Affordable Housing in Suburbia: The Importance But Limited Power and Effectiveness of the State Override Tool

Stonefield, Samuel

Abstract

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Affordable Housing in Suburbia: The Importance But Limited Power and Effectiveness of the State Override Tool

Sam Stonefield

Western New England University School of Law

2001

Western New England Law Review, Vol. 22, p. 323, 2001

Abstract:
This article provides the introduction to a December, 1999 symposium on “Increasing Affordable Housing and Mobility in Three New England States and New Jersey: Comparative Perspectives on the Occasion of the Thirtieth Anniversary of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Permit Law.” It describes the origins and summarizes the essential features of zoning override laws in four states: Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island. It discusses their track record in meeting their various goals – producing affordable housing; increasing mobility and housing choice; and integrating the suburbs. It gives the statutes “two cheers” and then offers suggestions for their improvement.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 32

Keywords: Zoning, Affordable Housing, Mobility, Overrides, Integration, Snob Zoning, Comprehensive Permit, Exclusionary Zoning, Fair Housing

JEL Classification: B10, J7

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Date posted: July 30, 2010 ; Last revised: December 28, 2011

Suggested Citation

Stonefield, Sam, Affordable Housing in Suburbia: The Importance But Limited Power and Effectiveness of the State Override Tool (2001). Western New England Law Review, Vol. 22, p. 323, 2001. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1650319

Contact Information

Samuel Stonefield (Contact Author)

Western New England University School of Law ( email )

1215 Wilbraham Road
Springfield, MA 01119
United States