In Towns That Slowed Growth, Backlash Stirs

The New York Times ^ | 02/08/2003 (for editions of 02/09/2003) | Michael Janofsky

[Libertarianize the GOP]

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[Lorianne]

"Berthoud is very much a small town; that's the attraction, that's why a lot of people have moved here,"

Isn't this the crux of the matter? People want a small twon to grow so that they can live there? Where is the logic in this? If you move there and thousands other move there, it's not going to be a small town very long. ???? Can anyone explain this to me?

Why do people want to live in a "small town" and then allow it to become a big town? Why not just move to a big town or a city? Why shouldn't small town people want to keep their town small if the reason they like living there is the smallness? Makes sense to me.

[Larry Lucido]

Why shouldn't small town people want to keep their town small if the reason they like living there is the smallness?

I think the real question is: Why should folks be able to move someplace of their choice, and then slam the door to anyone else who cares to join them? The latest person to arrive has just as much right to move there as does the previous person, as long as someone wants to sell them a piece of land to build on.

[hedgetrimmer]

We have a growth cap in Santa Cruz since the early 90's. We also have experienced phenomonal growth since then. How do you explain the seeming paradox? Well the county issues few permits to build, and they are extravagently expensive. So people build without permits. Also, the county population would be declining, except for illegal immigration. Nearly all of our population growth is coming from illegal immigration. These people live 12 to 20 people per house, so even though the housing permits are restricted, it doesn't affect people willing to live in overcrowded conditions.

[Lorianne]

That's true BUT why are they moving there if it's not going to stay small and they reason they like the place is because it's small???? Does that make any sense?

[Torie]

Which points out one of the problems with local control. Where shall a growing population live? Sensitive question, and one really that puts into the spotlight snob zoning. There are no easy answers. It is a hideously complex question, and probably we will just continue to muddle on with mediocre results.

[Larry Lucido]

No, it doesn't make sense. I saw a lot of growth in rural DeKalb, Illinois in the 5 years I was there, from 1994 to 1999. Folks would move in and then try to stop permits from being issued for new subdivisions in the nearby corn fields.

Of course, it never occurs to these folks that all they have to do is buy the cornfields themselves, and maintain them as farmland, if they are so concerned about stopping growth.

[hedgetrimmer]

What is snob zoning?

[Torie]

Zoning that favors large lots, and minimizes development. It is great for property values if the masses live reasonably nearby to service the needs of those in the snob zones, and afford employment to the snobs. I refer you to Marin County. In passing I might note that I am a big fan of land use control. But getting it right is a Herculean task, and will not be achieved because parochial interests and political muscle will prevail rather than something in the public interest.

[liberallarry]

The theory is that animal populations grow to the limit of available resources, then die off if they shrink. I doubt we're any different.

[Capriole]

Why do people want to live in a "small town" and then allow it to become a big town? Why not just move to a big town or a city? Why shouldn't small town people want to keep their town small if the reason they like living there is the smallness? Makes sense to me.

I agree. It's mystifying. What bugs me even more, though, is the people who move out to the deep country and then get upset because it's a long way to the nearest Blockbuster, supermarket, high-volume pharmacy, mall, Jiffy-Lube, KFC, Burger King, etc. They think they want to live in the country and then get hysterical when the cattle moo at four in the morning or country dogs bark at the coyotes. So they try to bring all that suburban crap out into the sticks and then get hysterical when they're once again surrounded by suburban sprawl. Again, yuppie scum are not self-sufficient small-town or rural dwellers who want to lead their own independent lives, but liberals who want all the comforts of urban life supplied to them by government policy.

[Capriole]

What is snob zoning?

Snob zoning means "any land use that's more expensive than you can afford."

[Capriole]

You know, the trouble is that the developers come in to a small town or rural area, put in several thousand housing units and maybe an "office park," and then move on to greener pastures (no pun intended), leaving the local community to pick up the tab. Too often local officials think that the taxes paid by the new development will help sustain the town financially, but the opposite is the case: new development means new demands for water and sewage, roads, police and fire protection, hospitals, and especially schools. The annual costs are staggering and quite often the long-time residents are overwhelmed by the resultant tax hikes. In many communities elderly people who have lived in a town all their lives, and their young, marriage-age kids, can't afford to live in the home town anymore because of the burden of necessary property taxes.

[meyer]

You know, the trouble is that the developers come in to a small town or rural area, put in several thousand housing units and maybe an "office park," and then move on to greener pastures (no pun intended), leaving the local community to pick up the tab. Too often local officials think that the taxes paid by the new development will help sustain the town financially, but the opposite is the case: new development means new demands for water and sewage, roads, police and fire protection, hospitals, and especially schools. The annual costs are staggering and quite often the long-time residents are overwhelmed by the resultant tax hikes. In many communities elderly people who have lived in a town all their lives, and their young, marriage-age kids, can't afford to live in the home town anymore because of the burden of necessary property taxes.

I've always wondered about the tax issue - you would think that the economy of scale would allow a more populated area to supply services at a cheaper per-capita rate, but it doesn't seem to work that way. I can't explain it.

[hoosierskypilot]

These people live 12 to 20 people per house

How can they do that with restrictions on multi-family dwellings that are sure to be the law in Santa Crud...er..Cruz?

[SierraWasp]

Dang! This sure has a familiar ring to it!!!

[Age of Reason]

Why should folks be able to move someplace of their choice, and then slam the door to anyone else who cares to join them? The latest person to arrive has just as much right to move there as does the previous person

Weird.

[LenS]

Interesting. For a supposedly conservative/libertarian board, I'm not seeing much support here for the idea of property rights.

Any town stupid enough to have no growth policies will in the long run find itself declining badly. It's just a slower, but still deadly, form of communism.

[Mogger]

We have some things more effective than any rules, regulations, or other such irritants that help to keep our small town small.

Winter... 30 to 40 below zero.

Winter... Frost heaves.

Early spring... Spring rains

Spring... Mud season.

Late spring... Black Fly season.

Early summer... Mosquito season.

mid summer... Deer fly season.

Late summer... Horse fly season.

Mosquito hatches after rains throughout these seasons.

Mid fall... Fall rains.

Late fall to early winter and mud season: Tourist season.