by Dr. Immacula Cann
Southwest Connecticut Mental Health System
As illustrated by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, humans are primarily motivated by the basic requirements for survival, especially physiological needs such as: water, food, shelter. Unless these basic requirements are met, the human cannot achieve health or security, and cannot expect to achieve higher levels of self-actualization.
As a Registered Nurse with over twenty years’ experience in public health and staff development, I can vouch for this reality, and attest that solutions are available. A successful community is represented by its ability to “care for the least of us”, but especially for its ability to “care for all of us”.
Many individuals of our Stratford community are experiencing “housing insecurity”, and this condition limits their ability to achieve the higher personal objectives of health, education, social relationships, play, parenting, and employment.
Over twenty years ago, the State of CT created the Connecticut Housing Partnership (CT GS 137c Section 8-336f). The state created an agency within its Department of Housing to assist municipalities in their documentation of existing residential housing inventory, and preparation of plans to meet their community’s ongoing housing demand
Their objective was “to solve housing problems faced by the community and develop ways to increase the supply and availability of affordable housing”. The state set a time table for each municipality to publish these results, and the deadline is now – 2021.
For the past 20 years, aside from the formal creation a Stratford Housing Partnership (SHP) Committee, the Town of Stratford effectively took no action towards this objective. On June 11, 2020 a rejuvenated committee held its first meeting.
The committee has been busy, and is scheduled to hold its first public presentation on Thursday March 11th at 5:30pm. Please check town’s online calendar for information on how to participate.
In the meantime, the following link will take you online to information compiled by the committee. Of particular interest is the “Draft Strategy Report”. This 24-page report is a summary of results, a draft version of the committee’s conclusions.
http://www.townofstratford.com/content/39832/40029/42536.aspx
Thank you demonstrating an interest in the issues (should I say, opportunities?) that impact our town. Especially, thank you for contributing to the construction of viable solutions.
