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Record of Proceedings

Planning and Economic Development Committee Meeting - July 22, 2026

Board of Aldermen Meetings — Wednesday, July 22, 2026
BodyNashua, New Hampshire
SessionBoard of Aldermen Meetings
DateWednesday, July 22, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:03:48

Original source
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0:30

All right.

0:32

All right.

0:33

I see John on there.

0:34

So John, you hear us.

0:38

I gotcha.

0:39

All right.

0:40

We're live.

0:41

All right, we're gonna start the uh meeting of the Planning and Economic Development Committee July 21st, 2026.

0:47

Um I'm just gonna read it.

0:49

A meeting of the planning and economic development committee was held Tuesday, July 21st, 2026 at 7 p.m.

0:54

in the Aldermanic Chamber and duly noted in two places, including the city's website in accordance with requirements of RSA 91-A-2.

1:03

Uh the roll call, uh roll call, please.

1:07

Uh at Alderman at large, Amber Morgan here.

1:11

Um Alderman Clee is not here.

1:13

Alderman Sullivan.

1:15

I am here attending on Zoom because I'm traveling and I can hear you and I'm alone in the room.

1:22

Alderman at large Clemens is not here.

1:26

Alderman Tebow?

1:27

Here and Alderman Greg here.

1:29

Thank you.

1:31

I'm also in attendance.

1:33

Also in attendance is Sam Durfee.

1:35

I assume Matt Sullivan's not coming.

1:36

He's listed on the sheet here.

1:38

Okay, I'll cross them out.

1:39

Um thank you, Alderman Greg, for stepping in and making our quorum.

1:42

Of course.

1:43

I appreciate that.

1:45

Uh all right, so we do have quorums.

1:47

So the first step is the public hearing.

1:49

Um so uh we're gonna start the public hearing, incorporating uh O-20.

1:53

Uh, do you want to read the uh please?

1:55

Sorry.

1:55

Um incorporating or O-26-019, incorporating the environmental health department subdivision review fee with the other subdivision plan review fees.

2:07

Thank you.

2:07

And do we have anyone here to speak to it?

2:09

Are you here to speak to it at all?

2:10

Or I can't.

2:11

I mean, I know you put in the legislation, so yeah, if you want to just give a brief overview of what it is.

2:18

Uh for the record, Sam Durfee, planning manager.

2:21

Uh so this ordinance uh incorporates uh a plan review fee on behalf of uh environmental health department.

2:27

Uh any time that a plan comes before the planning board, uh it's not just the planning department that reviews uh there are multiple departments across the city that invest staff time uh this uh fee is to cover some of that staff time on the environmental health department side of things.

2:44

And for the people at home, what is that fee?

2:47

Great, thank you.

2:49

Umdermen.

2:52

I see uh Alderman Sullivan has his hand up.

2:54

Okay.

2:56

Thank you.

2:56

Uh just ballpark.

2:59

How much does this be?

3:02

You know, the current fee of 40 dollars to the new fee of 50 dollars.

3:05

How much percentage-wise does it cover the the the staff time that you mentioned in your comments?

3:12

Thanks.

3:13

I couldn't give uh I wouldn't venture to offer a percentage, uh though it is a very good deal for the applicant.

3:23

I was afraid you were gonna say that.

3:27

Okay, anybody else?

3:29

Um uh Alderman Morgan.

3:31

If I could add a little bit of context to it, um and you can please correct me if I am if I'm wrong.

3:38

The health department does not know the last time that this fee was raised, going back at least 20 years.

3:49

That's my understanding, yes.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Transportation Safety██████████████████████████████████34%
Parking Regulations██████████████████████22%
Zoning Variances█████████████13%
Public Engagement████████████12%
Procedural██████████10%
Procurement Processes█████5%
Parks and Recreation██2%
Environmental Protection█1%
Public Safety█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Planning and Economic Development Committee Meeting - July 22, 2026

The Planning and Economic Development Committee met on July 22, 2026 at 7 p.m. in the Aldermanic Chamber. Roll call established a quorum with Aldermen Morgan, Sullivan (via Zoom), Greg, and Tebow present. The meeting included a public hearing on Ordinance O-26-019 and a presentation on parking management as part of the ongoing code rewrite.

Public Hearing and Ordinance O-26-019

  • Sam Durfee, planning manager, introduced the ordinance to increase the environmental health department subdivision review fee from $40 to $50. Alderman Morgan noted the fee had not been raised in at least 20 years.
  • No public testimony was given. The committee voted unanimously to recommend approval and passage: Aldermen Sullivan, Greg, Morgan, and Tebow all voted yes.

Presentation: Parking Availability Management

  • Sam Durfee presented proposed changes to parking regulations in the new zoning code. Key points include:
    • Moving from traditional parking minimums/maximums to a system of earned relief through a Mobility Management Manual.
    • Two pathways for parking relief: a mobility management plan with menu options (e.g., car share, bike parking, unbundled parking, bus passes) and payment in lieu.
    • Proposed to empower the administrative officer (planning staff) to grant smaller relief administratively for change-of-use cases, avoiding planning board review.
    • The manual would be maintained by the planning board, allowing updates without ordinance changes.
    • Examples of menu items: transportation coordinator, preferential carpool parking, commuter tax benefits, guaranteed ride home, shuttle service, etc.
    • Annual reporting required to ensure compliance.
    • For residential: unbundling parking from rent, offering bus passes where applicable.
    • Case study comparison: standard build (163 units, 1:1 parking, 53,000 sq ft lot) vs. sustainable development (178 units, 0.8 ratio, 50 spaces in garage) showing reduced parking footprint.
    • Zero parking minimums proposed in Urban Core, Urban Mill, and Urban Core Station Area districts, but only through redevelopment overlays.
    • Future steps: finalize mobility management manual by September, open houses, legal review, submission as legislation in late fall, effective 2027.

Committee Discussion

  • Aldermen expressed support for the flexibility of the manual and planning board authority.
  • Alderman Sullivan asked about the fee cost coverage; later noted the health department budget ($530,000.44) and questioned if fees cover costs.
  • Alderman Morgan asked about capacity to update the manual; Durfee said staff would draft.
  • Alderman Tebow questioned the burden on applicants to reduce SOV use; clarified it's voluntary for those seeking relief.
  • Alderman Greg suggested sharing feedback from developers and the public.
  • The committee discussed presenting the case study to the full board and other committees.

Key Outcomes

  • Ordinance O-26-019 was recommended for approval and passage by unanimous vote (4-0).
  • The committee received the parking presentation with positive feedback and will continue discussions at future meetings.
  • Staff will finalize the mobility management manual and return with updates.

Remarks by Aldermen

  • Alderman Sullivan thanked Alderman Greg for attending to make quorum.
  • Alderman Morgan and others expressed gratitude to the Nashua Fire Department for their response to a fire on Orange Street, noting professionalism and calmness. Alderman Morgan highlighted the city's four firefighters per truck, a state best.

Adjournment

  • The meeting adjourned at 8:04 PM after a unanimous roll call vote (Aldermen Morgan, Greg, Sullivan, Tebow all yes).

Meeting Transcript

All right. All right. I see John on there. So John, you hear us. I gotcha. All right. We're live. All right, we're gonna start the uh meeting of the Planning and Economic Development Committee July 21st, 2026. Um I'm just gonna read it. A meeting of the planning and economic development committee was held Tuesday, July 21st, 2026 at 7 p.m. in the Aldermanic Chamber and duly noted in two places, including the city's website in accordance with requirements of RSA 91-A-2. Uh the roll call, uh roll call, please. Uh at Alderman at large, Amber Morgan here. Um Alderman Clee is not here. Alderman Sullivan. I am here attending on Zoom because I'm traveling and I can hear you and I'm alone in the room. Alderman at large Clemens is not here. Alderman Tebow? Here and Alderman Greg here. Thank you. I'm also in attendance. Also in attendance is Sam Durfee. I assume Matt Sullivan's not coming. He's listed on the sheet here. Okay, I'll cross them out. Um thank you, Alderman Greg, for stepping in and making our quorum. Of course. I appreciate that. Uh all right, so we do have quorums. So the first step is the public hearing. Um so uh we're gonna start the public hearing, incorporating uh O-20. Uh, do you want to read the uh please? Sorry. Um incorporating or O-26-019, incorporating the environmental health department subdivision review fee with the other subdivision plan review fees. Thank you. And do we have anyone here to speak to it? Are you here to speak to it at all? Or I can't. I mean, I know you put in the legislation, so yeah, if you want to just give a brief overview of what it is. Uh for the record, Sam Durfee, planning manager. Uh so this ordinance uh incorporates uh a plan review fee on behalf of uh environmental health department. Uh any time that a plan comes before the planning board, uh it's not just the planning department that reviews uh there are multiple departments across the city that invest staff time uh this uh fee is to cover some of that staff time on the environmental health department side of things. And for the people at home, what is that fee? Great, thank you. Umdermen. I see uh Alderman Sullivan has his hand up. Okay. Thank you. Uh just ballpark. How much does this be?

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