The developers of Ridgeline Community will be seeking voter approval for a financing plan that would fund the construction of an energy-efficient memory care facility. Specifically, the plan would call for the creation of a town-wide C-PACER district. C-PACER stands for Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy and Resiliency.
Selectmen are to discuss C-PACER again today.
C-PACER is a private financing program for commercial properties, including apartment buildings with five or more units. Unlike a traditional bank loan secured by a mortgage, a C-PACER loan is secured through a voluntary special assessment lien, meaning the loan stays with the property if it is sold.
Ridgeline Community is a mixed-use development located on 126 acres in North Conway, off Eagles Way and Route 302/Eastman Road near the Walmart intersection. The project includes housing ranging from 55-plus cottages to affordable units, as well as assisted living and memory care facilities.
Selectmen made no decisions but must decide whether to place an article on the warrant by Feb. 10. The warrant article would ask voters to create a town-wide district in which developers of qualifying projects could put down less up-front equity.
Selectmen discussed the proposal again at their meeting on Jan. 27 without resolution. Selectmen said they want a full board present, and Peter Donohoe was away.
“Peter is watching from Norway, and he said he’s grateful that you tabled it so he can be here to discuss it,” said Executive Assistant Krista Day.
Selectman Ryan Shepard quipped, “If I was in Norway, I would not be watching this.”
The Sun previously published a story about the C-PACER program, which caught Steve Duprey’s eye. Duprey is owner and CEO of The Duprey Companies, Duprey Hospitality and Foxfire Property Management, Inc. In 2023, the companies’ revenues exceeded $25 million.
Duprey helped draft the C-PACER legislation, which was the second bill that was signed into law by Gov. Kelly Ayotte. He is also vice chairman of the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority, which is charged with implementing the program.
“What this program really does is help lower the equity needed to do commercial or multifamily development by not-for-profit and for-profit developers by approximately a third,” said Duprey. “In turn this helps create more housing and hopefully helps on the affordability issue.”
Duprey said a better route for selectmen would be to wait for new legislation to pass that would allow selectmen to create a C-PACER district without going to town meeting.
“The challenge of having this be a warrant article is that the program is difficult to explain in a few words, especially when it has to be in legalese,” said Duprey.
“However, what voters need to understand is that there is no assessment against anybody’s property unless they decide to do a development where they want to take advantage of the loan program,” he added, “and if so, it simply means that the loan payments due under this loan cannot be extinguished by a foreclosure.”