Ethics & Religion
Column #1,996
November 14, 2019
Ban
"Single Family Zoning"
By Mike McManus
Oregon
has become the first state to pass a law to ban single family zoning
across the state. In cities of more than 25,000 people, duplexes,
triplexes, fourplexes and "cottage clusters" can now be built on parcels
that are currently reserved for single family houses.
Oregon's Democratic Governor Kate Brown is expected to sign the bill
into law which would affect areas that are home to some 2.8 million
people. Oregon would then become the first state to ban the century-old
practice of reserving land for a single type of residential development.
This is a great victory that will lower housing costs and thus make it
possible for moderate income families to buy homes that were previously
out of reach.
Across America, the zoning norm is single family housing outside of
cities. The consequence has been an acute urban housing shortage.
Minneapolis became the first city to end single family zoning last
December. Seattle followed suit in March by eliminating single family
zoning in 27 neighborhoods. Charlotte, North Carolina has also held
hearings to debate the issue. A state level "upzoning" bill to allow
less expensive housing stalled in California's senate earlier this year
after a previous attempt failed in 2018.
This development was pushed by members of the "Yes In My Backyard" (YIMBY)
movement and several other groups who have been seeking zoning reforms
to create denser and more affordable housing units in the face of
chronic housing shortages.
Oregon's land-use laws weren't addressing the acute urban housing
shortages that have challenged Oregon's cities over the past decade,
particularly their residents with lower incomes. Single family zoning
laws are racially exclusionary at their root.
Oregon Rep. Tina Kotek, the Democratic Speaker of Oregon's House, and
the bill's chief sponsor, introduced the bill in February. "This is
about choice," she said at the time. "This is about allowing for
different opportunities in neighborhoods that are currently extremely
limited."
Four months later her bills passed by a committee vote of 17-9. "We all
have an affordable housing crisis in our areas," said Rep. Jack Zika, a
cosponsor of the bill and one of four Republicans who supported it.
"This will not be a silver bullet, but will address some of the things
that all our constituents need."
The Oregon League of Cities opposed it. "Should the state be deciding
what the American dream, or the Oregon dream is? Or should homeowners
and home sellers and the localities that zone them be deciding that?"
President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order establishing a
commission to examine regulations that limit new housing construction,
including restrictive zoning.
Several Democratic presidential candidates have also proposed policies
to revise restrictive zoning laws. But their ideas also include renter
protections, expanded subsidies for public housing and other government
interventions that the deregulation-oriented White House does not
support.
Portland's sprawl-fighting "urban growth boundary" which separated the
city from farms and forestlands, is perhaps the best-known example of
the unusually tight grip that state regulators keep on local land use,
and it long predates the current "Yes in My Backyard" fever.
In 1973 Oregon passed a law to concentrate growth within established
communities. "The purpose is to make sure that urban sprawl doesn't move
into farmland," said Ethan Seltzer, a professor emeritus of urban
planning and policy at Portland State University.
To ensure that cities are meeting their populations' needs, metropolitan
and state regulators regularly assess whether the urban boundaries can
accommodate some 20 years of growth. And Oregon's cities and towns must
follow other rules handed down from state legislators in Salem, the
state capital.
One requirement is to zone for a variety of housing types. In Portland's
metro area, cities are required to meet a minimum density level. By
state law, housing is supposed to be made for all income levels.
Oregon's "single family zoning ban" is a major step in the right
direction. A much larger share of the population will be able to afford
to buy their own home.
Every state should consider a similar reform.
__________________________
Copyright (c) 2019 Michael J. McManus, President of Marriage Savers and
a syndicated columnist. To read past columns, go to
www.ethicsandreligion.com. Hit
Search for any topic.
|
|
Since 1981...
2000+ Columns |
|
LATEST ARTICLE |
|
December
12, 2019: Column 2000: My 2000th Weekly Column |
|
Recent Columns |
|
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood |
|
Ban Cellphones from School |
|
Ban Single Family Zoning |
|
Should Pastors Marry Cohabitating Couples |
|
Faith & Values of Hispanic Americans |
|
How Doctors Might Reduce Suicides |
|
Life Expectancy Falls
- But You Can Live Longer |
|
Black America After 400 Years |
|
The Horror of Soaring Suicides |
|
Let's Reform No Fault Divorce |
|
Make
Adoption More Appealing |
|
Want a Successful Marriage? |
|
Why Go To Marriage Encounter |
|
Where Are the Fathers? |
|
The Addictive Nature of Pornography |
|
Abortion Becoming Illegal |
|
Pope's Initiative on Sexual Abuse |
|
Protecting Girls from Suicide |
|
The Worst Valentine:
Cohabitation |
|
Pornography: A Public Health Hazard |
|
Sextortion Kills Teens |
|
Cohabitation: A Risky Business |
|
Recent Searches |
|
gun control,
euthanasia,
cohabitation,
sexting,
sextortion,
alcoholism,
prayer,
guns,
same sex marriage,
abortion,
depression,
islam,
divorce,
polygamy,
religious liberty,
health care,
pornography,
teen sex,
abortion and infanticide,
Roe+v+Wade,
supreme court,
marriage,
movies,
violence,
celibacy,
living+together,
cohabitation,
ethics+and+religion,
pornography,
adultery,
divorce,
saving+marriages |
|