New Haven Independent

Giannini-Meyers runs the Tower One housing complex in New Haven. She fears she’ll have to raise monthly rents $88-$130 on the 230 fixed-income seniors who live there because the governor eliminated the money from a statewide program that covers the local property taxes at 10 New Haven addresses belonging to not-for-profit housing groups. The city startled the groups when it had to send out tax bills recently (as first reported here).

Democrats in Hartford are trying to help. Last week, when the legislature’s Appropriations Committee approved its version of the new state budget, Democrats added $1.7 million to reinstate funding to the tax abatement program.

Now that restoration has to survive full votes by the state House and Senate in coming weeks, then a signature from Gov. Rell’s pen.

Besides Tower One, the other complexes affected are:

• University Row, 127-141 Henry St.
• Canterbury Gardens Apartments, 545 Sherman Parkway
• Seabury Cooperative, 400 Elm St. & 116 Howe St.
• Dwight Cooperative Homes, 99 Edgewood Ave.
• Fairbank Apartments, 355 Ferry St.
• Tower One, 18 Tower La.
• Village Park II & Bella Vista Phase II: 301, 321 & 315 Eastern St.

“I feel very good about the vote,” said Giannini-Meyers, who runs Tower One. “But that vote only fixes the problem going forward.” She’s hoping for approval next week of another bill, HB 5031, when it’s scheduled to come up on the House floor this coming Thursday. The bill would restore money cut out of the budget for the current fiscal year. (The budget approved in committee last week deals with the next year.)

In addition, Tower One receives a special city tax exemption that has expired. So after the state legislature finishes dealing with the state program, she’ll be lobbying city aldermen to renew the extra tax exemption.

Melissa Bailey helped report this story.