Do Business With A Member of the Home Builders & Remodelers Association of New Hampshire (HBRANH)

Granite State Builder Magazine has a mission to help builders, contractors, and suppliers stay in front of the economic recovery, providing information and connections to professional service providers in support of member construction projects.

New Hampshire's larger landcare design-build firms often provide landcare services on an ala carte basis to GSB Members-some Members cannot or choose not to execute in house. Shoreland Permitting is a good example.

The Design/Build Advantage for Shorefront Properties

Designs by Jordan Associates Inc.
(603) 524-6900.

Designing a landscape for high-profile homeowners in watersheds involves much more than having a vision or concept.  In order to provide clients and professional partners with a successful project, companies providing shoreland permitting services to contractors must convey that vision from each perspective, condition and practical point of view. In the Lakes Region, NH and in many similar areas throughout all of New England, we build within watersheds where each property affects the next. Steps in the design process need thoughtful consideration on the finished project’s impact on neighbors, surrounding lands and the lakes - the economic engines of our Region.

G. Hayden McLaughlin, Owner of Belknap Landscape Company Inc. (BLC), had this to offer “Whether property is on a hillside or within a wetland wilderness, landscape designers and contractors must consider the rules and regulations along with their vision before the landscape design can be implemented. For our part, we bring knowledge and resources to guide fellow Members through this permit process.

Our design team will work with you in the planning, design, permitting and construction phases or any part of those focus areas. Each BLC Division employs a group of professionals that work together with seamless results, providing you with a finished landscape with maximum value for the property owners and corresponding customer referrals for Members.”

Stephanie Sanford, NHCLP Landscape Designer and Waterfront Permitting Specialist expanded on the permitting process. “With the new CSPA, the Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act in effect, it is important that homeowners are advised how imperative it is to protect their shoreland and that the permitting process is easy, if you travel the permitting road often. When a Contractor or his or her client calls for permitting assistance, we begin by reiterating the benefits of the Act in the protection of the most valuable part of the property – the shorelands.  A permit proposal for construction work on land near protected shorelands is drafted, the budget based upon a “Good Faith” estimate for the development of the plan and paperwork required for submission to the NH DES.  Billing is according to the hours actually spent developing the Application.” Adding “I stay in direct contact, monitoring progress and will keep the client informed on both the status and the hours.” 

In 2008, NH passed the Comprehensive Shorefront Protection Act (CSPA) to regulate lakefront development within 250 feet of protected shore lands.  Sanford noted further, “High-profile properties command our workload in the Lakes Region, most all those landscape projects falling under the CSPA and require permits and a comprehensive knowledge of the specifics of the law.

While details on all aspects of the CSPA are available on line at: http://des.nh.gov/organization/divisions/water/wetlands/cspa/index.htm obtaining a permit yourself can be a daunting task.

A Summary of the Standards with a handy graphic enables Contractors and/or their clients to visualize CSPA requirements. That document is available at this link: http://des.nh.gov/organization/divisions/water/wetlands/cspa/docume...

Regardless, Members may benefit from letting those immersed in the shoreland permit process take care of this part of the construction business.