|
Goldstein For Congress - Please Subscribe and also visit us at www.goldsteinforcongress.com
Local Elections Have Major Consequences – HB-8002 -Housing Control Goes to Hartford
The Erosion of Local Zoning – TAKE ACTION TODAY
|
| |||||||||||||||
With the tremendous success of the Democrats flipping 29 Connecticut cities and towns from Red to Blue, Gov. Lamont and his Statehouse did not skip a beat in reviving a new Housing Bill.
This new housing bill passed the House and is in the Senate. It is the classic taking of local control by Hartford. The voters did not pay attention, voted along party lines and the result is a Connecticut landscape that will be unrecognizable in one generation.
TIME FOR A VETO
IF YOU LIKE YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD AS IS- SAY NO TO HARTFORD – Now that it has passed – Get Lamont to Veto this once again. Click Here to Fill out the Petition that will also go to your local State Representatives and State Senator.
He Vetoed it Once but Needs Much More Pressure as He is fully supportive of it - See Our Prior Article on That
Sample Email is Posted at the end of this thanks to CT169 Strong
More About this Omnibus Bill HB 8002
This re-tread bill has been in the works by the Democrats since Gov. Lamont vetoed HB 5002. It was passed in haste with no public comment and without the municipalities being consulted. HB 8002 was basically passed as a special emergency to end homelessness which it does not achieve and fast-tracks a disaster.
As Governor Lamont saw the success of his party at the polls less than two weeks ago, they seized the opportunity to pass legislation as a supermajority with impunity.
WHAT CAN YOU DO NOW? Write Your Local Legislator and Governor Lamont to Veto This as he is eager to sign it as he describes it as a rosy bill with bi-partisan support and buy in from the local mayors. Click Here to Fill out the Petition that will also go to your local State Representatives and State Senator.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO OVER THE NEXT YEAR -
1) Share this grassroots newsletter to all of your friends
2) Sign up for CT169 Strong & Vote Early CT
3) GET Involved with your town committees and raise your voices, especially to your State Reps and Senators who support this legislation.
Why is this Bill so Bad?
- It replaces a bad bill HB 5002
- It skipped public comment and relied on previous public comments for a different bill
- Many are accepting this as its not as bad as the old HB 5002
How Your State Reps and State Senators Voted on This Bill
State Reps
 |
State Senators
 |
IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT SOME DEMOCRAT REPS GOT A HALL PASS TO VOTE AGAINST THAT THEY HAD ENOUGH SUPPORT - Greenwich’s Steve Meskers Voted No Again and Hector Arzeno Abstained.
The Hall Pass from Last Session - A lot fewer Hallpasses this time
 |
 |
HB 8002 - A Return of Housing to Hartford:
HB 8002 imposes state domination and pre-emption of local zoning under the delusion that towns have a say in the destination of their community development.
Towns have three ways to comply with this legislation
1.Towns can sign contracts with the Connecticut Municipal Development Authority and develop plans to increase housing in downtowns or near train and bus stations. The authority was established in 2019, funded in 2024, and started work earlier this year.
2. They can also opt to participate in what’s known as Work, Live, Ride, which pushes towns to allow more housing density near train and bus rapid transit stations. It’s a concept more broadly known as transit-oriented development that has grown more popular nationwide over recent years. – Yes – Bus Stations count
3. The bill also says towns can create housing growth plans by working with their regional councils of government or on their own. Regional councils of government will conduct housing needs assessments.
If towns do not create these plans, they are not eligible for temporary pauses from being sued by developers whose affordable housing plans are denied under state statute 8-30g.
HB 8002 is the next step in the removal of the right of residents of a particular town or city to self govern. This is putting the 8-30g Housing on Steroids.
WHAT THESE PLANS MEAN?
All of these plans require the towns to give up their autonomy and control to a larger entity. The result is the replacement of town government with regional government. This is exactly what happens in New York State where you have County governments which then exert considerable control of local government. This is done through an elected county governing board and County Executive and county bureaucracy. This is one of the many reasons that real estate taxes are higher in New York.
They claim this is an Opt-in Policy but it’s a Coercive Opt-In at the expense of future infrastructure and other funds
WHAT IS TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD)?
Definition and Rationale
TOD is the concept of dense development around transit stations and transit corridors in a mixed-use and walkable neighborhood with everything you need from commercial stores to supermarkets and no need to go anywhere to get what you need within walking distance (which is the preferred mode of transportation). TODs are based on the premise that everything within walking distance will reduce congestion, improve air quality, and reduce carbon emissions. Most global cities suffer from traffic congestion and these TODs reduce auto trips by increasing the availability of goods and services within easy walking or biking range of a station and the push is to make it the global standard for healthy city growth.
When and Where do TODs Work?
TODs can work for cities with a transit hub with a large commercial buildings where TOD residents can , live, walk to work and shop. In Fairfield County, the biggest city and one most likely to benefit from TOD is Stamford. It is already dense with commercial office buildings, a bus transit hub and dense apartment buildings. However, its infrastructure for roads is challenging and the Harbor Point Developments and others demonstrate that there is not enough roadway it makes no sense in many of our towns. For example the Cos Cob and Riverside train stations in Greenwich are in close proximity to residential housing and lack any commercial development. This is true for many of the train stations in Fairfield County.
Could it work in Bridgeport, Norwalk, New Haven, Waterbury, Hartford? Maybe
See Stamford Video
WHERE TODs DON’T WORK?
Simply Putting apartment buildings, under a TOD, strategy next to a train station which is nothing more than a station and a parking lot with no access to jobs or shopping does not meet the objectives of TOD. This is like most of the Metro North Train Stations like Cos Cob and Riverside and all train station stops on the New Canaan and Danbury Spur Lines.
See Riverside - TOD Does Not work here
One size fits all state wide legislation does not work and should not be passed.
Commercial-to-Residential Conversion
HB 8002 keeps the as-of right ability to build or repurpose in commercial zones.
Not every commercial zone or commercial building is right for residential conversion. Building an apartment building next to a Junk Yard would be permissible. Downtown commercial zones including the one and two story shops seen on main streets of towns could be torn down and replaced with apartment buildings as of right and circumventing local Planning & Zoning Boards.
Local Charm Eliminated
With commercial conversions, the charm and character that attracted residents to live and shop will disappear. The entire Post Road could become one long string of apartment buildings. The main shopping streets of Darien, Greenwich, Fairfield, New Canaan, Southport and Westport could all be replaced with multi-story and even high rise apartment buildings with no right of any of these towns to object.
What About Parking?
One of the big criticisms of the previous HB 5002 is that it did not require Off-Street Parking. Parking doesn’t have to be taken into consideration for apartment buildings with less than 16 units. As most of us know, there isn’t enough parking on-street so this is a recipe for disaster as people still have cars in a TOD Utopia as most CT Residents do not work where they live and commute. TOD only really works for commuters to NYC but that still does not eliminate the need to have a car.
That is why Stamford is becoming the 6th Boro of New York City as an express train is shorter than most commutes from Brooklyn or Queens
The Passing of this flawed bill in haste which will change what attracted to Connecticut in the first place will only help drive more taxpayers elsewhere.
The legislation is an attempt to address the two issues of a housing shortage and affordability. However this is the wrong solution. It is about creating rental housing not owned housing.
REAL HOUSING SOLUTIONS
In previous articles we proposed a 21st Century version of the Homestead Act which would allow for the creation of affordable owned housing. When a homeowner sells their house and moves they leave with a check. When a renter leaves their apartment they leave with nothing.
Middle class wealth is mostly acquired through appreciated home values and pension plans that are often subsidized by the employer. Taking away home ownership is a way to increase rather than reduce wealth disparity.
TAKE ACTION TODAY AND EMAIL LAMONT TO VETO
SAMPLE EMAIL TO GOVERNOR LAMONT at [email protected]
I am writing to express my opposition to considering housing and zoning issues at the special legislative session that may be held Nov 12- 14. Convening a special session to address zoning and housing issues risks rushing intricate policies without the transparency, public input, or careful deliberation that our state residents and municipalities deserve on these matters. I implore you to prioritize the integrity of the legislative process by reserving these critical issues for the 2026 regular session.
Special sessions, by their very design, sacrifice the democratic process for speed. We’ve seen this in recent years where bills on motor vehicle taxes and the Aquarion sale were expedited by using emergency certification, thereby bypassing public hearings and leaving residents and town officials confused and unaware of the last-minute provisions. Housing and zoning policies are far too consequential to suffer the same fate. A rushed special session will alienate constituents and produce flawed policies. Specifically, a special session’s compressed timeline cannot accommodate the robust public hearings, expert testimony, or data-driven analysis required to get this right. These matters demand open debate and not closed-door decisions.
The 2026 regular session, just months away, offers a better path. It provides the time and the structure to engage residents, municipal leaders, and housing experts in crafting solutions that thoughtfully considers constituent input. Connecticut’s values should consist of transparency, collaboration, and respect for every voice. Please, do not let haste undermine our shared vision for a thriving Connecticut.
Sincerely, Connecticut Resident
 | A guest post by
|
The Goldstein Substack is free today. But if you enjoyed this post, you can tell The Goldstein Substack that their writing is valuable by pledging a future subscription. You won't be charged unless they enable payments.
| ||||||||||
