Although the political optics are hard to see, Daniel Hertz argues that policies like inclusionary zoning need to be strengthened by orders of magnitude to have more than a token impact on housing affordability.
Few will argue with Daniel Hertz's basic premise: that major American cities face an affordability crisis with wide-ranging effects on economic mobility, race relations, homelessness, and our very conception of what urban life means. Hertz makes the case that current policies to encourage affordable development, while admirable, are embarrassingly under-powered.
In the face of massive deficits in the availability of affordable housing—for the middle as well as lower classes—"IZ needs to be reframed as not a centerpiece, but a minor part of an affordable housing agenda that actually serves everyone who needs help." That agenda might include measures like direct taxes on rising residential property values (to combat speculation) and funding Housing Choice Vouchers by dropping mortgage interest tax deductions for high-income homeowners.
Hertz concludes, "There is no way to argue that inclusionary zoning is coming close to meeting the demand for below-market housing—or, importantly, that it will ever be able to do so. A hundred and forty [affordable] units per year in San Francisco is not off by ten percent, or fifty percent, or even just one order of magnitude [...] The fact that IZ may be on the edge of what is politically possible today should not blind us to the fact that the cities and neighborhoods we envision require vastly more ambition."
FULL STORY: Inclusionary zoning has a scale problem
Bay Area Planners Acknowledge the Need for Regional Housing Solutions
While most Bay Area communities are pursuing housing solutions "individually," local planners acknowledge the need for strategies that address the regional as a unified whole.
San Francisco Housing Construction Far Slower Than Other Tech Hubs
Experts blame high land and construction costs and restrictive regulations for San Francisco’s dismal rate of housing construction, which lags behind other fast-growing cities like Austin and Seattle.
San Francisco to Reconsider Inclusionary Zoning as Development Slows to a Crawl
Critics of inclusionary zoning frequently point to San Francisco as an example of what not to do. A sluggish year of development has some local politicians ready to reconsider the city’s program.
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
New Park Opens in the Santa Clarita Valley
The City of Santa Clarita just celebrated the grand opening of its 38th park, the 10.5-acre Skyline Ranch Park.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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