Tracy Baynard, Scott Adams Share Insights From ‘Zoning and Segregation in Virginia’ Reports

McGuireWoods Consulting senior vice president Tracy Baynard (Infrastructure & Economic Development) and McGuireWoods Tysons partner Scott Adams (Real Estate & Land Use) participated in panel discussions featuring insights from the firm’s work on housing issues in “Zoning and Segregation in Virginia: Part 1 – Why Virginia Needs a Study of Zoning Laws and Their Connection to Segregation” and “Zoning and Segregation in Virginia: Part 2 — Expanding Housing Choices for the Future of Virginia.”

Baynard and Adams participated in the “Expanding Housing Choices for the Future of Virginia” panel on Sept. 29, 2022, at George Mason University School of Business in Arlington, Virginia. Event attendees shared questions and requests for more information on tactics outlined in Part II of McGuireWoods’ report, such as accessory dwelling unit ordinances, creating by-right missing middle housing options, and ensuring everyone has the opportunity for safe and affordable housing.

On Sept. 28, Baynard participated in the “Missing Middle Housing | Information Session: History & Future of Zoning and Housing Policy” panel hosted by Arlington County, Virginia, board member Christian Dorsey. The panel focused on neighborhoods in Arlington County, showed the long-term impact of zoning issues, and weighed an issue challenging development professionals nationwide: how to create a comprehensive zoning approach that increases the volume and variety of housing within existing communities and provides more “missing middle” housing.

Baynard noted that changing zoning rules are now coming into focus nationwide. “We are living with zoning that has been in place when people were explicitly saying ‘I don’t want you in my neighborhood.’ The court decisions and the Fair Housing Act fixed a lot of things, but it did not address the underlying zoning, which was left as it was.”