Zoning Has Not Outlived All Its Uses...Yet

Writing in Governing, Bill Fulton finds that zoning as we know it is under attack from the sharing economy, which has seen web sites like AirBnB and Feastly transform residential uses into commercial. While our old zoning codes that traditionally have limited uses are being upended by these types of sites, there is still some value to be had by adhering to the intent of the codes, which was to separate potentially harmful uses from the places people call home. 

"But does this mean we should just get rid of zoning altogether? I don’t think we should -- at least not entirely. We still need certain rules on land use segregation, for instance, to make sure that toxic activities don’t take place in residential areas. But the sharing economy surely strengthens the argument for a more market-based approach."

Fulton goes on to note that form based codes may provide a better mesh with the evolving land uses, allowing market forces to thrive while maintaining standards for development.