Nimby Divided by Yimby Equals One

When you divide a number by that same number the result is one. Although this math analogy does not totally work, the overall concept is important. I was on a video conference call yesterday with some great minds of real estate development and architecture. During the conversation someone mentioned the notion of “nimby-ism” and how that battle cry or moniker finds its roots in California, particularly Southern California. As usual, and since my mind is completely consumed with all things architecture twenty-four-seven, that got me to thinking.

For all that do not know the terminology, N.I.M.B.Y. is an acronym meaning “Not In My Back Yard.” The sibling term YIMBY means YES In My Back Yard. These terms refer to the the residents of a community’s feelings towards new developments and proposals that are planned adjacent to where they live. In some cases, it can be reactions to things that are far from their communities but still have some type of impact on their lives; direct or perceived.

NIMBY-ism has so many negative connotations associated with it. They are said to be folks that do not like change, or more specifically, do not enjoy the idea of their neighborhoods evolving into something that includes more housing density or industrial zoning. They are thought to be filled with fear and the two words that frightens them most is Affordable Housing. NIMBY type people (they would never call themselves that term) are simply voicing their dislike for these things in their communities. They are comfortable with the way that things are. What is so wrong with that? This is America and they are simply expressing their right to speak their opinions.

YIMBY-ism is the exact opposite. They desire evolution in the built environment and understand that change is inevitable so we might as well embrace it and find ways to create benefits for society - that is the thought anyways. They want to see new developments open up to increase the housing stock, decrease rents, and potentially bring new commerce and vibrancy to the community. They see change as a positive thing and are willing to tolerate the impacts that come with that change.

After thinking about this topic for quite some time, I came to realize that NIMBY and YIMBY are exactly the same things. The terminology is interchangeable based upon what is being proposed. The following example may be a bit extreme but it serves to elevate the concept. If I proposed to build a tower next to a group of single family homes in a community that has very low density, but this tower had all the amenities that the YIMBY people wanted, they would most likely reject that proposal. In fact, anyone would reject a rediculous proposal such as that. But would that still make them a NIMBY. The term is so confusing to me.

In contrast, if there was an empty lot near a strip mall that is adjacent to a single family home neighborhood and you proposed to build a small convenience store, a typical NIMBY area would be all for it. They would welcome something like this with open arms.

I am sure there is some alternate angle that I am not describing and someone will call me out and say: “well what about this, and what about that?” It could be this or that, but it does not really matter to me, a NIMBY is a YIMBY and a YIMBY is a NIMBY. NIMBY divided by YIMBY equals One; they are essentially the same thing. I think the terms are absurd and is on the same line of calling a kid a name on the playground.

So what is the problem with people that do not want to live near affordable housing. If they are seeing the negative side of the coin, they are usually making some valid points. They speak about the potential increase in traffic. If you have one hundred new apartment units there will be a drastic increase in automobile traffic. The problem with that is not the development, the issue is that we live in a auto-centric society where we design our cities where cars and trucks are more important that people.

The same wary resident reviewing a proposed development might be concerned with additional noise pollution, which is a valid concern. A great metric to create would be the ratio of boom box car speakers per housing development. So if there is a 300 unit apartment building the ratio would be 0.1 booming car speakers per unit. For a 300 unit project that would be 30 cars with booming speakers. That is a lot of noise especially if there are places for people to sit idle in their cars near the existing residents and listen to loud music. But is that a problem with the development? No, that is a societal problem based on poor parenting and limited consequences that train our kids to lack the insight to understand how they impact the world around them. Believe me, I know this because I was one of those oblivious kids for some time until I changed.

The concerned residents might also be worried about an increase in crime very close to where they live. Having concerns like that seem pretty realistic to me. A 100 unit apartment building, depending on the neighborhood, will increase things like crime. Is that the development’s fault? No, that is an issue rooted in many areas but mostly in the education system. Unfortunately, we live in a society where being bad is perceived as heroic and being dumb is cool.

A YIMBY would look at these items and see them as a normal part of living in the city. They package these things as everyday life aspects that are tolerated and ignored. They are the type of people that cross the bridge when they arrive at the bridge and do not worry about what will happen if the bridge is not there, or if the bridge might not look structurally sound, or, they can only cross the bridge at a specific time each day.

NIMBY and YIMBY have this in common: they see and understand the problems. They just perceive the problems differently and consider reactions in different ways. NIMBYs solve their problem by rejecting the project before it can even be built. YIMBYs solve their problems when the problems arise because there are services available to solve problems.

But it is important to remember that if the proposal is different in a variety of ways, a YIMBY will instantaneously become a NIMBY and vice versa. That is why I make my best attempts to never use those terms to reference. I try to place myself in everyone’s position and rationalize why they react in those ways. I see they are trying to protect something. Have you ever tried to protect something? Have you ever tried to protect something that was as simple as an idea? I bet that those things that we might view as small, are really important to some people.

A great example is a group in a community north of where I live that are fighting to retain a low building height zone so they can protect views of the bay and parts of the city skyline. When I first heard of this I thought it was completely ridiculous. They had a whole movement in the community to block the increased building heights that were being proposed. I even attended a community meeting where their group members were present. They asked horrific questions and their arguments were almost childish. I saw them as pouting children trying everything they could to create a disruption.

After the meeting, I jumped in my truck and started to drive home. I quickly took a detour and decided to go see what this was all about. I drove though the area where the proposed developments would have heights increased to 65 feet. Then, I drive up the hills and park at a church parking lot to see what was what. I got out of the truck and walked to the corner of the parking lot near the street. The view opened up to a stunning spectacle of the suns rays shimmering on the bay. I saw the distant hills which creates our sheltered harbor. To the south you could see the western most section of our downtown skyline as a commercial place came in to land at our airport. In that moment, I understood. I remember thinking: “I might fight for this too.” If I was having a bad day, I could easily return to that place and witness a moment of magic where my mind can actively make the choice to be happy.

I took in one last moment to take a mental image of the beauty of my hometown. I got in the truck and drove away. During my drive, I thought of ways where everyone could get something out of this. As a city we could get an area that would have increased housing density to provide much needed homes for our people. At the same time, we could design our city in such a way that these important views are protected. At the same time, we need to ensure that we are progressing as a society and solving all the problems that we have in our world.

Design is the way to accomplish all these things.