Conclusion 

Though often laden with controversy, inclusionary zoning policies have proven effective at providing affordable housing to economically exclusive communities throughout the country. They create a greater number of total affordable units as well as a more thorough diffusion of wealth than the status quo in regions where they are implemented. However, these results are far from a panacea. To properly address affordable housing shortages and income inequity across communities, other housing and economic development policies must work in concert with IZ. Furthermore, IZ is measurably more effective when it is tailored to the economic circumstances of individual cities rather than implemented uniformly on a regional scale. Therefore, a thorough demographic analysis at the regional and municipal levels is important before proposing an IZ policy at either scale.

Below are the questions that were raised for discussion at the beginning of the document.

As a regional agency, CMAP has no regulatory authority over inclusionary zoning or other housing policies, but can give advisory recommendations and promote best practices. As a regional agency, what approach should we take to inclusionary zoning? What would be the overall effect of adopting an inclusionary zoning ordinance in your community? What positives and negatives would come from this? What specific features would an inclusionary zoning policy in your community need to make it successful? If inclusionary zoning ordinances were adopted by communities across the region, what would the overall effects be, both on your community and region-wide?