Gov's plan could put local housing controls at risk

To the Editor;

A while ago we contacted every single one of the 254 town and city offices in NH to warn them that SB 306 would override local control. We only heard back from two.

Now we are trying to get the word about the Governor's new plan to flood NH with low-income, high-density housing by state mandate.

The Governor's new plan would impose many mandates on local boards, effectively nullifying a town's decision-making powers as well as decisions made by voters at their town meetings.

This plan would only benefit developers by giving them tax breaks to produce more high-density housing, to the detriment of the NH Advantage. The burden of the increased need for public services would be placed squarely upon the single-family homeowner as well as affecting their property values. The plan also has the potential to radically change the demographics of a given area with regard to voting.

We do not believe that mandating housing types, or rules for local boards is within the state's purview. The two bills supporting the plan must be voted down.

We must also support the bill to repeal the Housing Appeals Board (SB 306) which was secreted into the budget. This provision allows developers to override local decisions.

For more info, documentation, bill numbers, and actions to take, see "The Governor's New Plan" at http://www.cnht.org/news/2019/11/11/the-governors-new-plan/ and / or contact info@bedfordresidents.com

- Jane Aitken

Bedford Residents Assn

Bedford, NH 03110