As local communities consider changes to zoning regulations, the issue is neatly summarized by Chad Eiken, the city of Vancouver’s community development manager.
“People are used to what they know and what they have, and change is hard,” Eiken says. In other words, people who live in enclaves of single-family homes are understandably resistant to changes that could increase density, invite multifamily dwellings and alter the character of established neighborhoods. If you are a homeowner, you likely do not want your neighbor’s house to be replaced by a fourplex.
Indeed, change is hard. But so are zoning laws that have limited density, contributing to a dearth of housing units and helping to precipitate a homeless crisis. As of 2019, Clark County had a shortage of 13,500 housing units, a number that likely has grown since then and that reflects the challenges of living in a desirable area.
For many residents, we’re guessing the solution seems as easy as a famous quote from former Oregon Gov. Tom McCall: “Come visit us again and again. … But for heaven’s sake, don’t come here to live.”
If only it were that simple. The fact is that Clark County will continue to grow, and Washington’s Office of Financial Management estimates that the local population will increase to about 700,000 over the next two decades.
That leaves us with a choice. We could be an unwelcoming place that does not have enough housing, discourages new residents and businesses, refuses to prepare for the future, and watches our community and economy slowly wither. Or we could recognize that growth translates into strength and vitality, provides workers and customers for businesses, and allows a city to adjust to future challenges.
As somebody once said, if you’re not evolving, you’re dying. The sentiment applies to communities as much as it does to individuals.
That issue is at the crux of discussions to alter zoning rules. Gov. Jay Inslee wants the Legislature to ask voters for $4 billion in bonding authority for state-supported housing construction. He also is pushing for zoning changes that will allow for high-density dwellings, particularly near transit routes, and he views the plan as a way to reduce homelessness.
“It is my belief,” Inslee told The Columbian’s Editorial Board in December, “that it is distressing to everyone to see this degradation that is going on in every urban area in the state, people living in squalor. That’s not acceptable in the state of Washington.”
Increasing density in urban areas is not the only necessary change. Washington’s Growth Management Act has helped prevent the unsightly and environmentally damaging sprawl that many states embrace, but it also has contributed to the housing crunch by restricting the stretch of urban areas.
That, however, is an issue for another time. For now, local leaders have a difficult enough task in increasing density and planning within the constraints of urban growth boundaries.
As Victor Caesar of the Vancouver Housing Authority said: “I think a lot of folks hear the word ‘density,’ and they think that’s a bad thing. But at the end of the day, we want to preserve the wilderness, we want to preserve open space and protect the wildlife. And so I think density, if done well, can be great.”
Doing it well while minimizing disruption to established neighborhoods is a difficult balancing act. But increasing density in the urban core and embracing change is essential to preparing Clark County for a prosperous future.
