Dear Governor Lamont:
We listened closely when you announced a veto of HB 5002, the omnibus housing bill, in June. We heard you say that you’d like a revised version of the bill on your desk following a special session this year. We understand there was some loud opposition to HB 5002, which may have played a part in your decision. But the calls from supporters urging that the bill be signed were just as loud.
While we come from different perspectives, we are united by the shared understanding that bold, thoughtful action on housing is essential to Connecticut’s future.
There is a path forward.
To start, we are all in agreement that Connecticut faces a housing crisis, as reflected by a recent report that shows we have the most constrained housing market in the nation, with ever-rising home prices and rents.
And to get a new housing bill – one that you’ll feel comfortable signing – will require input from all parties. You made that very clear.
What you’ve asked for in a housing bill has already been vetted and subject of public debate. In fact, HB 5002 was written to address exactly the concerns you’ve voiced. There’s a viable starting point for discussions to begin, and a running start toward getting what the state needs in a special session.
We need a shared understanding of how the elements of HB 5002 meet this challenge with several common-sense solutions. These include incentives for transit-oriented communities known as Work Live Ride; a measure encouraging conversion of derelict commercial properties to residential; a flexible limit on parking regulations, which have proven elsewhere to be key to supporting new housing growth; improvements in rental assistance; help for the state’s homeless population; and the expansion of fair-rent commissions.
We also need to confront the way in which our unquestioning commitment to “local control” has been, at its best, a way for municipalities to plan and zone to reach a shared community vision and, at its worst, a tool of exclusion. It is our Achilles heel, preventing the housing market from naturally responding to housing demand and limiting where the government can invest to address the urgent needs of seniors; recent college graduates; families and individuals with less inherited wealth, especially many families of color; and people with disabilities.
Of the many elements of HB 5002 that seek to address exclusionary abuse of “local control,” the Towns Take the Lead proposal has received considerable attention and has also been targeted by disinformation campaigns. This proposal quantifies housing needs and asks each town to plan and zone for a portion of that need. And while some municipal officials find those numbers scary, what is scarier is the ongoing human suffering that those numbers represent.
As you rightly pointed out, the numbers are a guidepost. They are not a mandate or an override of local decision-making, but they do provide a bit of accountability for towns to reflect on their priorities and update their zoning to help meet growing housing demand. Towns are not required to build housing. They simply would allow the market to work to meet the huge demand for housing across Connecticut by adjusting zoning. As you also noted, there would be points in the process for towns to justify lower numbers, and then plan and zone around those figures.
We are experiencing a Dorothy-in-Oz situation. Just as Dorothy learned she could have clicked her ruby slippers at any time and gone back to Kansas, it has always been within the power of Connecticut municipalities to allow the construction of the affordable housing we need to move the state economy forward. It’s because they haven’t that we need to push for state legislation in the first place. And HB 5002 offers a gentle solution – no sticks, just the carrot of prioritization for state discretionary funding for infrastructure expansion.
Further, it’s fair to say representatives of towns and cities have signaled their support for all of HB 5002, by virtue of successful votes in the state House of Representatives and state Senate. While an endorsement from mayors and first selectmen is welcome, it is through their elected representatives that municipalities make their preferences known in our process.
There are loud voices who deny housing is an issue at all, and want more than anything to see nothing at all pass. Those voices have consistently mischaracterized what housing reform is all about, and you are right to note the negative consequences of their actions.
We were certainly disappointed to see HB 5002 vetoed, but we sincerely believe a path forward is possible and necessary. We are ready to make that journey together, for the benefit of the entire state.
Signed:
Erin Boggs, Executive Director, Open Communities Alliance
Emily Byrne, Executive Director, Connecticut Voices for Children
Shenae Draughn, President, Elm City Communities
Karen DuBois-Walton, President and Chief Executive Officer, Community Foundation for Greater New Haven
Pete Harrison, Connecticut Director, Regional Plan Association
Jim Horan, Executive Director, LISC Connecticut
Nick Kantor, Program Director, DesegregateCT
Greg Kirschner, Executive Director, Connecticut Fair Housing Center
Raphael Podolsky, Housing Policy Advocate, Connecticut Legal Services
David Rich, President & CEO, The Housing Collective
Chelsea Ross, Executive Director, Partnership for Strong Communities
Giovanna Shay, Litigation & Advocacy Director, Greater Hartford Legal Aid
Anika Singh Lemar
Shelley White, Director of Litigation and Advocacy, New Haven Legal Assistance Association
