Balancing the Loud, Local Voices Opposing New Housing
Oct 13, 2023
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Exploring the housing crisis in the US and the need for effective political action. Challenging stereotypes about apartment dwellers and emphasizing the benefits of housing reform. Strategies to counteract the negative influence of 'NIMBYs' and building a network of pro-growth housing advocates.
Left-leaning urban youth and libertarians share a broad agreement on the need for new housing despite other ideological differences.
Educating communities about the positive connections between housing and various aspects like public safety and strong schools can help address opposition and promote necessary reforms.
Deep dives
Importance of Broad Agreement on Housing Issues
There is a surprising alignment between libertarians and left-leaning young urban people on the issue of housing. Despite other ideological differences, they share a broad agreement on the creation of new housing. While disagreements on solutions do exist, recognizing this alignment can be a step towards addressing the housing crisis.
Overcoming Opposition to More Housing
The opposition to more housing often comes from certain segments of the right, including those wanting to protect the status quo and fears of negative impacts on property values. However, there is a need to educate communities about the positive connections between housing, economic resiliency, public safety, and strong schools. Creating effective political action and advocating for housing abundance can help address the opposition and promote the necessary reforms.
The housing crisis is actually myriad local crises. Combating that will, at some point, require some local ingenuity. Greg Brooks of the Better Cities Project has a few ideas to help generate the will to build more.