HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-02-24 Public Comment - M. Egge - APA Article on Upzoning in Arlington - with lessons for Bozeman CDBFrom:Mark Egge
To:Jennifer Madgic; Henry Happel; paddenguymurphy@gmail.com; cegnatz@starbucks.com; Ben Lloyd; Nicoleolmstead; delmue; Brady Ernst
Cc:Anna Bentley; Agenda
Subject:[EXTERNAL]APA Article on Upzoning in Arlington - with lessons for Bozeman
Date:Thursday, February 1, 2024 12:52:04 PM
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Fellow Board Members—
The American Planning Association recently published an article in its
magazine about how Arlington County, VA, was able to overcome
pushback to pass middle-housing zoning reform. I think the articlecontains some potentially useful lessons for Bozeman. You can access the
article here: https://www.planning.org/planning/2023/fall/reclaiming-the-
missing-middle-ground-how-planners-got-nimbys-to-yes/
Some of the parallels are almost uncanny:
Arlington has become a victim of its own economic success in terms of housing shortagesand affordability — the average home sale price was more than $800,000 in 2022 andmedian two-bedroom rent is $2,600 as of November 2023. That has helped further the
divide between renters and homeowners.
After spirited debate continued over multiple meetings with hundreds of speakers — as wellas a blitz of yard signs and childish antics during comment sessions — a unanimous
decision was reached by the county board in favor of upzoning all single-family-zonedareas.
...The hoped-for, recommended change was upzoning all single-family parcels to
accommodate up to eight units. The missing middle plan that finally passed earlier this yearwas slightly more limited; single-family lots could now accommodate up to six-unit
structures, and annual approvals would be limited to just 58 projects per year until 2028. Butit's widely seen as a vital first step in additional reform, and an inspiration to similar efforts.
A few things struck me about Arlington's process:
The public process was led by the county's planning commission (who
advise the county's elected board members). That is, the process was
led by Arlington County's equivalent of the Community DevelopmentBoard.
The Arlington County planning department played an active role in
helping educate the community both about the why and the what.
The article notes that "Arlington's seven-person planning departmentgot to work by framing and informing the conversations,
communicating the stakes, and educating the community about the
history and future of zoning policy in the area. That effort engaged
and energized the community debate." While the policy debate was
conducted during the planning commission's meetings, it was
informed by substantial proactive outreach from the planning
department. The article makes it sound like this was an "all hands on
deck" activity for the planning department—the whole departmentpitched in.
Compromises were made. The proposed "eight units per parcel" was
reduced down to six units. I find the limit on annual approvals
interesting and elegant. I'm sure some community members thereexpressed concerns about a flurry of teardowns and development
activity, while I'm sure others argued the opposite—a very limited
increase in development activity. A cap (so long as it's not so low as
to render the whole policy moot) provides assurance that anyincrease in development activity would be modest and at a level the
community finds acceptable.
Sharing for your consideration!
Mark
P.S. I've received assurance from the City Attorney that it's permissible forme to share information in this fashion—essentially, as a public comment
to you all. I have copied the city's public comment email address so that
this email will entered into the public record with the other comments to
the Community Development Board. Please do not "reply all" to this email.