Four NH state representatives have proposed a bill that may transform single-family neighborhoods in New Hampshire. HB 44 does not include provisions to require construction of affordable housing. HB 44 also threatens NH green space on existing lots. This bill permits developers to build up to four dwelling units on any NH lot with public water and sewer. They may tear down existing homes. Because developers can buy a modest home for an inflated price and still make a profit by building four dwelling units, no middle-income home buyers can compete as buyers for the existing home. Developers may buy one home/ lot at a time. 4 units/ lot may pop up throughout existing neighborhoods without any planned green spaces to compensate for reduced yards.

One has only to look at Nashville, Tennessee, to see what sacrificing one-house lots to 4 units can do. Modest homes in tree-filled neighborhoods have been torn down and replaced with what Nashvillians call “tall skinnies.” These are tower-like houses, with minimal distance between them, expanded parking lots, but no trees or yard. They are amazing money-makers. In Nashville, they sell for $600K to $1 million per dwelling unit. You can search “tall and skinny houses Nashville” to see what they look like. Neighborhoods in Dover, Portsmouth, Durham offer inviting neighborhoods for “tall skinnies.” NH citizens should demand that the bill’s sponsors amend it to ensure that green space is protected and that resulting new units are affordable for middle-income homeowners.

Cathy Frierson

Durham

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