Legislators: Local decision-making is generally the best way to assure transparency and good outcomes reflecting relevant circumstances especially in land use issues. This legislation, and others like it, despite good intent, go in the opposite direction. by mandating by-right development and amount to unfunded mandates. So, I ask that it and other by-right proposals not be enacted and we search for better ways to move forward.

Please find attached written testimony on behalf of the Institute for Justice in support of SB 454.

Please support SB 454. Young people like me are being crushed by the housing supply crisis. Rents are skyrocketing. The average first time homebuyer just hit 40. Young people are packed into single family homes, apartments, and basements like sardines. People are putting off having families because they can't afford a place. Experts and economists agree that this is caused by local regulations banning new housing, and agree that building housing would address the crisis. Yet, despite all of this, Virginia government continues to take the absurd step of banning new housing where it is needed most. My peers are disillusioned because they can't afford housing. My peers believe that the government will always serve the wealthy, entitled few who want as little housing built as possible. They believe that because they see that the only people local government listens to are the most wealthy, most NIMBY constituents who have the time to show up and yell at local officials at planning meetings during business hours. Many of you ran on cost of living. This is a reasonable, effective step to make housing more affordable by legalizing an increase in supply where it is needed most. Please, make good on your promises to address affordability. Please pass this reasonable reform to legalize housing near jobs.

Dear Committee Members- thank you for the opportunity to submit these comments on behalf of the City of Falls Church Council. SUPPORT: SB 328, this is a beneficial local tool for providing housing affordability options for local employees and request approval effective in 2026 versus a continued 2027. OPPOSE: SB454, removal of local zoning and land use approval is extremely concerning. Zoning districts developed and adopted with local input designed to meet locality public health, safety and community character. One size does not fit all. There are other options and tools to achieve the housing affordability goals such as statewide authorization to sue 15.2-2304. Thank you for your continued service, Cindy Mester, Legislative Affairs Director

Please see attached letter in support of SB 531. This bill gives needed flexibility to landowners and will help ease the housing shortage throughout Virginia.

Virginia’s housing shortage is being driven by outdated zoning that blocks homes in the very places where people work. The Housing Near Jobs bill fixes that by allowing homes in commercial and office areas—near jobs, services, and infrastructure we already have. This means shorter commutes, lower housing costs, and a stronger economy—without raising taxes. The “Housing Near Jobs” proposal is a state-level housing supply bill aimed at addressing housing affordability and availability in areas close to employment centers. The core idea is to make it easier to build homes where jobs already exist by changing local zoning restrictions. It would legalize residential construction in many commercial, office, and retail zoning districts where housing is typically restricted, especially in high-opportunity areas with strong job markets. The intent is to allow more housing to be built “by right” (i.e., without expensive and uncertain rezoning processes), reducing costs and speeding up development near jobs. This fits into a broader effort to help workers live closer to employment centers and reduce housing cost burdens that hit families in high-demand regions hardest. The policy motivation behind the “Housing Near Jobs” bill and related proposals includes: Increasing the housing supply in high-demand job centers so that working families aren’t priced out of areas where they are employed. Cutting red tape and permitting uncertainty that can delay or deter housing development. Addressing housing affordability by enabling more homes to be built quickly and predictably close to employment hubs. Why This Bill Matters Housing costs are outpacing wages across Virginia, especially in job-rich areas. Many office parks, shopping corridors, and commercial zones sit partially empty but cannot legally have housing. When workers can’t live near their jobs, families pay more, commutes get longer, and businesses struggle to hire. What the Bill Does Allows housing by right in commercial and business districts where jobs already exist. Reduces delays, uncertainty, and costs caused by discretionary rezoning. Encourages market-driven housing production without mandates on who must build or what must be built. Benefits for Everyday Virginians Lower housing costs by increasing supply where demand is highest. Less traffic and congestion by shortening commutes. More options for teachers, nurses, service workers, and young families. Revitalizes struggling commercial areas without new infrastructure spending. Benefits for the Commonwealth Supports economic growth by helping employers attract and retain workers. Makes better use of existing roads, utilities, and transit. Reduces pressure to sprawl into farmland and rural areas. Aligns housing policy with workforce and economic development goals. Addressing Common Concerns “This takes away local control.” Local zoning has contributed to a statewide housing shortage with statewide consequences. The General Assembly already sets standards in transportation, education, and environmental protection—housing affordability deserves the same attention. “This will change community character.” The bill focuses on commercial and office areas, not established residential neighborhoods. Habitat for Humanity of Northern Virginia and D.C., which serves Arlington and Fairfax County, City of Fairfax, Alexandria and Falls Church, supports SB 454 and urge you to pass it this year!

I sincerely urge you to support this bill. For too long, we have allowed restrictive single use zoning to make our cities and towns less livable, more expensive, and more exclusive. Enabling our neighbors to live where they work and do business is a common sense solution to a problem that is forcing people to abandon the places that they want to live in order to live a walkable, transitable lifestyle. If you want families and young people to stay in our communities, you must make space. To spike this bill over concerns from localities would be to ignore what your constituents are asking for. We want to live, work, play, and plant roots in our neighborhoods, but right now, too often, because a city colors a street map and attaches an arbitrary zoning classification, we can't do that forcing communities into sprawl and exclusivity. Please, reject what has been, and move towards what can be and in every major country and growing region in this country has shown to be the pattern of development that people want and can thrive in.

Chesterfield has 4 specific corridors for commercial development that SB454 would eventually eliminate. In a growing county, allowing for by-right development of multi-family would hinder the ability to have the commercial that all residents need. We need land for goods and services and not over development of one specific sector of the housing market which by-right will bring. Please allow localities to continue to determine what is best by NOT supporting this bill.

City of Falls Church Council respectfully submits comments on tje following: 1) Suppprt SB74 for furthering permossive affordable housing statewide, we all are working together 2) Support SB589- good step forward on tree onservation a key priority as the City has been a tree city USA for 47 consecutive years 3) Oppose SB454 as localities must have ability to oversee zoning diatricts for benefit of its community and one size does not fit all, SB 717 overlay model is a preferred approach to addressing housing affordablility. Thank you for your consideration.