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Single-use zoning

The primary purpose of single-use zoning is to geographically separate uses that are thought to be incompatible. In practice, zoning is also used to prevent new development from interfering with existing uses and/or to preserve the character of a community.

Single-use zoning is where only one kind of use is allowed per zone, or district. It is also known as exclusionary zoning or, in the United States, as Euclidean zoning because of a court case in Euclid, Ohio, Village of Euclid, Ohio v. Ambler Realty Co. 272 U.S. 365 (1926), which established its constitutionality. It has been the dominant system of zoning in North America, especially the United States, since its first implementation.

Commonly defined single-use districts include: residential, commercial, and industrial. Each category can have a number of sub-categories, for example, within the commercial category there may be separate districts for small retail, large retail, office use, lodging and others, while industrial may be subdivided into heavy manufacturing, light assembly and warehouse uses. Special districts may also be created for purposes like public facilities, recreational amenities, and green space.

The application of single-use zoning has led to the distinctive form of many cities in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, in which a very dense urban core, often containing skyscrapers, is surrounded by low density residential suburbs, characterised by large gardens and leafy streets. Some metropolitan areas such as Minneapolis–Saint Paul and Sydney have several such cores.