The Missing Middle: Housing Types Portsmouth Lacks
What housing types exist in Portsmouth's older neighborhoods but can't be built new — and why? Essential context for Z-5, Z-8, Z-9.
Open module →RSA 79-E: Community Revitalization Tax Relief
How temporary property tax relief unlocks investment in older buildings and new housing — an active HAP pathway under consideration.
Open module →RSA 79-E: The Adoption Guide
An annotated comparison of the adoption paths available under 79-E. Companion to Module 03 — for when the question shifts from "what is it" to "how would Portsmouth adopt it."
Open module →Why Sequence Matters: Item Dependencies
Which items are preconditions for others, and what does that mean for triage ordering?
Open module →Portsmouth Zoning: The Triage Reference
Zone structure, approval pathways, compliance deadlines, and all 38 Z-items grouped by mechanism.
Open module →What Two New State Laws Change in the Housing Action Plan
The nineteen published actions assessed against Chapters 319 and 329 of 2026. Three are superseded by state law, eight constrained to residential districts, eight untouched. Six gaps, plus a worked example on the Gateway districts putting eight questions to the City Attorney.
Open module →What Would It Take?
For each housing type Portsmouth needs, what city-side and developer-side conditions would actually have to align? Frames the Phase 2 capital flow questions.
Open module →The Capital Flow Test
The conceptual grounding for the four triage questions. Which item types change investment decisions — and for which actors?
Open module →From HAP to Ordinance
Three implementation paths with realistic timelines. Which items go to Planning Board, which to City Manager, which to Council resolution?
Open module →How Affordable Housing Gets Financed
Capital stack, operating gap, and what Portsmouth can do about it. Essential for evaluating incentive and funding items.
Open module →Capital Flow Scoring Tool
Select any of the 154 HAP items, answer four structured questions, generate a printable record of the committee's reasoning.
Open tool →By-Right vs. Discretionary Permitting
Why does the approval pathway determine whether housing gets built at all? The foundational concept behind most HAP zoning items.
Open module →How a Development Pro Forma Works
What is the financial test every housing project must pass before it can be built?
Open module →What AMI Means in Portsmouth Dollars
When the HAP sets an affordability target, who does it actually reach in Portsmouth's market?
Open module →Permanent Affordability: The Tools Available to Portsmouth
What's actually off the table under Dillon's Rule — and what tools does Portsmouth have?
Open module →Who Is Not at the Table?
Renters, service workers, and young residents are structurally absent from Portsmouth's housing policy process. Civic context — not a triage instrument.
Open module →The ROAD to Housing Act & Portsmouth
The first comprehensive federal housing law in decades took effect July 11, 2026. What does it actually do — and which of its 40+ provisions plausibly reach Portsmouth?
Open module →