City officials, homeless group smooth over issue with new duplexes

Shared leases conform with zoning regulations

City officials and a local homeless advocacy group have reached an understanding regarding the use of two new homes set to be occupied by 12 low-income residents.

On Thursday, a day after The Day published an article on concerns being raised by city officials about how a pair of duplexes at 9 and 11 Friendship St. would be occupied, Cathy Zall, director of the Homeless Hospitality Center and owner of the residences, met with Felix Reyes, the city’s director of economic development and planning, to discuss the matter.

“It all came down to a misinterpretation about expectations,” said Zall, whose group owns the duplexes and will work to find tenants. “There’s a lot of nuance with this issue.”

The meeting, which Zall said lasted less than an hour, was also attended by Jeanne Milstein, the city’s director of human resources, and Julie Savin, CEO and president of Eastern Connecticut Housing Opportunities, Inc., or ECHO, the nonprofit agency serving as project manager for the Friendship Street project.

The project calls for building a pair of prefabricated homes on the deadend street off Willetts Avenue, each subdivided into two separate residences with three bedrooms on each side, for a total of six units in each home.

Under city zoning rules, no more than five unrelated individuals can share a residence. But Zall said Reyes and others at City Hall were not aware each of those halved duplexes would be occupied by three tenants sharing a single lease, a point The Day included in its original article.

“By having that shared lease, there is no violation of zoning regulations,” Zall said on Tuesday. “The term as I understand it is ‘roommates,’ not any different than Electric Boat workers or college students sharing a residence.”

Reyes previously raised concerns about the possible transient nature of the incoming tenants and noted the homes were approved for use as two-family dwellings.

Zall said any fears about tenant turnover are unfounded. She noted a duplex at 13 Friendship St. has been occupied for years under the same lease agreement planned for the new residences.

“And there’s been limited turnover there,” Zall said. “Sure, there’s always some, but these are not transient tenants. They’re getting the benefit of a beautiful, affordable home and don’t want to leave. These are not boarding houses.”

Reyes on Thursday said as long as the lease agreement Zall described is in place, the houses will not violate zoning regulations.

Zall said anytime the term “affordable housing” is raised, it can set residents on edge.

“It’s a hot-button issue,” she said. “But the issues being raised about the (Friendship Street project) shows the need for a longer-term discussion about affordable housing.”

Milstein on Tuesday said the Thursday meeting with Zall and Reyes ended amicably with all parties on the same page.

“Felix was very supportive of the project,” she said. “It was just a misunderstanding.”