With a live audience in Cambridge, Massachusetts, we mark (not celebrate) the 100th anniversary of Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty, where the Supreme Court ruled it was constitutional for cities to “zone” land into separate uses. We’re in Cambridge for two reasons. First, we also mark (and celebrate) a forgotten follow-up case from 1928: Nectow v. City of Cambridge. There, the Court clarified that there are situations where zoning rules can be unconstitutional and said that about a particular rule in the city. Second, we hear about the great zoning reforms Cambridge has pursued in recent years, giving it a much simpler zoning code and making it a much better place to build housing. Before an audience of Cambridge residents we hear from a panel of zoning experts: Harvard Law’s Molly Brady, the Vice Mayor of Cambridge, Burhan Azeem, and IJ’s own Ari Bargil. We discuss the two SCOTUS cases and their influence on constitutional law today, hear from Vice Mayor Azeem about the reforms he’s pursued in Cambridge, and speak more generally about whether the future, and property rights, will give us a little more Nectow and a little less Euclid. 

Euclid v. Ambler Realty

Nectow v. City of Cambridge

Molly’s article on deeds

Welcoming Neighbors Network

Bound By Oath episode on Euclid