HARTFORD - Republicans are not normally perceived as the biggest advocates for battling the ongoing problems of homelessness, affordable housing, rental assistance and supportive housing. Instead, they are often viewed to be more interested in holding the line on taxes and spending.
But Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley came to The Lyceum in Hartford on Thursday to talk about housing issues to a crowd that was filled with Democrats and advocates.
Speaking to a group gathered by the Hartford-based Partnership for Strong Communities, Foley said the state needs to help clean contaminated "brownfields'' sites in order to revitalize cities like Waterbury that have been hamstrung in economic development. The state Department of Environmental Protection needs to "expedite that process'' to clean the sites more quickly, he said.
"Most developers don't even want to touch brownfield sites because of the liability issues,'' Foley said in an auditorium on The Lyceum's third floor. "We just aren't getting the job done.''
"Homelessness and affordable housing are issues that don't really come to the surface in this election cycle because jobs and the economy and reducing government spending are such important factors on people's minds. But they are all directly related to homelessness and housing,'' Foley told the crowd.
Between his opening remarks and answering questions, Foley spoke for about 45 minutes on housing issues. Malloy is expected to address the same group on October 22.
Foley's comments came on the day that Malloy received a boost with an endorsement by The New York Times. The newspaper said that Connecticut has "two worthy candidates for governor,'' but "Malloy is the better choice.''