Housing
The purpose of the Housing Chapter of the Regional Master Plan is twofold:
- To evaluate the housing conditions in the region and using that information, make responsible recommendations for future land use decisions which effect the region’s housing stock, and
- To serve as resource and reference to communities as they prepare or update the housing section of their community master plans, as required in RSA §674:2, III.
The Rockingham Planning Commission last prepared a Regional Housing Master Plan element in 1990, which was updated and amended in 1994 to incorporate a Regional Housing Needs Assessment as required by RSA §36:47, II. The last housing needs assessment for the region was completed in 2008 and this assessment detailed the status of housing affordability in the region and offered strategies that communities might take to insure housing is available to all income levels.
Regional Master Plan - Housing Chapter and Maps
Housing Chapter Goals
Goal 1
Housing is accessible for citizens from a full range of age and incomes groups and should include opportunities for owned and rental housing.
Goal 2
Make good use of existing housing and building stock and rehabilitated, older and substandard housing.
Goal 3
Local zoning and land use regulations provide opportunity for compact residential development near downtowns, town centers and villages and in mixed use settings.
Goal 4
New single family homes and multi-family dwellings are constructed to be highly efficient with the goal of being energy neutral.
Goal 5
Housing is developed in conjunction with expanded water and sewer service areas or is developed using community water or septic systems in appropriate areas of town.
Goal 6
Appropriate housing should be available to allow the “aging-in-place” of the elderly.
Goal 7
Most new housing is developed near town centers and close to employment centers.
Goal 8
Housing is planned to include well-designed neighborhoods, streets and paths that encourage neighborhood interactions, provide opportunities for physical activity and provide connections between adjacent neighborhoods and other destinations.
