Of all the issues the Oak Park Village Board could be addressing — traffic, noise, leaf collection, green space, pest control, administrative staffing, crime — it has chosen to allocate time and resources to the most contentious, zoning.
Zoning is contentious because it acts on both the demand for, and supply of, housing, one of the most important considerations in every household. Moreover, the zoning argument is easily conflated with other issues, including affordability and racism.
Can we put the racism argument aside? In Oak Park we all live in racially integrated neighborhoods precisely because we welcome residents of all races and ethnicities.
The affordability question is more complex. On the one hand, reducing restrictions on single-family ownership may increase the supply of housing by a relatively small amount over time by permitting more small dwelling units to be constructed. Those new units may be marginally more affordable for people willing to live in small units with high taxes per square foot in exchange for the privileges of living in Oak Park, such as decent schools, relatively safe and attractive neighborhoods, racial diversity, and walkability.
On the demand side, however, zoning changes pit existing property owners against developers and neighbors by putting property values at risk. Their neighbors, though, worry that their property values will decline because of higher density next door, which adds noise, reduces green space and natural light, and invites vermin, parking contention and traffic congestion. Poorly executed changes in zoning may ultimately destroy the very amenities that make our community inherently valuable.
Thus, we are at high risk of robbing the Peters who have already invested in our homes, neighborhoods and schools to pay the Pauls who have not. Giving this village board the sole power to change fundamental zoning rules that have underpinned the success of this community risks unleashing a destructive downward spiral in property values.
And it does not reduce village costs or tax rates.
Jim Farrell
26-year resident of Oak Park
Urban and Public Finance Economist