Unfortunately, you get down to the local council meetings in a lot of places, and see how the Suburbanites often fight these things out of fear that Wisteria Lane might become interesting or something, and you appreciate just how deep the stupid goes.  The zoning laws are there because (1) the developers own every local government in the country and (2) people want to have big houses with big yards.

At the end of the day, the zoning laws exist to justify stupid projects, and to allow the local inspectors to have their little citationgasms.  They can be changed.

And they will change, of course.  Look at how property values are behaving in the city cores compared with the 'burbs, or even just at how land use patterns in the suburbs are changing from McMansions to walkable new-urbanist stuff.

Make it expensive enough, and people will get religion.

Whether people adapt quickly enough is another question.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.