"We prefer zoning that blends rather than contrasts"

 The market reality is that land prices are now so high that no one can afford to build anything that 'blends'. Much high density is a precondition for new housing. Without new housing, the cost of existing housing rises. California has finally reached the point where the state leaders recognized that the cost of housing was impairing statewide economic growth and have started pre-empting local zoning. Utah (a deep red state) has some to a similar conclusion, but a different solution: places that don't permit growth don't get any infrastructure investment.