Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Ian Bagley
Keene Sentinel Staff
FITZWILLIAM - Fitzwilliam is holding a special town meeting next month so voters can decide if they want to buy a 350-acre property on Jaffrey Road.
Selectmen have scheduled the meeting for Tuesday, Oct. 17. Read the rest of this page »
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Emily Aronson
Portsmouth Herald
A study by a Washington, D.C., think tank has concluded southern New Hampshire has highly restrictive zoning laws when it comes to affordable housing.
The Brookings Institution, a nonprofit organization, analyzed land-use regulations in the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the country. The study was based on the idea that “local land-use regulations help define the character of cities, towns, counties and entire regions.” Read the rest of this page »
Friday, September 01, 2006
Keene Sentinel Editorial
Give the Fitzwilliam selectmen credit for plain talk. They could have said they wanted the town to buy a 350-acre property on Jaffrey Road and Route 119 for conservation purposes or to preserve a favorite view.
But they didn’t play word games. They said that buying the property would be cheaper for taxpayers than allowing a private developer to eventually put up houses there. Houses bring families, and families bring children, and children require schools, and in New Hampshire schools cost a fortune in local property taxes. Read the rest of this page »
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Andrea Bulfinch
Portsmouth Herald
NEWFIELDS — While the conservation of the Piscassic Greenway was a celebrated accomplishment for the town of Newfields and others involved, it leaves in its shadow the issue of affordable housing.
The 327-acre greenway, which was to be converted into an 89-unit housing development, was secured as protected land in April 2006 with the help of U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., the Rockingham Land Trust, the Trust for Public Land and the Town of Newfields. The land is now secured for wildlife habitat, water protection and public recreational use.
This parcel of land is just one in the area that is no longer eligible for use to build affordable housing. Read the rest of this page »
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Meg Heckman
Concord Monitor
About two years ago, when New Hampshire’s rents grew rougher than its winters, Jennifer White, 28, moved to Florida. Her salary didn’t change much, but her housing options did: Instead of sharing her grandparents’ Goffstown home, she and her young son found an affordable apartment near a sunny beach.
White’s southward migration is part of an exodus of young adults from New Hampshire. In the last five years, the state lost 12,000 25- to 34-year-olds, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. Some simply aged into their late 30s, but demographers believe many are leaving for brighter prospects beyond state lines. Read the rest of this page »
Saturday, August 26, 2006
PETER J. CLEARY
Keene Sentinel Staff
With a development group poised to build on the city’s former railroad land, another developer has plans for condominiums in a nearby building.
Keene realtor and landlord Mitchell H. Greenwald said he’s going to put nine condominiums in a building at the end of Dunbar Street as soon as he’s sure the railroad development will be built. He said he doesn’t want to build unless his condominiums will be part of larger development in the area. Read the rest of this page »
BIA - Business & Industry Association of NH
12 North Main Street, Concord, NH 03301
www.nhbia.org
OPINION/EDITORIAL – May 18, 2006
By Jim Roche
Think about this: In New Hampshire, a family earning the state’s median income can’t afford a home selling for the state’s median sale price. Put another way, if your family income is at or below the state’s median income of $68,000, it’s still not enough to afford the median price of a home, now at more than $250,000. To buy that home, you’d need a family income of at least $77,900. Read the rest of this page »
December 19, 2004, Keene Sentinel Editorial
Two years ago (2002), having sifted through data about rents, home prices, incomes,
jobs and building permits, a government task force in Keene determined that
the city immediately needed 900 new housing units. Read the rest of this page »
Concord Monitor Staff
August 09. 2006 8:00AM
Because homes in New Hampshire are unaffordable, the young couples who need them are fleeing.
Over the last five years, 11,500 women of childbearing age abandoned New Hampshire, according to Exeter demographer Peter Francese. The state also saw the loss of 10,000 children between 5 and 14 between 2000 and 2005.
The dramatic outflow of young people means that in the future there may not be enough workers to meet the health-care needs of an aged population. It means that the workforce needed to keep employers here and the economy growing won’t exist. It means, in short, big trouble if New Hampshire continues on its path toward becoming The Geezer State. Read the rest of this page »
