Alan Hawley: We need more housing for the low-income residents of Laconia

To The Daily Sun,

I think the mayor and the City Council need to stop approving all these properties being turned into condos and townhouses because people are going to stop conversations and camping. This is now not a tourist town anymore because of all the condos and townhouses that are being built in this area. You guys, there is nowhere for people to go to camp or get a hotel room because they are tearing down the campgrounds and the motels and hotels to build condos and townhouses because of the mayor and the City Council approve them. We have too many townhouses and condos in this town now, plus there is no a portable housing for low-income people who rent.

You can't find a one-bedroom apartment for no less than $1,050 in this town and low-income people cannot afford that, so we have a lot of homeless people in this town that can afford an apartment. The City Council and the mayor should tell these women to lower their rents so people can afford to pay rent for an apartment instead of living in tents around the city. These landlords are charging ridiculous high rent for apartments that aren't worth the rent they are charging. I can't even find an apartment that I can afford. Apartments in this town ain't worth that kind of money because these landlords don't keep up their properties.

The city is allowing these landlords to charge those rents. Look at those new apartments they put in that old insurance building (on South Main Street). Those apartments for seniors are going for $1,650. Seniors can't afford to pay that kind of rent.

Laconia housing makes me sick. the city needs to stop with approving the tearing down of existing buildings and allowing condos and townhouses to be built. they need to focus on low income housing to be built in telling these landlords to stop ridiculous rents for the apartments they have. We need more affordable housing for the low-income citizens of the city.

Alan Hawley

Laconia