Salisbury
Selectmen ready to appoint affordable housing committee
By TERRY COWGILL
10/02

SALISBURY —The town is on the verge of appointing a committee charged with coming up with a plan to add perhaps hundreds of units of affordable housing.

An independent task force assembled at the request of the Board of Selectmen last year performed a study on the need for such housing in the town. The panel determined that the town needs an additional 200 units to “maintain the diverse population Salisbury enjoys today.”

That task force has asked the Board of Selectmen to appoint a committee to recommend how the town could accomplish the goal of adding significantly to Salisbury’s affordable housing stock.

“We thought maybe the next step would be for the town to appoint a committee,” Anthony Scoville, who chaired the task force, said at a Sept. 2 Board of Selectmen’s meeting.

The committee would look at a structure for the establishment of the housing, along with possibles sites and a re-examination of town zoning regulations that potentially pose obstacles.

Selectman Jim Dresser, who has been involved in discussions with the task force, praised the work of Scoville and the other members: Bob Blank, Carol Dmytryshak and David Olsen.

But as the selectmen look ahead to appointing and empowering a group to create a framework for action, they are faced with complex challenges.

“Affordable housing is a multi-headed monster,” said Dresser. “It’s not as simple as a firehouse or a transfer station — and we know those weren’t that simple.”

Among the considerations is whether and to what extent the Planning and Zoning Commission should be involved. All agreed that the commission should be represented on any affordable housing committee and that its regulations should be examined to see if there are any unreasonable barriers to affordable housing. For example, the town’s zoning code limits even sizable homes to three apartments apiece, to dissuade potential investors from buying large houses and subdividing them.

In addition, Dresser said the Lake-ville Hose Company and the Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance should be represented on the committee, since those organizations rely on volunteers who often need affordable housing. He suggested 25 units per year as a realistic goal. Dresser emphasized that the new units could include not only new construction, but the rehabilitation of older homes or the conversion of larger homes into apartments.

An affordable housing committee would also consider what structure would be employed to facilitate the creation of the housing. Would it be nonprofit organizations, the town government itself or some combination of the two?

Currently, there are two independent nonprofit organizations that have built or rehabilitated housing in the town: The Salisbury Housing Trust and Habitat for Humanity of Northwest Connecticut. In addition, the town has two government-supported low-to-moderate income public housing complexes: Faith House and Sarum Village.

The town’s Plan of Conservation and Development, completed in 1999, also contains a section that addresses affordable housing.

A handful of dissenters at the selectmen’s meeting, including Lester “Oogie” Hoysradt, raised questions about the process of appointing a committee and whether it would include members from the original task force.

Hoysradt said in the last few years when committees were appointed to come up with recommended plans for a new transfer station and firehouse, those panels were comprised only of members who supported the projects.

“To me, this is not the kind of people you want on the committee,” Hoysradt said.

But Dresser told him few of the people on the current task force are interested in serving on the proposed affordable housing committee.

First Selectman Curtis Rand said the selectmen will either hold a special meeting to appoint a committee or they will do so during their regular meeting Oct. 6.



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