Galt's Gulch
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Oregon bans single family home zoning

Posted by freedomforall 4 years, 9 months ago to Politics
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"On Sunday, Oregon lawmakers gave their final approval to House Bill 2001, which would eliminate single-family zoning around the state. In cities with more than 25,000 residents, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, and “cottage clusters” would be allowed on parcels that are currently reserved for single-family houses; in cities of least 10,000, duplexes would be allowed in single-family zones."
SOURCE URL: https://www.citylab.com/equity/2019/07/oregon-single-family-zoning-reform-yimby-affordable-housing/593137/

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  • Posted by $ AJAshinoff 4 years, 9 months ago
    We the living. It won't be long before large homes are divided to fit more families, complements of the state. It's all about fairness and equal access......and control.
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    • Posted by BCRinFremont 4 years, 9 months ago
      “...large homes are divided...”. Just like the scene from Dr. Zhivago when the doctor returned to find his spacious home full of folks and their minders thanks to the good folks running the Communist revolution in Russia.
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  • Posted by Temlakos 4 years, 9 months ago
    I hope they realize that this constitutes a taking of private property, i.e. the values of existing single-family residences, for public use, without just compensation. The Supreme Court just weighed in and indicated that it will invalidate such takings in future.
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    • Posted by TheRealBill 4 years, 9 months ago
      We will have to see what happens. Property values might go up for single family areas, t least short term. The land zones multi, however, might see a drop and thus could potentially fall under that.
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    • Posted by $ CBJ 4 years, 9 months ago
      This zoning reform does not interfere with homeowners’ use and disposal of their property, and therefore does not constitute a taking. It has nothing to do with the recent Supreme Court decision (which involved a township forcing a property owner to allow public access to her property). There is no moral principle requiring a government to continue propping up the market value of a property by keeping restrictive zoning laws in place.
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      • Posted by TheRealBill 4 years, 9 months ago
        All true. There is, however, another angle that will be interesting to see. How will property values and property tax shift? While the Left likes to whine about “gentrification” they ignore the real way people are pushed out of their home by not being able to afford it: by not being able to pay proper taxes when their area gets rezoned.

        Usually it happens when a non-subdividable One get changed to be subdividable. When that happens the price almost always goes up, and quite a bit. Thus the property taxes due. In many jurisdictions a secondary effect kicks in where subdivisble property gets taxed at a higher rate as well.

        I don’t know what Oregon’s property tax rates and conditions are any more (haven’t cared for more than a decade), but it is Oregon so I wouldn’t doubt there is an unspoken motivation there. After all, we are talking about a state that taxes you based on rainfall and if you can see the ocean from your property.

        There is yet another aspect to consider: HOA/POA limits. Of course, there will be knock on effects such as roads no longer being sufficient and traffic becoming s problem as places go higher density.

        And finally, it is well known that the higher the population density the more the residents want government interference. I also wouldn’t put it last then to finally be paying attention to that. We’ve known this for decades, and it is a bit surprising neither side has leveraged it. Then again, politicians aren’t exactly know for long term thinking of late.
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  • Posted by $ Olduglycarl 4 years, 9 months ago
    Yep, trying to get more dependent voters within the city limits...tells me they knew what they have been doing all along...stack the cities, make them dependent and they will vote demoncrap.
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  • Posted by skidance 4 years, 9 months ago
    My true thoughts are unprintable. Certainly, some local flexibility is desirable to ease the housing shortage. However, to outright ban single-family swellings is absurd, as well as disgusting.
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    • Posted by freedomforall 4 years, 9 months ago
      The "housing shortage" was caused by previous government zoning stupidity by Portland and only in Portland. Elsewhere in the state is there any shortage of housing? Destroying the value of some housing does not solve any problem (if one exists at all.) I wonder if the "shortage" is actually a case of a shortage of qualified buyers who have wasted their time and destroyed their ability to buy a home by borrowing a fortune getting degrees in women's studies and African-american history. Unemployable people can't buy homes of any kind - unless we want a repeat of the 2008 economic collapse.
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  • Posted by $ CBJ 4 years, 9 months ago
    Is zoning a proper function of government? If not, shouldn’t we be in favor of removing zoning restrictions, as the Oregon legislature has done?
    “A limited, rights-respecting government would have no welfare system and no forced pension-paying system like Social Security in the U.S. It would not have agencies with open-ended and vaguely defined regulatory powers. There would be no anti-trust law, nor zoning laws, nor anti-drug laws.”
    https://atlassociety.org/objectivism/...
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    • Posted by freedomforall 4 years, 9 months ago
      They aren't giving up zoning. They are restricting it to the kind of zoning that promotes socialism, dependence on others production, and equality of outcomes while reducing the possible reward for merit and ability.
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  • Posted by Sextant 4 years, 9 months ago
    From the U.N. web page on Sustainable Development, Agenda 21 (yes it actually exits) paragraph 7.5 on Improving human settlement management and promoting sustainable land-use planning and management. The gate of the corral is closing. Force Americans into small communities. Then see all the other restrictions that will be placed on the people.
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    • Posted by TheRealBill 4 years, 9 months ago
      Population density is a a strong indicator of how much the people clamor for more intrusive government. Higher density means more, lower means less. This is a main reason why bigger cities tests to be “blue” even in “red” states. If America spread out from the cities and became a much lower populations density country, the Dems would lose for probably 20 years before they figured it out.

      If Republicans really wanted to “gerrymander” on the sly, has the long term vision, and the insight they would have been pushing locally for restrictions that limit density. They could pretty much get away with it as well - watch how people in a single family neighborhood get riled up over new large apartment complexes going in.

      They could do it under the guise of traffic control and quality of life. If they teamed that up with allowing light commercial and even light a industrial in those areas, they get a lock on those areas. Those types of areas are highly “walkable”. Lower density combined with walkable districts where business and living mingle would be havens for people who don’t feel the need to control others.

      I’ve seen people personally make the transition in both directions. I’ve seen leftists become classical liberal after moving to a low density area and living for a while, and I’ve seen the opposite in friends who move to the big city.
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    • Posted by freedomforall 4 years, 9 months ago
      Trump's wall might be the actual door closing. I favor it to stop illegal immigration, but it concerns me that it may be used in the future to stop people from leaving.
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        Posted by Sextant 4 years, 9 months ago
        I understand your concern, but I believe we have to much seashore for our mobility. I have often wondered what if American's en masse showed up in some Central American country and just took over. Sort of a Galt's Gulch. :)
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  • Posted by Owlsrayne 4 years, 9 months ago
    Once this zoning goes into effect it could backfire on the state government of Oregon. The cost of purchasing into those complexes could skyrocket. People would leave Oregon for other states. If that happens the democrat legislature could enact similar draconian laws like California to stop residents from fleeing the state. Democrats are really no different than the Communists of the former Soviet Union. Ayn Rand's philosophy is the polar opposite on limited gov't. The residents of Oregon should wake up and stop being "Sheepeople".
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  • Posted by ycandrea 4 years, 9 months ago
    Great. I live in Oregon. At least I live in a very small town, La Pine. I live in a single family home that we paid cash for on a one acre lot. The population of La Pine is under 2,000, but quickly growing. So it will be a while before we have and apt bldg next door.
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  • Posted by $ Stormi 4 years, 9 months ago
    I have been fighting this stuff since over 20 years. Hillary was all for it, being joined at the hip with the UN. She praised communes there at the time, which she visited. UN Agenda 21 calls for population density, smart growth, and ultimately the end of property ownership by citizens, only gov. They call private property "unsustainable." Those people out there tried this back then, until they started telling lawyers where the could live, and lost in court. Anyone in the city with too large a lot had to surrender part of it, or never get a permit for repairs or upgrades. Housing b ecame so expensive only the rich could afford it. It lost to the lawyrs, but now it is state wide, not just one city. Land ownership is important to our culture, and this is a terrible decision by some liberals hack lawmakers. Over the years I have read the grants our own mayor has accepted, and many call for a population density for the downtown area,, which luckly never is accomplished.
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  • Posted by $ 25n56il4 4 years, 9 months ago
    Ordinances are good and bad. We have one which says if a hard-wood tree is over 18 inches in diameter at the trunk, any sidewalk must be diverted around it! Makes for interesting walking. And you cannot ride a bicycle on a sidewalk. We have bicycle lanes. We have an Ordinance that prohibits brawling on city hall property. (Two attorneys didn't know this, but I did! They learned quickly!)
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  • Posted by $ 25n56il4 4 years, 9 months ago
    My objection to zoning is the question, "Who will be the Zoning Official?" That would be a really nice job. Lots of money to change hands. Which is why when my city held an election and passed 'zoning', I sued and had the election thrown out. We have excellent City Ordinances that can easily be revoked. We do not need zoning! Houston, Texas has survived without it since the 1800's. Fortunately, I was able to throw out my city's stupid election (which the citizens didn't understand) because the Council was so stupid, they didn't publish the Ordinance calling the election in English and Spanish! Our Spanish neighbors have homes here too.
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  • Posted by $ WilliamShipley 4 years, 9 months ago
    While the liberal views of Oregon generally are "rattling our cages", this is really removing the ability for cities to limit private property rights -- something that we should be in favor of.

    It doesn't forbid single family dwellings, it frees the property owner to build whatever he wants.

    Young people are getting priced out of the housing market. Part of the reason is that zoning laws are being used to artificially raise the price of existing housing by limiting the stock. This is not a use of government we should be applauding.
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    Posted by CircuitGuy 4 years, 9 months ago
    Based just on the wording in the exerpt, isn't eliminating zoning a good thing? Shouldn't people be free to build whatever type of housing structure they want on their property? YIMBY.
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    Posted by exceller 4 years, 9 months ago
    All this tells me that Oregon is trying to get the #1 Jackass State title on the left Coast, competing with CA and WA.

    I used to have a friend when we lived in PA who was from Oregon, married to a very reasonable nice guy. She was a rabid liberal which wasn't very obvious b/c nobody in the friendship circle agreed with her, so she was considered an anomaly, ignored.

    She moved back to Oregon and we lost touch. But I am sure she is very happy with the environment she is in now.
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