Zoning was at the heart of a conversation in Stamford on how to increase Connecticut’s housing affordability.
One of the main focuses was to look into ways to increase affordable housing accessibility for middle- and low-income families.
The discussion at the city's Ferguson Library consisted of local housing advocates and one state lawmaker, Republican State Sen. Ryan Fazio, who represents Greenwich, Stamford and New Canaan.
Fazio said the focus should be on creating “middle housing” for people who may not qualify for lower-income housing.
“There’s any number of other types of affordable housing that naturally exist and because they’re not being given credit under Connecticut state statute we’re not creating more of it,” Fazio said. “In fact, we’re creating this adversary relationship between the state and localities.”
Crediting towns for existing housing that may fall into affordable categories will also encourage further affordable housing production, Fazio said.
“In order to achieve something or encourage something you have to give people credit for doing it,” Fazio said. “If you have an accessory dwelling unit that’s affordable but you’re not giving a town or city credit for creating it, how can you encourage that type of affordable housing?”
Fazio was one of four panelists, including nonprofit Partnership for Strong Communities policy director Sean Ghio, director of the Eviction Lab at Princeton University Carl Gershenson and Nelcia Medley-Avila, who oversees the housing program at Inspirica.
The conversation was organized by Connecticut Public as part of a screening of a Connecticut Public documentary focused on housing: "Fighting For Home: How Housing Policy Keeps Connecticut Segregated."
Fazio, the only lawmaker on the panel, recommended altering and expanding existing laws and programs, while Gershenson said the key to increasing affordable housing is an increase in government funding.
Municipalities should work to meet the responsibilities outlined in the state’s zoning statutes before opting to change the zoning codes, Ghio said.
“It is every community's responsibility for the provision of low-income and moderate-income housing, and multi-family housing in the zoning regulations, and to do so looking at the regional need for that housing, not the local need,” Ghio said. “Every community in this state has a significant population of folks that are barely making it, that are spending more than half their income on housing, and your state is failing you by not addressing it.”
The issue of communities not fulfilling their zoning obligations is particularly felt in Fairfield County, leaving Stamford to pick up slack, Ghio said.
“I know it can be controversial for a lot of the folks that live in Stamford, because your city is being forced to try to satisfy the demand for housing in Fairfield County, the entire county.”
