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Should the federal government flex its muscle to stop local governments from banning housing and maintaining segregation?
Yep.
The #YIMBYAct is a first step. https://www.sightline.org/2020/09/03/federal-hammer-on-apartment-bans/
Yep.
The #YIMBYAct is a first step. https://www.sightline.org/2020/09/03/federal-hammer-on-apartment-bans/
The McCloskey's claim that “ending single-family home zoning” would “bring crime, lawlessness and low-quality apartments into thriving suburban neighborhoods” is a decades-old racist/classist dog whistle.
Yet most blue cities still cling to their exclusionary zoning.
Yet most blue cities still cling to their exclusionary zoning.
It took Portland 6 years to end the stranglehold of detached house zoning.
State-level action for zoning reform holds promise for more bang for the buck, but pushback from blue local governments is the biggest obstacle. https://www.sightline.org/2020/03/19/washington-stops-at-incremental-housing-steps/
State-level action for zoning reform holds promise for more bang for the buck, but pushback from blue local governments is the biggest obstacle. https://www.sightline.org/2020/03/19/washington-stops-at-incremental-housing-steps/
Just as local dysfunction calls for state action, federal policies could be the biggest hammer of all.
"Not only does federal action bring the advantage of affecting the entire country in one fell swoop, but Congress can also wield the most powerful form of leverage: money."
"Not only does federal action bring the advantage of affecting the entire country in one fell swoop, but Congress can also wield the most powerful form of leverage: money."
"Cities move mountains to win federal funding. The concept is simple: If they want to keep their discriminatory zoning, they lose federal dollars. Withholding $$ for roads would be a particularly strong motivator."
And it gets at the roads-segregation-sprawl-climate nexus.
And it gets at the roads-segregation-sprawl-climate nexus.
Not to mention...
"Eliminating discriminatory zoning laws would also start to correct for the federal government’s historic role in causing racial segregation and robbing Black families of the generational wealth that comes with home ownership."
"Eliminating discriminatory zoning laws would also start to correct for the federal government’s historic role in causing racial segregation and robbing Black families of the generational wealth that comes with home ownership."
Oh, and this too:
"Federal action to allow abundant housing near employment centers would also support the climate goals of the Green New Deal. Jobs to construct compact, energy efficient homes in places where people can get around without a car are under-recognized green jobs."
"Federal action to allow abundant housing near employment centers would also support the climate goals of the Green New Deal. Jobs to construct compact, energy efficient homes in places where people can get around without a car are under-recognized green jobs."
(a thread, apparently)
The #YIMBYAct, the HOME Act, and the Build More Housing Near Transit Act are first steps toward federal policies for local zoning reform.
These Acts wouldn't require cities to make any changes, but would document and daylight their exclusionary rules.
The #YIMBYAct, the HOME Act, and the Build More Housing Near Transit Act are first steps toward federal policies for local zoning reform.
These Acts wouldn't require cities to make any changes, but would document and daylight their exclusionary rules.
AOC's Place to Prosper Act illustrates a law with serious teeth. It would deny all federal funding for any roadway project located in a jurisdiction that “blocks equitable growth” by: requiring parking or lot size>1/2-acre; or banning apartments or trailer parks.
Tying federal transpo $$ to local zoning may be tricky to implement as some have noted in this thread. But exclusionary, wealthy cities are typically car-dependent and likely to care more about losing money for roads than losing other types of federal grants like CDBGs.
Shamelessly quoting myself again:
"When millions are suffering because they can’t afford secure housing, it’s a violation of the public interest for local governments to impose zoning laws that mandate high prices, scarcity, and carbon-spewing mega commutes."
"When millions are suffering because they can’t afford secure housing, it’s a violation of the public interest for local governments to impose zoning laws that mandate high prices, scarcity, and carbon-spewing mega commutes."
Ending the thread back where it started:
"With a conversation about zoning to lift apartment bans going mainstream nationally and households across the country suffering from COVID’s devastation, the stage has never been better set for Congress to act." https://www.sightline.org/2020/09/03/federal-hammer-on-apartment-bans/
"With a conversation about zoning to lift apartment bans going mainstream nationally and households across the country suffering from COVID’s devastation, the stage has never been better set for Congress to act." https://www.sightline.org/2020/09/03/federal-hammer-on-apartment-bans/
