Support housing article at Hanover Town Meeting

On Tuesday, May 9, at 7 p.m. in the Hanover High School gym, registered Hanover voters have an opportunity to participate in democracy in action. I urge Hanover voters to attend and to vote yes on Article 15 which addresses the need for local workforce housing.

In 2020 the town accepted 256 acres on the north side of Greensboro Road known as the Leavitt property. This year the town is requesting approval to pass 5 acres of this property to Twin Pines Housing Trust or a similar nonprofit to build workforce housing.

Recent Valley News editions have highlighted the lack of affordable housing in New Hampshire. In the Upper Valley we are not immune from this shortage. Talk with any employer having trouble filling positions; you will hear that because people can’t find housing either in the Upper Valley or within reasonable driving distance from their employment, they turn down jobs. We who depend on medical care from Dartmouth Health have reason to be concerned if the lack of housing affects Hitchcock’s ability to hire qualified personnel.

For residents concerned about the impact of potential housing on the 5 acres, any proposal must go through planning, zoning, and selectboard hearings. For more information, see the Hanover Town Report on the Town of Hanover website.

The proposal incurs no extra burden on the taxpayer. Sewer and water are already available to the property. Given that building costs are increasing and the potential for state monies to support the project are coming available, the timing is now. Voting yes on Article 15 is a start at addressing a growing problem that ultimately affects all of us.

Dena B. Romero

Hanover

Housing for town employees

Please support Article 15 authorizing the town to direct a nonprofit to develop workforce housing in Hanover. It is essential for Hanover to take the lead in creating housing for town employees including our public safety, public works and teaching workforce.

The Leavitt property offers an opportunity for the town to plan and build a neighborhood using ground lease ownership which has been done very successfully with Starlake Village in Norwich and Safford Commons in Woodstock.

Let us help people who make our wonderful community we enjoy be able to have a healthy live/work balance by living here.

Cyndy and Bill Bittinger

Hanover

Vote Callaghan for Selectboard

Tuesday, May 9, is Town Meeting Day, and in a contested race for the Hanover Selectboard, I urge you to vote for Carey Callaghan.

Carey is already steeped in town issues and constraints, as vice chair of the Hanover Finance Committee. He previously served for many years on the Hanover-Norwich School Boards and chaired both Dresden and SAU 70, helping navigate a series of crises confronting the schools with a balanced perspective and consensus-building approach. He blends a soft-spoken humor and ability to get along with all folks with an integrity, a work ethic, and demonstrated strategic planning skills which our town needs right now.

Carey is ready to take on:

1. the affordability of living in Hanover, which limits our workforce, limits socioeconomic diversity and constrains growth

2. various town/gown points of friction, ranging from Dartmouth’s development plans to pedestrians and vehicles sharing sidewalks

3. the need for significant investments in our town’s infrastructure — both capital improvements and our people — working to reduce turnover (about one-third of employees last year)

4. an ongoing commitment to making Hanover more “livable” — through care for our environment, energy initiatives and various forms of accessibility.

I know Carey as a good friend who listens and is pretty selflessly devoted to his family and our community. I hope you will join me in giving him your vote.

Peter Solberg, M.D.

Etna

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