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Nathan Smith objects to zoning. A slice:
Zoning can be a form of class warfare. Government power is deployed on behalf of rich people, to keep poor people out of their field of vision. In the early twentieth century, some officials used zoning laws to exclude racial minorities from white neighborhoods. Today, class has replaced race as a main motivator for exclusion. Even when officials claim other intentions, zoning’s effects are the same. Government interference with land use blocks people from stretching scarce dollars by sleeping more people in a room, for example, or converting single-family homes into multi-family homes. High property taxes and onerous construction codes make housing less affordable for everyone, especially the poor.
Scott Sumner on Milton Friedman’s legacy.