Connecticut made a significant progress in zoning reform with the passage Public Act 21-29This will allow communities to build more housing by allowing accessory dwelling units on large lots in 2021.
More housing allows seniors and young adults the opportunity to remain in their own communities. Additionally, housing built on existing lots can help preserve undeveloped forest or farmland.
The legislature is Consider now how to create more walkable and transportation-oriented communities (TOC), a reform that would increase our housing stock of affordable housing, boost foot traffic for many local businesses, and reduce reliance on cars which produce 66% of ozone pollution in Connecticut.
Suburban commuters contribute significantly to ozone poisoning in cities. This pollution is harmful to all of us.Connecticut residents especiallyWhere 25% households don’t have a car. Along with industrial pollutantsThese high levels lead to high rates of cancer, as well as other debilitating, rare, life-threatening, and chronic diseases. Ozone can exacerbate the risk of asthma and other respiratory conditions. This is due to the health hazards that are common in cities.
Uncontrolled asthma can be caused by the lack of access to healthcare facilities in urban areas. Children who can’t get a good night’s sleep are less attentive at school, which hinders their ability to learn.
Environmental health problems can have a negative impact on the mental health of families, individuals, and communities. Families who can afford to live in affordable or public housing have better mental health. Particularly if it is located in better neighborhoods.
We provide better opportunities to help residents and disrupt generational poverty. This helps strengthen the tax base and empowers them to realize their full potential.
In public testimony last year, TOC was frequently criticized for encouraging migration from cities and changing the character of the suburbs.
Because Connecticut is one the most segregated states, it would be Black residents and other minorities that would move. Legal racism created the character of the suburbs.
We are not responsible for past policies, but white Americans continue the benefit of them. Zoning is a major policy that is non-racist, and it is done well. The segregation of the past is maintained.
Some people prefer that we don’t teach this history in schools. This blinds many white Americans, even those of goodwill, to the remnants racism within our society’s structure.
White, Black is not the only optionVeterans returning from World War II could benefit from the GI Bill to pay for education or to finance housing in new suburbs. Redlining, which is a practice of denying government-insured mortgages to Black people or those who lived in integrated communities, was a practice known as redlining.
Instead, Predatory lendersBlack Americans could obtain lease-to-buy financing to buy homes in neighborhoods that were becoming more segregated from white flight to the suburbs. Rent ate up the majority of their incomes due to low wages. As a result, routine maintenance was neglected and the housing stock suffered.
Unexpected expenses that result in missed rent payments can lead to eviction, which can lead to housing instability and loss of investment. One example is New Havens Dixwell-Newhallville neighborhoodThe Winchester Revolving Arms factory, which was its main employer, was forced to close.
Along with the health issues mentioned above, a vicious cycle led ever worsening neighborhoods. Despite any changes to the lawBlack Americans were discouraged from buying in white neighborhoods by illegal harassment and exclusionary clauses, often with police looking on.
Accordingly, few Black Americans are wealthy, while white wealth gradually increased through home ownership and a healthy family environment.
Connecticut’s Zoning Ordinances made the suburbs more excluded. mandating large minimum lot sizesinterdicting accessory dwelling units and multifamily housing. These race-neutral ordinances reduce affordable housing stock, drive higher house prices and effectively maintain segregation.
Richmond is the subject of a recent study, VAThis is an example of the legacy of racism. Low-income areas have fewer trees, and in summer are more hot than wealthy neighborhoods. The study showed a close correlation of a heat map of Richmond and red-zoned neighborhoods, which were mapped by federal agencies and banks in the 40s to 50s and 60s.
Transit-oriented communities can benefit many sections of society: Our grown kids who would like Connecticut to remain if they could; our seniors who would love to downsize their cars and reduce their dependence; and it will be possible for those who have worked hard to provide for their families.
We must not let structural racism, which was established just a generation ago, stop us from growing our economy. We are part of the problem if we don’t support sensible reforms to strengthen our entire state.
Larry Rizzolo lives in Guilford.
