The Shortline 1-19-24
Harrisonburg prepares for the opening of the city's second high school. CTB to consider land use in SMART SCALE applications. An analysis of small-lot subdivisions for housing affordability.
The Valley
Harrisonburg’s second high school, Rocktown High, is expected to open this fall, and is staffing up for the 2024-25 school year. (The Citizen)
Harrisonburg’s work toward being solar-friendly continues with new recognition. The city received the SolSmart Silver award getting national attention for its work to remove administrative and permit barriers to new solar. (WHSV)
One person is dead and another person is injured after a vehicle crash on on Waggys Creek Road in Rockingham County. (WHSV)
While the number of home sales in Page County have slowed, values locally are still on the rise. The average sales price of a home in Page County reached an all-time high last year of $306,148. (Page Valley News)
Shenandoah Valley farmers are hopeful the recent rain and snow will help replenish the groundwater after last year’s regional drought. (WHSV)
Virginia
The Commonwealth Transportation Board on Tuesday reversed an earlier decision to stop considering efficient land use as a factor in determining what transportation projects to fund through the state’s SMART SCALE program. The members indicated they believe state code “requires the prioritization process” to include the land use factor. (Virginia Mercury)
State Senator Danica Roem has submitted 5 bills aimed at curbing data center sprawl, including SB 285, which would require data center developers seeking a rezoning to disclose facilities’ water and power demands as well as their impact on the electrical grid, carbon emissions and local agricultural, historical and cultural resources. (Prince William Times)
House Bill 636 would let the state step in to approve sites for solar facilities if local officials don’t act in a timely way on a request to install them. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
Virginia is missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding that could be used to offset costs for families and businesses as utilities invest in infrastructure to meet growing energy demand. (Cardinal News)
A group of Prince William County residents filed a lawsuit Friday that seeks to nullify the county board’s vote last month to approve a massive data center complex near a Civil War battlefield site. (The Washington Post)
Fairfax hopes to increase and diversify its housing stock with targeted policies, such as looser rules for accessory living units (ALUs) and workforce housing requirements. (FFX Now)
Many Metro riders are forced to drive to Metro stations and park because good pedestrian and bike connections don’t exist. WMATA can generate revenue to address its financial needs by repurposing underutilized parking lots for dense mixed-use housing. (Greater Greater Washington)
A State Senate committee voted down three Republican bills that would repeal Virginia’s electric-vehicle mandate. (Augusta Free Press)
The Southside Community Development and Housing Corporation is introducing a pilot program to advance Black homeownership in Virginia’s capital city through down payment assistance and housing counseling. (Next City)
The U.S. Department of Transportation is putting over $1.7 billion into Virginia’s trains and rail services. One advantage trains have over cars is their safety. Over 19 thousand people died in motor vehicle accidents in just the first half of 2023. (The Commonwealth Times)
Elsewhere
Affordability and gentrification are directly tied to our zoning, land use and subdivision codes, and access to capital factors heavily into housing choice. Without the flexibility to subdivide small lots, we will continue to see affordability and displacement issues on the rise. (KUA)
Zoning reform hasn’t resulted in a surge of new missing middle housing in many US cities. Strata-titling to allow infill developments to be large enough to justify the price of land is one approach to stimulate construction. (Next City)
No generation has shaped the modern housing market more than baby boomers. As boomers sell their houses, Gen Z is in a better position than Millennials to be next in line to buy that stock. (Business Insider)
After years of adjusting land-use regulations, Minneapolis boosted its housing stock by 12%, while rents grew at just 1%. Meanwhile, the rest of Minnesota increased its stock by 4% as rents rose 14%. (Route Fifty)
Factory-built housing has been hailed as a solution to the housing shortage and affordability crisis, but several modular housing companies have gone bust. The complex web of local and state regulations can make it difficult for modular home companies to build the economies of scale they need to bring down costs and turn a profit. (Business Insider)
Only around 10%-15% of office buildings nationwide can realistically be transformed to housing. That is, in part, because so many office buildings constructed in the last 50 years have such enormous footprints. (60 Minutes)
Portland City Council is considering tweaks to city development rules to incentivize housing construction across the city. The debate pits environmental concerns against the region’s housing needs. (OPB)
Michigan and more than a dozen other states are considering changes that would supersede local zoning authority and allow state authorities to approve or disapprove locations for utility-scale solar projects. (AP)
According to an October report by Market Watch, Americans needed an annual income of at least $100,000 to afford a car. That means that more than 60 percent of American households currently cannot afford to buy a new car. (Newsweek)
A new digital platform being piloted in cities around the world is making public transportation more efficient, economical and accessible, while encouraging low-carbon travel. Mobility-as-a-Service is an on-demand service that integrates various forms of transportation services into a single platform accessible to travelers via a digital app. (World Resources Institute)
New Irish government planning guidelines have said that to combat climate change, parking provision at new housing developments should be “reduced at all urban locations,” and, in certain areas, be “minimised, substantially reduced or wholly eliminated.” (Gript)
The potential to co-locate solar with other land uses to provide additional social, economic, and environmental benefits is a major departure from traditional energy development, which has historically been in tension with other types of land use. (Clean Air Task Force)
A new study has found that much of the land needed to preserve biodiversity and maintain well-being for humans is lacking protections that would prevent development. Of the most critical areas on Earth for biodiversity, about 37% are also valued for development opportunities. (Eco Watch)