Duff Urges Governor to Sign Demolition Delay Measure
State Sen. Bob Duff
May 1, 2007

State Senator Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) today praised the state House of Representatives for its unanimous passage of legislation to give municipalities the option of increasing their demolition delay provisions from 90 to 180 days. Senator Duff urged Governor M. Jodi Rell to act quickly on the bill, which has already received the state Senate's unanimous approval by consent.

"The extended timeframe gives a better chance to find solutions that don't involve demolition," said Senator Duff. "Demolition is costly. It creates a large amount of material waste and requires a large amount of energy. Whenever we can find a solution to demolition, whether it's preservation of a structure or incorporating historical landmarks into a new development, we're eliminating the negatives of demolition and adding to our cultural artifacts at the same time."

Municipalities currently give parties the option of delaying demolition of historical buildings and landmarks for 90 days so that agreements to potentially save structures can be sought. Substitute Senate Bill 618 would give municipalities the option of extending their delay to 180 days in order to give parties more time to find a mutually beneficial solution.

"Across the country, developers are finding that historical structures offer unique opportunities to think out of the box and put existing buildings to new uses, be it through creating affordable housing opportunities or adding to the cultural significance of a new development. Extending the demolition delay will give developers more time to work with preservationists and historical societies to explore these options," Senator Duff added.

The legislation is supported by the Norwalk Historical Commission, the Norwalk Preservation Trust, the Redding Planning Commission, and the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservations. It also received unanimous approval from the General Assembly's Planning and Development Committee.

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