Zoning reform a step forward for Connecticut

Exclusionary zoning acts as a brake on population growth, by limiting the housing supply available to people who would otherwise be interested in moving in.

The year 2020 saw some wellpublicized shifts in residential patterns, as many people with the opportunity to work remotely reconsidered their locations. This presented both risks and opportunities for the state of Connecticut. While Fairfield County may have been a popular destination for some decamping from New York City, a United Van Lines study found that the state of Connecticut saw the fourth-highest percentage of outbound moves overall in 2020. It’s difficult to predict exactly how residential patterns will change post-COVID, but it’s extremely unlikely that we’ll just see a return to the pre-pandemic status quo. Municipalities need to be ready to respond flexibly to these unpredictable changes.

In times that demand flexibility, the last thing you want is a straitjacket. That’s the term Yale law professor Robert Ellickson uses for overly exclusionary zoning practices — those that, for example, only allow for single-family construction. He calls this a “zoning straitjacket” because it prevents developers from responding flexibly to changes in people’s living preferences. This leads to stagnation in the local economy and fewer opportunities for newcomers.

The Zoning Atlas recently published by Desegregate CT shows just how enthusiastically the towns of Connecticut, and of Fairfield County in particular, have donned this straitjacket. Building a single-family home is allowed without a public hearing, or “as of right,” almost anywhere — in 93 percent of the zoned land area of the county. Yet building a 3- or 4-plex home is allowed as of right in only 2 percent of the zoned land area. What’s more, that limited area is heavily concentrated in just a few towns — Danbury, Stamford and Norwalk. Several towns don’t permit it at all.

Exclusionary zoning acts as a brake on local population growth, by limiting the housing supply available to people who would otherwise be interested in moving to an area. While many factors can influence population growth, the trend in Fairfield County over recent years is certainly consistent with this pattern. After decades of growth, from 20132019 the population flattened out at about 940,000.

More people, and especially higher population density, would lead to more economic activity and a higher tax base.

Researchers have confirmed that traditional zoning constraints act as a drag on local economies and, indeed, on the U.S. economy as a whole. Chang-Tai Hsieh and Enrico Moretti, for example, estimated in a 2019 paper that municipal restrictions on housing supply reduced U.S. growth by 36 percent from 1964 to 2009. Economists refer to this effect as “spatial misallocation” — people can’t go to the places where they can be most productive.

Desegregate CT’s platform would loosen the zoning straitjacket through much-needed deregulation. This includes moderate reforms such as allowing more multifamily housing in areas around transit and near main street districts, capping parking space mandates for new housing construction, and allowing the construction of accessory dwelling units. Recently, the Fairfield Planning and Zoning department voted to allow ADUs — a great step in the right direction, and an acknowledgment that more flexibility will benefit the community.

As Desegregate CT’s name suggests, there are more reasons to pursue these reforms than just economic growth. Current zoning policies contribute to racial segregation, and reform would promote social justice. The status quo encourages housing sprawl, and reform would reduce emissions and protect the environment. Zoning reform would also make Connecticut — a state with one of the oldest populations in the country — more attractive to young people like myself.

And this variety of reasons is a strength — in our polarized political climate, zoning reform is an issue that can find support from both the right and left. We should come together to position our communities for a robust recovery from the COVID crisis by passing these simple reforms.

File photo Multifamily housing under construction in Danbury.