Dover Housing Initiatives on NH PBS

Planning Director Donna Benton spoke about the City's housing initiatives on the NH PBS program, "The State We're In," earlier this month. Director Benton was joined in the conversation by Nick Taylor, Executive Director of the Workforce Housing Coalition of the Greater Seacoast and Rob Taylor, Land Use and Community Development Administrator in Enfield.

Director Benton highlighted how the City of Dover supports attainable housing and planning for the future. This discussion provided an overview of the funding that the City of Dover has received through the InvestNH Housing Opportunity Planning (HOP) grants that have supported current housing initiatives such as hiring Housing Navigator Ryan Pope and forming the Committee to Address Community Housing Needs. The discussion also featured the City of Dover's Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) ordinance that can allow for more housing density by purchasing developable land with lower conservation value which funds the permanent protection of lands that possess significant conservation features.

To view the episode on NH PBS, click here.

Energy Commission at Earth Fest

Members of the Energy Commission will be present at the Dover Public Library's Earth Fest on Saturday, April 13, from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m.

The first ever Earth Fest will be a family-friendly event with activities and representatives at the library from several local environmental groups in addition to the City of Dover Energy Commission including Don't Trash Dover, Dover Plastics Reduction Group, Mr. Fox Compost, Clean Energy NH, UNH Marine Docents, Replenish Refillery, and more.

The Energy Commission will share information on their current initiatives such as Dover Community Power and their work in meeting the goals set in the Citywide Resilience Plan.

To learn more about the event, click here.

Reminder: Dover Housing Survey

The City of Dover, in partnership with the Strafford Regional Planning Commission (SRPC) and University of New Hampshire, is currently conducting a regulatory audit to find out what barriers and opportunities are present in the housing choices available in Dover.

As part of this project, the team continues to collect information by survey about individual housing journeys in Dover. Whether you are a renter, homeowner, business owner, student, or have any other type of connection to Dover, we encourage you to take part in the Dover Housing Survey to share your story and impact the future of housing in Dover.

To access the Dover Housing Survey, click here.

Planning Review Question

The Department of Planning and Community Development would like your input! We'll be featuring a question in each edition of the Planning Review, and we'll also share the results from the previous week.

This week, we want to know:

Which projects that are going on in Dover would you like to learn more about?

We'll feature the projects that we get as responses!

Submit your responses here: https://polco.us/fydnhp

Last week we encouraged readers to take the Natural Resource Inventory Survey, which can be found here.

Dover Download podcast: Your guide to what's happening this week

In the latest episode of Dover Download, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with James Burdin from the Office of Business Development in the City of Dover. Burdin shares his experience working with local businesses during his first year in the role.

The podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and by clicking here.

Results of Recent Meetings

Arts Commission, 4/1/2024

The Arts Commission met on Monday, April 1, where it:

• Reviewed the Commission's budget;

• Discussed the Fiber Frenzy Fiesta beginning on April 13;

• Discuss updates for ongoing projects including the Commission's work with various other public bodies like the Graffiti Committee and Waterfront Committee;

• Review and report on 2024 Commission Goals and planned projects.

Click here to find the complete agenda, where minutes will be posted when available.

Community Trail Advisory Committee, 4/2/2024

The Community Trail Advisory Committee met on Tuesday April 2, where it:

• Review ongoing projects such as the Phase IV Trail expansion, public art on the Trail, and outreach events;

• Discussed visioning and goals for the Community Trail.

Click here to find the complete agenda, where minutes will be posted when available.

Conservation Commission, 4/8/2024

The Conservation Commission met on Monday, April 8, where it:

• Endorsed a City of Dover Conditional Use Permit (CUP) and NHDES Expedited Minimum Impact Wetlands Permit for Future Automation, Inc. (Owners: DBIDA), Assessor’s Map D, Lot 11-8, zoned IT, located at Quality Way. Proposal is to construct a 24,856 square foot building and a 10,000 square foot building creating 39,820 square feet of wetland buffer impact and 1,631 square feet of wetland impact. 

• Discussed updates on the Natural Resource Inventory project and Conservation and Open Space Master Plan chapter;

• Reviewed Correspondence received from NHDES;

• Heard an update from the Forest Management Subcommittee.

Click here to find the complete agenda, where minutes will be posted when available.

Planning Board, 4/9/2024

The Planning Board met on Tuesday, April 9, where it:

• Approved two proposed Amendments regarding the make-up and definition of the Technical Review Committee, found in Chapter 153-6 (Site Plan Regulations) and Chapter 157-60 (Subdivision Regulations). The full text of the amendments is available in the Planning Department and on the Planning Department webpage.*

• Approved an Amendment for Dover Housing Authority, Assessor’s Map 33, Lot 1-A, zoned RM-U, located at 48 Whittier St. Proposal is to extend the previously approved building 8’ towards Whitter Street and amend the architecture design. *(WAIV-2024-0003)

• A Public Hearing was held for the purpose of receiving public input regarding the City’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. Public input was being requested to help develop Dover’s FY26-30 Consolidated Plan. The Consolidated Plan serves as the guiding document for identifying priority issues to be addressed through annual CDBG funding.*

Note: * denotes public hearing; (20XX-XXXX) denotes the application number.

Click here to watch the meeting. Click here to find the complete agenda, where minutes will be posted when available.