Valuable Research “Urban Planners” Will Try to Ignore
John Charles in Capitalism Magazine comments on the box Portland, OR finds itself in:
The Portland City Council wants to spend at least 30% of all urban renewal dollars on housing subsidies. Their concern is that skyrocketing home prices have made it difficult for lower-income families to live in the city.
Unfortunately, Council members are boxed in by their own ideology of urban planning. A central reason why housing is so expensive in Portland (and most other Oregon cities) is that the government has created an artificial shortage of homes through zoning and other types of land-use regulation.
A recent study by the Brookings Institution found this to be true on a national scale as well. The authors examined land-use polices among the nation’s 50 largest cities, and found that those cities with the least amount of zoning – Dallas, San Antonio and Houston – had the cheapest rents and the lowest home prices of all cities. Not only that, the three Texas regions had lower concentrations of poverty, higher home ownership rates, and larger concentrations of college graduates than cities with strict growth controls such as urban growth boundaries.
Remember that Brookings is a liberal think thank.
Whether intentional or not, hyper-restrictive zoning ends up benefitting existing homeowners and discriminating against those attempting to buy or move up. It also contributes to the very urban sprawl that urban-planning types so abhor.
Have you ever been to Dallas? It’s gross.
Comment by Kevin Irwin — September 6, 2006 @ 9:37 am
#1, compared to Roxbury?
Comment by TBlumer — September 6, 2006 @ 9:54 am
I’m speaking in terms of aesthetics. Dallas (as in the metroplex) is what I refer to as a “vomitropolis.” From the sky, it looks as if someone puked up strip malls, houses, and commercial buildings all into the same spot. There is no distinctiveness about Dallas or Houston. Neither are known for architecture, landmarks, or parks. The attraction to Dallas or Houston is that property is big and cheap. No thanks. I’ll take quality over quantity any day
Comment by Kevin Irwin — September 6, 2006 @ 12:00 pm
#3, I’d say topography and relative newness are relevant factors in addition to relatively “lax” zoning.
Comment by TBlumer — September 6, 2006 @ 2:58 pm