> Here's a few arguments some New Urbanists have against zoning:
>
> The most beautiful cities in the world were built without zoning and
> planning.
A few years back, I visited for a few days at a friends new home in
southern Indiana. This is an area that has little or no zoning codes.
My friends were rather upset about a new neighbor, who had purchased the
house & an empty lot next door at the end of the cul-de-sac they lived on,
and had proceeded to start a metal plating & recovery business there. This
involved big, noisy, stinky operations for hours on end, often extending
into the night. Plus the recovery part involved buying junked cars and
extracting metal parts from them. The remainder of the cars sat there in
his "junkyard" until once or twice a year when he had them hauled
away. The activities of this 'neighbor' put a serious restriction in the
enjoyment of their own home for everyone else in the neighborhood.
And when they recently moved back to Minnesota, their house sold for less
than expected, largely due to this business in the neighborhood. They
actually had potential buyers who drove away without ever getting out of
their car, once they saw what was going on at the end of the street.
So I would argue that zoning codes are very useful & protect our homes.
Finally, I seriously doubt the accuracy of the statement "The most
beautiful cities in the world were built without zoning and planning."
I've read much about the plans for various European cities, seen photos of
the city walls and the defensible gates built in them, read how city parks
served as in-wall pastures & food gardens when a city was under siege,
etc. One of Leonardo da Vinci's early jobs was to draw up plans for the
city of Florence. Certainly these cities were planned!
And I remember that in ancient Rome, the prime land on the 7 hills was
reserved for people of the Equestrian class or higher. Plus there was the
Forum area, set aside for public speeches, with the surrounding area mainly
political & city buildings & temples. There was also the city market and
commercial area, etc. Pretty close to what we would call zoning nowdays.
Tim Bonham, Ward 12, Standish-Ericsson
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