Stamford housing developers can pay a fee instead of building affordable units. Could this help renters?  (2023)

"I was showing people around and people were almost crying," Freedman said of the open house event. "They were like, 'Oh my God, it's so beautiful. I really hope I get picked in the lottery.'"

About 125 people won that lottery, among them parents, children, elders and downtown workers. Hundreds more were put on a waiting list, which property manager Crystal Little said may reopen later this year for the first time since 2019. But others were likely forced to move on and search for affordable housing elsewhere, in or outside of Stamford.

Freedman said that the key to the project was about $4.2 million from the city's Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Officials award the funds to developers, who in turn leverage them for additional subsidies and investments from government programs and other sources. And one of the main ways that the trust fund's coffers get filled are "fee-in-lieu payments" — but not everyone in local government is a fan of them.

What are fee-in-lieu payments?

Fee-in-lieu payments are a trade-off. Developers can request a special permit to pay a lump sum to the city instead of including on-site affordable housing in their market-rate developments. Affordable units are required to comprise 10 percent of any new multi-family development with at least 10 units under Stamford's Below Market Rate program, established in 2002.

On-site BMR units must be affordable to people who make at least 50 percent of the area's median income. But amid Connecticut's deepening affordable housing crisis, officials agree that what Stamford needs most is "deeply affordable housing" — homes for people who make less than 50 percent of the median income. In particular, the city lacks more spacious, three-bedroom apartments for lower-income residents — like those in Franklin Apartments.

Land Use Bureau staff say that fee-in-lieu payments can help affordable housing developers attract the necessary funding to build more deeply affordable homes, rentals or owner-occupied. As of May 9, the trust fund had approximately $2.45 million — around half of what it took to spur Franklin Apartments.

"A lot of (affordable housing) is still financed through mortgages and debt, basically. If you have fewer debts, then obviously, the conditions for the financing you can get are better," Land Use Bureau Chief Ralph Blessing told The Stamford Advocate.

Still, most BMR units continue to be built on site: According to Land Use Bureau estimates, about 80 percent of required units in the BMR program's history have been included along with market-rate offerings.

Stamford Director of Housing and Community Development Emily Gordon said that the BMR program has helped retain residents who make 50 percent of the median income; however, Stamfordites who make less have not been as fortunate.

"While residents looking for a one-bedroom at 50 percent would likely see shorter wait times for a unit, residents looking for two- or three-bedroom units, or units at 30 percent often find themselves waiting for years," Gordon said.

Do they do what they're supposed to?

Some officials remain skeptical of the fee-in-lieu option.

Some frustrationswere on display April 25, when the city's Housing, Community Development and Social Services Committee met to review the BMR program. Members of the Board of Representatives asked why the Zoning Board does not mandate that more developers build affordable, three-bedroom units in market-rate projects.

“I don’t think that’s unreasonable (to ask) when you’re pulling permits,” Rep. Jeffrey Stella, D-9, said.

Blessing and Gordon said the department is exploring ways to give the Zoning Board more authority over unit types. But mandating three-bedroom affordable apartments could make it more challenging to attract developers' investments in Stamford's other housing needs, Blessing said.

"It is an overall issue of increasing all types of units. We have to do more for two and three-bedrooms, but we also have needs for those other types of units," Blessing said.

Additionally, at a March 7 Planning Board meeting, alternate member William Levin expressed concern about allowing fee-in-lieu for a proposed new high-rise in downtown's Landmark Square. Levin brought up an unused $4.4 million fee-in-lieu payment set aside for downtown's St. Johns Towers. The payment predates the trust fund, which was established in 2020. It came from officials approving The Smyth, a Tresser Boulevard luxury high-rise.

"I was skeptical about not having any on-site affordable (housing) for that project. I'm just really feeling uncomfortable that this could take years and years," Levin said. "Personally, I'd rather have the 40 units right here, right in the center of downtown near where a lot of the jobs are."

Critics have also raised concerns about concentrating poverty in exclusively lower-income housing developments. On-site units, though fewer, are mixed-income housing.

Freedman said the concern is misplaced.

"There are no negative impacts from making 100 percent of the units in a building affordable," Freedman said. "Where are the negative impacts? When you concentrate people in poverty in entire cities or entire neighborhoods — that clearly has negative impacts. If you take a building like Franklin Apartments, which is 100 percent affordable, and you put it in downtown Stamford, which is a mixed-income area ... no problem."

In Connecticut's affordable housing crisis, Freedman said he believes one characteristic "vastly outweighs all the others: quantity."

"We're essentially letting a private developer determine our affordable housing policy," Freedman said ofon-site BMR units. "We just accept that whatever unit mix they've chosen and whatever location they've chosen, we take 10 percent of those units and those become affordable at 50 percent" of the median income.

An opportunity forlower-income renters

Franklin Apartments' rents are far lower than other housing being built downtown. The building is owned by Stamford-based nonprofit Inspirica, a homeless shelter and social services agency. Unlike private developers looking to turn a profit, Inspirica just has to make sure its income exceeds its expenses, Freedman said.

As of October, three-bedroom apartments at Franklin rented for $2,067 a month. Compare that with The Smyth,where similar-sized units open at $5,010 monthly.

Before managing Franklin Apartments, Crystal Little worked several jobs in Hartford for the state of Connecticut — education, revenue services and various others. Since starting work in the affordable housing sphere, though, she said she's come to understand the complexities that go into making a development like Franklin happen.

Still, Little said she wishes there were more buildings like the one that she lives and works in.

"Before, I never even thought about living in Stamford," Little said.

Now, Little is able to live downtown in a three-bedroom apartment with her daughter, a student at Albertus Magnus College in New Haven. Since she lives close to public transportation and retail, she was able to sell her car.

In Hartford, she said, there were no comparable housing options to what she has now. Beside needing an elevator for tenants with disabilities, she said Franklin Apartments has been a godsend.

"Just living here is wonderful,” Little said.

The benefits of having a good place to call home — particularly for families with children — can be life-changing, Freedman said.

"If you could have a chance to move into a brand new, three-bedroom apartment on Franklin Street right in the heart of Downtown Stamford, access to all kinds of services ... yeah, it would change your life, too," Freedman said.