Conway Board OKs Housing RFP at John Fuller Site

CONWAY — The Conway School Board recently voted to allow the John Fuller Ad Hoc Committee to develop a request for proposals to build affordable housing on a portion of the former elementary school property. The 6-0 vote at their Aug. 10 meeting followed a discussion about whether the district should sell, lease or otherwise make available roughly 2 acres of wooded land next to the former school’s athletic fields.

The entire John Fuller parcel totals 10.8 acres.

Present at the meeting were members Sarah Burke, Megan Beckwith, Randy Davison, Brittany Hodge, Melanie Lebel and Nicole Stanley, along with School Superintendent Aimee Frechette. Board chair Joe Mosca was absent.

Burke made a motion to allow the Ad Hoc committee to solicit proposals, saying the board should have the opportunity to review specific plans before deciding whether to proceed.

“We have this parcel of land that we’re not using as a school currently that could potentially have carved out a portion of land that wouldn’t affect that school,” said Burke. “Deed restricting land in North Conway is a huge idea that could be so helpful to families that want to live here.”

The motion was seconded by Hodge.

The proposal grew out of the ad hoc committee’s work examining possible future uses for the closed school. The district’s formal plan for Fuller, developed under RSA 194:61, says the committee was created to evaluate potential uses of the facility and make recommendations following community input. The committee began its work in 2025.

Hodge said the committee was not recommending a specific amount of land but wanted to develop an RFP with strict requirements for potential developers.

Frechette said a preliminary concept developed in a charrette indicated that 16 housing units could go on roughly 2 acres. The concept includes duplexes and single-family homes intended to be affordable, with deed restrictions controlling things like resale price and short-term rentals.

Hodge said developers’ proposals could include what they would pay for the land.

Davison repeatedly raised concerns about the district’s finances and said the property should not be sold to a non-profit at below-market value because there is a bond on the building.

“We are not in the leasing business, nor are we giving land away,” Davison said, arguing that the district should consider selling the entire John Fuller parcel and using the proceeds to pay down the bond associated with the building. “I have an issue with affordable housing, but not at the expense of a school district that has paid for the land over time.”

Beckwith said the board needs to consider both the financial implications and the potential long-term benefits to the community. She said while it’s true that non-profits don’t have to pay property taxes, homeowners would pay taxes.

“If it benefits our community to have affordable housing developed on that land, then that’s something we need to consider,” Beckwith said. “The long term isn’t just saving a buck today. It’s how much can we earn from that buck. And like Sarah said, is it getting money on the tax rolls? Is it having more students available that we can educate?”

Frechette said preliminary advice from the district’s bond counsel indicated that subdividing the property for a project such as the proposed housing project would not affect the tax-exempt status of the building’s bond.

“I think this is an opportunity for the school board to do something that is mutually beneficial, adding money to the tax roll for each of these properties, and it has really no impact on the building or the surrounding field area,” said Frechette.

The board agreed to direct the ad hoc committee to develop an RFP specifically seeking proposals for deed-restricted affordable housing.

Beckwith said she hoped the RFP could be developed in September, with responses considered by the school board later in the fall.

The next meeting of the John Fuller Ad Hoc Committee is scheduled Wednesday at 5 p.m. at the Conway School District’s Professional Development Center in Conway Village.

“I want to reiterate that the conversation at the meeting was not to give the land away,” said Hodge. “It was to give very strict guardrails to what we would like to see for proposals.”