What is zoning? How does zoning impact you?
The city promotes orderly growth and land use while protecting existing property owners by grouping together compatible development — a practice known as zoning.
In theory, this sounds great, right? The problem that often arises is while housing costs rise, because of zoning laws, the option for affordable housing options such as a triplexes, granny flats, apartment complexes, multiplexes are limited.
If ever there was a moment for pro-housing -- “Yes In My Backyard” reforms that allow for the development of denser, neighborhood appropriate housing -- it should be now. In many U.S. cities, housing costs have ballooned beyond the reach of millions of Americans, and evidence suggests that restrictions on where you can build are largely to blame.
Desegregate CT, an advocacy group in Connecticut, found that a triplex or fourplex can be built without going through additional approvals in just 2% of Connecticut, while single-family homes are legal in 91% of the state.
Sources:
https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/.../develo.../zoning%E2%81%A0
https://people.uwec.edu/ivogeler/w270/what_is_zoning.htm
https://www.bloomberg.com/.../hyperlocal-zoning-can...