As writer and activist Jane Jacobs described throughout her life’s work, cities are dynamic ecosystems. Though she opposed forced neighborhood change like urban renewal and eminent domain, Jacobs recognized that the organisms that make up an ecosystem (streets, buildings, neighborhoods, etc.) must change to live.
Stopping efforts that promote natural evolution chokes the ecosystem and can sometimes prevent well-meaning Americans from helping others.
Alex and Lynda Pepin ran into this problem when they wanted to build an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) in their backyard. Motivated by their faith and years of helping others in the community, the couple wanted to house a family who was transitioning out of homelessness in their ADU. They wanted to give a family a safe, stable home to live in while they got back on their feet.
Alex and Lynda did everything the town of Blaine, Minn., required of them. They hired an architect and submitted detailed building plans. The city found no issues when it reviewed the plans. Blaine’s Planning Commission agreed. Yet, the Blaine City Council rejected the plan after Alex and Lynda’s neighbors launched a pressure campaign.
Alex and Lynda’s neighbors didn’t react well to the couple’s attempt at kindness. Neighbors falsely accused the Pepins of wanting to shelter unknown drug addicts. They even implied that the family hosted by the Pepins would threaten children at the neighborhood park. Of course, these accusations weren’t true. Still, some neighbors believe a family with fewer financial resources moving into the neighborhood might harm its character or drive down property values.
For much of the past century, the neighbors of Alex and Lynda have fought to stop their communities from changing at all costs. They’ll cite neighborhood character, traffic, property values and other excuses to prevent their neighborhoods from changing. They’ll even resort to litigation if their complaint fails.
The truth is, these complaints are often motivated by something else: Fear. Frequently, people don’t like change because they harbor fears, usually unfounded, about what or who will come into their neighborhood.
Coded concerns about neighborhood character and property value aren’t new. Whites used racial covenants throughout the 20th century to stop various races, particularly Blacks, from moving into their neighborhoods. Whites believed their property values would drop if minority groups moved in. Stories published by The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle in the early 1900s encouraged readers to make sure their deeds contained “well-drawn restriction(s)” to help in “establishing the character of a neighborhood.”
Back then, and even today, what many people fail to understand is that change helps cities and neighborhoods grow and prosper. The survival of these places depends on their adaptability and resiliency. As Jane Jacobs wrote in her 1961 book “The Death and Life of Great American Cities,” “The purpose of zoning … should not be to freeze conditions and uses as they stand. That would be death.”
And yet, municipalities nationwide continue to enact heavy-handed and arbitrary zoning regulations that do nothing more than stop Americans from finding abundant and affordable housing, opening and/or operating small businesses, and helping those in their communities.
These ingredients stopped a local small business owner, Awa Diagne, from opening a hair braiding shop in South Fulton, Ga. At the behest of a rival business, the South Fulton City Council refused to let Awa open her shop, concluding that it would be unfair to the other business. Awa sued last year, and in December, a Georgia state court ruled that South Fulton’s conduct was unconstitutional. Awa opened her business in January.
Fixing America’s flawed zoning system stands to benefit everyone. It’ll help cities continue to thrive and give Americans more freedom. One of the first steps to achieving this is recognizing the code words that anti-change groups use to stop progress. From there, it’s up to the courts and communities to do what’s needed to keep the delicate ecosystems healthy.