New construction up the hill from Weirs

[Steveo]

This might have been discussed before but I couldn't find it.

What is the new area of construction, actually clearing that is taking place up the hill from Weirs across from water park.

[Irish mist]

Originally Posted by Steveo

This might have been discussed before but I couldn't find it.

What is the new area of construction, actually clearing that is taking place up the hill from Weirs across from water park.

126 new condo townhomes starting at $199,000......I forget the name of the place though. And I wonder who is going to buy them all in this slow market. I suppose over time with the boomers retiring they will move, but the townhomes at Moulton Cove down behind the Weirs look to still be mostly not sold.....so I wonder how long these can afford to sit empty until the real estate market picks up ?
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HONDA CB1000

[flyguy]

Originally Posted by Steveo

What is the new area of construction, actually clearing that is taking place up the hill from Weirs across from water park.

It's called "Shaker Hills", and is the project of one "Vatche Manoukian". Seems to have come to a screeching halt lately,however. AFTER they clearcut most of the trees. You'll find a aerial view of it at http://www.lakesregionaerials.com/ph...rs_B_g128.html

[Audiofn]

Nice web site FLyguy!!

[Irish mist]

It looks like Shaker Hills, or Lakewood Village, or whatever name that they are using is never going to get built. A neighbor up there said she heard that they are bankrupt.
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Roor bongs

[WeirsBeachBoater]

Well isn't that great. A giant eyesore, all for nothing. I think that is nothing short of criminal!

[Irish mist]

Originally Posted by WeirsBeachBoater

Well isn't that great. A giant eyesore, all for nothing. I think that is nothing short of criminal!

I agree. What a mess it is up there ! I know that the neighbors up there have been to city hall over & over again because of the condition of the land concerning run off problems and such.
________
KAWASAKI KDX220A

[HUH]

I could never understand why towns dont require a finished road and drainage before construction begins.
Starting to look better up there now.

[Seeker]

Companies like that should be required to post a performance bond with the town so if they do go belly-up the town can recover enough funds to remedy runoff situations, etc...

[ironhorsetim]

Originally Posted by flyguy

It's called "Shaker Hills", and is the project of one "Vatche Manoukian".

Another "local guy" making a big impression ? ...ya right this city is too concerned taking in all the big bucks to really care what's going on in our town anymore. This along with all the B/S construction, pretty soon it will look like Las Vegas,only with a lake. Remember when it was just Ma and Pa camps? Ahh the good old days bowling on the beach and fresh donut's on Sunday's


PS..thank you and nice photo flyguy

[flyguy]

Recent flyovers have shown little or no change, other than the addition of some erosion protection. SOme large storm/drain pipes have also appeared. I believe the project is on hold, and is now being "stabilized" at the request of the town.

Believe it or not, Ironhorsetim, there are some town employees who really do care. I sometimes share my images with them, and they do pay attention to how things are developing at any site.

I agree with Seeker, though: developers should be required to post a performance bond. I see WAY too much of this thing from the air.

[HUH]

My bad I thought we were talking about the new development across from Cumberland farms. Which looks like an upgrade from the tent and trailer park.
Shaker hills looks like another empty hole.. hello laconia ! any end in site for condo development? Such a beautiful spot we have here at Winnipesaukee, lets over develop it for tax revenue

[dpg]

Originally Posted by Irish mist

126 new condo townhomes starting at $199,000......I forget the name of the place though. And I wonder who is going to buy them all in this slow market. I suppose over time with the boomers retiring they will move, but the townhomes at Moulton Cove down behind the Weirs look to still be mostly not sold.....so I wonder how long these can afford to sit empty until the real estate market picks up ?

Let them go up and sit there awhile then call and offer $150,000 for one.

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by HUH

I could never understand why towns dont require a finished road and drainage before construction begins.
Starting to look better up there now.

Putting a finished road and drainage in before the construction begins would be like carpeting your new house after the framing is done.
When the lumber delivery trucks and the 75,000 pound concrete trucks show up to make deliveries on a hot day, think of the mess it will make of the new pavement. The rear 8 wheels on those trucks scrub whenever they aren't going straight and even the front tires turning when the vehicle isn't moving will dig up the pavement. The city would end up with some lousy new roads.
As for the drainage, most construction sites will absorb rain and run off is minimal. If you put the drainage in before the construction is complete the catch basins and pipes will be full of gravel.

[krm]

Laconia and most towns require performance bonds, there is a longer answer but that is short easy one.

[Sunbeam lodge]

The senior housing complex in Meredith across from the Canoe gas station is planning an auction to sell 29 Condos they have not been able to unload.
In spite of all the bad mortgage information and the huge inventory of unsold homes the town is pressing to build a huge amount of new worker housing units on Boynton street.
You have to wonder when half of the 5000 lots and homes in Meredith are assessed under 200k why we need more worker housing. With all the foreclosures and inventory why don't we just give them the homes already built and foreclosed.

[Waterbaby]

Originally Posted by Seeker

Companies like that should be required to post a performance bond with the town so if they do go belly-up the town can recover enough funds to remedy runoff situations, etc...

I believe most, if not all towns in NH do have this requirement and the bond must be posted prior to any work on the site starts. However, and this is a huge however, the wording on the bond usually indicates that so much is for Step A, so much for Step B, etc. etc. etc. Once Step A is completed to the town's requirements for that particular subdivision, the developer can ask for a release of that percentage of the bond and so forth. Bond wording is usually precise as to what is being covered, also.

Usually, for the town to go after a portion of the bond for a circumstance such as this one, court action is needed and that in itself can be a very lengthy -- and expensive -- process, especially if that particular problem, i.e. drainage, has not been covered in the wording of the bond.

This, of course, is my understanding of how bonds work, at least in the town in which I live.

[Pineedles]

I believe you are right Waterbaby. Who can we ask in Government? Instead of endless debate, let's put the question to the decision makers. Post the qustion in the Laconia Times? Bring it up at a Town meeting? Sorry, I would love to ask the town council but I am not a citizen! A tax payer yes, a voter no.

[NHskier]

From my planning board days, the extent of bonding is typically limited to covering work the town would need to do should the developer fail to complete. For example, in a development that would include roads (construction and full paving, curbing if spec'ed), water and sewer utilities, perhaps drainage-related work like retention ponds or environmental impact work like silt barriers.

[krm]

If the developer wants to be able to sell the product before completion the AG requires a performance bond be in place. Depending on the type of development, it can vary for example in commercial applications many times a reclamation bond is all that is required, and a performance bond is required for what ever effects the towns well being. In a subdivision, the AG requires one, but the town also requires one so that the lot owner can pull a building permit before all the infrastructure is complete, it is a way of protecting the lot buyer. It should also be said that it doesn't have to be a bond it can be a LOC or cash.

[Lakesrider]

Someone should plant a new tree in the very middle of the mess. I drive by that place everyday. It looks horrible. Heck we should get a bunch of people together and go plant some trees in there.....

[mcdude]

Originally Posted by HUH

.. hello laconia ! any end in site for condo development?

apparently not.....

Way cleared for more Weirs condos
Laconia:

Tuesday, September 22, 2009 - by John Koziol
The Zoning Board of Approval has cleared the way for more potential residential development on Brickyard Mountain in The Weirs which is already home to the Meredith Bay gated community.

By a unanimous vote Monday night, the ZBA granted an area variance request from Akwa Waterfront LLC that, pending subsequent Planning Board approval, would allow the developer to build three buildings with up to 72 condominiums on an eight-acre lot on Scenic Road to a height of 60 feet. The permitted height in the Shorefront Residential Zone is 35 feet.

Agents for the developer said the plan is to build smaller, taller buildings which have less of an environmental impact on the parcel which is located below and east of Meredith Bay, a 129-lot luxury gated community on more than 400 acres on what once had been the Brickyard Mountain resort and ski area.

Meredith Bay includes the Akwa Marina Yacht and Beach Club on Centenary Avenue that has over 800 feet of waterfront, 76 new boat slips and boat launch, cabanas, a pool with children's activity area, a hot tub and a sun bathing deck.

The marina is south of where Akwa Waterfront LLC would like to build condominiums, possibly starting in Spring 2010.

John Riordan of SGC Engineering said, in response to ZBA concerns back in July, his client had conducted a "balloon test," floating a large tethered balloon to a height of 70 feet from the center of the Scenic Road parcel to make sure that once the condominiums were built to that height they would not interfere with views from the nearby Cedar Lodge or Meredith Bay.

The balloon test found that the proposed residential units would not be a visual barrier, Riordan said, later adding that viewed from Lake Winnipesaukee, the condominiums would be "enveloped" by the tree line above them.

Russ Poirier of the Cedar Lodge, said Akwa Waterfront LLC had done "a great job of keeping us informed" about what their development plans, adding that the new housing would be a needed "shot in the arm" for the area. "The views there are outrageous and should be taken advantage of," he said.

[MAXUM]

Don't you just love it. Classic case of money buying influence.

[Argie's Wife]

Once again, they pave paradise and put up a parking lot...

Ya gotta wonder about a town's master plan when something like this happens... blek!

[LongBay]

Here is yet another example of the Laconia city planners allowing a developer to tear down every tree in sight and add lots of pavement so it resembles the rest of the Weirs and Downtown Laconia. It is time these planners go back to school and learn how to do their job. It is a shame there is no master plan for the Wiers and get it to look like it was back in the 30's.

It won't be long before someone turns it into another tent city during bike week.

[birchhaven]

I visited there meredith bay, aqua folks this past weekend to support the Boys and Girls club, and I have to say I am very impressed by how well the house blend into the surrounding (green roofs etc) from the water it is hard to tell they are even there, I actually am happy having now seen what they have done that it is them doing the look off rock property and not some one else, if anything this is a great improvement to Weirs, and I hope it rubs off on the other land owners in the actual Weirs,
Just a thought

[mcdude]

Recession? What recession?

Hundreds of Condo Units on Planning Agenda

Laconia:

Monday, November 30, 2009
Following a slowdown in new projects, the Laconia Planning Board next week and at future meetings will consider the construction of almost 400 residential condominiums proposed for the Brickyard Mountain area and on Paugus Bay.

When the board meets Tuesday it will consider two design reviews for Meredith Bay Mid Rise Condos and Meredith Bay Look Off Rock, both of which are located on Scenic Road, below the 129-lot Meredith Bay residential community.

Akwa Waterfront LLC is proposing that Meredith Bay Mid Rise Condos on the west side of Scenic Road would have three five-story condominium buildings with a lower level garage, each with 24 units while Meredith Bay Look Off Rock on the east side of the road facing Lake Winnipesaukee, would have 19 townhouse-style condominiums.

Earlier this year, the developer was granted a variance by the Laconia Zoning Board of Adjustment to build three buildings to a height of 60 feet. The permitted height in the Shorefront Residential Zone is 35 feet.

Agents for the developer said the plan was to build smaller, taller buildings which have less of an environmental impact on the parcel which is situated below the Meredith Bay community which sits on more than 400 acres on what once had been the Brickyard Mountain resort and ski area. Meredith Bay includes the Akwa Marina Yacht and Beach Club on Centenary Avenue.

As early as February, the planning board may also see a design review — during which the board and public can comment on a developer's plans — from Brady-Sullivan Properties for its Langley Cove project.

According to Planning Department staff, Brady-Sullivan is proposing to build a 291-unit condominium on Weirs Boulevard, a decrease of 50 units from its most recent plan

Back in October 2008, after four years of back and forth, the Planning Board killed the current original subdivision plan but also gave the Manchester-based developer a straw vote of support for a new, smaller version of the Langley Cove Condominium.

Brady-Sullivan's then plan was for 293 total units comprising nine single-family units (eight of which are in a cluster development); 130 multifamily attached dwellings; two 81-unit apartment buildings and a clubhouse.

Last October, Tim Sheldon, BSP's director of design, said the new plan is "still a big project," but that it had an increase in green space; eliminated the need to install a high-pressure water line down Weirs Boulevard; and improved the view of the condominium from the road and Paugus Bay.

Under the city's zoning regulations, Brady-Sullivan was permitted to build up to 407 housing units at Langley Cove but City Planner Shanna Saunders has said the planning board has override authority over development of particularly challenging topography, like the steep slopes and ledge at Langley Cove.

[jmen24]

Originally Posted by LongBay

Here is yet another example of the Laconia city planners allowing a developer to tear down every tree in sight and add lots of pavement so it resembles the rest of the Weirs and Downtown Laconia. It is time these planners go back to school and learn how to do their job. It is a shame there is no master plan for the Wiers and get it to look like it was back in the 30's.

It won't be long before someone turns it into another tent city during bike week.

I'll agree that planning needs to be improved in quite a few towns in the state, some have something worth saving, others not-so-much. What I mean by that is some areas of NH are in serious need of a rehab, I believe the Weirs is one of these places. As much as everyone would like to have things be like "back then," in reality that is not going to pay the bills. When an area becomes run down it brings in a different breed of folks, (take a look around next summer on a weekend afternoon and tell me you do not agree) an update to the facade on the Boulevard is really needed and something new to the area would bring in new folks. I am not talking about replacing things every few years like Las Vegas, but in reality the Weirs is the eyesore of the lake compared to what other towns around the lake have in place along the water front. I know it would be nice if it was back to "when I was a kid" but was it really any better or because you were a kid you did not care what was going on around you.

Think long and hard about how long all the entertainment venues in the lakes region have been in place, Funspot, Boulevard, Surf Coaster (gone), Weirs Beach Water Slide, go-karts across from the beach, across from Funspot, Mini golf. It has all been here FOREVER and yet we are all wondering why the Weirs is looking worse and worse every year. It is very nice to see these venues return year after year, but how many are still owned by the same people that started them, I can think of one.

This area is in need of a complete facelift and a solid plan about what that will look like needs to be put in place. Then bring in the investers and make it happen.

[fatlazyless]

This could be wishfull thinking but maybe it will be possible to build a side trail from the newly built developement to the WOW Trail on the west side of Paugus Bay?

Somewhere in the vicinity of the Laconia stump dump on Hilliard Rd and where Pickerel Cove enters Paugus Bay would seem to be a right of way path for a side bicycle trail. Isn't there a public road that accesses the waterfront railroad right of way on the south side of Pickerel Cove.

Riding a bicycle from the hilly Weirs area down to and around Paugus Bay, down Laconia's Main St, across the big intersection of Main & Union to go food shopping at the supermarket across from the MVSB & Laconia Savings......how's that sound? Sounds pretty good!

Very nice bicycle ride along the shoreline of Paugus Bay....and mostly peddling on the flats....which makes for easy going.

An imaginary Weirs Beach conversion in November 2011: "We need to go buy some food, Dearie! Yes, well today is a nice warm November day so lets go take the bicycles around the Bay to get to the stores.....good idea, Honey!D"

[newbie]

Both roads on the north and south side of Pickerel Cove are private roads.

[fatlazyless]

Originally Posted by newbie

Both roads on the north and south side of Pickerel Cove are private roads.

Not according to the Laconia map that shows them as public.

Harglen Lane, the road on the north side of Pickerel Cove has a green Laconia street sign and it does not say 'private' in small letters underneath Harglen Lane.

It runs about 1/4 mile to the end where it abutts the railroad track with enough room to make a u-turn in a car, plus there's no 'no trespassing' signs at the end, next to the railroad track. It looks like a well maintained, smooth compacted sand and gravel type road with some expensive waterfront homes.......nice neighborhood!

Even if it is a private road, does that mean it can exclude use by pedestrians or bicyclists as opposed to motor vehicles, who use it to access the proposed W.O.W. Trail to be built on the inside area of the rr right-of-way?

Behind the two-acre lot that is home to the City of Laconia, Hilliard Rd Brush Facility (unpainted wood & brush under 3" Dia only), on adjacent and nearby Hilliard Rd, there is acres and acres of undeveloped sloping wooded land that seems to be undeveloped all the way back up to Route 3, close to the entrance of theMeredith Bay, aka Akwa Soliel, developement.

I believe these undeveloped woods are the proposed area for the new to be constructed Akwa Woods-Del Bocco Vista developement, or something?

Having easy access to the W.O.W. Trail via Harglen Lane would seem to be a very nice amenity for the local residents. A nine mile long , pedestrian, bicycle, roller blade, non-motorized waterfront paved trail running from Laconia to Meredith and straight through the Weirs.

So.....what's not to like? Could be a great way to work off some excess weight....on a bicycle.....while on a commute or a trip to Laconia- Main St.

[Just Sold]

Today's Laconia Citizen:

Weirs project revised to expand unit size


Laconia:

By RON TUNNING Special to the Citizen

Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Developer Skip Kelly won approval last night from the city's Planning Board to add a three-bedroom model to his list of cottages being built in his Weirs Beach Village project located on Endicott Street North.

The three-bedroom units will be constrained in size to a basic "living space" footprint of no more than 1,000 square feet, and can represent no more than 20 percent of the total number of units approved for construction.

The board also limited the number of bathrooms per unit to two, and restricted garages to a dimension no greater than 24 feet by 24 feet, large enough to accommodate two vehicles.

In seeking the Planning Board's endorsement of the change, Kelly explained that in the current market he's finding a demand for three-bedroom units in a project originally conceived as affordable, modular housing offering a typical floor plan of one or two bedrooms averaging a little less than a 900 square foot "living space" footprint. To conform with the "living space" footprint, additional square footage will be provided in second-level loft areas.


Kelly acknowledged that adding a third bedroom will likely increase costs from $139,900 for a two bedroom to $169,900, which raised concerns among some Planning Board members that the elevated prices undermine the commitment to provide affordable housing.

City Planning Director Shanna Saunders, however, observed that by restricting the number of three-bedroom units in the project "we can keep it as affordable housing."

Planning Board member Warren Hutchins concurred, noting that even a $169,900 price tag was low. "You don't find many new homes being built for that," he said.

Board members Jerry Mailloux and Tobias Paddock, however, were not convinced and voted against the motion to approve the three-bedroom units.

Attorneys Pat Wood and Rob Dyer, along with engineer Steve Smith requested that a public work session be conducted before final language is adopted on a new "Steep Slope" addition to the city's planning ordinances. All three stressed the importance of seeking input from a wide range of people and businesses who would be impacted by any new requirements or processes enacted. The Planning Board agreed to conduct such a public session sometime following its next meeting in January.

The board was equally amenable to a request by the Remington family to adjust lot lines on its subdivision on Pendleton Street. The alterations merely shift square footage from lots 2 and 7 to lots 1 and 6 in order to accommodate the residences planned for the site.

A bit less agreeable was the design review of the Meredith Bay Mid Rise Condominiums on Scenic Road, part of the development originally known as Akwa Vista. While the developer was praised for having incorporated into the plan single-level units in three, five-story buildings, concerns about the absence of any plans for sidewalks along Scenic Road were aired by board members Mailloux, Hutchins and William Contardo.

While acknowledging that constructing sidewalks would be challenging and expensive, the board strongly recommended that the developer return with a plan to better accommodate pedestrian traffic.

Two abutting homeowners raised the issue of storm water runoff arising from the project and developments further up the hill. Philip Asack of 639 Scenic Road complained that storm water is threatening his property, backing up his septic system.

"I've been there over 25 years," he explained, "And I never had this problem before."

"Ever since Akwa was built, water has consistently been coming down the hill," added Mark Ortolani of 596 Scenic Road. "This last rain washed away my driveway."

The Meredith Bay developer promised to address the board and abutting property owners' concerns as design plans evolved.

[mcdude]

Some Weirs Blvd. project concerns lessened

Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Although they've yet to see the formal application, members of the Planning Board reacted favorably Tuesday to a preliminary version of a 291-unit condominium project on Weirs Boulevard.

Since 2004, Brady-Sullivan Properties of Manchester has been looking to build the "Langley Cove" condominium community on the boulevard, but it has been stymied by board concerns about steep slopes, over-density and the threat posed by storm-water runoff from the property into Paugus Bay, which is the source of Laconia's municipal water supply.

Planning Board Chairman Kyril Mitchell told the developer's representatives that what was presented Tuesday evening was "quantifiably better" than what it last saw in 2008 when Brady-Sullivan had presented plans for a 341-unit project.

Tim Sheldon, Brady-Sullivan's director of development and design, said his company — which in 2004 envisioned 375 residential units on the 66-acre property at 553 Weirs Blvd. (the developer now also owns an additional 17 adjacent acres on White Oaks Road) — listened to what the board had to say and took it to heart.

"We seem to be at kind of a tipping point," Sheldon said, in terms of Brady-Sullivan having addressed board concerns about slopes, soils, watershed quality and reduced project density.

The plans before the board Tuesday for a design review, during which board members and the public can make suggestions to a developer before his or her returning with a formal site plan application, reflected "what you've been telling Brady-Sullivan for four years" Sheldon said.

According to a slide show presentation, the new Langley Cove project has a 70-percent reduction in the amount of development that would take place on steep slopes, a 44-percent reduction in impervious surfaces and a 154-percent increase in total green space.

"This is a much-improved plan," Sheldon summed up, noting that there was less development of the site and fewer total units and "most of our buildings are off the steep slopes."

Read entire article HERE

[tis]

That's kind of too bad. I hope the Weirs doesn't turn into all condos eventually. I suppose if it was residential all along and then they wanted to turn it into the Weirs as it is now, people would have a fit. But to be honest, the Weirs is the Weirs, the way I always remember it and I hate to see it change. I think Old Orchard Beach in Maine is going the same way and I see it with sadness.

[Resident 2B]

I believe this is in the area of Christmas Island, about a mile away from Weirs Beach. There are other developments and potential developments much closer to the Weirs.

R2B

[Island-Ho]

At just under 1/4 acre per unit it still seems way too dense for the area. It's less than that per unit if you consider the 'green space'. Just imagine all the new traffic headaches this will create. More traffic lights anyone?

[Lakesrider]

Ummm...A 3 bedroom at 1000sq ft? You are kidding right? What? Are the bedrooms are going to be like 8'x8'? I have what I consider a very small two bedroom at 1200 sq ft. My second bedroom is only 10'x11' and I can barely squeeze in a queen bed and a night stand in there.

[tgresla]

I almost got in on the Shaker Hills project but my neighbor talked me out of it GOD BLESS HIM. When you carefully looked at the proposal he pointed out a few very 'optimistic' numbers. Then then real estate crash happened and the rest is history