Arbitrary Lines, M. Nolan Gray
Arbitrary Lines, M. Nolan Gray
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Arbitrary Lines
How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix It

Author: M. Nolan Gray

Narrator: Stephen R. Thorne

Unabridged: 7 hr 3 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 12/06/2022


Synopsis

The arbitrary lines of zoning maps across the country have come to dictate where Americans may live and work, forcing cities into a pattern of growth that is segregated and sprawling.

The good news is that reform is in the air, with states across the country critically reevaluating zoning. In cities as diverse as Minneapolis, Fayetteville, and Hartford, the key pillars of zoning are under fire, with apartment bans being scrapped, minimum lot sizes dropping, and off-street parking requirements disappearing altogether. Some American cities already make land-use planning work without zoning.

In Arbitrary Lines, Gray lays the groundwork for this ambitious cause by clearing up common confusions and myths about how American cities regulate growth and examining the major contemporary critiques of zoning. Gray sets out some of the efforts currently underway to reform zoning and charts how land-use regulation might work in the post-zoning American city.

Gray shows how zoning has failed to address even our most basic concerns about urban growth over the past century, and how we can think about a new way of planning a more affordable, prosperous, equitable, and sustainable American city.

About M. Nolan Gray

M. Nolan Gray is a professional city planner and an expert in urban land-use regulation. He is currently completing a PhD in urban planning at the University of California, Los Angeles. Gray previously worked on the front lines of zoning as a planner in New York City. He now serves as an affiliated scholar with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, where he advises state and local policymakers on land-use policy. Gray is a contributor to Market Urbanism and a widely published author, with work appearing in outlets such as The Atlantic, Bloomberg Citylab, and The Guardian. He lives in Los Angeles, California, and is originally from Lexington, Kentucky.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Logan

Thanks to this book, I'm officially convinced that if cities are to become more affordable, productive, integrated, and environmentally friendly then we must abolish zoning. Not only does zoning not accomplish what it promises, it has far too many harmful effects to justify keeping it. And while thi......more

Goodreads review by Josh

I thought this was great. It does a good job giving an overview of the history and mechanism of zoning without being too dry. Coming into this book I was completely on board with serious zoning reform and moving toward a transit-oriented development scheme but I hadn't given much thought to the idea......more

Goodreads review by David

Handy, broadly accessible, straight-to-the-point survey of what it says on the tin. ... Well, maybe the one way it might be even more transparent and direct is changing the title to Arbitrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix It Why We Should Abolish It :), but I know publisher......more

Goodreads review by Mona

yeah zoning is evil and should be abolished, but this book provides an easy to read, nuanced history / description of zoning and argument for abolishing it.......more

Goodreads review by Santi

Review for the Free Beacon pending!......more