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Windham planners hear SNHPC on how impact fees could help pay for schools, roads and public safety
Summary
Southern New Hampshire Planning Commission Executive Director Nate Miller briefed the Windham Planning Board on how impact fees are calculated, which capital projects typically qualify and next steps; board members and department chiefs discussed reconstruction vs. improvements, assessment costs, and a tentative August workshop.
At a June 10 Planning Board workshop in Windham, Southern New Hampshire Planning Commission Executive Director Nate Miller explained how municipalities calculate and use impact fees to offset development's proportional effect on town facilities.
"Impact fees are created as a way to offset proportional impact on town facilities," Miller told the board, describing the commission's advisory role for 14 communities and its work on regional housing needs assessments and designated regional impact projects.
Miller outlined basic legal and technical limits: New Hampshire follows Dillon's Rule, he said, so towns may only adopt fees and programs that state law expressly permits; fees must be tied to capital projects that accommodate growth rather than routine maintenance. He described common calculation steps: estimating residential and commercial demand, using ITE trip-generation rates and average trip length to compute road impacts, accounting for bond debt service to avoid double-charging, and applying different units of measure for housing and commercial development. He also noted a typical local threshold for capital projects in Windham is $100,000 and that many communities exempt 55-plus housing from impact fees.
Board members and department representatives pressed on how those rules apply in practice. Vice Chair Jack Gattinella asked how state-owned roads are treated in road-fee calculations; Miller said state mileage is subtracted so the town's calculation covers only municipal road needs. Dennis Senibaldi of the Facilities Department asked whether reconstructing a road "in kind" would qualify; Miller said eligible projects generally must represent an improvement that expands or enhances capacity rather than a like-for-like replacement.
School Board member and CIP Chair Shannon Ulery told the board that in Windham impact-fee proceeds often are applied toward school bond interest. Ulery also said a needs assessment typically costs about $4,000–$6,000 and can be higher for specialized projects, a point Miller confirmed might vary by scope. CIP member Mark Kovacs and other board members described coordination challenges between departments about what constitutes an eligible impact-fee project.
Fire Chief Tom McPherson discussed public safety needs and how fees could support growth-driven infrastructure or bond-funded apparatus when the work is tied to increased demand. "Windham has a need for a fire substation," McPherson said, adding that some vehicle purchases can qualify when they are improvements responding to growth rather than routine replacements.
Select Board member Michelle Stith highlighted recreational space needs; Miller said recreation impact fees tend to be less complex than roads or public safety. The board agreed to pursue an internal conversation and tentatively scheduled a follow-up impact fee workshop for the second week of August.
A procedural motion to adjourn was made by Derek Monson, seconded by Payal Ballaya, and passed 7–0. The Planning Board did not adopt any impact-fee schedule at the workshop; members said further internal work and a needs assessment would help the town identify projects that meet the statutory requirements for fee-funded capital improvements.
