A new analysis gave affordable housing plans for towns in Windham and Tolland counties a median score of 2 out of 5, highlighting what the report called promising plans and a need to do more to cut down on housing costs in rural parts of the state.

Most towns in both counties had thorough housing stock assessments in their plans. In Tolland County, some municipalities also identified next steps, the importance of local zoning and a need for diverse housing options. Still, towns have work to do to bring a more diverse group of homeowners, renters and people from the workforce to the table to discuss affordable housing needs, according to the report.

Windham County towns proposed solutions such as establishing a housing trust fund and turning large single-family homes into multi-family homes. Still, the towns in that county also needed to improve their attention to diversity, including racial diversity, in the planning process, according to the report.

“A lot of times we talk about the housing crisis,” said Beth Sabilia, director of the Center for Housing Equity and Opportunity Eastern CT, one of the groups that worked on the report. “When you hear ‘crisis,’ it paralyzes people. We need to start talking about the agency that towns have. It’s not something outside of their ability to tackle and change.”

The analysis, from the Center for Housing Equity and Opportunity Eastern Connecticut, Desegregate CT and the Regional Plan Association, looked at a wide variety of factors when deciding towns’ scores, including whether the plan had been submitted, the planning process, the housing needs assessment and goals and actions outlined for next steps.

The state legislature in 2017 passed a law mandating that all towns create affordable housing plans every five years. The first plans were due in 2022, although some towns still haven’t submitted theirs to the state.

Three towns — Somers, Sterling and Willington — hadn’t yet submitted their plans, according to the report. Towns such as Mansfield, Ellington, Thompson, Putnam and Pomfret scored on the higher end while Eastford and Union were the lowest in each of their counties.

“It demonstrates that there really are two buckets of communities in Connecticut,” said Pete Harrison, Connecticut director of the Regional Plan Association, which worked on the report. “One takes the housing crisis seriously, and therefore took the affordable housing plan process seriously. The other didn’t take the affordable housing plan process seriously and therefore doesn’t take the affordable housing crisis seriously.”

The 2017 law, called 8-30j, mandated that towns create affordable housing plans. Less than half of towns met the deadline, and more plans have trickled in over the years.

Housing experts have also evaluated the plans in Fairfield and New London counties. The next round of plans are due in 2027.

Housing affordability has long been a politically difficult issue in Connecticut. Housing advocates have argued for statewide reform to zoning laws to push municipalities to allow more multi-family housing, while opponents say such measures would weaken local control.

As rents have risen over the past few years, the need for more affordable housing has grown more acute.

Connecticut lacks about 98,000 units of housing that are affordable and available to its lowest-income renters, according to the latest estimates from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

Sabilia said she thinks most towns view the first affordable housing plans as a jumping-off point, and she’s encouraged by the plans she saw. She said she hopes the next round of plans will include more concrete steps.

“The plans themselves don’t really talk about how to get these units built and that’s the connection we need to talk about,” Sabilia said.

Ellington was one of the higher-scoring towns, with 3 out of 5. First Selectman Lori Spielman said the town is working to develop a property into affordable housing for senior citizens and people with disabilities.

It’s town-owned, and she hopes to have an expanded food pantry and other human services available at the property in addition to at least 35 units, she said. Ellington officials also want to find ways to encourage more starter homes for homeownership.

“It’s just all funding,” Spielman said. “And without funding, we’re kind of dead in the water.”

Putnam scored a 2.5 out of 5, and was one of the higher-scoring towns in Windham County. Mayor Barney Seney said the town is focusing on ensuring that the existing properties are in good condition.

They’ve recently hired a blight officer and are working with the fire marshal to get units inspected. He also said he’s working on turning an old mill in town into apartments, which has been an increasingly popular approach to increasing housing stock, particularly in eastern Connecticut.

Leadership for the counties’ lowest-scoring towns — Eastford and Union — didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Somers First Selectman Tim Keeney said his town should have their plan done soon. He says the committee will present the plan in October.

The town is working with a developer on a proposed apartment complex that will have 50 to 60 units, most of them affordable, he said. It’s set to be built on town-owned land on Maple Street. He said residents’ attitude toward affordable housing has shifted in recent months.

“At the time, there didn’t seem to be a lot of options as to how do we build affordable housing in the town?,” Keeney said. “And then this proposal came up, combined with the fact that the town took ownership of this property that I think made a difference. I think it sort of kickstarted the need to complete the affordable housing plan.”

Willington First Selectman Peter Tanaka, said the Planning and Zoning Committee “should be getting to it [creating an affordable housing plan] in their course of business.”

“With these small towns, generally we’re working with committees that are made up solely of volunteers, so we try to meet these state mandates as best we can,” Tanaka said.

Harrison said that, particularly for some small towns that have fewer resources, the scorecards point to ways the state can step in. 

“Either we can’t do anything and then nothing gets done or they think we’re saying ‘You need to turn into Manhattan,’” he said. “There are certainly local steps that don’t cost anything to make it easier to build, to attract some new growth.”

Many need funding and technical assistance in their planning processes, he said.

“The state can do a lot and it doesn’t involve forcing towns to do things against their will, at least in this region,” he said.