OPINION: Concerned by Assembly’s zoning change push

I am concerned by the Anchorage Assembly’s continued rush to push through big zoning changes that benefit developers at the expense of neighborhoods. I have lived in Anchorage for 30 years, and I have seen many changes to the zoning code — changes that followed the city’s well-established comprehensive plan. Until recently, I have felt like I had a voice in those changes, and that there was an honest effort by Assembly members to follow the city’s zoning process, rely on city planners for their expertise, and respect homeowners’ viewpoints.

I don’t sense any of that from the current Assembly.

I sense disrespect, even hostility, toward homeowners and neighborhood councils that speak up or disagree with the Assembly. Current Assembly members operate as if they were professional city planners, which they are not, rather than people elected to represent all of us, not just developers.

As homeowners, we are heavily invested in our neighborhoods. Yet we are forced to sit back and watch as neighborhoods are tossed around and carved up like spoils of war. We have a right to protect our homes and to the quiet enjoyment of neighborhoods where we live and raise our children.

The recent R-2M zone changes the Assembly has shoved down our throats — over the strong opposition of community councils — provided inadequate notice to the public, inadequate information as to the consequences of the changes, inadequate opportunities for public input, and a generally dismissive attitude toward residents who expressed concerns.

R2M zoning changes that allow fourplexes (plus an ADU) to be built on the smallest lots were made without even notifying property owners and neighborhoods directly affected by them. State law requires public notices be mailed to owners of properties that would be affected by rezoning. Why didn’t that happen?

The zoning code is not a “complex, prescriptive rulebook that stands in the way of diverse, abundant housing.” The zoning code was created through a comprehensive and inclusive partnership with the community to ensure we have safe, healthy neighborhoods with sidewalks, setbacks, access to sunlight, yard space for children to play, traffic control, design standards, access to parks and off-street parking, among other desirable elements.

Zoning is not to blame for the high cost of housing. High mortgage rates, steep costs of materials, supply shortages, a declining workforce, and a pandemic-related decline in construction workers are the big contributors — not zoning.

Handing our neighborhoods over to developers will not bring down the cost of housing in Anchorage. We have watched older homes torn down and replaced by lavish townhomes and condos built near downtown, Midtown, the Park Strip and elsewhere — homes that are unaffordable to most Anchorage residents.

The city should look for opportunities to create genuine infill and redevelopment, especially in the urban core. The city is dotted with vacant lots, as well as vacant warehouse buildings and malls that sit idle year after year. Those should be viewed as spaces for redevelopment and housing, rather than tearing up established neighborhoods to shoehorn in dense housing on small residential lots.

We, homeowners, are forced to rely more heavily on neighborhood councils and coalitions to inform and represent us because we are not getting that from the Assembly, which has grown increasingly exclusive and out of touch with homeowners.

Sharon Stockard has lived and owned a home in Anchorage for 30 years.

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