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HOMEConnecticut Press Conference:
Solutions Advance But Problems Persist On June 4th, the HOMEConnecticut Campaign held a press conference to mark the one-year anniversary of the enactment of the Connecticut Housing Program for Economic Growth. This innovative Program provides municipalities with incentives to create affordable housing in their towns under a system of cooperation and choice. So far, more than 25 towns have expressed interest in the Program and in applying for Planning and Technical Assistance Grants that will help them assess where affordable housing would best fit in their communities. Click here to learn more about how the program works. Press coverage of the event: Materials for the press conference can be viewed by clicking the following links: The press conference also focused on the continued need to build affordable housing in Connecticut, in spite of the recent subprime mortgage crisis. Speakers at the press conference included: - Diane Randall, Executive Director, Partnership for Strong Communities,
- Bill Cibes, Chair, HOMEConnecticut Campaign,
- Don Klepper-Smith, Chief Economist & Director of Research, DataCore Partners LLC,
- Pete Goia, Economist, Connecticut Business & Industry Association,
- Taylor Caswell, New England Regional Director, U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development,
- Mary Glassman, First Selectman, Town of Simsbury,
- Mike Pace, First Selectman, Town of Old Saybrook,
- Julio Concepcion, Merto-Hartford Alliance, and
- Julie Daly, Metro-Hartford Alliance/Hartford Young Professionals and Entrepreneurs.
 Diane Randall and Bill Cibes opened the press conference discussing the progress of the HOMEConnecticut Campaign and the Connecticut Housing Program for Economic Growth. In addition, Cibes stressed that housing affordability remains a problem in Connecticut and that the development of affordable housing can create revenues for the state.
 Noted Connecticut economist Don Klepper-Smith spoke about a study he recently completed for the HOMEConnecticut Campaign. Klepper-Smith found that housing affordability continues to be a major problem in Connecticut, with a growing number of households spending more than 30% of their income on housing and earning less than $50,000 (about 80% of the state's area median income). In addition, Klepper-Smith noted that the current mortgage crisis is unlikely to solve this affordability problem due to a mismatch between the housing affected by the crisis and the populations looking for affordable housing, especially young professionals. Klepper-Smith also pointed to data that show that increasing the supply of affordable housing will bring revenues to the state. Click here to view Don Klepper-Smith's full presentation.
 Pete Goia, economist for the Connecticut Business and Industry Association, also spoke about the need to increase the supply of affordable housing in order for the state to remain economically competitive. Picking up on some of the points raised by Klepper-Smith, Goia noted that many Connecticut businesses are having trouble finding skilled workers in the state and also have trouble recruiting workers from other areas due in part to the high cost of housing in Connecticut.
 Taylor Caswell, New England Regional Director of HUD, noted that the mortgage crisis in New England has included of lot of multi-family properties undergoing foreclosure. This in turn, leaves many renters in vulnerable positions, as they may be forced out of their apartments. Caswell noted that Connecticut already has very high rental prices, especially in Fairfield County and that with more renters entering the market, supply will be even tighter, leading to increasing rents. Caswell also stated that when communities develop affordable housing at higher densities, they can also accomplish other goals that the community perceives as important, including conservation of open space.
  Mary Glassman of Simsbury and Mike Pace of Old Saybrook spoke about the importance of including affordable housing in their communities. Both stated that affordable housing is necessary to keeping and attracting the mix of people that their communities need. They also noted that one of the appealing aspects of the Connecticut Housing Program for Economic Growth is that it allows towns the flexibility to decide where this housing will be developed and how it will look.
  Finally, young professionals Julio Concepcion and Julie Daly discussed the housing difficulties facing young people interested in staying in Connecticut. Both stressed that they love being in Connecticut, but that high housing costs place a serious burden on young people in the state, spurring many of their peers to move to other areas of the country where housing is cheaper.
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