Partnership for Strong Communities Receives $330,000 Hartford Foundation Grant

Core Support grant will provide flexible funding to support Partnership’s efforts to expand affordable housing for Connecticut residents

Approximately 86,000 very low-income Connecticut households are in need of housing that is affordable to them, according to a 2021 study conducted by the Connecticut Department of Housing and the Urban Institute. Most of the affordable housing in Greater Hartford is concentrated in the City of Hartford with relatively few options in surrounding towns. Statewide, 73 percent of Blacks and Latinos live in low- and very low-opportunity areas, compared to 26 percent of Whites and 36 percent of Asians. This segregation by income and race/ethnicity in the result of a variety of historically exclusionary federal and state policies and has been exacerbated by local zoning codes and land use laws, government subsidy programs and other factors.

The Partnership for Strong Communities is a key convener in driving policy change to increase affordable housing options for Connecticut residents. The Partnership leads advocacy, advances original research, and brings together the coalitions needed to drive systemic change. It is dedicated to ensuring everyone in Connecticut has a safe, stable and affordable home in an equitable community of their choice.

To advance this work, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving has awarded the Partnership a three-year, $330,000 core support grant to implement its strategic priorities focused on creating equitable housing solutions that impact the Hartford region.

“The Partnership for Strong Communities and all of our partners are grateful for the significant, generous, flexible support of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving,” said Partnership for Strong Communities Executive Director Kiley Gosselin. “The Foundation is not just a funder, but also a committed partner whose multi-faceted investment in our work allows us to expand our reach to new organizations, policymakers and individuals year after year. The Foundation’s unwavering commitment to racial equity and addressing the persistent barriers to safe, stable housing for low and moderate income families in the Hartford region aligns squarely with our mission and we look forward to working together in the years to come.”

Core support will allow the Partnership to focus on building its collective impact model through a more expansive version of its HOMEConnecticut, a statewide campaign aimed at increasing the state’s stock of affordable housing. The campaign seeks to bring together a broad array of stakeholders to create a shared agenda including developers, realtors, landlords, municipal leaders, lawyers, nonprofits, funders, researchers and advocates. The campaign advances its work through legislative and administrative advocacy that promotes the creation and preservation of affordable housing; outreach and engagement with municipalities, policymakers, key partners, and allies; research, analysis, and publication of housing data.

These resources will also allow the Partnership to institutionalize the BIPOC Research Associates Program piloted through a previous Foundation grant, incorporating more BIPOC voices and people with lived experience is important in the housing space.

“We know that policy and advocacy are essential to making meaningful systems change required to meet the substantial housing needs of underserved populations,” said Hartford Foundation Senior Community Impact Officer Erika Frank. “The Partnership for Strong Communities has been a leader in the effort to build a coalition of stakeholders to promote meaningful policy changes that increase housing opportunities for Connecticut residents, particularly low-income residents of color. The Hartford Foundation is proud to provide this long-term, flexible funding that will allow the Partnership and the HOMECT Campaign to deepen its efforts towards solving Connecticut’s affordable housing crisis.”

The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is the community foundation for Hartford and 28 surrounding towns. Through partnerships, the Foundation seeks to strengthen communities in Greater Hartford by putting philanthropy in action to dismantle structural racism and achieve equity in social and economic mobility. Made possible by the gifts of generous individuals, families and organizations, the Foundation has awarded grants of more than $894 million since its founding in 1925. For more information, visit www.hfpg.org or call 860-548-1888.