PORTSMOUTH — Developers are seeking approval to demolish the existing structures on a Broad Street property, and replace them with four new single-family homes.
Green & Company — which has developed multiple major projects throughout Portsmouth and the Seacoast — “is under contract to acquire the property located at 366 Broad St.,” according to documents filed with the city on behalf of the developers by attorney John Bosen.
“The property consists of a main structure with a carriage house attached by a breezeway, a standalone bungalow structure and a free-standing garage,” Bosen said. “There are seven separate dwelling units spread over the three separate buildings on the property.”
Bosen stated the property is “non-compliant with current zoning, both as to its use, dimensions, density, and property setbacks.”
Green & Co. wants to demolish the existing structures on site and replace them with “four new, energy efficient, free-standing, three- to four-bedroom single-family dwellings, which will be designed to mimic the existing streetscape and architectural styles of homes seen along Broad Street,” Bosen said.
The proposal, he said, “will bring the property fully into compliance with all applicable dimensional requirements.”
The planned redevelopment of the site by building four new homes there “will provide a total of 14-16 bedrooms within the four structures, where 11 currently exist,” according to Bosen.
The property and buildings at 366 Broad St. were most recently appraised by the city for $963,100 and the main home was built in 1900, according to city records.
Developer seeks variance from Portsmouth board
Green & Co. needs a variance from the city's Zoning Board of Adjustment to allow more than one dwelling per lot in the General Residence A district, where the property is located.
$18.5M Rye home:Second highest-priced home sale in NH history is a neighbor to home that sold for record $25 million
The project is slated to be discussed Tuesday night at the Board of Adjustment meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. and will be held in City Council Chambers in City Hall.
“As proposed, the project will cure all offending setback and lot area non-conformities,” Bosen said. “Multiple residential structures already exist on the site, and this proposal brings the property into much greater zoning compliance than currently exists and fulfills the intent of the zoning ordinance … the purpose of which is to provide residential uses at moderate to high densities.”
What will the new homes look like?
Green & Co. submitted some renderings with the variance application package that show what Bosen called “possible building design elements.”
A diagram shows a proposed new driveway leading into the site, where the four new single-family homes are proposed to be located.
Unit 1 is 1,648 square feet, Unit 2 is 1,665 square feet, Unit 3 is 2,048 square feet and Unit 4 is 2,048 square feet, according to Green & Company’s submission
In advocating for the variance to be granted, Bosen states if it is “there would be no change in the essential characteristics of the neighborhood, nor would any public health, safety or welfare be threatened.”
“A significantly non-compliant property will be transformed into one which is designed to mimic the existing streetscape along Broad Street,” he added in documents filed with the city.
He also contends “there is no benefit to the public in denying the variance that is not outweighed by the hardship upon the owner.”
Plus, replacing the existing structures on the site with new “energy efficient homes will increase property values” in the surrounding neighborhood, Bosen said.
Green & Co.'s previous Portsmouth developments include Parsons Woods off Peverly Hill Road, Banfield Woods and Islington Green.
More local news:Portsmouth neighbors criticize Chinburg demolishing homes for million-dollar 'McMansions'
Most Popular
Comments / 0