LRCD | Latest News - Lakes Region Community Developers

Latest News - December 2023

12/15/2023

The Gift of Housing

Give the Gift of Housing This Holiday Season

Please help us reach our goal of raising $7,000 in our end-of-year funding appeal.

The Lakes Region Housing Needs Assessment estimates that we need more than 3,000 additional units of affordable housing in the Lakes Region by 2040 to achieve a balanced housing market.

We have 131 rental units in our pipeline right now. This includes 30 workforce apartments in Wolfeboro, 60 workforce units and 26 senior apartments in Ashland, and 15 units of supportive housing in Laconia. We are excited about all of these projects. But we need to increase our pipeline to meet the overwhelming need for housing.

Your donation today will help ensure we have the resources needed to develop more affordable housing. Please donate today. Thank you!

Make a Donation

Gale School Tax Credits

LRCD was recently awarded $250,000 in NH tax credits by NH Community Development Finance Authority for the Gale School project in Belmont.

Any business with operations in NH that contributes to a CDFA tax credit project receives a NH state tax credit worth 75% of their contribution. The credit can be used over a period of five years to reduce the business’ state tax liability (business profits, business enterprise or insurance premium taxes).

The tax credit program allows NH businesses to redirect a significant portion of their state tax dollars to support local projects that they care about.

If your business would like to support the Gale School project, please email Carmen Lorentz at [email protected].

LRCD is partnering with Lakes Region Community Services and the Boys & Girls Club to transform the historic Gale School into a vibrant community hub offering critical services.

Construction on the Gale School has been delayed due to significant increases in construction costs since 2020. LRCD had to seek significantly more funding than originally anticipated.

To date, LRCD and its partners have raised over $2.5 million for the project, including $600,000 in NH tax credit proceeds from a previous award. With two final funding applications in process, LRCD is hopeful construction will get underway in 2024.

MVSB & Atlantic Community Bankers Bank Support LRCD

Thank you, MVSB, for nominating us for the Atlantic Community Bankers Bank (ACBB) 40th Anniversary Collective Impact Giving Campaign. LRCD was one of 11 recipients of a $2,500 donation from ACBB this fall.

The ethos behind ACBB's campaign is to foster partnerships that extend beyond financial transactions. By collaborating with community financial institutions like MVSB, ACBB aims to magnify the impact of local charities, spotlighting their contributions and enabling them to continue their transformative work.

Pictured: Lori Borrin, Vice President & Mortgage Loan Officer at MVSB and LRCD Board Member; Carmen Lorentz, LRCD Executive Director; and Jason Hicks, CFO of New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp and a former LRCD Board Member.

Bay Street Update

Yesterday, we closed on the purchase of 17 Bay Street where we plan to construct a new building with 12 efficiency units of supportive housing in partnership with Lakes Region Mental Health Center. Now we move on to getting construction drawings and bid documents ready with plans to begin clean-up and construction in the spring.

Harriman Hill III Update

Yesterday, the NH Housing Board of Directors approved funding for our 30-unit project in Wolfeboro! This project is the third and final phase of the Harriman Hill development, which is a partnership with Eastern Lakes Region Housing Coalition. Phases I and II were built in 2012 and 2014, and contain a total of 48 units.

With land use approvals and funding now in place for Phase III, we next move on to the development of construction drawings and bid documents. Our goal is to begin construction in 2024.

11 Jameson Street Update

On December 5, the Laconia Planning Board approved our site plan application to convert this single-family house into three small one-bedroom units of supportive housing in partnership with Lakes Region Community Services. We hope to learn by the end of January if we are awarded funding by NH Housing for this project.