HomeDiagramsDatabaseMapsForum About
     

Go Back   SkyscraperPage Forum > Discussion Forums > City Discussions


Reply

 
Thread Tools Display Modes
     
     
  #1  
Old Posted Aug 2, 2020, 1:51 PM
C. C. is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 3,014
Exclamation Want More Housing? Ending Single-Family Zoning Won’t Do It.

Want More Housing? Ending Single-Family Zoning Won’t Do It.
To add more affordable “missing middle” homes, cities need to change parking requirements and limits on building and lot size, too.

Quote:
Before Covid-19 took hold of the national consciousness, the YIMBY movement — of those saying “Yes In My Backyard” to housing development — appeared ready to go mainstream. More and more people recognized that NIMBYism run amok and codified into local laws leads to fewer housing options, drastically raising prices in cities and towns alike, and contributing to inequality. Now, in a time of pandemic-driven budget cuts and unemployment, the importance of housing affordability is growing.

Policy makers can deliver it, and without budget outlays, by simply allowing more housing — particularly low-cost housing — to be built. But the path to housing abundance isn’t quite as easy as some recent reforms, narrowly focused on one particular type of zoning, might lead us to believe. Separating the long-conflated ideas of owning or renting housing from securing a large and expensive piece of land will require more effort.
Really interesting read. Full article: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...s-just-a-start
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #2  
Old Posted Aug 2, 2020, 4:40 PM
mhays mhays is offline
Never Dell
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Posts: 19,748
Quote:
Originally Posted by C. View Post
Want More Housing? Ending Single-Family Zoning Won’t Do It.
To add more affordable “missing middle” homes, cities need to change parking requirements and limits on building and lot size, too.

Really interesting read. Full article: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...s-just-a-start
Good article.

The parking point is a big one. It can be an enormous barrier.

Unit size is another. The article focuses on larger units, but affordability benefits from smaller options too. I'd guess that's related to Minneapolis' provision for extra units only within the previously-allowed space.

That's similar to Seattle's new rules, where lots above a certain size can have one mid-sized house and two mother-in-law units. Backyard cottages are limited to 1,000 square feet. The new units don't need parking -- a huge factor for making new units feasible and reducing their cost.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #3  
Old Posted Aug 2, 2020, 7:18 PM
Steely Dan's Avatar
Steely Dan Steely Dan is offline
devout Pizzatarian
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Lincoln Square, Chicago
Posts: 29,635
Quote:
Originally Posted by mhays View Post
The parking point is a big one. It can be an enormous barrier.
It doesn't have to be for small-scale multi-family, provided that a city has alleys.

Our bog-standard Chicago 3-flat sits on a fairly typical 25'x125' Chicago lot, which gives us 25' of frontage along the back alley, just enough space for a parking pad that holds 3 cars, one for each unit.

It is a near-ubiquitous parking arrangement for flat buildings across the city, as nearly every single city block in Chicago is bisected by an alley.
__________________
"Missing middle" housing can be a great middle ground for many middle class families.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #4  
Old Posted Aug 2, 2020, 7:53 PM
mhays mhays is offline
Never Dell
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Posts: 19,748
Stacked flats and alleys make the three-unit concept way easier. But Seattle (not sure about Minneapolis) doesn't allow three-flats in SFR areas, and some neighborhoods don't have alleys.

The concept is really about adding a cottage or two in the back yard, aided by a typical width that's often more like 50' but varies quite a bit. If there's flexibility to build parking or not, more people will dive in and new units will be much cheaper.

Minneapolis appears to have alleys in most areas but they're not universal.

BTW, a glance at some Chicago examples shows a lot of those 25'-wides have two parking spaces and a walkway.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #5  
Old Posted Aug 2, 2020, 8:10 PM
Steely Dan's Avatar
Steely Dan Steely Dan is offline
devout Pizzatarian
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Lincoln Square, Chicago
Posts: 29,635
Quote:
Originally Posted by mhays View Post
BTW, a glance at some Chicago examples shows a lot of those 25'-wides have two parking spaces and a walkway.
In older parts of the city, lots for flat buildings can be even narrower than 25' which means you only get two spots + a walkway. 25' is kinda the minimum lot width for 3 parking spaces in back.

also, many flat buildings are only 2-flats, so there's no need to shoehorn in 3 parking spaces.

either way, this stuff is all grandfathered in for chicago. the city is fortunate to have such a preponderance of "missing middle" housing to begin with.
__________________
"Missing middle" housing can be a great middle ground for many middle class families.

Last edited by Steely Dan; Aug 2, 2020 at 8:24 PM.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #6  
Old Posted Aug 3, 2020, 3:49 AM
ardecila's Avatar
ardecila ardecila is offline
TL;DR
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: the city o'wind
Posts: 16,356
I mean, "ending single family zoning" is a slogan, not a policy.

Actually doing it means creating an alternative low-density zoning category that allows more than one unit, or just upzoning single-family lots to the next higher tier that allows missing middle.... and most mature cities have missing middle zoning already, so that their older neighborhoods are conforming. Either way, you would have to revise the parking requirements and bulk regulations (height/setbacks) as part of the process.

It is important for advocates to keep an eye on the details, since some cities may claim to "end single-family zoning" to get social justice points, and then ruin it with a poison pill like high parking requirements or minimum lot area per unit.
__________________
la forme d'une ville change plus vite, hélas! que le coeur d'un mortel...
Reply With Quote
     
     
End
 
 
Reply

Go Back   SkyscraperPage Forum > Discussion Forums > City Discussions
Forum Jump


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 6:44 AM.

     
SkyscraperPage.com - Archive - Privacy Statement - Top

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.