HOW ZONING SHAPES COMMUNITIES

THE GOOD, BAD AND HOPEFUL ASPECTS 

OF THE CENTURY-OLD TOOL THAT DETERMINES

EVERYTHING ABOUT THE PLACES WE LIVE, WORK AND PLAY

The entire architecture of how land use works contains a lot of local conditions.

“When spending political capital, we like to get the most juice for the squeeze. 

But we know the entire architecture of how land use works contains a lot of local conditions, so we have all these variances, special-use permits, special exceptions,” Salim Furth, senior research fellow, at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, said.

“Cities are super regulators, so everything is done by exceptions.

The developer knows to get a lawyer, give contributions and they get their exceptions approved,” he observed.

 “Council members love the political contributions flowing and they get some say in the development.

Even in very progressive cities, you end up saying ‘yes’ to very expensive housing and ‘no’ to more budget-friendly housing.”