Latest news with #HouseBill577
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New poll suggests high concern about NH housing, but mixed appetite for zoning reform
The poll, released Thursday, asked respondents whether they support legislation that would require cities and towns to relax their zoning policies to make it easier to build a home. (Getty Images) Granite Staters continue to overwhelmingly cite the scarcity of affordable housing as the most pressing concern, a new poll from the University of New Hampshire suggests. Faced with a range of options that included taxes, education, jobs, and cost of living, 36% of respondents to the poll said housing is 'the most important problem facing New Hampshire' — far and away the biggest share. The next highest category was taxes; 10% of respondents chose that as the most important issue. But when it comes to the most likely legislative approach to address the housing shortfall this year, residents are more divided. The poll, released Thursday, asked respondents whether they support legislation that would require cities and towns to relax their zoning policies to make it easier to build a home. Thirty-eight percent supported that legislation — 15% strongly — but 40% opposed it. Of those that were against it, 18% were strongly opposed. The response comes as the Republican-led Legislature has passed a pair of bills that would bar municipalities from making certain zoning restrictions; both bills are making their way to Gov. Kelly Ayotte's desk. House Bill 631 would require municipalities to allow multi-family developments in commercial zones, such as shopping areas. And House Bill 577 would allow homeowners to build a detached accessory dwelling unit by right and expand the size limitations to do so. The issue of housing scarcity dominated both Democratic and Republican campaign platforms in 2024, and lawmakers in both parties have found common ground in legislation that would forcibly remove local zoning barriers to housing. Some groups, such as the New Hampshire Municipal Association, are opposed to those bills, arguing that cities and towns should be able to craft their own zoning codes and should react to the housing shortage with approaches supported by their residents. Republican lawmakers have shown less support this year for devoting state resources to encourage more development; the House-passed budget would eliminate the Housing Champion Program, a 2023 effort to give special grants and state support to towns that voluntarily changed their zoning codes to be more friendly to housing. House and Senate lawmakers have also blocked efforts to increase the amount of money going to the state's affordable housing fund, which is currently allocated $5 million of state tax revenues per year. The May 29 UNH poll was released three months after a poll conducted by YouGov on behalf of Housing Action New Hampshire, a housing advocacy group, appeared to show more support for zoning changes. In that poll, conducted March 3 to 10, more than 75% of respondents supported policies to 'allow more homes near business and shopping districts,' allow 'flexibility for paved parking areas,' 'allow homes on slightly smaller lots,' and 'make it easier to build accessory dwelling units.' The Housing Action poll also found that 54% of respondents said building more homes is more important for New Hampshire than protecting the character of neighborhoods from change, compared to 35% who said the opposite and 11% who were not sure. The Housing Action poll worded its questions differently than the UNH poll; the former poll asked about legislation that would 'allow' homeowners to build certain structures, while the latter poll asked about legislation that would 'require' cities and towns to change their zoning codes to achieve that. 'Granite Staters are about evenly divided on this issue,' states the UNH survey report.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Poll: Most Granite Staters support bills to override zoning policies, encourage housing
The poll found that 55% of respondents considered New Hampshire's housing shortage and high prices to be the number one issue facing Granite Staters. (Photo by Dan) Midway through the 2025 legislative session, large majorities of Granite Staters say they support legislation aimed at expanding housing in the state, according to a poll commissioned by New Hampshire Housing Action, an advocacy group. According to the poll, conducted in early March by YouGov, 88% of respondents said they would support legislation to allow residential homes to be built in commercial zones; 76% would support laws requiring cities and towns to allow homes to be built on smaller lot sizes; and 76% would support allowing property owners to build detached accessory dwelling units by right. The poll found that 55% of respondents considered New Hampshire's housing shortage and high prices to be the number one issue facing Granite Staters, surpassing inflation, taxes, homelessness, health care costs, and immigration. And 80% said the cost of housing is 'a problem' in the state. 'The message is clear: New Hampshire is experiencing a severe housing shortage that is being felt from southern New Hampshire to the North Country and all across the state,' Nick Taylor, director of Housing Action NH, said in a statement. The poll was released as lawmakers are considering a number of bills aimed at increasing housing development by requiring cities and towns to change zoning policies seen as barriers to construction. One bill, House Bill 577, would allow the construction of detached accessory units — additional units that are not directly attached to the primary resident — by right, stopping cities and towns from passing zoning ordinances that automatically exclude them. Another, House Bill 382, would restrict the minimum number of parking spaces a municipality could require of housing developments to one space per unit, in an attempt to block what some developers say are unnecessary burdens. Senate Bill 284 would also limit the minimum number parking spaces in town zoning codes, while Senate Bill 84 would block cities and towns from setting minimum lot sizes of more than one acre for residential homes serviced by sewer and water lines — for at least 50% of residential zoned land. And House Bill 631 would allow property owners in commercial zones to build residential units, while allowing cities and towns to impose some restrictions. HB 577, HB 382, and HB 631 have passed the House and are currently being considered in the Senate Commerce Committee. SB 284 and SB 84 have passed the Senate and are being taken up in the House Housing Committee. The bills have the support of affordable housing advocates and industry groups in construction, such as the New Hampshire Homebuilders Association and Housing Action New Hampshire. But they have drawn criticism from the New Hampshire Municipal Association, which represents cities and towns, and another conservative group, the Coalition of New Hampshire Taxpayers. Opponents say the bills improperly insert the state into local zoning code decisions, and that municipalities should be allowed to decide how best to change their codes to expand housing. Gov. Kelly Ayotte has vowed to help combat the housing crisis in part by directing state agencies such as the Department of Environmental Services and the Fish and Game Department to speed up their permitting processes, promising to guarantee the state permitting process takes no more than 60 days for developers. But the House Finance Committee's recommended version of the state's two budget bills, House Bill 1 and House Bill 2, makes a number of cuts to agencies and programs designed to help expand housing. The budget eliminates the state's housing appeals board, a recently created entity designed to speed up developers' appeals of adverse zoning and planning board rulings, and it defunds the Housing Champion Designation and Grant Program, which gives towns and cities grants and special benefits if they voluntarily overhaul their zoning to encourage more housing.
