I had an opportunity to look at the Census data for Lyme. I charted the data for 2010 and 2020.

Here’s what I see in this data:

• Lyme’s median age is now 46.5 years, having increased by three and a half years between 2010 and 2020. Today’s median age is even above the New Hampshire median of 43.1 years, and much higher than the national value of 38.8 years. Wikipedia
• Lyme’s population decreased in that decade.
• Like most of NH, a significant number of 20-30 year olds moved away. The loss of 20-24 year olds is particularly acute in Lyme.
• The chart shows a significant loss of 40-60 year olds over the decade. These people typically have reached a stable point in their lives, and provide vitality and leadership for a town.
• At the same time, there is a large increase in 65-75 year olds. Although the joke goes, “Seventy is the new fifty…” this population will use increasingly larger amounts of service.
• There is a significant decrease in the number of school age children, following the demographic trends across the country.

Are any of these trends important for Lyme’s future?

The raw data was retrieved from US Census, American Community Survey at: https://bit.ly/LymeCensus-2010-2020

Feel free to share this post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, or email. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own, and not those of any public body, such as the Lyme Planning Board, Budget Committee, or Trustees of the Trust Funds where I volunteer. I would be interested to hear your thoughts – you can reach me at richb.lyme@gmail.com.

I am running for two elected positions in Lyme. Here are my candidate statements:

Rich Brown Candidate Statement:
Planning Board

I don’t believe in complaining. Instead, I think it’s important for people to offer their services to help solve town problems.

I have volunteered as an alternate member of the Planning Board for last three years. When a regular member is not present, I frequently am asked to sit in their place. This gives me an understanding of the requirements and processes of the Board.

I am now running for a full, elected seat on the Planning Board. I am pleased that the Board is considering solar panel installations, and I look forward to working on options for housing later this year.

I moved with my wife (Lin Brown, rheumatologist) to Lyme seven years ago, having lived in the Upper Valley for more than forty years. I spend time on the Those Guys tent crew, as a local business owner (Loch Lyme Lodge), as a manager of LymeFiber, and as a volunteer school crossing guard at the Lyme School.

I will bring the same energy to the Planning Board as I have brought to the Tax Fairness discussion. You can see my thoughts about planning and taxes on my blog at: richb-lyme.com

I ask for your vote on the ballot at Town Meeting, Tuesday, March 8. Thank you.

Rich Brown
795-2525

Rich Brown Candidate Statement:
Trustee of the Trust Funds

As a trustee for Lyme’s Trust Funds, I will monitor the performance of the investment advisor that the Town hires to ensure that they meet the investment guidelines. In addition, I will work to ensure the funds entrusted to those funds are properly disbursed.

For more information about me, see my Candidate Statement for Planning Board.

I ask for your vote on the ballot at Town Meeting, Tuesday, March 8. Thank you.

Rich Brown
795-2525

Feel free to share this post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, or email. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own, and not those of any public body, such as the Lyme Planning Board, Budget Committee, or Trustees of the Trust Funds where I volunteer. I would be interested to hear your thoughts – you can reach me at richb.lyme@gmail.com.

Sent to the Lyme Listserv on 22 February 2022:

I just filed for an abatement since our Lyme property tax bill went up 31% for no obvious reason. Although other properties went up by similar amounts, tax bills for many other properties actually decreased. You can see the changes for your street at the Tax Fairness website:  https://taxfairness.github.io/Taxes2021/

The abatement form is at: https://www.lymenh.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif4636/f/uploads/revisedabatementform.pdf

It’s long, but pretty straightforward. I attach the answers I provided on my application below – you are free to use them and modify for your situation.

IMPORTANT: The deadline for filing for an abatement is next Tuesday, March 1, 2022. Please get back to me if you have any questions. Thanks.

Rich Brown
795-2525

Feel free to share this post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, or email. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own, and not those of any public body, such as the Lyme Planning Board, Budget Committee, or Trustees of the Trust Funds where I volunteer. I would be interested to hear your thoughts – you can reach me at richb.lyme@gmail.com.

Outline for Lyme Property Tax Abatement Form – Deadline – Tuesday, 1 March 2022

Sections A and B: Fill in your name and address

Section C: Fill in the property address to be abated

Section D – Other properties: Fill in the addresses of other properties you own (if any)

Section E: Reason for Abatement Application

In 2021, the Town of Lyme spent 4% more than in the previous year. If all property valuations increased the same amount relative to others, we all would expect our tax bills to increase by about 4% (in the absence of significant improvements or changes to the homes.)

The tax on my property increased by $4,164, that’s a 31% increase ($13,381 in 2020 to $17,545 in 2021). This is about eight times the expected increase.

This increase is disproportionate to other properties in town, especially those properties whose taxes went down this year. As examples, see the data presented to the Select Board on 10 February 2022 for Breck Hill Road, 85 Dartmouth College Highway, and Wilmott Way (attached)

Finally, this disproportionate assessment, if left to stand, will continue for the next five years, increasing the unfairness relative to other properties in town.

Section F: Taxpayer’s opinion of Market Value

As a non-professional, I do not know how to set a value on my property. Furthermore, my opinion is immaterial since the Town hired a professional assessor last year to set correct property values as part of the five-year Revaluation process.

What factors did the Assessor use to set the value of my property? What comparable properties were considered?

Finally, the question “Would you sell your property for this assessment?” is unfair and unreasonable. Not only is my property not currently for sale, but I have no recourse to this opinion. In an arms-length transaction, I can accept or reject the buyer’s offer. I have no option with the town, except to file this abatement.

If you own multiple properties, you might include this statement:

I do not agree with the statement in Section D that “[all properties] must be considered in determining … a disproportionate assessment.” If one property is incorrectly assessed, its value should be corrected, regardless of whether any other properties are correct or not. If one property is 10% too high, and another 10% too low, it doesn’t “balance out”. That’s still unfair.

Sections H and I: Signatures and certifications… Deadline is Tuesday, March 1, 2022

Tax Increases – 85 Dartmouth College Highway: https://taxfairness.github.io/Taxes2021/Tax_Increases_85_Dartmouth_College_Highway.pdf

Tax Increases – Breck Hill Road: https://taxfairness.github.io/Taxes2021/Tax_Increases_Breck_Hill_Road.pdf

Tax Increases – Wilmott Way: https://taxfairness.github.io/Taxes2021/Tax_Increases_Wilmott_Way.pdf

Sent to the Lyme Listserv on 8 February 2022:

I was astonished to see a 31% increase in my property tax bill last year. So some friends and I looked into the tax records and produced a website that shows the tax change for properties in town. Go to the Tax Fairness site and enter your street name – you’ll see how you compare. It’s at: https://taxfairness.github.io/Taxes2021/

I think you’ll detect a fair amount of variation, even between neighboring properties. (The town is spending about 4% more this year, so we would expect an average 4% increase.) If you think your tax bill for last year is unfair, you can file for an abatement. I know that Michael Whitman is preparing a step-by-step guide for filling out the form.

In addition, there will be a meeting with the Select Board this coming Thursday, February 10th. The meeting begins at 9am for public comments; I believe the revaluation discussion is scheduled for 9:30am. If you can’t make it in person, it’ll be on Zoom to make it easier to attend. (Zoom link is on the Agenda at: https://www.lymenh.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif4636/f/agendas/2022-2-10_sb_agenda.pdf)

Please get back to me if you have any questions. Thanks.

Rich Brown
795-2525

Feel free to share this post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, or email. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own, and not those of any public body, such as the Lyme Planning Board, Budget Committee, or Trustees of the Trust Funds where I volunteer. I would be interested to hear your thoughts – you can reach me at richb.lyme@gmail.com.

After posting about why it’s hard to build starter homes, I found further proof that zoning regulations serve to raise the price of housing. A new study from the Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy and St. Anselm College’s Center for Ethics in Society states:

“Widely available measures show that New Hampshire is one of the most restrictive states in the country for residential development,” Sorens wrote. “By suppressing building, land-use regulations drive up the price of housing as demand rises.”

A summary of the research was posted in New Hampshire Bulletin this week. The summary notes:

• New Hampshire is in the top four states with the highest housing regulation
• This leads directly to a high cost of living, and a shortage of available homes
• Many New Hampshire towns have “attempted to freeze themselves in time”
• By reducing zoning restrictions, New Hampshire could substantially cut the cost of living for thousands of families.

The original report names Lyme, NH as an “especially unaffordable town.”

You can read the full report by Jason Sorens at Residential Building Regulations In New Hampshire: Causes And Consequences He’s the Director, Center for Ethics in Society, Saint Anselm College.

Feel free to share this post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, or email. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own, and not those of any public body, such as the Lyme Planning Board, Budget Committee, or Trustees of the Trust Funds where I volunteer. I would be interested to hear your thoughts – you can reach me at richb.lyme@gmail.com.

College Arms Apartments, Collegeville, PA. That was our starter home. It was a basement unit in a complex with about fifty apartments in rural Pennsylvania. Some faculty lived there, some people who worked in town, and some married students, like Lin and me. We didn’t have a lot of income (she was still a college senior), but because the rent was cheap, we could sock away a little money so we could move to a (nicer) place when she graduated.

Is there anything like this in Lyme today? No.

But there’s huge demand, from people who work in town and in the region (think Hanover, Lebanon, WRJ), and from people who want to downsize (whether they’re “seniors” or not).

All this is nicely shown in Eclogiselle’s article “Housing Supply and Demand in One Screen Shot”. It talks about how the demand for small units – most households today have one or two people – isn’t being met because of the preponderance of three or four bedroom houses that are being built.

Why can’t we build starter homes? Put simply – in Lyme, we aren’t allowed to… The web page (and accompanying video) give several reasons. Lyme’s ordinance hits them all:

1. Single-family zoning keeps costs high. It prevents families from sharing the expense of purchasing the land and installing the septic, water, driveway, etc.
2. Multi-family dwellings cannot be built anywhere in Lyme, according to the ordinance. This is a clear violation of NH RSA 674:58-61, the Workforce Housing Law, that requires “… reasonable and realistic opportunities for the development of workforce housing, including rental and multi–family housing.”
3. The zoning ordinance requires large lots. Does an entry-level home need three acres? Why?
4. The requirement for large lots creates sprawl. This spreads out homes, removes the possibility of walkability, forces people to drive (more), and increases the travel distances for services (parish nurse, police, fire, and even neighbors).
5. Parking. The subdivision regulations use an older standard for the number of parking spaces. Best practice shows that the number of cars per dwelling is decreasing. (How many cars will a one-person household need?)
6. The Master Plan has no Housing Chapter. It speaks vaguely about preserving the “rural character” of the town, but totally ignores the real needs and desires of residents in town.

Lyme urgently needs to revise its zoning ordinance to permit more housing options that meet the demands of the 21st century.

Feel free to share this post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, or email. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own, and not those of any public body, such as the Lyme Planning Board, Budget Committee, or Trustees of the Trust Funds where I volunteer. I would be interested to hear your thoughts – you can reach me at richb.lyme@gmail.com.