Zoning Reform: The National Political Landscape
2023 APA Florida Public Policy Workshop
Jason Jordan
APA Public Affairs Director
jjordan@planning.org
Planning in the Spotlight … Or Bull’s Eye
Key Criticisms of Zoning as Part of the Housing Crisis
• PROBLEM:
• Left-Right Convergence of Criticisms
• No Natural Base of Support and
• Planning equated with Zoning
A Growing National Conversation
Zoning Reform Goes Mainstream
Bipartisan Focus in the White House
Obama: Domestic Policy Council Report
Trump: Executive Order on Regulatory Barriers
Biden: White House Town Halls Build Back Better Housing Supply Action Plan
Linking Zoning Reform + Infrastructure • BIL Focus on Competitive Grants • Housing Supply Action Plan • Thriving Communities Technical Assistance
View from Capitol Hill
• Housing Supply and Affordability Act
• YIMBY Act
• Build More Housing Near Transit Act
• Build Back Better
• FY23 Omnibus Appropriations
New HUD “YIMBY”
Grants
$85 Million YIMBY Grant Program Competitive Focus on Progress, Link to Implementation Priority on Areas of Significant Affordability Challenges Fast Track for Guidance, Applications
What’s Next?
• HSAA Reintroduction • YIMBY Appropriations • CDBG Legislation
New National Campaign with Local Focus • Key National Partners • Convenings & Summit • Common Agenda • Assistance & Resources Planning.org/housing-supply-accelerator
Questions & Discussion
Jason Jordan APA Public Affairs Director
jjordan@planning.org | @jasonljordan
A multi-campus collaborative
2 Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
Paavo Monkkonen (UCLA) & Minjee Kim (FSU)
Menu of anti-exclusionary zoning reforms
1. “Upzoning” single-family zoning districts
2. Upzoning paired with mandatory affordable housing
3. Relax Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) regulations
4. Reduce parking requirements
5. Increase densities around transit stations
6. Waive impact fees for affordable housing
7. Expedite development review and permit process
8. By-right or streamlined administrative review process
9. Restrict “downzoning”
Level
Additional resources
● For a detailed review of the state-level reforms: https://youtu.be/mWxKx8ibYhA
● For a detailed review of the local-level reforms: https://youtu.be/_Sfq1EOsGy0
4 Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State
Local
and
#1 Upzoning single-family zoning districts
● Minneapolis, MN (Comp Plan 2040)
● Gainesville, FL (Comprehensive Plan amendment & local zoning ordinance amendment)
California legislature
● SB 9 (2021)
○ allows up to four units on a single-family zoned parcels
○ streamlined review/parking requirement reduced
● Sacramento, CA (General Plan Update)
● Culver City (General Plan Update)
● Berkeley, CA (Housing Element Update)
Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
5
#3 Relax ADU regulations
California legislature
● AB 68 (2019), AB 881 (2019), SB 13 (2020)
○ by-right permitting process
○ parking requirement relaxed
○ allows ADUs in areas zoned single-family or multifamily
○ prohibit local governments from imposing min or max square footages requirements for ADUs
○ remove impact fees for small ADUs
San Diego ADU Bonus Program
● Since 2016, California state legislature has passed a number of legislation that removed barriers to ADU development
Source: Alameldin & Underriner (2020), San Diego’s Success in Spurring Missing Middle Housing: The Accessory Dwelling Unit Bonus Program, Terner Center for Housing Innovation, UC Berkeley
6 Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
#5 Increase densities around transit stations
LA Transit Oriented Communities (TOC) Program
● Created because of a ballot measure (Measure JJJ) but written by city planning staff
● Allows for both 1) by-right entitlement for projects and 2) more density, height and less parking (a menu of options), if projects include ~15% affordable (and near transit)
● Builds off state density bonus law framework
● Many advocates push for same rules to apply everywhere not just near transit
7 Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
#5 Increase densities around transit stations
LA Transit Oriented Communities (TOC) Program
● It’s a popular program!
● Research (Manville et al. 2022) finds by-right projects permitted more than twice as fast as discretionary projects
● It has created lots of deed-restricted affordable housing (100% affordable projects use it as well)
● Interviews suggest it has influenced non-TOC entitlement processes by providing an anchor point to reference in discretionary negotiations with city
8 Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
#8 By-right or streamlined development review process
SB 35 & Sacramento Ministerial approval
● On May 28, 2019, City Council adopted Resolution (2019-0206) directing staff to examine the menu of available options to streamline the production of housing
● In effect since August 2020
● Aims to expedite the approval process to less than 90 days for most multi-unit housing projects
● Builds upon SB 35 (2017)
● Applicants can choose either SB35 option or the City’s version
Cannot demolish units that have been occupied by tents in a multi-unit dwelling (3+ units) within the last year
9 Contemporary Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
features Must be zoning compliant Not subject to CEQA review # of units 2+ units 2-200 units Affordability 2-10 units: none 11+ units: 10% of the units have to be set aside as income restricted None Union wage Required for 11+ units None Ineligible
SB 35 City’s Ministerial Approval
Common
projects
Cannot demolish units that have been occupied by tenants within the last 10 years
Takeaways
● Zoning reforms are not mutually exclusive
● Variations exist within each reform type depending on how the law and the implementing regulations are written
● Reform effects are maximized when there is a coordination between the state and local governments
● Interactions between the local and state government (e.g., local government inspiring state action and vice versa)
● The targeted state preemption approaches work in conjunction with older, anti-exclusionary measures such as the housing mandates through comprehensive plan reviews/builder’s remedy/fair share
● Implementation strategies - pros and cons
○ Part of larger reform vs. targeted
○ Exec order vs. ordinance amendments vs. pilot programs
● Zoning reform is only one part of combating inequitable land use, planning, and housing practices. Others include:
○ Public housing
○ State and local housing trust funds
○ Tenant protection and other anti-displacement tools (e.g., right of first refusal, property tax freeze for vulnerable population, etc.)
○ Rent control
○ Community Land Trust (CLTs)
○ Reparation
Anti-Exclusionary Zoning Reforms at the State and Local Level
10 Contemporary
Race, Place, and Equity Minneapolis 2040
Minneapolis, Minnesota 2010 2021 2040 (projected) Minneapolis 382,578 434,346 485,000 Minneapolis – St. Paul Region* 2,849,567 3,186,349 3,738,047 *Numbers for 7-County MPO only (Metropolitan Council) MSA in 2020 – 3,657,477, CSA in 2018 – 4,078,788
Photo by Dan Anderson, Courtesy of Meet Minneapolis
Eliminate Disparities
In 2040, Minneapolis will see all communities fully thrive regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, country of origin, religion, or zip code having eliminated deep –rooted disparities in wealth, opportunity, housing, safety, and health.
“These premises...shall not at any time be conveyed, mortgaged or leased to any person or persons of Chinese, Japanese, Moorish, Turkish, Negro, Mongolian or African blood or descent.”
HOLC Best/Desirable Areas Single-family zoning (2019) HOLC Best/Desirable + Single-family zoning Single-Family Zoning + Racially Restrictive Covenants % White (ACS 2017) Greenest < 26% Bluest > 78% https://mappingprejudice.umn.edu/
Redlining
Racially-Restrictive Covenants
Single Family Zoning
Lack of housing choice and wealth -building for Black and Indigenous People of Color
+
+
=
Incremental
Substantial
Policy Regulation
Timeline
• 2016 – 2018: Policy creation and public engagement (150+ public meetings)
• Dec. 2018: Plan provisionally adopted by City Council
• Dec. 2018: Trial Inclusionary Zoning ordinance adopted
• Nov. 2019: Plan officially adopted by City Council
• Jan. 2020: Plan in effect, new 1-3 unit regulations and Inclusionary Zoning in effect
• Jan. 2021: New built form regulations in effect citywide
• May. 2021: Elimination of min. off-street parking requirements, overhaul of TDM ordinance
• Early 2023: New land use regulations (in progress)
New Triplex at 0.5 FAR
2020-2021 Duplex and Triplex Construction
Duplex Conversion
New Duplex
New Triplex
Triplex Conversion
Proposed Triplex at 0.6 FAR
Year Units 2011 616 2012 3,303 2013 3,322 2014 1,959 2015 1,489 2016 2,908 2017 2,254 2018 3,625 2019 4,813 2020 3,340 2021 3,182 2022 4,348 Recently completed multi-family (photo courtesy of Hall Sweeney Properties) Permitted Dwelling Units
Process Lessons
• Develop consensus on goals you want to achieve.
• Prioritize engaging with stakeholders that are most impacted by those goals.
• Ask elected officials to recognize these goals and formally direct you to work on them.
• Acknowledge that change is necessary to achieve goals.
• Draw clear lines between policies/action steps and outcomes.
• Measure and report on progress following adoption –revise policy as needed.
Meg McMahan, AICP Planning Director City of Minneapolis
Meg.mcmahan@minneapolismn.gov
Department of Sustainable Development
Juan Castillo
February 24th, 2023
Gainesville and Exclusionary Zoning
•
Gainesville is one of the most central locations for work, education, and play.
Examples of Exclusionary Zone: Neighborhood Scale Multi-family currently in Gainesville, Cont.
Neighborhood Scale Multi-family: 2 units
Examples of Exclusionary Zone: Neighborhood Scale Multi-family currently in Gainesville
Neighborhood Scale Multi-family: 4 units
