Work Live Ride is HB 6831. You can find draft language here.

In 2024, Work Live Ride passed the House with 90 votes! However, it was not taken up in the Senate. We are hopeful that Work Live Ride will pass both chambers during the 2025 legislative session.

The bill has 3 components related to allowing more housing as of right: Allowing smaller developments of 9 homes or less (duplexes, triplexes, quads, etc); Allowing any development over 10 units containing 30% deed-restricted homes; and Allowing any development owned by the public, non-profits, or religious organizations with 100% deed-restricted homes.

Additionally, it contains language incentivizing publicly owned developments and alternative equity models like Community Land Trusts.

The size and location of the TOC District will be defined by a community’s planning & zoning commission and the local wetlands agency or commission. This way, environmental review and public comment about climate impacts can be conducted up front in the design phase. After a TOC District has passed, if a proposal includes or abuts wetlands, there will be a public hearing in the wetlands agency.

Transit Oriented Communities and Transit Oriented Development are pretty much the same concept - building more homes and jobs near transit service - but we prefer to emphasize the community part and to make the larger argument that TOCs are the key to a post-sprawl future and not just small, one-off projects.

Yes, very!

According to a poll conducted by Growing Together CT, 76% of likely CT voters support building more homes near bus and rail routes. A Pew Research poll shows that TODs have over 80% of support from likely voters in the Northeast.

Yes! He was on the record saying he would sign WLR last session. He also included funding for WLR in his previous budget, and we hope that he includes funding for WLR once again in his current budget.

We want to make it clear that the future of our state’s economy and population growth is tied to building more homes around public transportation. We want to see more homes and more jobs and greater access to both.

Work Live Ride does that.

Check out our News page to read the latest the press coverage about Work Live Ride!

TOCs are a popular and proven concept to generate more homes. States like Massachusetts, California, New York, and Montana have recently passed similar bills.

It is true, there are no mandates. Towns and cities have the choice to opt-in or not. We want to support communities that are eager for these kinds of developments and think that’s a better way to see growth in our state and our state’s capacity to plan. Mandates from the state (without the proper support) have been hard even for pro-homes allies locally to support and we want to change that dynamic.

That’s up to the local community!

Rather than dictate the size of a district or location near a specific station, Work Live Ride allows the local Planning & Zoning Commission and wetlands agency to determine the district’s size and what transit route it is concentrated around by working with the ORG. All that matters is that the community creates one district within its borders that is a reasonable size.

There are 111 towns and cities have at least one regular transit route, including bus service and 54 that are considered “transit adjacent.”

The Office of Responsible Growth will help towns and cities with three state “buckets” of funding: planning and design, infrastructure improvements, and home construction subsidies. Funding will come from existing grants overseen by other state agencies that the office will streamline and from a discretionary fund the office will oversee directly.

No, a municipality’s participation is strictly voluntary and ultimately if its leadership is uncomfortable with the process, they can pull out. Once a town has opted-in and created the TOC Districts, they are obligated to sustain them.

Yes!

This year we are including local bus, rapid bus, and train service to expand the types of riders and communities that can benefit from TOCs. Even if a bus station is only a sign on the side of the road right now, if a town or city wants to prioritize this as the future of their communities, they can.

Yes!

Contrary to some people’s perception, there is a rich density of transit service across the state. It has been underfunded and underappreciated in many circles, but we think the best answer to these problems is more transit riders, which Work Live Ride will create.

There’s a chance that your town might have transit that you might not be aware of! Plus, even if your town doesn’t have transit, your town might be able to participate as a transit-adjacent community.

Like last year, we plan to support Just Cause protections, more funding for the Rental Assistance Program and frontline homelessness services, funding for transit, among others; and this year we will also support the 2025-2030 State Conservation and Development Policies Plan. Stay tuned to see what bills we will be following.