Developers present 35-unit workforce housing concept; Board flags major waivers, asks for detailed materials

Attorney Jon Levenstein and engineer Jason Lopez presented a conceptual plan March 9 for a four-story, 35-unit workforce housing building on a 1.1‑acre parcel at 9 Sunset Lane. The team said the proposal would deliver 30 workforce-restricted units and 5 market-rate units to strengthen applications for New Hampshire Housing 9% tax credits; development consultant Chuck Eisenberg described the financing constraints that make higher unit counts necessary.

"The financing here will be primarily from New Hampshire Housing," Eisenberg said, outlining tax‑credit, construction/permanent financing and gap financing that limit rents and impose per‑unit cost caps. Board members and staff raised multiple planning issues: the site's permitted density is 12 units per acre, the concept far exceeds that density and will require waivers; landscaping, perimeter setback and parking islands will need work; the Fire Department requested paved or engineered access on both sides for aerial apparatus; and the Board asked for scaled elevations, traffic and school‑impact analyses and an economic/impact memo to justify major waivers. The applicant team said they will refine plans and return with additional engineering, architectural elevations and detailed materials for formal review.