2025 ZONING AMENDMENTs

Attention all town residents! The Planning Board will hold a Public Hearing on April 1, 2025. These hearings will be for amendments to the Zoning Ordinance, which will be included on the warrant for the 2025 Town Meeting.

Please take an opportunity to review these amendments:

1. House-Scale Residential Dwellings
2. Affordable Non-Profit provided Workforce Housing
3. Campus Wayfinding Signage

For those residents interested in understanding more about House-Scale Residential Dwellings, please see the FAQ below.

What is the house-scale residential dwelling zoning amendment encouraging?  

The four-unit by-right zoning amendment will allow the development of more housing units and a diversity of housing types in Hanover neighborhoods, also known as “Middle housing.” Middle housing is defined as a range of house-scale buildings with more than one housing unit, such as Duplexes, Triplexes, Fourplexes, and Cottage Courts, built to the same scale and size as a single-family house. These housing types already exist in Hanover, with over 25 percent of housing units being considered “middle housing.” 

Why is this amendment needed?  

Expanding allowed housing types can help meet the growing demand for housing while preserving the house-scale form of existing neighborhoods. Middle housing also responds to the shifting household demographics nationwide and can meet the need for more housing choices at different price points, including rental and homeownership opportunities. By encouraging Middle Housing development, Hanover can create new housing choices to meet its residents’ current and future needs, help address growing housing inequity in the region, promote homeownership, and build generational wealth. It also strengthens the local economy and responds to climate change by promoting compact, infill development with reduced dependence on the car. 

• In 2023, the Town of Hanover, in partnership with Opticos Design, Inc., completed a study on the state of housing in Hanover, focusing on understanding opportunities for “Missing Middle Housing” (or house-scale buildings containing multiple dwelling units). The study found that 94 percent of residential lots are limited to one- or two-family by-right development. Meanwhile, nearly 40% of the town’s population are renters, and 67% of those renters are considered cost-burdened (spending more than 30% of their annual income on housing costs). This limited housing supply and rising housing costs indicate a need for new housing development.  

• In April 2024, the Town of Hanover Planning Board adopted the Sustainability Master Plan, which included multiple years of community input to create a roadmap for the town's future. One implementation strategy of this plan was to update the existing zoning to reflect current development and housing needs.  

How can four-dwelling units fit on a lot?

New developments must comply with the lot area minimums, building footprint, and lot coverage requirements.  The table below shows the lot sizes needed to construct the maximum building footprint in the House-Scale Residential Dwelling Overlay District and comply with the dimensional requirements.

*   Max building footprint Small House, Duplex, and Triplex/Fourplex Buildings meet the maximum building footprint as a percentage of lot area standards, but lot sizes still need to meet the minimum lot size standards of the overlay district (5,000 sf in GR and 6,500 sf in SR & RO).

** The maximum building footprint for 3-unit Townhouses, 4-unit townhouses, and Courtyard Buildings requires lot sizes larger than the overlay district's minimum lot size standards.

What is the purpose of the new House-Scale Residential Overlay District?

The purpose is to allow incremental infill development in areas of town where there is municipal sewer and water so as to address the severe shortage of housing in our area without encouraging new development in the rural portions of town, all as proposed in the Sustainability Master Plan that was approved last year.

How does it provide opportunities for more housing? 

The amendment proposes an easing of zoning restrictions for projects that create at least one new unit of housing, thereby allowing new units to be built in places where they can’t be built under existing zoning.  Frontage requirements, lots size requirements, and setbacks are decreased, maximum building footprint and lot coverage are increased, and up to four units in one or two buildings will be allowed on a single lot.  It also allows for “flag lots” to allow development of the back portion of a lot that lacks enough frontage for a standard subdivision.

What lots will be affected?

Lots in the SR, GR, and RO districts are served by Town water and sewer, but the proposal only applies to projects that will add one or more new housing units. Property owners on those lots who are not adding new living units are subject to the frontage, setback, and lot coverage provisions that are currently in place.

Will this allow huge apartment houses to replace single-family homes?

One of the important features of the House-Scale Residential Overlay proposal is a limitation on the size of the buildings that can be built using the new provisions. All new residential structures built under the terms of the proposal must be “house-scale” structures, for instance, a single-family home can be no bigger than 35’ x 35’, a duplex no bigger than 40 x 48, a triplex or fourplex no bigger than 45’x 45’, all of which are in keeping with the size of similar residential buildings already existing in our neighborhoods.

 What kind of permits or approvals will be required for the new housing?

One- and two-unit buildings will require a building permit to ensure they meet zoning requirements and comply with relevant building codes. Three and four-unit buildings will need to also undergo site plan review at which the Planning Board (or its designee) would have oversight of items like screening, parking, lighting, drainage, and landscaping.     

Are there any limitations on who can live in these new units?

Yes. Any rented units are subject to a limitation on tenancy to a family or three unrelated persons as currently defined in the Zoning Ordinance. A provision in the Ordinance that allows one tenant for every 200 square feet of gross floor area of a sprinkler multi-family unit will not apply to units created under the proposed overlay district.

 Will this affect our property taxes?

Since the development would be where infrastructure such as streets, water and sewer lines already exist, there would be less financial impact than other types of development. And since the average number of persons per household in Hanover (according to the U.S. Census Bureau) is only 2.09, the incremental increase in housing is unlikely to have a significant impact on schools. There would be increased property tax revenue to the Town due to increased value of the lots; a very conservative estimate would be an average of $400,000-500,000 for every additional unit built, so even 25 new units would likely increase the tax base by 10-12 million dollars.

Where did the number of 800 units come from?

The Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission has a statutory duty to create an assessment of the regional need for housing for persons and families of all levels of income, which shall be updated every five years. The goal stated within the Sustainability Master Plan is, “Based on the 2023 assessment of need, Hanover will facilitate the development of approximately 800 new housing units between 2020 and 2040.” The regional planning commission’s study supports the regulatory framework each municipality must create to meet the policy objectives in their master plan.

When are these additional units needed?

According to the regional planning commission’s report, current economic and population growth trends indicate a need for these additional 800 units by 2040. Their development is expected to occur gradually, as it depends on the decisions of individual property owners and favorable market conditions to support construction.

How is state legislation affecting these changes?

The state Legislature is moving forward on several different proposals to increase opportunities or lower barriers to develop housing units because many legislators feel that municipalities are not doing enough to allow more housing. Some of these proposals would severely limit local control over zoning.  While it’s uncertain what will pass and become law, thoughtful zoning changes that address local needs while providing the needed housing opportunities better positions the town to balance any loss of local authority and make any state “one-size-fits-all" laws less likely to pass.