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Council discusses state action to address local zoning barriers to mobile home parks
Summary
Members urged state-level solutions after describing many towns that effectively prohibit new manufactured-home parks; members referenced Connecticut statutes (including 8-2 and 8-30g) and possible AG review or new legislation to prevent local discrimination.
Council members spent an extended portion of the meeting discussing zoning barriers that limit development and expansion of mobile manufactured home parks. Members described a pattern in many towns where zoning regulations or omissions effectively prevent new parks or the expansion of existing ones.
Several council members argued that addressing zoning at the state level may be necessary. Rafi (Raffy), a council member and attorney, said the existing statute, often cited as Section 8-2, prohibits discrimination against manufactured homes under certain conditions and that the state or attorney general could review town ordinances for plain conflicts with that statute. "Nobody's enforcing the existing 8-2 statute," he said, and urged the council to consider seeking legal or legislative remedies.
Council members raised related policy points: a previously-proposed bill (House Bill 5002) included a repeal of the 22-foot minimum requirement; towns with minimum-lot-size or sewer limitations can still block park development in practice; and lengthy local permitting, public comment and legal challenges can add years and extra costs that change project economics. One council member described a proposal delayed three years by environmental testimony and an injunction over alleged adverse possession claims.
Planners and council members suggested options that could be pursued: (1) state-level statutory clarification or a statutory prohibition on zoning rules that treat mobile home parks differently than other residential subdivisions; (2) an opinion or enforcement action from the state attorney general identifying local ordinances that conflict with Section 8-2; and (3) drafting model zoning language that would allow parks or multifamily developments including manufactured homes as an "as-of-right" or permitted multifamily use where utilities and site conditions allow.
Council members agreed this is a high-priority, complex issue for the coming legislative cycle and recommended further work between meetings to develop concrete statutory or policy proposals for the council to consider.
