It's Time for Cities to Ditch Ballot-Box Planning

Two of the most perilous ballot initiatives in yesterday’s elections didn’t survive the night. In Boulder, Colorado, ballot issues #300 and #301—measures that would have given neighborhoods control over zoning and stifled new development—each failed to reach 40 percent of the vote. These ultra-NIMBY ordinances were amendments to the city’s charter. Had Boulder decided to move in this direction, it would have been difficult to change course in the future.

In San Francisco, Propositions F and I—initiatives that would have imposed severe restrictions on short-term housing rentals (namely Airbnb) and issued a moratorium on new development in the Mission—also failed to gain majorities. Similar to Boulder, had these measures passed in San Francisco, it would have taken still more ballot initiatives to revoke these ordinances in the future.