An editorial in the Los Angeles Times calls for state lawmakers to pass legislation that would “sacrifice single-family zoning to save California.” But abolishing single-family zoning means restoring a little freedom to property owners, and freedom is not a sacrifice.
Sacrifice “is the surrender of a greater value for the sake of a lesser one or of a nonvalue.” To say that abolishing zoning is a sacrifice is to proclaim that land-use regulations are a greater value than freedom. In truth, abolishing zoning would partially restore our highest value in the context of social/political policy—freedom.
Zoning gives government officials the power to dictate how land may or may not be used. That power can be, and frequently is, used to control virtually every aspect of a property’s use. Zoning has been used to dictate what types of trees must be planted and where. Zoning has been used to dictate what store owners may display outside their property. Zoning has been used to keep “undesirables” out of a neighborhood.
Zoning has caused incalculable sacrifice during its hundred-year history. It has been used to force developers to lop off the top of nearly completed buildings, despite receiving prior zoning approval. It has forced developers to abandon plans for new housing. It has prevented homeowners from expanding their home to accommodate a growing family. In short, zoning has forced countless property owners to sacrifice their dreams and desires.
To call the abolition of zoning a sacrifice is akin to calling the end of slavery a sacrifice. Slavery was an abominable institution that prevented individuals from living their lives as they chose. Zoning is an abominable institution that prevents individuals from living their lives as they chose. Neither has moral justification.
With the end of slavery, plantation owners had to find voluntary ways to obtain the labor they required. With the end of zoning, property owners will have to find voluntary ways to resolve disputes with their neighbors over land use.
Abolishing single-family zoning isn’t a sacrifice. It is cause for a celebration.