Exclusionary Zoning - History

History

Prior to the late 19th century, the United States of America operated under a Laissez-faire economic system where any restrictions on private property rights were denounced. The vast, land-rich country upheld the notion that state powers should not interfere with private property. Also, given the country's predominately rural and isolated composition, most citizens were unconcerned about who their neighbors were at the time. Thus, early Americans largely disapproved of any early attempts at exclusionary zoning.

However, around the turn of the 20th century, a rapid urbanization process and influx of immigrants transformed the country. Middle and upper-classes consequently encountered much greater diversity than they had before making the intrusion of unwanted people into their neighborhoods appear more conceivable. As a result, many cities began implementing the first exclusionary zoning policies. In 1908, Los Angeles adopted the first citywide zoning ordinance protecting residential areas from the entrance of these undesirable community elements. Many of these early regulations directly debarred racial and ethnic minorities from community residence until explicit racial zoning was declared unconstitutional in 1917. Despite the unconstitutionality of such explicit measures, exclusionary ordinances continued to gain popularity throughout the country.

Given the increased utilization of exclusionary zoning, the United States federal government finally addressed the issue with the enactment of the Standard State Zoning Enabling Act of 1922. This legislation established the institutional framework for zoning ordinances. It delegated land-use power to local authorities for the conservation of community welfare and provided guidelines for appropriate regulation usage. In light of these developments, the Supreme Court considered zoning's constitutionality in the 1926 landmark case of Village of Euclid, Ohio v. Ambler Realty Co.. The court ultimately condoned zoning as an acceptable means of community regulation. Following this verdict, the number of municipalities with zoning legislation multiplied from 368 in 1925 to over 1,000 in 1930.

Following World War II's end and the country's subsequent suburbanization process, exclusionary zoning policies experienced an uptick in complexity, stringency and prevalence as suburbanites attempted to more effectively protect their new communities. Many people had severed ties with the city and its unwanted elements as they searched for their suburban utopia. They feared that these very city elements that they escaped would follow them into the suburbs if left unchecked. Thus, middle-class and affluent white, who constituted the majority of suburban inhabitants,more frequently employed measures preventing immigrant and minority integration. As a result of resident's newly found protectionism, the number of jurisdictions with such ordinances increased to over 5,200 by 1968.

While well-off whites mainly inhabited the suburbs, the remaining city residents, primarily impoverished minorities, faced substantial obstacles to wealth. Many attributed their impecunious state to their exclusion from the suburbs. In response, a flurry of exclusionary zoning cases were brought before the Supreme Court in the 1970s that would ultimately determine the tactic's fate. The Supreme Court sided with the proponents of exclusionary zoning in near unanimity which virtually halted any zoning reform movement. Minorities', and other excluded populations, ability to challenge exclusionary zoning became essentially nonexistent allowing the policy's unabated continuation today.

Currently, exclusionary zoning ordinances are standard in almost all communities. A recent comprehensive survey found that over 80% of United States jurisdictions imposed minimum lot size requirements of some kind on their inhabitants. No longer are these mechanisms exclusively used by the privileged upper-class. Now, they are ubiquitous in nearly all aspects of American society as a means of preserving community characteristics.