Stamford resident Brittany Lawrence moved into her home at The BLVD Apartments in downtown Stamford nine years ago. It was Lawrence鈥檚 first apartment after college.
Now, Lawrence is planning her next move as The BLVD Apartments on Washington Boulevard are in the process of being sold to the University of 黑料吃瓜网. The building will be converted into dormitories for .
Lawrence first received notice of the building鈥檚 sale and plans for tenant relocation from an email and notice on her door in February.
鈥淚'm in an affordable unit, and those leases are renewable by recertification,鈥� Lawrence said. 鈥淪o if you're not going to renew after my current term, what happens? And that was my question, basically.鈥�
Lawrence is a member of the city-run affordable housing program, Below Market Rate (BMR), which is geared toward renters earning 50% of the Area Median Income (AMI). At BLVD there are nine affordable apartments.
Displacement may force renters to move into an apartment that makes them ineligible for the middle-income program and city officials have been unhelpful, Lawrence said.
鈥溾�楽orry鈥� is not going to keep people housed. 鈥楽orry鈥� is not going to help the families that you claim to want to help,鈥� Lawrence said. 鈥淎ll in all, it's a state of vulnerableness that you know is a problem because you market it to the vulnerable population.鈥�
Lawrence fears she and other residents at the BLVD apartments will now take whatever apartment they can get.
鈥淲hen you have people that have nothing, whose hopes and dreams rely on you saying 鈥楾his is what we can do for you,鈥� or 鈥楾his is what we can offer you,鈥� you put them in a state of desperation that they're not able to think through what those long term implications can be,鈥� Lawrence said.
What Stamford鈥檚 BMR program means
Residents partnered with the 黑料吃瓜网 Tenants Union (CTTU) are advocating for reforms to the city鈥檚 Below Market Rate program.
In Stamford, the BMR program is tied to the affordable apartments, not the tenants, according to CTTU Vice President Luke Melonakos-Harrison. Unlike traditional voucher-based programs like Section 8 or Rental Assistance Program, once the tenants are moved out, they have to start over and reapply for the BMR program.
鈥淧eople are clinging to these units for dear life. What these tenants are pushing for is recognition that once you're in the BMR program, for that to mean something,鈥� Melonakos-Harrison said. 鈥淚f you get displaced by something like this, they're leasing it to UConn, now all of those apartments are lost.鈥�
Union members outlined five key requests for the city, including a freezing of the annual eligibility certification to protect tenants from disqualification due to income changes, household shifts, or evolving city policies caused by their involuntary displacement.
Tenants asked Stamford officials to give low-income renters from BLVD priority for new affordable apartments, and keep the BMR status dependent on the tenant rather than the apartment.
鈥淭hose tenants should be recognized as having a special status because they were in this program,鈥� Melonakos-Harrison said.
The current co-owners, RMS Companies and the Wolff Company, informed tenants they need to move out of BLVD by April 2026, Melonakos-Harrison said. Neither RMS nor Wolff responded to 黑料吃瓜网鈥檚 request for comment.
The tentative plan was for BMR renters to move into market rate housing, with RMS/Wolff paying the rent difference until the completion of the company鈥檚 next Stamford venture; the into nearly 300 apartments.
UConn Stamford鈥檚 Chief Administrative Officer Jennifer Orlikoff said she鈥檚 impressed with RMS and Wolff鈥檚 effort to smooth over the transition for residents.
鈥淭hey are going out of their way to pay for relocation costs, especially for the tenants who are below market rate,鈥� Orlikoff said. 鈥淭hey are providing interim housing for them as well and just and I think, general guidance for folks who are looking for other places to live in town.鈥�
By late August, about 100 UConn students will be moved into the BLVD building. The newly-converted apartments were part of the general flow of apartment vacancies, not the result of forced displacement, Orlikoff said.
