Whether it’s workforce housing or the worksite itself, every building in New Hampshire starts with the professionals who design and build it.
Joshua Reap, President and CEO of Associated Builders and Contractors of New Hampshire-Vermont, brings you Up To Speed on the current climate for construction in the Granite State.
Is the state making it harder or easier to build new homes and commercial property? Does New Hampshire have the skilled workers it needs to do the building? What impact will AI have on the industry?
It’s all here in this episode of “Up To Speed,” sponsored by Legislative Solutions.
A few highlights:
Data show that New Hampshire has issued a lower percentage of building permits than its population, the opposite of the trend in states where housing prices are lower, like South Carolina or Florida. Why is that?
REAP: The tongue-in-cheek way to answer this, in New Hampshire, it’s ‘Live Free — But Within Certain, Severe Regulations.’ A lot of those regulations are great, but we have to have a good balance between the building environment and the natural environment. And I think the Ayotte administration recognizes that in a lot of the efficiencies that they’re looking to bring in.
It’s not that we’re against development as a state. We just want to do it right. But we need to really reform and reevaluate how we do things here. It takes time. The system is being reformed right now, but we’ve still got a lot of work left to do on that.
What is your idea of “better” regulation?
REAP: At ABC, housing is certainly a big part for us, but it’s also a matter of some of the zoning requirements we deal with, which affect some of the multifamily housing. For example, some of the requirements the state has on permitting for lot size when it comes to like a study on environmental review and environmental impact permitting. Permits are a huge thing.
You know, when you have a greenfield that’s brand new and you don’t know what’s there. I get it: You’ve got to study it. But why do the same standards apply to a parking lot in downtown Nashua that’s the same size? So, it’s about making those kinds of changes that make sense and allowing people to get things done.
What’s one of the best things that could happen for construction in the Granite State?
REAP: I think one of the best things that could happen is if, at some point, the legislature could entertain something called ‘Fair and Open Competition’ on public works projects. There’s a big opportunity right now where the state misses out on a lot of great contractors who would work for them, if not for the fear of government mandates being handed down.
AI is impacting jobs across the economy. Are jobs in the trades AI-proof?’
REAP: Our industry is the center of awesome innovation. What’s going to happen with AI is you’re going to see a lot of cool stuff happen in terms of making the job easier. There is still so much need for skilled craftspeople that even though AI is a disruptor in all markets, including construction, there’s still such a demand for high-wage jobs in construction. You’re still going to find work.
But it’s eventually going to make its way to the job site. I’ve got a couple of contractors who do drywall, and they talk about how they just saw a machine run by AI that will do the mud and tape. He says it looked pretty impressive.
He said he might be investing in it as a company here in New Hampshire, so stay tuned. But, he said, ‘I still need guys to run it. I still need people doing the mudding and drying around the machine.’ So, it’s just going to be a supplement. It’s not going to replace people.
