Open Communities Alliance

10/13/2026

Please join the Center for Housing Opportunity Eastern CT and Eastern Connecticut State University for another Housing Justice Open Classroom experience. ECSU's Dr. Cara Bergstrom-Lynch will open her class to guest speaker Erin Boggs, Esq., Executive Director of Open Communities Alliance to learn about housing as a civil right, and how policies have shaped our housing landscape and, at times, excluded people.

October 20, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Eastern Connecticut State University

Webb Hall, Room 317

Register at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/v42skc5

10/01/2026

According to a new analysis, nine states, including Connecticut, saw poverty rates far higher than they would be if housing costs were the same as the national average.

Alex Horowitz, project director for housing policy at Pew, said the core issue is supply: There just isn’t enough housing in any of these states, and it is difficult and expensive to build there.

Connecticut can do better.

A new study identified 10 locations where higher-than-average housing costs have impacted poverty the most.

09/24/2026

Join us Oct. 8 at 2 p.m. for a webinar "Charting the Path to Equity."

We'll introduce our new Resource-Equity Map and accompanying Mobility App, designed to help people find the housing that is right for their needs and inform communities investments.

We’ll talk about the data, what it means for Connecticut housing and place-based policy, and how to ensure everyone has the information they need to find a home of their own.

To learn more and to register, go to: https://www.ctoca.org/path_to_equity

09/02/2026

There's still time to sign up and join us in reading STUCK! Register at the link below.

For generations, America has been defined by the freedom to move in search of greater opportunity. In Stuck, writer Yoni Appelbaum argues that this mobility — the engine of the American Dream — has been steadily undermined by housing shortages, restrictive land-use policies, and rising costs that prevent millions of Americans from living where opportunity exists.

This six-session learning series explores the themes of Stuck while connecting them to affordable housing, economic mobility, and community development. Through discussion, multimedia resources, local case studies, and interactive exercises, participants will gain a deeper understanding of the housing challenges facing their communities and identify practical ways to create more inclusive places to live.

Learn more and register! https://www.ctoca.org/book_club

08/24/2026

Join us for our upcoming virtual book club! Register at the link below.

For generations, America has been defined by the freedom to move in search of greater opportunity. In Stuck, writer Yoni Appelbaum argues that this mobility — the engine of the American Dream — has been steadily undermined by housing shortages, restrictive land-use policies, and rising costs that prevent millions of Americans from living where opportunity exists.

This six-session learning series explores the themes of Stuck while connecting them to affordable housing, economic mobility, and community development. Through discussion, multimedia resources, local case studies, and interactive exercises, participants will gain a deeper understanding of the housing challenges facing their communities and identify practical ways to create more inclusive places to live.

Learn more and register! https://www.ctoca.org/book_club

08/14/2026

For generations, America has been defined by the freedom to move in search of greater opportunity. In Stuck, writer Yoni Appelbaum argues that this mobility — the engine of the American Dream — has been steadily undermined by housing shortages, restrictive land-use policies, and rising costs that prevent millions of Americans from living where opportunity exists.

This six-session learning series explores the themes of Stuck while connecting them to affordable housing, economic mobility, and community development. Through discussion, multimedia resources, local case studies, and interactive exercises, participants will gain a deeper understanding of the housing challenges facing their communities and identify practical ways to create more inclusive places to live.

Learn more and register! https://www.ctoca.org/book_club

07/30/2026

OCA is looking for fair housing testers, to assess whether fair housing laws are being followed in Connecticut. Our next information session will be held on November 17. This session will cover how to become a tester, what the work entails, and why it’s so important for our state. We’re looking for people who are dependable, impartial, able to work independently, and have a few hours of flexibility during business hours.

This is your opportunity to take a front-line role in ensuring that housing is open and fair for everyone in our state. Sign up for the information session here: https://www.ctoca.org/become_a_fair_housing_tester

07/27/2026

Important findings about the NJ zoning reform process: clear *state* guidelines & enforcement paired with municipal control over *how and where* affordable housing is located is what works.

By requiring every municipality to create its fair share of affordable homes, the Garden State offers a compelling model for other states to build on.

07/24/2026

“These fair housing laws are on the books, but they don’t mean anything if there’s no one to enforce them.”

Read about how organizations around the country are fighting to ensure that violations of fair housing laws are investigated and that our laws are enforced.

A shift in grant requirements would curtail fair housing investigations, according to a new lawsuit.

07/13/2026

State Sen. Martin Looney, one of Connecticut's true champions of equal opportunity for every person in this state, has some important words to say in this vital op-ed.

"When communities use zoning to keep out multifamily and affordable housing that working families can actually afford, they are also deciding in advance who will attend their schools. Integrated classrooms cannot happen in towns that refuse to integrate neighborhoods.

" ... We have made incremental progress on housing in recent sessions, often over fierce local resistance, and that same resistance produces the school numbers in this report."

Sen. Looney's leadership will be deeply missed as he moves into retirement this year.

An honest assessment, and the one a new report confirms, is that the approaches CT has relied on to end segregation in schools have not been enough.