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The Planetizen News Brief - 10/29/09

29 October 2009 - 5:00am
Smart City Radio

The Planetizen News Brief is a weekly rundown of some of the most interesting and important news and issues of the past week.

The Planetizen News Brief airs every week on the nationally-syndicated radio program "Smart City", which is broadcast in cities across the U.S. Learn more about Smart City and listen to archived shows.

Full Transcript:

Zoning just got way sexier in Miami. Land use is the hot topic in the Florida city, where commissioners have approved a new form-based zoning code. It’s believed to be the largest rollout of a form-based code in the U.S., and officials there hope it will usher in a new age of urban-oriented, pedestrian friendly development. A recent article from the Miami Herald looks at the new code, which departs from the traditional zoning model of siting development based on how it was going to utilize the land. The new code, dubbed Miami 21, focuses instead on grouping land uses to make efficient and attractive use of the urban space. The code change was previously voted down in August, but this recent vote has put the form-based code into action. And other cities are taking note. Denver is set to vote on its own comprehensive form-based code in just a few months.

Meanwhile, at what may be the polar opposite on the spectrum of land use law, the proudly zoning code-free City of Houston may be starting to lean more towards stricter regulation. A recent poll conducted by the Houston Chronicle found that 71% of Houstonians are in favor of tightening their city’s land use regulations. The change of heart is seemingly linked to a string of conflicts between developers and neighborhoods in recent years, including one proposed high rise development that was eventually approved, to the dismay of neighbors. Residents surveyed say it’s time for tougher land use restrictions. And with an expected population growth of more than 1 million people over the next ten years, how projects are approved or denied is likely to become increasingly important .

And finally, a growing tide of non-profits and housing advocates is making headway with the federal government to overhaul the nation’s affordable housing stock. A new partnership is dedicating $4 billion towards efforts to green affordable housing in the U.S., and they’ve got the ear of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Grist reports that the deal was made possible by the non-profit community development organization Enterprise Community Partners, which is working with the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Home Depot Foundation and HUD to construct or retrofit 75,000 units of affordable housing. And just in case anyone was worried about the group setting their sites too low, they’re also calling for a retrofit of the country entire 30 million household affordable housing stock by 2020. Overly ambitious? Maybe. But a first big step has already been taken.

Stories Discussed in This Week's News Brief:

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