Scotland planning commission pursues state recount of housing data to boost affordable-housing percentage

The Town of Scotland Planning & Zoning Commission discussed a potential state-led recount of its housing data that officials say could increase the town’s recorded share of affordable housing.

J. Jakubowski, who called the Jan. 27 special meeting to order and who reported the sub-committee discussion, said the state’s housing office suggested sending staff to Scotland to perform a recount because the town may have been undercounted. “There will be no additional charge for the town, and this should provide a more accurate count that may show we are closer to our 10% threshold for affordable housing,” Jakubowski said. He said the First Selectman is on board with pursuing town approval for the recount.

The recount matters because Connecticut grants certain planning flexibilities and housing-related thresholds when a municipality meets an affordable-housing percentage; Scotland’s minutes state the town is currently “somewhere between 4–5%” toward a 10% threshold. The sub-committee and commission members framed the recount as a procedural step that could change Scotland’s standing without requiring new housing construction.

Commissioner R. Manning told colleagues that several technical issues likely contributed to the undercount, citing zip-code mismatches, uncounted accessory dwelling units and mortgages recorded through CHFA that were not captured in the state’s dataset as examples of sources of error. The minutes do not record detailed data or a formal estimate beyond the 4–5% range.

No formal vote was taken at the Jan. 27 meeting. Jakubowski said he will take the recount proposal to town leaders for approval and will distribute any follow-up information to the commission.

What’s next: the commission recorded no motion on the matter at this meeting; any formal request to the state would require approval by town officials and further reporting to the Planning & Zoning Commission.