The Sky's the Limit in Greenwich Under CT's 8-30g Affordable Housing Mandates
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Located at 7 and 9 Western Junior Highway, in Greenwich's Byram neighborhood, a new 8-30g affordable housing development is heading to Planning & Zoning for pre-application review.
The Proposed Plan
The applicant, Putnam Green Holding LLC, proposes demolishing four existing 3-story buildings to combine the two properties into a single 2.7-acre parcel. In their place, plans call for a single, massive 6-story residential building featuring 176 units above a two-level parking garage.
At 80 feet high, the proposed design would double the 40-foot height limit permitted under existing zoning regulations and nearly triple the capacity of the current 66-unit complex.
In June 2025, the Putnam Green complex sold for $20.75 million and was rebranded as "ARIUM at Greenwich Place".
Blame 8-30g
Under Connecticut’s Section 8-30g statute, local zoning boards face a high bar to reject or place significant conditions on qualifying affordable housing developments, granting developers the ability to bypass local zoning rules. Greenwich's P&Z Commission has already approved two other massive multi-story 8-30g projects in recent years:
Benedict Court: A 6-story, 120-apartment development currently under construction near St Mary's Church in central Greenwich.
Chilston Court: A 5-to-6-story, 75-unit pair of buildings straddling Mason Street at the former Honda dealership, approved with conditions in 2024.
Local Reaction
Local reaction to the Western Junior Highway plan has been swift. Lin Lavery, a former Greenwich Selectwoman and local resident, told the GreenwichTime she expects strong neighborhood opposition due to the scale:
Between the Lines: Under Hartford’s 8-30g mandates, the sky is quite literally the limit. Welcome to the City of Greenwich.