Revamped Westport Work, Live, Ride plan still needs work, residents say

WESTPORT — While residents and officials were pleased to hear some changes to Desegregate Connecticut’s Work, Live, Ride proposal recently, some believe there’s still room for improvement.

Desegregate Connecticut came before Westport’s Planning and Zoning Commission Affordable Housing subcommittee this week with a proposal to create transitoriented communities across the state.

“Our focus really is reforming land use to make Connecticut more prosperous, equitable and sustainable,” said Desegregate Connecticut Director Pete Harrison at the meeting.

Introduced last legislative session, the bill aims to create transitoriented districts, helping to connect communities to transit and creating mixed-use, walkable neighborhoods. Towns that follow the bill’s guidelines and opt into the program would be prioritized for state funds to accomplish this.

The bill is going through the state’s Planning and Development committee, Harrison said. In 2025, the next five-year state plan of conservation and development must be adopted, which can play a bigger role within Work, Live, Ride as it moves forward.

Since going before the affordable housing subcommittee last year, Desegregate Connecticut has made some changes to the bill, particularly regarding traffic and congestion issues.

Guidelines have been changed, removing a gross density requirement, which would have been 20 homes per acre for Westport. Communities can still have jurisdiction over parking, setbacks and floor area ratio requirements, Harrison said.

The plan includes affordable housing guidelines. There are multiple regulations surrounding “as of right,” which typically means properties that can be built without a public hearing. These include missing middle buildings, which are properties that can have up to nine homes per development; developments with 30 percent affordable housing or more; and developments with all affordable housing owned by public housing authorities, nonprofits or religious entities.

All other developments have inclusionary zoning requirements and public hearings, Harrison said.

The “as of right” regulations caught the attention of multiple residents and officials, who said in a project like this, those kinds of developments should be reviewed by local commissions.

Danielle Dobin, former Planning and Zoning Commission chair and current Board of Finance member, specifically had concerns with missing middle housing and how it works with “as of right,” being required to approve a transit-oriented district.

She brought up the Hamlet at Saugatuck development and how much intensity is going to be allowed there, with mixed use spaces, which is different than any other area in town. There isn’t as of right middle housing there.

Even though housing might fit the definition of “missing middle,” it would result in expensive housing in Westport, Dobin said.

Harrison clarified that towns could be grandfathered into the policy if they already have developments set for town that meet the listed requirements, instead of having to create another development.

Dobin said she also wants clarity surrounding nonprofits, so no illintentioned developers come to develop.

Representative Town Meeting member Matthew Mandell, who represents District 1, also had issues with as of right uses. He said a developer could come in, buy acres and build all apartment buildings, which defeats the purpose of the zone and changes the character of the town.

“It always must be controlled by the P&Z to make sure it’s what the community wants,” he said.