Citizens of Connecticut\u2019s 169 municipalities probably don\u2019t spend a lot of time considering the zoning laws that determine what can be built and where. A statewide team including University of Connecticut researchers hopes to change that.<\/p>\n
An interdisciplinary team of researchers developed the nation\u2019s first interactive map that shows what kind of housing is allowed in each town to encourage equity, prosperity, and a cleaner environment.<\/p>\n
The Connecticut Zoning Atlas<\/a> project is led by Sara Bronin, Thomas F. Gallivan\u00a0Chair of Real Property\u00a0Law at UConn School of Law, through an advocacy group she leads called DesegregateCT<\/a>. A first-in-the-nation tool, the Atlas allows users to visualize how each of the state\u2019s 169 towns and 2,620 zoning districts regulate housing and shows the potential impacts. Bronin published a paper<\/a> on the project in SSRN.<\/p>\n \u201cWe started DesegregateCT over the summer,\u201d says Bronin. \u201cWith an initial group of architects, lawyers, and planners, we discussed the role of land use and zoning in segregation. People really wanted to do something to create positive change.\u201d<\/p>\n Cary Chadwick from UConn\u2019s College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR)<\/a> and UConn Extension<\/a> was one of those people.<\/p>\n Chadwick,\u00a0an expert in geographic information systems (GIS) with the CAHNR Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR), was excited about the opportunity to support a project that could directly impact the citizens of Connecticut at a time when the nation was having important conversations about social justice.<\/p>\n \u201cLike so many individuals and organizations, we were talking about the murder of George Floyd and the increased focus on issues of race and inequity internally at CLEAR and in CAHNR,” Chadwick says. “It was about this time we became aware of DesegregateCT. We reached out to see how CLEAR might be able to help.\u201d<\/p>\n Chadwick\u2019s geographic information system skills were quickly put to use in the creation of the Connecticut Zoning Atlas. While the Zoning Atlas was a collaborative project, Bronin is quick to recognize Chadwick\u2019s contributions.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Atlas was made possible by Cary\u2019s incredible efforts, and it would have taken twice as long without her \u2013 if it could have been done at all.\u201d<\/p>\n The first task for the Atlas team involved a research team painstakingly sorting through 32,276 total pages of zoning code text for all the state jurisdictions to identify specific zoning characteristics such as single versus multi-family zones, minimum lot size and floor area requirements, parking regulations, affordable housing provisions, and the availability and restrictions of accessory dwelling units (ADU\u2019s).<\/p>\n Chadwick became the primary coordinator for the second part of the project, the map collection. Every zoning code has an associated map, though many of the towns had neither updated nor complete information. Chadwick worked with collaborators and volunteer GIS professionals, to collect and update the maps. In some cases, maps had to be created by digitizing hand-drawn illustrations.<\/p>\n