Professor Nestor Davidson was quoted by Pacific Standard for an article on different ways in which local governments are working to preserve and encourage the creation of affordable housing in their cities.
Many cities, when given the opportunity to expand tenant protections and affordable housing, have failed to take it, instead embracing highly exclusionary zoning policies that have kept lower-income residents out. In cities like San Jose, California, Sandy Springs, Georgia, and Charlotte, North Carolina, nearly all residential land is zoned for single-family homes, despite the fact that inclusionary zoning is permitted.
Recognizing that simply allowing cities to develop affordable housing is often insufficient, some states are beginning to go a step further. The last legislative session brought the first state law requiring cities to enact more inclusive zoning: In Oregon, cities with more than 25,000 residents are obligated to allow up to fourplexes in what are currently designated as single-family neighborhoods. The state also enacted the country’s first statewide rent control bill.
“There are some instances where it’s really important that the state set the ground rules and have a minimum standard statewide,” says Nestor Davidson a professor of real estate and land use law at Fordham University. “It’s appropriate for states to say that there’s a baseline on questions of equity and inclusion that we shouldn’t let local governments fall below.”