Chapter 11: Suburbs

Question 2

What are the two competing visions of suburbia?

Answer 2

Suburbs as success (American Dream, family life, safety) versus suburbs as failure (sprawl, segregation, fiscal/environmental dysfunction).

Question 3

What percentage of Americans live in suburbs?

Answer 3

Nearly 60%, including denser suburbs like Evanston or Gary.

Question 4

What characterizes the typical suburban home pattern in the U.S.?

Answer 4

Over half of metropolitan households live in single-family houses, far higher than cities like Paris or Tokyo.

Question 5

What drove post-WWII suburban expansion?

Answer 5

GI Bill mortgages, automobile ownership, cheap land, and highway construction.

Question 6

How did Euclidean zoning contribute to suburbanization?

Answer 6

It constitutionalized low-density single-family zoning and separation of uses.

Question 7

What is sprawl?

Answer 7

Low-density, auto-dependent, leapfrog development extending outward from urban cores.

Question 8

What is “hypersprawl”?

Answer 8

Extreme low-density development unique to the U.S. compared to global cities.

Question 9

What was the Chicago example of sprawl (1970–1990)?

Answer 9

Population grew 4%, while land used for housing grew 46%.

Question 10

What private preferences contribute to sprawl?

Answer 10

Desire for detached homes, yards, perceived safety, and “move-up” housing.

Question 11

What public policies historically encouraged sprawl?

Answer 11

FHA/VA mortgages, interstate highways, cheap gas, and federal tax subsidies.

Question 12

How do local zoning codes promote sprawl?

Answer 12

By restricting multifamily housing, mandating large lots, and separating residential and commercial uses.

Question 13

What environmental impacts result from sprawl?

Answer 13

High energy and land consumption, longer commutes, and increased emissions.

Question 14

What fiscal impacts result from sprawl?

Answer 14

Duplicated infrastructure, inefficient service provision, and high long-term maintenance costs.

Question 15

What social impacts are associated with sprawl?

Answer 15

Claims of rootlessness, loss of community, and “McMansion” culture.

Question 16

What aesthetic critiques have New Urbanists made of suburbs?

Answer 16

They describe suburban form as ugly, auto-centric, and hostile to pedestrians.

Question 17

How does sprawl relate to equity concerns?

Answer 17

It entrenches racial and economic exclusion, pushing low-income residents into declining cores.

Question 18

What zoning doctrine legitimized single-family preference?

Answer 18

Euclid v. Ambler Realty (U.S. 1926) — allowed use segregation and protecting homes from apartments (“mere parasites”).

Question 19

How can modern environmental regulation unintentionally worsen sprawl?

Answer 19

By restricting density, mandating parking, or complicating infill (“green tape” problems).

Question 20

Why is regional planning important for addressing sprawl?

Answer 20

Sprawl is regional, but U.S. land use authority is fragmented across many small jurisdictions.

Question 21

What did Golden v. Ramapo (N.Y. 1972) establish?

Answer 21

A point system linking growth to infrastructure capacity; upheld as rational growth management.

Question 22

What was the core issue in Petaluma (9th Cir. 1975)?

Answer 22

Whether annual housing caps (500 units) violated due process or the Commerce Clause.

Question 23

What was the holding in Petaluma?

Answer 23

Upheld — growth limits were rationally related to welfare goals like character, open space, and orderly development.

Question 24

What is the significance of Petaluma?

Answer 24

It extended Euclidean deference to growth controls, not just to use segregation.

Question 25

What criticism did Justice Mosk raise in Livermore (1976)?

Answer 25

“Preserving character” can mask **exclusion**, and courts should ensure fair-share housing responsibility.

Question 26

What did **Sustainable Growth Initiative v. Jumpers (Nev. 2006)** hold?

Answer 26

Voter-approved growth cap (2%/yr) was valid and **substantially compliant** with the Master Plan.

Question 27

Why did the Nevada Supreme Court uphold the Jumpers growth cap?

Answer 27

It aligned with Master Plan goals: rural character, water conservation, and sustainable growth.

Question 28

What was the rule in **Jumpers**?

Answer 28

Zoning by initiative is valid if it **substantially complies** with the Master Plan and is not arbitrary.

Question 29

What happened in **City of Boca Raton v. Boca Villas (Fla. 1979)**?

Answer 29

The court struck down a **permanent population cap**—no rational link to public welfare.

Question 30

Why were Boca Raton’s permanent caps invalid?

Answer 30

No showing of infrastructure strain; “community preference” alone cannot justify a **permanent exclusion**.

Question 31

What general rule distinguishes valid from invalid growth caps?

Answer 31

**Temporary, data-driven** caps may advance welfare; **permanent**, unjustified caps are arbitrary.

Question 32

**Quiz concept:** What has been the most successful legal justification for suburban growth controls?

Answer 32

**Character** — courts defer when limits aim to preserve community character or quality of life.

Question 33

**Midterm concept:** Why do courts rarely strike down suburban growth controls?

Answer 33

Because courts apply **rational basis** and defer heavily to **local legislative judgment**.