The term “family” can conjure up Norman Rockwell-like images of a father, mother and two children living under one roof. But not everyone wants to live like that anymore. Whether it’s because of the economic need to share expenses or just to combat loneliness, more people are choosing to live together as unmarried couples or in groups.
In many places, however, the definitions of “family” and “household” have not evolved nearly as much in zoning ordinances as they have in real life. In recent years, nontraditional housing arrangements, often called “co-housing,” have run smack dab into decades-old laws detailing just who can live together in a single-family house in a residential neighborhood. Such an issue has led to a high-profile legal battle in Hartford.
