The same people who insisted that it should focus exclusively on SFH...no one. |
Can't you just do this now without the policy? |
Yes the PP was trying to misdirect because when anyone points out the obvious flaws in their ideas the flaws become obvious. That’s the problem with slogan policies. “We need to get rid of zoning so we can bUilD mOrE HoUSIng” sounds great until you realize zoning isn’t actually the limiting factor in how much housing gets built in the county.” |
It depends on the lot size. The zoning code includes minimum lot sizes. For example, under R-200 zoning currently, the minimum lot size is 20,000 square feet, and there are lot coverage maximums. So generally, the lot would have to be at least 40,000 square feet in order to be subdivided, currently. https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/DPS/Resources/Files/ZSPE/DevelopmentStandardsForR200Zone.pdf The area around Northwest HW is an example of R-200 zoning, and so is the area around Flower Valley ES. |
There is no proposal to get rid of zoning, and zoning actually is A limiting factor in how much housing gets built in the county. Not the only limiting factor, but one of the limiting factors. I'm guessing you agree, because if you didn't, you wouldn't be so upset about the proposed changes to the zoning code. |
Well, no, the point is to make housing more affordable for more people. If your property values are high because there's a housing shortage, then yes, fixing the housing shortage will lower your property values. However, I don't think it should be a goal of county housing policy to keep your (or my) property values high. The goal of county housing policy should be housing. |
Why do you assume that if we build more housing, prices will fall? That's never been true in the DMV. If you really do think building more housing will result in lower prices, you should tell us exactly how much lower they'll be (and when they'll be lower) so we can laugh in your face when none of that actually happens. |
Existing housing isn’t yet expensive enough to lure new builders into the market. Think about that. Absent a recession, the most likely outcome is that prices continue to rise until new housing becomes profitable enough to bring in new sellers. At that point, prices will at best level off. If they start to fall, new construction will stop. |
Please look at the cities that have built tons of housing (Austin), do your research, and quit the snarky (uninformed) nonsense. There is plenty of evidence (and common sense), you just refuse to understand it because you are a selfish NIMBY. |
Austin is a horrendous city with ridiculous traffic and it is very ugly. MOCO doesn’t want to be like Austin and it is a terrible idea to copy their policies. |
If MOCO actually wanted affordable housing they would not be passing extremely stringent building performance standards for energy use. That will effectively require many old multi family units to be torn down because it is not economically to retrofit them. |
However, Austin does demonstrate that supply/demand/price works in the housing market too. The other PP's idea seemed to be that it doesn't, i.e., that housing prices will always only go up. Which anyone who remembers 2008 already knows isn't true anyway. |
Specifically what are you referring to? |
The county government is talking out of two side of their mouth with contradictory policies. Raising the cost of housing by passing building performance standards for the “environment”. The MOCO turns around and promotes environmentally damaging sprawl with a proposal to increase the allowable density throughout the county by 4x+ in areas with minimal or no access to public transportation. So do they really care about affordability or the environment?? They are just making up reasons to justify trendy policy goals that are in vogue with YIMBYs and Urbanists, without concern for the impact on court residents. This comprehensive zoning reform is just a box to check on their resume before the take a highly paid job with a developer or political advocacy organization. |
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/DEP/energy/commercial/beps.html The building performance standards cover multi family residential housing above 25,000 sq feet and will require expensive retrofitting to meet energy efficiency standards that did not exist when the building was actually built. |