Special Board of Aldermen 04-08-2021 Page 3
Chairman Dowd
Ok this evening we are having a Public Hearing on Legislation R-21-118 — “ESTABLISHING A HOUSING
EXPENDABLE TRUST FUND FUNDED BY APPROPRIATIONS AND MAKING A SUPPLEMENTAL
APPROPRIATION OF $30,000 INTO THE EXPENDABLE TRUST FUND”. Is there someone here to give
an overview?
Mayor Donchess
Yes Mr. Chairman. | will give a brief overview and | believe Director Sarah Marchant is on as well to talk
more about the affordable housing situation, especially if you have questions.
Chairman Dowd
Sure, go ahead Mayor.
Mayor Donchess
As we have discussed before, the housing situation is critical in Nashua. We have a vacancy rate of less
than 1%. Housing demand is very strong both for apartments and for single family homes. As a result,
rents have gone up significantly, and of course, housing prices have as well. The rents, especially in the
smaller units, have gone up 40% in the last few years. Believe it or not, the demand and escalation of rents
is even greater in a smaller unit range, one bedrooms and studios, than it is in the larger apartments.
As a result of these escalating rents, we have more and more people who are having difficulty paying for a
decent living space; people who are paying too much and beyond what they can afford just to have a place
to live. So we want to do everything we can do increase the supply of housing in general and particularly
the supply of affordable housing. Now as you know, Mr. Chair, we’ve recently established the Workforce
Housing on Marshall Street; that’s 150 units. We are currently working with the Housing Authority to
finalize a plan to increase the number of affordable units at Bronstein from about 50 to over 200.
Based upon these facts and based upon the activism of a number affordable housing activists in the City
and | thank them for continuing to bring this issue to the fore. We want to establish this affordable housing
trust fund where we can deposit funds which we can accumulate from various sources, possibly from
developer contributions in order to stimulate or help the development of affordable housing. So, as you can
see from the language of the Legislation, it enables us to help with lower income housing development
including workforce housing, supporting the preservation of affordable units, possibly support a first time
home buyer plan, and other steps that would help with the affordable housing issue.
Now that brings me to the initial contribution. We are proposing that $30,000.00 be the initial contribution
into this fund. I’d like to emphasize that this money is not tax money, the initial contribution is not property
tax money. This is coming from Clock Tower. The way this is working is when | was Mayor before, we won
two large federal grants which enabled the development and the conversation of the mills that are now
Clock Tower into 350 units of housing. And as a condition of that grant, there are periodic payments that
come to the City from the Clock Tower Development. This $30,000.00 is coming from Clock Tower. So we
are proposing that since it is from that source that we make this initial deposit from the Clock Tower
contribution.
If this Legislation passes, we will have the Affordable Housing Trust Fund activated so that if we find
additional funds we can deposit those and it makes the initial contribution from the Clock Tower Funds, the
contribution we are receiving from Clock Tower. Now | know that Ms. Marchant has more detail and more
information regarding the scope of the housing situation. ls Ms. Marchant on here?
