Building Permits on Private Roads -Alfano Testifies Before NH House Committee

RSA 674:41, I(d) requires municipal governing bodies (select boards or their equivalent) to approve building permits on many types of private roads. The statute provides no guidance on how these decisions should be made, leaving property owners vulnerable to ad hoc decision-making. Some outrageous situations our office has encountered include:

• A town planner proudly declaring the town had never issued a building permit on a Class VI or private road and had no intention of doing so for our client.

• One town requiring lots be no more than 300 feet from a Class V road, while another town requires 600 feet. (Because each road is unique, a 750-foot road may be faster and safer to traverse than a 50-foot road in the same town.)

• A town coercing an applicant into agreeing to maintain the road. That may seem obvious and harmless, but a problem arose when another person obtained a building permit on the same road without the same requirement and insisted our client continue maintaining the road—alone.

• Another town conditioning approval of a building permit on our client contributing toward future, unknown improvements to the road. The owner of the lot at the end of the road later obtained a building permit on the condition that he upgrade the road to town standards - standards far higher than necessary, in our view. When that person became aware of our client’s apparent obligation to contribute toward road improvements, he demanded our client pay half the cost.

As originally drafted, HB 296 would encourage governing bodies to develop policies. The problem with that approach is the creation of another set of regulations to go along with zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, site plan regulations, building codes, and other specialized codes.

In testimony before the newly created House Committee on Housing, Alfano acknowledged HB 296 was a step in the right direction but argued it misses the mark by allowing the continuation of the problematic practices described above. Instead, Alfano submitted an amendment that would authorize governing bodies to consider only one factor when deciding whether to issue a building permit on a private road: is the road in suitable condition for travel by emergency vehicles?

What’s next for HB 296?

The Housing Committee will vote on the bill no later than March 20, 2025, after which it will go before the full House for a vote. If the bill passes the House, it then will move to the Senate.

For assistance with building permits, private roads, Class VI roads and other real estate matters, please contact our office at (603) 856-8411 or at this link.