HANOVER — A zoning amendment that passed nearly a year ago to encourage hundreds of additional residential units to Hanover is facing backlash from residents who do not wish to see new housing added in their neighborhood.
Neighbors criticized a plan by Hanover resident and developer Jolin Kish to convert the basement of her Ledyard Lane home into an apartment during a Planning Board meeting on Tuesday night in Hanover Town Hall, with about 20 people in attendance.
“The neighborhood gets taken apart slowly to not look like it was before,” Louis Kazal, a Hanover resident of 23 years, said in a comment during the hearing.
Prior to last year’s zoning change, homes on Ledyard Lane, which sit in the single residence district, did not allow for more than one accessory dwelling unit. The new regulation, which voters approved at Town Meeting last May, allows homes in the district to include as many as four units.
Kish, who owns Kish Consulting and Contracting, is seeking Planning Board approval to convert her home at 12 Ledyard Lane into a three-unit dwelling. Currently, there is an apartment above the garage. To create a third living space, Kish has requested to put up additional walls in her basement — which already has a kitchen, bathroom and bedroom — to create a second bedroom.
Last year’s change allowing for a new overlay district encouraging development stipulated that the maximum size for triplexes and fourplexes is 45 feet by 45 feet. The building that Kish hopes to convert into a triplex is 50 feet by 37 feet, which only meets the standards for its current status as a duplex.
The Planning Board was unsure whether the size limits set by the ordinance should apply to an existing building, such as the one on Ledyard Lane, or if it should only apply to new buildings or projects adding exterior additions to existing structures.
“The ordinance, I think, is silent on it,” Board Chairwoman Beth Esinhart said at the meeting.
The Planning Board decided Tuesday it will consult its legal counsel for guidance before it resumes the discussion about the project next month, as this decision would set a precedent for similar projects.
This is not the first time Ledyard Lane neighbors have complained about Kish’s plans for her property. They also expressed concern when Kish first built the home that she would operate the home as a business with rooms rented out, the Valley News reported in 2015. Kish insisted at the time that the space was just for her and her family.
“I’m not going to build something up there, in that perfect spot, for rental,” Kish told the Valley News.
Kish purchased the property in the early 2000s, but did not build the home until 2015, which took four years due to opposition from neighbors, she said Wednesday by phone.
The property currently has an assessed value of $3.3 million, according to town records.
Board member Kristine McDevitt inquired about the number of bedrooms, considering that they could be occupied by families or individuals.
“If it becomes a triplex, and you ostensibly can have three families, or you can have bedrooms that ostensibly could also be rented out, how many bedrooms total would be in that building?” McDevitt asked.
Kish confirmed to McDevitt that there would be 11 bedrooms across the entire home.
Jennifer Murray, director of the town’s Planning, Zoning & Codes Department, expressed reservations over McDevitt’s line of questioning because the number of bedrooms is not a factor of consideration when it comes to site plan review criteria.
McDevitt specified that there are residences in town that have become rentals for students over the years, and was simply curious about returning some of those spaces as single-family homes.
In a public comment, Nicolas Macri, who graduated from Dartmouth in 2024 but still lives in Hanover, said that projects like this one help assuage the housing crisis by using underutilized space. He also expressed discomfort over McDevitt’s inquiry, adding that it came off as discriminatory against certain types of tenants, particularly students.
“I’m quite concerned about the lines of questioning that are not based on requirements of the zoning ordinance,” said Macri. “State law is very clear that it’s illegal to discriminate against students or non-students based on educational status in zoning.”
In response, McDevitt apologized and explained that she was worried about there being too many single rooms available but not enough family units.
“It’s not discriminatory to talk about the fact that one cohort’s housing needs might be met, and another cohort’s housing needs, which also happened to be those neighbors, might also be of concern,” said McDevitt.
When the Board approves applications like Kish’s, the character of the neighborhood changes for the worse, Kazal said in a public comment.
“Since that structure was built, the number of cars and pickup trucks going back and forth is night and day, and the neighborhood’s been changed by that,” said Kazal.
According to Kish, her family members all drive pickup trucks.
“If I drove a BMW, would that be different? Because I find it offensive that you think it’s a problem that I drive a truck,” said Kish.
With the possibility of more people moving in, Kazal said he feels this application is another step in the wrong direction. He also worries more cars would pose a health concern due to air pollution, along with a safety risk on the street.
“There’s two families with little kids, and I see vehicles go faster than they should be, and these kids are out on their bikes. Parents aren’t around. It’s not meant for this type of traffic,” said Kazal.
Kish assured the Planning Board that her tenants are not allowed to have cars, and the same would likely be true for future tenants.
Zoning to add more housing provides benefits across the board, as opposed to just one population, Macri said following the meeting. Macri said he feels that there is misinformation about who projects like this one serve.
“There are people who aren’t students and who also can’t afford a million-dollar home. So we need that middle housing. That’s why that zoning amendment last year was passed. That’s why people voted for it,” said Macri.
The discussion will continue with a second hearing at the May 5 meeting in Hanover Town Hall, with final review from the Planning Board pending.
