Affordable Housing Reform Means Milford Closing In On 4-Year Moratorium

MILFORD, CT — Legislation reforming Connecticut's affordable housing system is moving forward in the General Assembly and if it receives final approval it could mean Milford is very close to achieving a four-year moratorium on affordable housing projects, announced state Sen. Gayle Slossberg, D-Milford, who is co-chair of the Housing Committee.

Milford would receive credit for affordable housing units it currently isn't received credit for at the state level. Slossberg said Milford would now be very close to the threshold needed to secure a four-year moratorium. Developers could still file applications with the city but they will no longer have the hammer against municipalities like Milford as they currently have.

If Milford secures the moratorium what this means is that developers will no longer be able to use the state statute to circumvent local zoning laws. Currently, the law forces communities to either approve affordable housing projects or deny them and almost always lose in court on appeal which spending significant dollars on legal fees.

Often times the housing projects are proposed in areas that aren't appropriate but town boards and commissions are almost powerless to stop them because the law gives all the power to the developers.

With the leadership of Milford’s House Delegation, Representative Kim Rose, Vice Chair of the Housing Committee, Representative Pam Staneski, and Representative Charles Ferraro, the bill passed in the House of Representatives today.

The bill was approved by the House of Representatives 116 to 33.

"I have been working for years to negotiate sensible changes to SS8-30g to help Milford reach a moratorium. Our residents have been waiting far too long for relief from predatory developers. I have worked long and hard meeting with many people in late night debates and discussions and, with compromise and much persuading, we finally got a bill to vote on,” Rep. Rose said. “I thank my Housing Chairman Larry Butler for his tireless work and advocacy on this issue. We had to craft a bill that would help Milford, yet not jeopardize the building of affordable housing throughout the State. Whenever we pass a law we must bear in mind that it affects the entire state.”

“Milford residents have been calling for common sense reforms to the Affordable Housing Act, and this bill accomplishes that,” said Slossberg in a news release. “This bill enables the Affordable Housing Act to continue encouraging the creation of affordable housing options, but updates the law to reflect communities’ actual experience with the statute. I, along with the entire Milford delegation, worked very hard to secure this vote in the House of Representatives, and am looking forward to getting the bill passed in the senate.”

“I am proud of the work that the Milford Delegation was able to accomplish to get this proposal passed in a bipartisan manner in the House. The bill moves towns like Milford closer to an achievable affordable housing moratorium,” said Rep. Staneski in a statement. “This bill as amended doesn’t disarm us of our responsibility to continue to build housing that is affordable. It does provide communities, such as Milford, acknowledgment of the efforts we have put forth, and gives us time to address the manner in which aggressive builders have used this well-intended statute in a divisive fashion to circumvent those efforts—our community’s concerns were heard today. I look forward to this getting done in the Senate, and signed by the Governor.”

“Our communities have suffered too long under the current affordable housing regulations, and I am glad to see we were able to pass bipartisan legislation in the House to change these outdated regulations,” said Rep. Ferraro in a statement. “The Milford Delegation has worked hand-in-hand with all the stakeholders to make sure this legislation creates an even playing field for all. We will be working closely with our colleague Senator Slossberg to get this legislation passed in the Senate.”

“I am very happy about the bipartisan support given to this important legislation and grateful for its passage,” said Rep. Larry Butler (D-Waterbury), the House Chair of the legislature’s Housing Committee. “We have to protect towns and cities from predatory developers while encouraging the development of affordable housing, and this legislation accomplishes that.”

Impact on Milford

The bill that passed today makes several critical reforms that will restore the ability of communities like Milford to make sound planning decisions. First, the bill makes Ryder Woods, a mobile home community, count toward Milford’s application for an affordable housing moratorium. Including this affordable, livable community recognizes the reality of housing opportunities in Milford and will bring the city "very close to securing a moratorium," Slossberg said.

Second, the bill makes affordable housing moratoriums more achievable for midsize cities. The current threshold to qualify for a moratorium is 2%, this bill lowers that threshold to 1.5%. While this goal is still very difficult to attain, by lowering the threshold we have recognized that it was set at an unattainable level, placing communities of this size at great hardship, Slossberg said.

Third, midsized cities, like Milford, will be able to obtain a 5-year moratorium instead of the current 4 years. This will allow Milford and similar communities the time to ensure their housing stock is kept at target levels to qualify for future moratoriums, Slossberg said.

Additionally, the bill would:

• Lower the amount of ‘Housing Unit Equivalency’ (HUE) points a municipality must attain before a moratorium can be declared from 75 to 50;
• Award bonus HUE points for family units that contain at least three bedrooms, elderly units when 60% of an affordable housing completion certificate is tied to family housing, and family units located within an Incentive Housing Zone;
• Count affordable housing that is developed in an Incentive Housing Zone (IHZ); and
• Changes the definition of Median Income applicable to IHZ’s to conform to 8-30g’s definition (the lesser of state median income and the area median income as determined by HUD).

“I couldn’t be more pleased that it passed the House and now it will head to the Senate for their vote. We crafted a bill that would help Milford to reach a moratorium while continuing to encourage the development of affordable housing in the state. Once we achieve a moratorium, it is up to our City Planner, Land Use Official and our Planning and Zoning Board to come up with a plan for any future developments,” Rep. Rose added.