Zoning Changes and Walkability
How new requirements take location into consideration—and may help with affordable housing.
I really enjoy going for a walk. When I walk my dogs, I use it as a chance to relax—to get some sun and listen to horrifying true crime podcasts (your definition of relaxing may differ). When I’m home, I often push a walking pad under my desk and get some steps in while working.
But I do tend to drive a lot. I live in the suburbs, so that’s pretty much a necessity. I could be going somewhere less than a mile from my house, but I wouldn’t dream of walking. After all, a lot of roads don’t have sidewalks. Highways certainly aren’t safe to walk along. And I base a lot of my plans on the parking situation. No big lot? Then do I really need to go?
However, when I used to live in Manhattan in my younger days I would walk everywhere. Friends wanted to meet up for lunch uptown? Shopping all the way downtown? No big deal—everything was usually only a few blocks from the subway, or I could just go on foot the whole way, depending on the weather and the height of my heels.
Location—and context—matter when it comes to walkability. People who live in major urban areas don’t necessarily need to worry about parking. They might not even be able to keep a car in the city! But that was stymying a lot of new multifamily developments where parking was required. Luckily, zoning codes are changing in several urban areas to cut back on parking requirements. This will hopefully help the process of developing more affordable communities where they are needed.
In her article “Can Zoning Changes Boost Affordable Housing?” Gail Kalinoski reports on how these zoning changes, such as Florida’s Live Local Act, are easing requirements that were holding up new projects. Requirements that might seem helpful in theory, but don’t take into account how people live or get around, which were in turn adding to the affordable housing crisis.
“Overly restrictive requirements, such as excessive parking minimums or height limitations, can significantly affect housing opportunities,” Noah Hale of Fairstead told Kalinoski.
Interested in how other zoning changes are affecting multifamily developments? Walk on over to Kalinoski’s article!
