Portsmouth losing more affordable housing than it can replace, housing chief says
Apr. 15—Five hundred people are expected to apply for 50 workforce apartments to be built next to a church in Portsmouth, a city people are fleeing as their apartment buildings are sold and their rents soar.
"We're going to lose more affordable housing in Portsmouth because of that kind of thing than we can gain even if we keep building more," Craig Welch, executive director of the Portsmouth Housing Authority, said in an interview Thursday.
"We hear that all the time" about people living in apartment buildings that get sold and new owners raising rents by $700 or more, Welch said. That prompts some to move out of the city, he said.
"That dynamic is happening all the time in Portsmouth," he said.
This past week, the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire said it plans to redevelop its Christ Episcopal Church property on Lafayette Road in Portsmouth.
The diocese, which owns the 3.5-acre property, has partnered with the Portsmouth Housing Authority and HAVEN, which provides services to those impacted by sexual and domestic violence. It also will include renovated facilities for Little Blessings Child Care Center and a revamped worship space.
"This is what happens when faithful people dare to pray for a vision of God's purposes," Bishop Rob Hirschfeld said in a statement. "This will be a bold project that will further God's love and care in this community. I'm grateful to all involved for their courageous collaboration."
Housing prices keep rising in Portsmouth.
For the first three months of this year, 18 homes sold at a median price of $887,500 — a 39% jump from the same period last year, when 15 homes sold for a median price of $637,000, according to figures from the New Hampshire Association of Realtors.
'Cost-burdened'
"A full 15% of renters here are paying more than 50% of their income in rent," Welch said in an email. "Thousands of others are cost-burdened, paying more than 30% of their income in rent. This prevents people from investing in themselves to increase their income and to build assets."
"We continue to build roads and parking to accommodate people's need to drive into the city rather than investing in the housing infrastructure for the people that make the city grow," Welch wrote.
The church property project calls for 50 below-market rate apartments to be built as well as some possible townhomes.
Welch expects construction to begin in 2026, with people moving in during the summer of 2027. A waitlist would open up about three months earlier.
Another Housing Authority project, Ruth's Place, opened in June 2022 with 64 units of workforce housing on Court Street. A one-bedroom at Ruth's Place runs around $1,100 a month. That project attracted more than 500 names on a waitlist.
"If you're looking for an apartment in Portsmouth, it's hard to find a place under $2,000 a month," Welch said.
The church apartments would be open to families making 60% of the area median income, meaning a family of four earning $78,720 or less currently would be eligible. Those figures will likely be different three years from now as the numbers are updated.
The proposed project, which doesn't have a price tag yet, would be funded with state and federal tax credits, grants and loans, Welch said.
"Ruth's Place was a $16 million project, $2 million more than originally anticipated because of an 18-month delay caused by a lawsuit brought on by three men from other parts of the city, and which resulted in higher rents for all of the households there," Welch said.
The African slave burying ground at Langdon Farm, which is on the church property, also will be preserved, he said.
