Zoning amendment makes way for Blueberry Lane townhouse development

LACONIA — The site of an old conference center on the north end of the city is one step closer to providing housing, after councilors supported an amendment to the zoning ordinance at their meeting on Monday night.

City councilors unanimously approved an amendment to the municipal zoning ordinance relative to the parcel at 35 Blueberry Lane, the location of the Beane Conference Center, in order to facilitate the development of housing there.

“They’re looking at building out as an apartment,” City Manager Kirk Beattie said Monday night. “The zone actually is right in its backyard, it has to move up just a few hundred feet, basically, to put an apartment complex on that property and be zoned correctly.”

Councilors held a public hearing on the matter, but no citizens attended to voice their opinion.

The proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance changed the official zoning map to expand the residential apartment district to include 35 Blueberry Lane. That parcel abutted the residential district, and had what the planning department determined to be a nonresidential use, which didn’t conform to the uses permitted in that district.

The majority of units along Blueberry Lane are part of multi-family structures, including apartment and condominium complexes, townhomes and an assisted living facility — the Laconia Rehabilitation Center, located at 175 Blueberry. The nonresidential use of the parcel as a conference center doesn’t fit in with the general character of the neighborhood, and wouldn’t be permitted in the residential district. 

Councilor Robert Soucy (Ward 2) asked Planning Director Rob Mora what feedback the city received from abutters, and Mora said they hadn’t received any and nobody attended the public hearing at a planning board meeting.

“We’ve actually had a conversation with the new property owner and what their proposal is to make sure that we are safeguarding Perley Pond and that whole area, and they’re very cognizant of that,” Mora said Monday night. “They’re building on the opposite side of the lot, so nothing they’re doing should be on that side, or even on that side, or even down that far for the most part.”

The change to the zoning ordinance also brings that parcel more in line with the city’s master plan, which identifies a “pro-population growth land use strategy, with a focus on mid-market residential housing”. In expanding the residential apartment district to that parcel, wrote Planning Assistant Director Tyler Carmichael in a staff report, the city will provide developers an opportunity to implement its existing land use strategy. 

“Opportunities to develop mid-market housing in a multi-family neighborhood that abuts a commercial hub encourages workers to move to Laconia and helps provide the workforce needed for commercial expansion,” the report read. 

The planning board previously approved the proposed amendment during their meeting on April 1. City councilors heard the details of the proposed amendment at their meeting on April 14, then scheduled a public hearing, which occurred on April 28. 

On March 17, members of the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment heard plans from the developers of 35 Blueberry Lane — Praman LLC — and approved a zoning variance for density on the parcel.

The plan initially proposed by Praman detailed the construction of 21 townhouse-style units on the 2.4-acre parcel. In their application to the zoning board, Praman argued the project wouldn’t diminish the values of surrounding properties, but would likely enhance them. 

“The conference center is an outdated use in a predominantly residential area, generating unnecessary traffic and public safety concerns, while failing to sustain itself financially,” Praveen Tailam of Praman wrote in a letter to the city. “Without redevelopment, it risks becoming a blight rather than an asset. Granting this variance would allow for much-needed housing development that seamlessly integrates into the neighborhood.”

Tailam, in the same letter, wrote that Praman had success in Laconia before — they completed a residential project at 808 Weirs Blvd, the old site of the Lazy E Motor Inn, which they transformed into a condominium complex and generated $40,000 in annual tax revenue.