Resident accuses Weston planning staff of failing to prepare state-required housing affordability reports and delays public records

A member of the public told the Village of Weston Board of Trustees that the village has failed to complete statutorily required housing-affordability analysis reports for 2022 through 2025 and that a public-records request he submitted in April remains unfulfilled.

During public comment, Jim Pinsonal of 502 Arrow Street said the same incomplete file was published for four separate years and read a passage he attributed to a state statute describing the required contents of a housing affordability analysis: the analysis must “identify ways in which the municipality can modify its construction and development regulations, lot sizes, approval processes, and related fees” to meet housing demand and reduce approval and development time by 20%, and the municipality must post the report on a dedicated web page titled “housing affordability and analysis.”

Pinsonal said the village’s posted report referred to older work by other parties, did not perform the required analysis, and included language arguing the task was difficult because of inflation, supply-chain and workforce issues. He told trustees those explanations did not excuse failing to comply with the statute’s requirements.

He said he submitted a public-records request on April 24, that the clerk told him the records were available May 14, but he had not received the requested files and that the clerk requested $150 for copies; he said he paid $150 in cash but had not received the records or an itemized receipt. Pinsonal also raised concerns about committee appointments and about a proposed meeting rule on electronic devices, saying he felt the public was being limited to three minutes and that the village was discouraging citizen participation.

Trustees acknowledged the comments; the clerk and administrator did not provide an immediate record-delivery update during the public comment period. The board had previously listed a housing-affordability report item on the agenda and later acknowledged a 2019–2025 housing affordability report packet during the meeting, but Pinsonal told trustees that what was posted did not meet the statutory standard as he read it.

The board did not take further action during the meeting to respond to Pinsonal’s records claim; staff follow-up would be required to confirm the public-records response, verify what was posted on the village website and determine whether the filings satisfy the statute’s requirements.