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Council approves permit-fee waivers for Portsmouth Housing Authority, prompting split commentary over taxpayer effect
Summary
The council voted to waive roughly $686,000 in permit fees for two projects tied to the Portsmouth Housing Authority and Haven (women’s shelter), drawing praise from some councilors as support for nonprofits and concern from others who said the waived amounts rivaled school budget requests.
The Portsmouth City Council on May 19 approved requests to waive permit fees for projects involving the Portsmouth Housing Authority (PHA) and an affiliated effort with Haven for a women’s shelter and workforce housing. Councilors approved the waivers after debate over the fiscal impact and the timing of such incentives.
Residents and councilors raised the cumulative scale of the fee waivers: public comment at the budget hearing referenced a $444,000 fee waiver previously granted to PHA for Sherman School and a separate request for a $142,000 fee waiver connected to a Haven project on Lafayette Road. Council discussion referred to both numbers and compared them to the school-board budget increase of $689,188.
Councilor Bagley questioned the timing and magnitude of the waivers and said the total waived dollars — roughly $686,000 if both projects proceed — were a significant taxpayer contribution. “$686,000 is a very significant taxpayer contribution, and I don't think it should be given away lightly,” Bagley said during debate.
Other councilors defended the customary practice of granting fee waivers to nonprofits. Assistant Mayor Kelly and other council members noted the city has historically waived fees for nonprofit projects (they cited past actions such as fee waivers for churches and other nonprofit facilities) and argued the long-term social benefits—permanent below-market housing and a permanent women’s shelter—justify the concession. Councilor Cook emphasized the Haven-related project’s role in creating a permanent women’s shelter, saying a municipal alternative would likely be more costly.
The council voted to waive the fees as requested; members who opposed the motion raised concerns that the waivers should be reconsidered later or that nonprofit proponents demonstrate raised private funding prior to grant of waivers. City staff noted the council could defer or place conditions on fee waivers in some cases but that the council has often used fee waivers to support nonprofit projects.
The waivers do not change formal land-use approvals: permit and construction reviews continue under the applicable codes and will proceed within regular permitting and oversight processes.
