I think so, or at least, Seattle is a long way from the point of diminishing returns: A lot of Seattle housing is single-family homes.
I like how London does it: Houses have to stay houses, but can be carved up into smaller flats, and (in some cases) rebuilt higher to accommodate more tenants.
> Of course, without government-imposed zoning laws, you will also have residential units competing with commercial and industrial ones, too...
So what? I like living between a high street and a park, and I think Americans would adapt to it. There are other ways to curtail the problems living next to manufacturers than to force people to spend four hours behind the wheel of a car.
> It would also be pretty effective at inducing more rich flight from urban areas into the suburbs, which is likely to hurt the cities even more (by reducing their tax base).
New York has a number of "city" taxes that they apply to commuters who work in Manhattan, but want more green. I suspect that would work well.
> I don't think this is all that simple.
I don't think it has to be simple, but it isn't the unknown either: The answers have already been found by other cities.
I think so, or at least, Seattle is a long way from the point of diminishing returns: A lot of Seattle housing is single-family homes.
I like how London does it: Houses have to stay houses, but can be carved up into smaller flats, and (in some cases) rebuilt higher to accommodate more tenants.
> Of course, without government-imposed zoning laws, you will also have residential units competing with commercial and industrial ones, too...
So what? I like living between a high street and a park, and I think Americans would adapt to it. There are other ways to curtail the problems living next to manufacturers than to force people to spend four hours behind the wheel of a car.
> It would also be pretty effective at inducing more rich flight from urban areas into the suburbs, which is likely to hurt the cities even more (by reducing their tax base).
New York has a number of "city" taxes that they apply to commuters who work in Manhattan, but want more green. I suspect that would work well.
> I don't think this is all that simple.
I don't think it has to be simple, but it isn't the unknown either: The answers have already been found by other cities.