Planning Board Approves 96-Unit Runway Heights Senior Housing Adjacent to Parlin Field

The Newport Planning Board granted final site plan approval for Runway Heights Senior Housing, a 96-unit development on land adjacent to the runway at Parlin Field in North Newport, following a review process described as taking nearly five years. The board’s OK came after the applicants submitted an amended site plan reducing the building’s elevation and after the board attached a security condition requiring a 4-foot by 400-foot chain-link fence along the runway border to improve security.

Avanru Development of Walpole, N.H., and co-applicant North Newport Housing are listed as the project applicants. Jack Franks, CEO of Avanru, publicly marked the milestone and criticized the permitting timeline. Though pleased with the approval, Jack Franks said “it never should have taken this long.” Franks posted on LinkedIn: “It took 5 years to get this approved, but we’re finally moving forward. This should NEVER have taken this long but was continually stonewalled by the Newport Planning and Zoning Administrator & Airport Director who opposed this much needed senior housing development. Their bad faith efforts, poor decision making and others who act like them is a major reason and contributing factor why we have a housing crisis in NH. We’ll keep fighting for those that don’t have a voice in this battle for safe, affordable housing.” His LinkedIn profile in the excerpt shows 726 followers and drew congratulatory comments and an offer of regional collaboration.

The Runway Heights file has a textured procedural history. “Two years later, on March 19, 2024, the Planning Board approved the site plan but with the condition Avanru reapply for the variances because the board said they expired after two years. Franks disagreed with that requirement. He said the variances were still valid when he submitted the site plan in early 2024 and therefore he should not have to get the variances approved a second time. Franks eventually agreed to reapply, but reserved the right to challenge the Planning Board’s decision.” Final approval was reported as occurring Wednesday night; municipal minutes and the board’s written decision will confirm the meeting date and any additional conditions.

Local impact is concrete. The 96-unit project targets seniors near town services and Parlin Field, a location that brings both convenience and aviation-adjacent regulatory questions. The Planning Board’s fence requirement addresses immediate security concerns along the runway border, while the lowered building elevation responds to siting or visual concerns raised during review. Avanru’s reserved right to challenge variance treatment indicates the legal and administrative steps that may follow before ground is broken.

Runway Heights is not the only recent housing action in Newport. The Planning Board separately approved a 1,400-square-foot addition at 102-108 Girard Ave that will add a fourth building with four two-bedroom units, one ADA-compliant for senior assisted living, after revised stormwater measures restored the fourth building to the plan. Beyond New Hampshire, airport-adjacent housing debates elsewhere offer useful comparisons: in Newport Beach, California, officials balanced noise contours, affordable-housing tradeoffs and in-lieu fees when approving large projects near John Wayne Airport.

Outstanding questions for residents include the exact date of the final vote, the status and outcome of Avanru’s variance reapplications, whether additional aviation, noise, or FAA consultations apply, and a construction timetable. For now, Runway Heights puts nearly 100 new senior units into Newport’s development pipeline and signals that airport-border land use will remain a local planning issue; the next municipal filings and board minutes will determine how quickly construction moves from approval to occupancy.