As surprising as it may seem, please note that the Gainesville City Commission may be on the verge of eliminating single family zoning throughout Gainesville. As longtime resident owners of Gainesville, we have just become aware of this harrowing possibility and wanted to spread the word to the citizens of Gainesville’s many single-family neighborhoods.
The commission is organizing a workshop on this subject on Tuesday, June 21 at 1 p.m. before making any final decision. As such, we encourage all affected owners to email the curators and attend the workshop, if possible.
To be fair, the main stated goal of this city effort is laudable: to increase the supply of affordable housing. Accordingly, we recognize and appreciate that the Municipal Board and staff are well intentioned in this effort. We’re pretty sure that most of us in the Gainesville community are, in fact, very supportive of improving affordable housing.
Unfortunately, the likely ramifications are vast and alarming. More importantly, the city’s current proposals will convert single-family homes into “neighborhood residentials.” For example, it would allow the construction of four units on any lot of half an acre or more, and eight units on any lot of one or more acres.
Additionally, the associated proposals would eliminate room and occupancy limits and allow for essentially unlimited parking. Such changes may well turn current homeownership neighborhoods into “rental neighborhoods.” The enjoyment and land values of homes immediately adjacent to rentals would surely decline.
A fundamental concern is the alarming lack of data, analysis and evidence to support these propositions. Despite the city’s years of attention to this worthy cause, including the engagement of national consultants, no evidence has been presented to show that this approach will be successful and will not result in many negative consequences. and unforeseen for our neighborhoods.
The many accredited and knowledgeable citizens of Gainesville with relevant experience in urban and regional planning, landscape architecture, land use law, etc. are ready to be convinced if credible evidence is presented. Until then, however, the proposed city-wide approach is unsustainable, does not appear strategic, and is far too broad in scope.
Another concern is that there have been very few opportunities for potentially affected citizens to inquire and communicate with city staff and consultants about this. We recognize that COVID has presented unique challenges over the past two years for staff and citizens. Besides the few dedicated citizens who have been following these issues for years, a very small percentage of concerned homeowners are aware of these impending proposals.
The city plan board and some commissioners have recommended workshops in actual neighborhoods, but only one has been planned so far. Meaningful opportunities for citizens, municipal staff and commissioners to collaborate are warranted.
Relying, as this approach does, exclusively on market forces (i.e., profit motives) to achieve desired affordable housing outcomes does not appear to be a prudent and reliable strategy. A cautionary tale is the troubling parallel in the Airbnb marketplace, where investors now account for around 20% of Airbnb units.
The acquisition of these units by companies has undermined the availability of housing in general and affordable housing in particular. The city’s proposals would in fact encourage corporate investors to take advantage of a similar benefit in this case – radically altering the future character of our neighborhoods, without guaranteeing that any new development will actually be affordable.
In conclusion, based on the lack of evidence provided by the city to date, the only prudent course of action is for the commission to reject outstanding proposals that would eliminate single-family zoning throughout the city of Gainesville. At a minimum, the city commission should postpone decisive action, schedule and execute recommended neighborhood workshops, and ensure that meaningful collaboration with concerned citizen owners takes place.
We encourage all current and aspiring homeowners who appreciate the intrinsic and economic values of single-family neighborhoods to educate themselves a bit more, consider contacting City Commissioners, and attend the next workshop on Tuesday, June 21 at 1 p.m.
A great source of information developed by local experts is Gainesville Neighborhoods United at www.gainesvilleneighborhoodsunited.org. From the homepage, navigate to the ‘Resources’, ‘Issues’ and/or ‘Media > Articles & Editorials’ sections to access detailed reviews and relevant insights.
Pam and Casey Fitzgerald are 28-year-old residents of the Ridgewood neighborhood of Gainesville. Pam is retired from the Alachua County School Board and Casey is retired from the St. Johns River Water Management District and is currently president of the Florida Springs Council.
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