Manchester needs more homes of all shapes and sizes, for all our neighbors. Granite Staters cannot find housing options that meet their needs and budgets. Manchester has a shortage of 8,500 homes according to the 2022 Housing Underproduction report from Up for Growth, due to under-building and exclusionary zoning rules.

The zoning code essentially determines how many homes can be built in Manchester and whether those homes will be affordable to working families or only to more affluent people. Adopting an updated Land Use Code is a once in a generation opportunity to allow more home types and create a more affordable Manchester for current and future residents.

What’s at stake is the future of our city - Will we allow more homes to be built that are different sizes and price points, or will we continue our exclusionary trajectory, and ensure only the wealthy few can live in Manchester? We can choose a different path forward that allows for more abundant homes, more homes of different sizes and prices, and for more community members to live in Manchester. Our zoning code can create the opportunity for new and more attainable homes here in Manchester, but only if we allow more homes in more parts of our city.