Stressed (17 percent of population, 12 communities):
Like the largest cities, these communities have below-average commute
times—the lowest of any group, in fact—and a slightly smaller-than-average
share of workers who drive to work alone. Also like the central cities, stressed
communities are suffering from significant and growing social needs and
diminishing fiscal resources. Already
high free-lunch eligibility rates in the stressed group increased five times
faster than the state average while school poverty levels in other community
types declined or rose just slightly over the late 1990s.
Low and slow-growing tax bases further compound the problems of stressed communities. In some instances these places find themselves in fiscal positions as difficult as the major cities. The number of jobs per resident worker in stressed communities is below average and stagnant as well. Aging infrastructure also contributes to high costs in these places.
From CT
Metropatterns, p. 2
All types of communities are hurt by the way Connecticut is growing Nearly two-thirds of the state’s population—65 percent—lives in cities or suburbs struggling with social or fiscal stresses. Stressed suburbs have problems typically associated with large cities, including weak tax bases and significant and growing poverty in their schools. At-risk suburbs must cope with continuing population growth and increasing social needs with below average tax bases that are barely growing. Fringe-developing places have fewer social needs, but are facing growth-related costs with stagnant, below-average tax bases and modest household incomes.
Even middle-class, bedroom-developing suburbs struggle to provide needed schools and infrastructure with largely residential tax bases. Just a small share of the population lives in affluent suburbs with expensive housing and plentiful commercial development. But even these places are suffering from the loss of valued open space, growing traffic congestion resulting from inefficient development and the extra costs felt statewide as a result of highly concentrated poverty.
From CT
Metropatterns, p. 3