Conservation & Growth Map The majority of Londonderry citizens understand that growth will inevitably occur and that planning for this growth will result in a stronger local economy, greater sustainability, and a better quality of life for current and future residents. This section provides a description of the Conservation and Growth Map, which provides a town-wide framework for protecting open space and directing new development. A description of how this map is organized, according to conservation sectors and growth sectors, is provided. The identified growth sectors include activity centers in villages and along corridors. These activity centers are illustrated in detail to show one possibility for how development could occur to reflect the goals and aspirations of the community.
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Why a New Framework for Growth?
Conservation & Growth Map
While Londonderry has remained a vital and desirable place to live, the Town struggles to maintain the tax base required to support municipal services and the world-class school system. For years the Town has experienced extreme population growth without a clear plan in place to proactively deal with increasing development pressures. As a result, Londonderry has lost much of its rural land, while maintaining pockets of rural character and greenery along many of the roadways. While Londonderry remains a desirable place to live, the community lacks choices and high quality affordable housing, making it difficult for singles, young professionals, and retirees to find a place to live. A lack of walkable destinations and shortfalls in the quality of the public realm further deter potential residents and visitors. A complex regulatory framework also suppresses the potential for investment by the private sector.
Input from participants at the Planapalooza event supported the Villages and Corridors Growth Scenario for developing the Comprehensive Master Plan. The framework provided by this Scenario, which focuses new development into distinct activity centers located in villages and along corridors, is the starting point for developing a new direction for the Town’s Future Land Use Map. The Conservation & Growth Map instead organizes the community according to priorities for land protection and the character of new development as a way to more effectively direct planning and other system wide enhancements within the Town. Conservation Areas include both permanently and partially protected open spaces, while Growth Areas include specific activity centers in villages and along corridors, where citizens expressed a comfort with additional investment and development. Existing residential areas of Town remain unchanged and are not affected by this mapping.
In order to respond to these issues, the Plan provides a new framework for growth to address quality of life while also seeking to have a positive impact on the economy, business climate, tax base, and the sustainability of the Town long into the future. The community overwhelmingly supports the idea of preserving and enhancing Londonderry’s natural areas while also identifying strategic areas to focus growth within walkable activity centers while leaving existing residential neighborhoods unchanged.
By organizing the Town according to conservation and growth areas, intentional and informed decisions can be made about how to most efficiently spend municipal dollars on infrastructure improvements that will support the Comprehensive Master Plan. In this way, the intensity of development allowed and encouraged in villages and along corridors can be matched with planned infrastructure.
Town of Londonderry, New Hampshire