What's New

The Portsmouth NH City Council has voted to accept the recommendations of the Housing Blue Ribbon Committee and the City Trustees of Trust Funds to establish a Below Market Rate Housing Trust Fund. The Trust will support the City Council’s goal to enhance the supply of housing choices, specifically the supply of below market rate housing options and will be overseen by the Trustees of the Trust Funds.

Following the pandemic, the City of Portsmouth NH created the COVID Recovery Task Force (CRTF) to work with the City Health Department to address the needs identified by local health and human service agencies among vulnerable populations most impacted by COVID-19. One of the recommendations of the CRTF was that the Community Resource Network (CRN) directory of service agencies be converted from paper to a user-friendly, online resource searchable by service need.

City of Portsmouth NH Plans Arbor Day Ceremony on April 25, 2025

Eversource has informed the City of Portsmouth NH Department of Public Works (DPW) that they have begun the seasonal Citywide utility line clearance pruning efforts with their contractor Lewis Tree Service. The work is expected to continue through September on weekdays between 8 am and 3:30 pm. Flaggers will be in place to direct traffic when single lane closures are needed. 

The Department of Public Works Water Division begins its seasonal flushing of fire hydrants and water mains on Monday, April 14, 2025. The flushing will take place at various locations, Monday through Thursday, between 7 pm and 11 pm, and is expected to take six weeks to complete.

As required by State law, all dogs residing in the City of Portsmouth must be licensed annually. Before the license can be issued, the dog must be properly vaccinated against rabies. Licenses are valid April to April.

The City of Portsmouth NH Department of Public Works (DPW) announces that several seasonal construction projects throughout the City are scheduled to resume on April 7, 2025, with additional work to follow. 

Projects include:

The City of Portsmouth’s Mosquito Control Program begins monitoring on April 7, 2025. The City has contracted with Dragon Mosquito Control, Inc. to check swamps, salt marshes, woodland pools, ditches, catch basins and other shallow, stagnant water for mosquito larvae. 

The City Council recently voted to increase the income limits for both the elderly and disabled property tax exemptions. Income limits will increase from $54,000 to $55,534 for single taxpayers and from $70,793 to $72,804 for married couples. 

The City’s Public Art Review Committee (PARC) has issued a new guide, “Public Art in Portsmouth, NH,” that inventories the City’s public art installations. To view the guide and for more information about other PARC initiatives, visit: portsnh.co/parc.

The guide is organized by neighborhood and also highlights a selection of artworks in the City’s collection which are displayed at City Hall and the Portsmouth Public Library.