East Lyme and Stonington are among 12 towns across the state with zoning barriers that discourage and impede multifamily and affordable housing, according to a study released last week.

"Zoning for Equity: Examining Planning and Zoning Impediments to Housing and School Diversity" is the second federally funded report from Open Communities Alliance, a Connecticut-based civil rights nonprofit organization, in the last two years. The reports are aimed at examining planning and zoning regulations in 24 towns.

Towns were selected based on high levels of racial and economic segregation, according to the study. In the second report, East Lyme is highlighted for being 82% white non-Hispanic with 82% of the town's housing stock being single-family detached homes. Ninety percent of Stonington residents identify as white non-Hispanic compared to 76% in the region.

Other towns included in the study were Guilford, Old Saybrook, Simsbury, Farmington, Monroe, New Canaan, North Branford, Shelton, Wallingford and Weston.

A study shows zoning impediments to multifamily housing in East Lyme and Stonington, Johana Vazquez, The Day, April 10, 2022, available here