Planning board to hear concept for 44 units downtown

LACONIA — Members of the planning board will hear a conceptual presentation regarding construction of 44 units of housing on New Salem Street downtown at their meeting this week. 

The planning board will meet at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, at City Hall. 

According to a conceptual review form received by the city’s planning department on Feb. 12, the proposed project name is New Salem Street Apartments, and may include 44 units of housing, two-bedroom and one-bathroom each, at 77 and 97 New Salem St.

The applicant is listed as KNM Holdings, LLC of 518 Shore Drive. Ethan Wood, the individual listed on the conceptual review form as that entity’s agent, said Monday he couldn’t discuss the details of the development before their presentation to the planning board.

The applicant’s plan is to raze the existing structures on the 1.94-acre parcel and build 11 new apartment buildings, each containing four units. The units would be approximately 1,100 square feet.

The properties to be developed are owned by 77 New Salem Realty LLC of Laconia, according to current listings. The property at 77 New Salem was most recently assessed at $404,850, and has two buildings upon it, according to a property database. 77 New Salem Realty purchased the 1.2-acre parcel in 2010 for $350,000. It was the site of a Salvation Army thrift store.

The other address to be developed is 97 New Salem St., also owned by 77 New Salem Realty. The 0.48-acre parcel was purchased in 2017 for $195,000, and was most recently assessed at $243,700. 

In other business, members of the planning board will discuss amending the city’s zoning ordinance to expand the residential apartment district to include 35 Blueberry Lane. 

According to a staff report, 35 Blueberry abuts the residential apartment district and has a nonresidential use which does not conform to those permitted in that district. Amending the zoning ordinance in this way would allow the parcel to be redeveloped “in accordance with the character of the neighborhood” and the city’s master plan.

Most dwelling units on Blueberry Lane belong to some sort of multi-family structure including apartment and condominium complexes, townhomes and an assisted living facility, according to the report. The parcel’s current use, as a conference center, does not fit the character of a residential neighborhood and would also not be permitted in the residential apartment district. 

The city’s master plan refers to a “pro-population growth land use strategy, with a focus on mid-market residential housing” according to a staff report. In expanding the residential apartment district to include 35 Blueberry, developers would be able to satisfy the city’s land use strategy. 

The city’s master plan also points to the growing number of people who live in other communities but work in Laconia and a “shrinking commercial valuation”. Facilitating opportunities to develop mid-market housing in a multi-family neighborhood which abuts a commercial area could encourage workers to move to Laconia, according to the staff report. 

The item would cause no direct or immediate fiscal impact to the city. Planning department staff recommend the planning board approves the proposed amendment.