More than half of the affordable housing units Connecticut funded over the past six years were rehabilitated properties, as opposed to new construction, a report from the state’s Office of Legislative Research found. That has raised questions about Gov. Ned Lamont’s claims that under his leadership, the state is building more housing than in past years. At a Department of Housing conference last week, the governor said, “We built more new housing … over the last three years than we have during any three-year period 10, 20 years ago. We’ve built probably 70% more housing than during that time.” Housing experts say it’s not clear what data Lamont is referring to when he makes claims like these, although he clarified after the housing conference that he was referring to state-sponsored housing. Still, the legislative research report showed that the last three years have actually seen a slight decline in the number of affordable housing units built or rehabilitated compared to the three years prior. The governor has also commended towns for making progress. But in his speech at the Department of Housing last week, he acknowledged that much of the affordable housing is concentrated in a just a handful of the state’s larger cities.
13,000+ affordable housing units got state funding in last six years. Why that raises questions.
