New Britain herald., 1925-04-30
WATCHING ONES STEP
 ON ZONING


 Attendance at the various zoning hearings in the City Hall has been rather poor considering the i'm portance to property owners of the questions under discussion. This probably Is a busy age, and people . do not like to bother about attend { ing hearings; either they think 1t is . a useless preceding, or that things will take place pretty much as mapped out regardless of the dis . cussion. Anyway, whatever the req son for the general apathy might . be, it was conspicuous at the hear lngs.
 Yet those who were present evil . dently did not take the questions at issue very lightly. They were not present in large numbers but had strong conviction that the matters being heard were of vital import ance to individual property owners now and in the future. Ii cannot be said that they mades up for those who were absent, but they were pre- pared to take a staunch interest in the proceedings, so that dscordant opinions were not slow of articula- ton, and objections were voluble and profound. Chief objections seem to be about the details of the zonirg plan. This is subject upon which it is very hard to agree. It depends much as to whether one is a property owner likely to be curtaied in the use of his property or whether one is 'on the outside looking in
 There seem to be reasonable ob factions to some details of the plan, and no effort should be left undone to make the zoning business as near  ly satisfactory to all as it is hQmanly possible.
 The main object of zoning is to maintain maximum values for real property, to protect such value, and to make 1t possible for property owners to own real property without running the risk Of having its value deteriorate through the construc- ton of contiguous property of in fertor grade It is a widespread ap- pication of the restricted principle found in some suburban develop ments. But the problems that con- front zoncrs in attempting to apply such principles throughout an entire city like New Britain are Of great proportions and sometimes threaten to do injury 10 property owners in- stead Of improving the possibilities
 Yet what IS 10 be done about it. The zoning system has been started II was supposed that there would bC few objections; now there are sucf splcnty regarding some of the mos vital details of the system. Citizens arc going moro up in tho air all tho time over the matter. The stricture' against multiple family houses II some districts especially are beinl subJectcd to attack.
 The main trouble is that Whcr such contentious regarding zonin arise it wasn't adopted earl enough. Starting a city on zone plan is d great deal easier than zon ing it after it has grown
 No amount of zoning will fore people to build onc-family house if they cannot afford to do so; n amount of zoning will make it pos Hble for those who cannot afford do 90 to live in one-famtly house Zoning cannot remove the applica ton of economic law, nor can change limited poCketbooks into fi ones. The theory is all right, bl the execution will remain entire dependent upon personal prosperit 1T this is a "workingman towr there will be a greater demand f' the kind of houses they can aitol to live in than any other kind, al if necessary they might be impeli' to live in the surrounding towns, many Of them are doing. There a large areas in the city that are Il developed, and zoning can be bett applied there than in those sectio already developed. Yet care mu be taken not to make conditions onerous that growth it stultifi rather than stimulated.
 The zoning principle itself
 sound; it is the method of apPlyi 1t that creates the difficulty. Nj Britain has reached the stage
 andins the right method and