In cities across the United States, strict zoning laws contribute to the housing crisis. In Pullman, legislators are addressing this issue by evaluating how to fix current zoning laws that limit affordable housing.
On Oct. 5, the city concluded the last of several town meetings about making zoning less restrictive. These meetings have been supplemented by a survey provided by the City of Pullman’s Community Development Department.
The Pullman City Code currently designates four main residential zoning districts. These districts are known as R1, R2, R3 and R4.
R1 is designated for single-family residential housing. In Pullman, R1 districts make up a considerable majority of the residential districts, according to ArcGIS Enterprise.
Pullman City Code establishes seven general purposes for residential districts. Two of the seven purposes listed are to protect the interests of R1 districts.
“[To] protect low density residential districts from the effects associated with medium and high density residential districts by fostering quiet seclusion, fewer moving and stationary vehicles, larger yards, and fewer people,” the Pullman City Code said. “[And] to preserve and protect low density residential districts for dwelling units occupied by traditional and functional families.”
Residential zoning districts are historically tied to intentional policy following the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Economics Professor Christopher Clarke said. Due to generations of enslavement, racial and class discrimination often correlate.
Not only are R1 districts inherently discriminatory due to systemic racial and class discrimination, but they also decrease density and raise the cost of living, Clarke said.
Low density residential districts raise the cost of living due to the law of supply and demand. Less supply decreases quantity, which creates a supply shortage and increases costs.
In addition to city code, homeowners are also economically incentivized to support restrictive zoning laws, Clarke said.
“If you own a house, you want that house to appreciate in value,” he said. “You can artificially restrict supply via zoning laws.”
According to Clarke, there is a simple solution.
“Get rid of R1, turn it into R2 at the minimum, and increase the amount of R3 and R4,” he said.
R2 districts are designated for low density multi-family housing, R3 districts are for medium density multi-family housing and R4 are for high density multi-family housing.
Increasing R2, R3 and R4 districts would raise density and lower the cost of living, according to the economic principle of supply and demand. More supply increases quantity, which increases surplus and decreases costs.
The Washington State Legislature seems to agree. During the 2023 legislative session, Washington passed House Bill 1110, also known as the Middle Housing Bill.
In effect, HB 1110 prohibits residential districts from restricting multi-family housing.
The idea behind getting rid of R1 districts is not to prohibit single-family housing, but to stop the prohibition against multi-family housing.
Other solutions for decreasing the cost of living includes increasing walkability and city services like transportation, Clarke said.
By incorporating commercial districts with residential districts, people are incentivized to walk and use public transportation, he said. This decreases the demand for parking lots and increases the quantity of developable land.
