Make CT more accommodating to housing and businesses
It's time to rewrite the confusing law that governs local zoning decisions
Jim Perras, CT Mirror, June 26, 2019. Available here.
With the legislature’s failure to pass House Bill 6749: An Act to Reorganize the Zoning Enabling Act and to Promote Municipal Compliance, Connecticut missed a great opportunity to spur economic development and address glaring issues of housing affordability, diversity and accessibility.
In general, passage of HB 6749 would have made Connecticut a more accommodating place to live and do business. I encourage legislative leadership and the governor to consider bringing the bill back this summer when it’s expected that a special session on issues pertaining to economic development will take place.
This bill would have rewritten the Connecticut Zoning Enabling Act (CGS 8-2) which currently reads like a multi-page run-on sentence. The Act is very challenging to read and understand, even for experienced attorneys. Consequently, the statutory requirements and limitations of the Zoning Enabling Act are mostly lost on laypersons who typically makeup local zoning commissions which are charged with the act’s implementation.