood. The building permit specifically stated a dwelling unit was not allowed. That's a shame because it would be a nice source of income for the homeowner.

 

Here's an update from Chicago which launched an ADU pilot program 6 months ago:

 

https://chicagoyimby.com/2022/11/deep-dive-into-chicagos-additional-dwelling-unit-adu-ordinance-after-six-months.html

 

 

I do know that there is a push in certain areas for dwelling above a garage, so that hopefully will be part of the revamping. I’m sure that garage can be changed later. 

1 hour ago, Pablo said:

Columbus is revamping its zoning code. Hopefully, the new code will allow Additional Dwelling Units (ADU). A two story garage off an alley was built recently in my neighborhood. The building permit specifically stated a dwelling unit was not allowed. That's a shame because it would be a nice source of income for the homeowner.

 

Here's an update from Chicago which launched an ADU pilot program 6 months ago:

 

https://chicagoyimby.com/2022/11/deep-dive-into-chicagos-additional-dwelling-unit-adu-ordinance-after-six-months.html

 

 

Is your neighborhood in the city limits? In my neighborhood there have been more ADUs being put up, but every time the owner has to  get a zoning variance approved. 

2 hours ago, amped91 said:

Is your neighborhood in the city limits? In my neighborhood there have been more ADUs being put up, but every time the owner has to  get a zoning variance approved. 

I'm within Columbus' city limits in the Clintonville neighborhood. You could go for a variance, but it's hard to get from what I understand. The question pops up every now and then on the Clintonville FB group. There is interest for ADUs in the neighborhood.