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"Density Zoning Interacts With Racial Diversity: New Evidence From National Data" (with Vicki Been)

Abstract: We study the role density zoning plays in neighborhood racial change with a new ‘atlas’ of regulatory discontinuities. Combining geocoded property records with estimates of minimum lot size restrictions within U.S. cities, we identify the borders of areas where sharp shifts occur in the maximum allowable residential density. Merging that border data with the demographics of Census blocks on each side of the border, we estimate how minimum lot sizes contribute to differences in the racial diversity of neighborhoods. We find that the effects minimum lot sizes have on racial diversity vary significantly, depending on the urban context. Economically meaningful effects are concentrated in areas of higher density suburban development. There, lot size restrictions that decrease density by 2 units per acre relative to areas on the other side of the regulatory boundary cause sizable declines in diversity. We explore policy applications of our results on the geography of diversity-impacting regulations, as well as potential explanations for the negligible effects of the largest lot size regulations.

1:30pm-3:00pm | In Person, 3rd Floor Library, NJ Hall | Coordinators: Hector Blanco and Jacob Bastian