A new report suggests that upzoning is not the silver bullet some had hoped it would be for housing prices.
As housing costs rise nationwide, many advocates have urged that cities prioritize accommodating future development through upzoning. Now, the Pratt Center for Community Development is exploring concerns that upzoning also carries unintended harmful consequences.
The new report, Flawed Findings, concludes that New York tends to greenlight upzoning and major developments without properly assessing these consequences, the most prominent of which is displacement.
"There is a complete disconnect [from] the lived experience of these folks," a researcher tells Aline Reynolds in Next City.
The report recommends a citywide displacement risk analysis to inform a new anti-displacement policy agenda with a goal of no net loss of affordable units.
FULL STORY: So You Want to Change Zoning to Allow for More Housing
New Jersey Calls for 85,000 New Housing Units
A state law known as the Mount Laurel Doctrine mandates that each jurisdiction accommodate enough new housing units to meet the local demand for affordable housing.
The Housing Affordability Recipe
Smart policies can ensure that low- and moderate-income households can find suitable housing in good neighborhoods where transportation costs are low. The research is clear: upzoning works.
Sweeping Zoning Reforms Adopted in Olympia
The Olympia, Washington City Council adopted a new Housing Options Code Amendments ordinance, effectively eliminating single-family zoning in the city.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
HUD Announces Plan to Build Housing on Public Lands
The agency will identify federally owned parcels appropriate for housing development and streamline the regulatory process to lease or transfer land to housing authorities and nonprofit developers.
Has President Trump Met His Match?
Doug Ford, the no-nonsense premier of Canada's most populous province, Ontario, is taking on Trump where it hurts — making American energy more expensive.
Report: One-Fifth of Seattle Households Are Car-Free
According to one local writer, the city’s low rate of car ownership should encourage officials to support public transit and reduce parking minimums.
California Lawmakers Move to Protect Waterways
Anticipating that the Trump EPA will reinstate a 2017 policy that excluded seasonal wetlands and waterways from environmental protections.
The YIGBY Movement: Unlocking Church-Owned Land for Affordable Housing
As the housing crisis deepens, interest in faith-based development is spreading across the country. How do YIGBY zoning laws work, where are they being implemented or introduced, and what could it mean for communities and churches?
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