Malloy Vetoes Affordable Housing Bill, Milford's Dreams Of A Moratorium Denied

MILFORD, CT — Milford's dream of a 4-year moratorium on affordable housing projects died Friday when Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced he vetoed the bill approved overwhelmingly by the General Assembly.

If the bill became law, it would have meant Milford was close to the number of units needed to enact the moratorium. Milford has been targeted by developers for numerous affordable housing projects because the law allows developers to circumvent local zoning laws.

Representative Kim Rose (D-Milford) said she is disheartened at the Governor’s veto of a bi-partisan bill she championed in the House of Representatives of House Bill which revises language in the affordable housing statute to protect towns and cities from predatory development while encouraging the development of affordable housing throughout the state.

“Nothing in this bill would have hindered the building of affordable housing so I am very disappointed at this veto and the Governor’s total disregard for our neighborhoods in Milford that have been suffering from continued unscrupulous development. Over seven years of work to negotiate sensible changes to SS8-30g and to help Milford reach a moratorium have been effectively postponed with this veto,” Rep. Rose said. “We struggled to craft a bill that would help Milford, yet not jeopardize the building of affordable housing throughout the State. While I am disillusioned with this setback, I will continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and in the Senate to accomplish what my constituents have been asking for so long.”

House Bill #6880

The vetoed bill would have:

• Allowed Ryder Mobile Home park to be included in our count towards affordable housing stock
• Contained a five year sunset provision
• Lowered minimum number of HUE points smaller municipalities must obtain to qualify for a moratorium from 75 HUE points to 50 HUE points
• Encouraged the development of three bedroom family units, senior units tied to family housing, and family units located in incentive housing zones
• Made income-restricted units in an IHZ development eligible for points toward a moratorium.
• Awarded 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;
• Changed 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).
• Made 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. It is a step in the right direction.