Opinion: What Is A Neighborhood Without Neighbors?

Rent rises are unprecedented. Regulating short-term rentals can help slow the climb and keep our neighbors in their homes. (Opinion) I grew up in a small town where community meant showing up on a neighbor’s porch with a warm meal when life got hard. When I moved to New Haven, a city of neighborhoods, I was relieved to find that exact same spirit in a bigger city. When I was in need, my neighbors dropped everything to make sure I was not alone. Having neighbors who were deeply rooted on our street is what truly made me feel at home — and protecting those rooted communities is why I serve as alder for Ward 8. This is my chosen home. Since the pandemic, there has been a fundamental switch in how we value our living spaces. Since 2020, rents in New Haven have risen 53 percent, from roughly $1,290 to nearly $2,000 a month, according to Zillow’s Observed Rent Index. We no longer just sleep in our homes; our work, our lives, and our entertainment happen inside them.

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