Madison Area

[Rothman]

Madison should adopt Houston-like zoning laws that permit the easy construction of highrises, of course without breaching the height limit. Then it should reconstruct the Beltline and I-39/90 and convert US 51, Pleasant View Road/McKee Road and US 12 north of Middleton into freeways. Of course, all of this extra space would probably spike the population and necessitate the introduction of a subway system...

The last time I saw this many bad ideas in a single paragraph, it involved FritzOwl

I'll just wait (assuming that I live long enough to see it) for the USSupremes to rule that a local zoning related development denial is a 'compensatible public taking' under 5A (yes, I sense that the current Court could very well do that), overturning a century-old decision to the contrary.  Also the (related?) trend towards 'desuburbanization' that I see starting within the next several decades.

Mike

I definitely think you're right that this is a plausible action by the current court. I find it ironic, however, that the political impetus for doing so is to favor a group who will find the likely outcome appalling—not only the bizarre results that Houston gets from lack of zoning laws, but it will also remove the primary tool NIMBYs use to obstruct development. That makes things like 15-minute cities and other forms of New Urbanism more attainable, as well as potentially resolving the California housing crisis, which would probably put that state back on the path to long-term population growth.

This seems a very optimistic view.  There could be a whole host of negative outcomes from such a ruling as well.  Could even go the other way and result in more single-family housing being built...

You aren't wrong, but having always lived somewhere where more single-family housing being built is the default anyway, I don't really see that particular outcome as being much of a change in the status quo.

Madison should adopt Houston-like zoning laws that permit the easy construction of highrises, of course without breaching the height limit. Then it should reconstruct the Beltline and I-39/90 and convert US 51, Pleasant View Road/McKee Road and US 12 north of Middleton into freeways. Of course, all of this extra space would probably spike the population and necessitate the introduction of a subway system...

The last time I saw this many bad ideas in a single paragraph, it involved FritzOwl

I'll just wait (assuming that I live long enough to see it) for the USSupremes to rule that a local zoning related development denial is a 'compensatible public taking' under 5A (yes, I sense that the current Court could very well do that), overturning a century-old decision to the contrary.  Also the (related?) trend towards 'desuburbanization' that I see starting within the next several decades.

Mike

I definitely think you're right that this is a plausible action by the current court. I find it ironic, however, that the political impetus for doing so is to favor a group who will find the likely outcome appalling—not only the bizarre results that Houston gets from lack of zoning laws, but it will also remove the primary tool NIMBYs use to obstruct development. That makes things like 15-minute cities and other forms of New Urbanism more attainable, as well as potentially resolving the California housing crisis, which would probably put that state back on the path to long-term population growth.

This seems a very optimistic view.  There could be a whole host of negative outcomes from such a ruling as well.  Could even go the other way and result in more single-family housing being built...

You aren't wrong, but having always lived somewhere where more single-family housing being built is the default anyway, I don't really see that particular outcome as being much of a change in the status quo.

...just accelerated.