Back in April, Governor Abigail Spanberger signed a bill that allows religious organizations to develop "by right," meaning they do NOT need to get zoning approval from local governments. And now those local governments are divided about the new law.
"Faith in Housing" is what supporters call the new law, which is also sometimes called "Yes in God's Backyard" or YIGBY; that’s in contrast to "Not in My Back Yard" or NIMBY. The idea is that churches or other religious organizations would be able to develop affordable housing without worrying about expensive and challenging rezoning approvals from local governments. But Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Phyllis Randall says this is one of the largest unfunded mandates Virginia has ever seen.
"Building homes should come with infrastructure," Randall says. "And when you do not have school buildings, when you do not have roads, when you do not have things to welcome new neighbors, then it will be a disaster for economies all across Virginia to say that you have to have homes, but you do not have any infrastructure to welcome those new friends and neighbors."
Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins disagrees.
"This has been a tool that works, and the dollars should not be spent doing drawing after drawing and form after form, but should be put back into the housing and the programs that Alexandrians need. We do not feel it's an unfunded mandate," Gaskins says. "We feel it is a partnership with the state to be able to have the state take up their role as well and making sure that people have a good place to live."
The new law takes effect in January and it sunsets in 2031.
