Dover 2023 City Council candidate Tony Retrosi
Name: Tony Retrosi
Education: Bachelor of arts, University of New Hampshire
Occupation: Owner; Atlantic Gymnastics Training Centers. Owner, Gym Momentum Consulting.
Political or civic experience highlights: Member of city of Dover Ethics Commission. Other elected (non-governmental) positions: Chairman US Elite Coaches Association for Women’s Gymnastics Vice-Chairman USA Gymnastics Advisory Council. Board of Directors: US Gymnastics Club Owners Association
What would be your top three priorities if you are elected?: -Affordable housing-Downtown crime/opioid crisis/mental health-Managing the budget responsibly
What is the biggest problem Dover is facing and how you would solve it?: Affordable housing ties back to many other issues. Employers, like myself, have had a difficult time finding and keeping employees. It ist too expensive for many people to relocate here, if they can even find housing at all. For many, housing costs eat up more than 50% of their monthly wages. That leaves little expendable income to spend in the local economy. We need to continue to find ways to use market forces and local incentives to rapidly grow our housing stock - of all kinds. Our firefighters, teachers, and police should be able to afford to live in the city they serve. Dover's planning department has been negotiating with large-scale developers to ensure that new developments often have an affordability requirement, or permits are structured in such a way to encourage private developers to bring projects online as quickly as possible. Housing growth without planning has its own consequences. Our natural resources are finite and new infrastructure bears its own long-term costs to the taxpayers. The current council has formed a Community Housing Needs committee to provide both recommendations and greater citizen input, which I support. I will continue to look for and encourage new thinking and ideas to address the needs that exist today, without creating unwelcome issues or burdens for the future. Creating a balanced mix of high-density apartments, small homes for those starting out or downsizing, and larger homes for growing families are all part of that thinking.
Should the city work to create below market rate housing, and where is the best site?: Yes. Below market rate housing is a specific term used to describe a strategy to grow housing stock that is attainable - in New Hampshire, ‘workforce housing’ is a similar approach, within which there are multiple strategies. Some entail requiring a certain number of rentals be dedicated to households below an income threshold (80% of median income in the area, for example), or requiring the renter be working nearby in addition to meeting certain income requirements that may vary from development to development, and by family size. Dover has successfully worked with developers to bring a number of workforce housing developments online in recent years, and continues to do so. In some cases, the entire development may be designed as workforce or housing (such as Bradly Commons), or in others just a few of the units in a larger development (the old courthouse renovation). In yet other cases, the developer may agree to limit the rental rate to a certain percentage of the local market rate. It’s worth noting that none of these solutions are ‘subsidized’ housing - which is yet another category, and sometimes what people think of when they hear workforce/affordable/etc. There are a host of different strategies, some better suited to some developments than others. Dover should be doing what works for our residents, not demanding a one-size fits all solution - and should be doing it in locations where the size and scope of the development makes sense.
Should the council address the pace and type of development in the city? If yes, how?: Yes; the city cannot outpace the infrastructure. The city regularly revises its Master Plan with active input from hundreds of citizens, with a new chapter revised regularly so that the plan as a whole sees complete revision roughly once every ten years. That master plan, and the vision it lays out, guides the planning board and the planning department in their work, and the council acts as a steward to ensure they don’t stray from those broader goals. This plan also folds into the fiscal responsibility of the council; the annual Capital Improvement Plan lays out the significant capital investments over a five-year window, and kicks off the council’s annual budget process. The capital plan must be managed to keep costs on an even keel while addressing the greatest needs within the framework of the master plan.
Does the city need to make changes to its approach to parking as development increases?: I love that downtown Dover is a very walkable area, and we should continue to encourage it to be so. The city may need to make some changes, but current regulations tie developers to finding the needed parking either by building it or leasing it so the burden lies on the developer, not the city, which I support. While there may be underutilized private lots, as development continues the parking requirements should push the market to make greater utilization of them
What is the city doing well and where is there room for improvement?: Having just celebrated our 400th anniversary, it’s remarkable to see how much we’ve grown and changed. The city is working hard to manage infrastructure improvements, and I think it shows - there’s a long-term plan, and while it is common to complain about our roads, the city has worked to "maintain before it breaks," which pays long-term dividends to the taxpayers. We do need to improve that strategy with our water and sewer infrastructure, some of which is over a century old but we’ve done well with managing our water sources over the last couple of decades, bringing new wells online while managing the safety of others. Our library program and the resources they offer are outstanding. Our recreation programs are heavily used and enjoyed. And just as I believe we are all lifelong learners, I believe our education system and support for our students is a job we can - and should - strive to always improve. To come full circle, however, all these positive traits create huge pressure on home affordability - which we desperately need to improve.
What is the city’s responsibility to its homeless population, both this winter and long term?: We have a responsibility as human beings to help those less fortunate than ourselves. Our housing shortage and affordability crisis directly contribute to this. And we need to be realistic and recognize that our statewide lack of mental health beds and resources are contributing factors. As a community, we need to do our part - but it’s just a part. We aren’t alone in this, and we cannot solve it alone. In the long term it will need to be a cooperative effort with direct support from federal, state and county agencies - which is challenging. The ongoing delays with the approval of the new county facilities only harms Dover, and helps no-one. In the short term we need to have improved communication between our local agencies and services with the goal to help the unhoused population get the help they need, and pushing the state to provide the needed resources. For example, Emergency Services (police and fire) and Community Action Partners need to have a line of communication when dealing with the unhoused population.
This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Dover 2023 City Council candidate Tony Retrosi
