Taking on Nimbys in the Quest for Growth

For believers in the power of urban density, it’s D-Day in California. The state’s lawmakers, realizing that they’re facing a housing crisis, are introducing a huge number of bills designed to force local governments to allow the construction of more housing. Let's hope the assault succeeds. It would provide a positive example to all the places in the U.S. where California-style housing shortages loom.

The economic shift toward cities has been the story of the past few decades. As economist Enrico Moretti has documented, the U.S. has moved from old-line manufacturing into knowledge-based industries, leading to clustering of smart people, universities and top companies. That has shifted wealth toward college towns, tech hubs and -- most of all -- big cities.