Connecticut Might Just be Cool Again, According to the Wall Street Journal

Connecticut was the subject of a story in the Wall Street Journal today after the pandemic prompted a record number of folks to flock to New York City and settle in the burbs. 

“One of the nation’s most troubled states hopes to capitalize on interest from New Yorkers looking to escape the city,“ writes WSJ writers Joseph De Avila and Jon Kamp in the article titled, The article titled, Connecticut Bet Big on the Suburbs. That Might Finally Pay Off - and this move, they say, might just make Connecticut “cool” again.

According to the article, moves from New York City to Connecticut have more than doubled from last year, since the COVID shut down the city in March.

Specifically mentioning Fairfield County as a prime destination spot, the article quotes Weston First Selectman, Chris Spaulding as saying, “You see these cars with New York plates going 15 miles an hour, stopping at houses with ‘for sale’ signs...before Covid we were kind of moribund.” In addition, spotlighted is Wilton where a 55-year-old NYC resident chose to rent a home during the pandemic and quickly became a suburban “convert”. She has since purchased a home in neighboring Easton. 

But, will the love affair with Connecticut last? The article quotes David Lehman, Gov. Ned Lamont’s top economic-development official, “The state’s leaders aren’t sure if New York transplants are there to stay or just riding out the storm, but they want to keep them. If this new craving for suburban living leads to just a 5% increase to the state’s labor force, including people working from home, that would be a huge boost in tax revenue.”

To read the article in its entirety (you need to subscribe to WSJ) click here.

 

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Submitted by Ridgefield, CT

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