It is always interesting how the Constitution, Federalist Papers, and now even the Declaration of Independence get drawn into the land use regulatory sphere. In the linked opinion letter, the writer uses the basic principles of the Declaration of Independence to support an anti-zoning position.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed..."
The letter writer opines that their "pursuit of happiness" extends until it infringes upon the rights of others. It is the writers belief that it is their right to develop property free of any restrictions until it is proven that they are harming others.
They seem to lose the point that the pursuit of happiness by one individual may, necessarily, conflict with the pursuit of happiness by another. My "happy" asphalt plant might conflict with his "happy" housing development. From these inate conflicts, whether in land use or just about any other endeavor, made us into a land of laws.
Zoning provides a framework within which people can pursue a level of happiness, with an understanding that their neighbor's pursuit will be in a similar vein. As I noted in a previous post, there is no conflict between land use regulations and the goals of our founding fathers. These conflicts are generally only found when the desires of a special segment attempt to ignore society in general to tie into the exemplary writing of our founders.
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