The state legislature’s Planning & Development Committee is considering a bill that would create a property tax abatement and payments in lieu of taxes for converting shopping malls to residential use.
H.B. 6424, proposed by Rep. Jason Doucette (D-Manchester), is one of seven bills expected to be scheduled for a public hearing during the committee’s meeting Monday morning.
According to the bill’s statement of purpose, it’s intended to establish a property tax abatement for shopping malls that are converted to residential use, as well as to provide payment in lieu of taxes to reimburse municipalities for the resulting loss of property tax revenue.
Operators of at least two malls in Connecticut have plans to convert a portion of their properties to multifamily housing, including the Connecticut Post mall in Milford and the Danbury Fair mall.
Connecticut Post Mall owner Centennial Real Estate, based in Dallas, received approval in October from the Milford Planning & Zoning Board for a change to town zoning regulations that would allow it to build up to 750 apartments on the mall property.
Macerich, the California-based owner of the Danbury Fair Mall, received approval of a similar zone change in 2023 but has not yet filed a formal application to create up to 144 apartments in part of the building.
Doucette represents a town with a struggling mall — The Shoppes at Buckland Hills, which has been going through the foreclosure process since 2021.
The town conducted a study of the sprawling mall property that suggested it could be ripe for multifamily development.
There is a tentative agreement in place for Buckland Hills to be purchased by a mall operator that has purchased struggling malls across Connecticut.
The Planning & Development Committee will also review 18 concepts that may be raised as bills, including one that would seek to allow converting vacant motels to multifamily housing.
The committee is scheduled to meet at 10:30 a.m. Monday.