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Economics in Southerwestern New Haven County

December 14, 2008

Ansonia, Seymour, and Derby are three small towns located adjacent to one another in Southwestern New Haven County. The populations of the three municipalities are approximately 19,000, 13,000, and 16,000, respectively. Each town belongs to the Bridgeport Labor Market Area and lies within the Valley Economic Development Region and the Valley Planning Area.

There are approximately 8,000 housing units in Ansonia, of which 48.5% are single family units. There were 13 new permits authorized in 2007, representing a potential increase of .16% of the housing stock. Both the percentage of single family units and the number of new permits authorized in Ansonia are below the corresponding state averages. The median price of homes sold in 2007 in Ansonia was also well below the state average. The town had a median sales price of $239,000, while the state average in 2007 was approximately $261,000.

The Ansonia School District has 2,689 students enrolled. The town spent approximately $27.7 million on education in 2006 resulting in a per pupil expenditure of approximately $10,300. The school district’s Connecticut Mastery Test scores show Reading performance rising from 39%, 46%, and 56% above the state goal through grades 4, 6, and 8, respectively. Math scores indicate 47% of students exceeding the state goal in grades 4 and 6, falling to 41% in grade 8. Writing scores hold relatively steady at 60%, 60%, and 63% of students above the state goal in grades 4, 6, and 8, respectively.

Home values in Ansonia have increased tremendously since data was released in 1994 that indicated 165 homes were sold with a median price of $115,000. At that time 46% of the housing stock was composed of single family dwellings. Education spending has also risen significantly over the same time period with per pupil expenditure growing from $6,800 in 1994. This rise in education spending is a function of the town’s total revenue which rose from $13.5 million in 1994 to approximately $51 million in 2006. Regardless of the larger education budget, Ansonia’s state Mastery Test scores in 2004 were comparatively lower than they were a decade earlier.

Derby, CT is comparatively smaller than Ansonia, with 5,634 housing units, of which 47.5% are single-family dwellings. Many more homes were sold in Derby than in Ansonia in 2007, however, when 72 homes fetched a median price of $270,000. This was slightly above the $261,000 median sale price in New Haven County but still below the state median of $295,000. Derby has seen a phenomenal growth in housing values since 1994 when 158 homes were sold with a median price of $104,500.

The Derby School District, which has 1,634 students enrolled and education expenditures of approximately $17.7 million in 2006, spends an average of $10,800 per student. This spending achieved grade 6 State Mastery Test scores of 53%, 58%, and 69% of students above the state goal in Reading, Math, and Writing. While these grade 6 scores are all significantly higher than Ansonia’s, in grade 8 the numbers fall to 55%, 39%, and 58%, which are all below Ansonia’s scores from the same grade level.

Derby’s total revenue more than doubled from $18 million to $36 million between the years 1993 and 2006. This rise accounts for a doubling of the town’s education expenditures from $9 million to approximately $18 million over the same time period. Unlike Ansonia, the increased spending is reflected in Derby’s state Mastery Test scores which showed greater performance in 2006 as compared to the numbers from a decade earlier.

The town of Seymour’s housing stock is composed of 6,757 total units, of which 71.5% are single-family dwellings. 28 new housing permits were issued in 2007, representing a .41% increase in the overall number of units in the town. The median sale price of the 166 homes that were sold in Seymour in 2007 was $268,000. Like Ansonia and Derby, home valuations in Seymour are significantly higher than they were in 1994 when 219 homes were sold in the town for a median price of $100,000. New home construction has also been trending towards an increasing number of single-family dwellings, which represented just 66.5% of the total stock in 1994.

With 2,553 students enrolled, the Seymour School District is similar in size to Ansonia and had a budget of approximately $28.4 million in 2006, resulting in a per pupil expenditure of $11,100. While Seymour’s education spending is not significantly higher than either Ansonia or Derby, the town’s State Mastery Test scores are significantly higher than in the two neighboring municipalities. By grade 8, 77% of students in Seymour were above the state goal in reading proficiency, while in math and writing 60% and 67% achieved this target.

Education expenditure in Seymour has followed the same upward trend as has been the case in Ansonia and Derby. Per pupil expenditure rose more than $5,000 since 1994 when approximately $6,000 was spent on each student. School performance showed tremendous improvement in Seymour between 1994 and 2004. Reading, math, and writing scores increased at every measured grade level, with writing performance nearly doubling during the decade.

Total town revenue in Seymour increased from $24 million in 1993 to $47 million in 2006 and education spending had a comparable rise over the same time period. The remarkable performance of the Seymour School District over the past decade, however, is likely explained by measures other than simply increased education spending. With a similar population size to that of Ansonia, Seymour’s median household income is over $12,000 higher than in the neighboring town, which is perhaps a better explanation of the disparity in school performance.

Filed under: Urban Economics