We next address the Residents' assertion that the trial court erred when it decided that there was no “occasion” to lay out Green View Drive as a public road. Upon petition, a town will lay out roads when there is an “occasion” to do so. Wolfeboro Neck Prop. Owners Assoc. v. Town of Wolfeboro, 146 N.H. 449, 451, 773 A.2d 633 (2001). “Occasion” for the lay out of public roads exists if the public interest requires the town's acceptance of the roads.
The plaintiff appealed to the superior court. See RSA 231:34 (1993); Wolfeboro Neck Prop. Owners Assoc. v. Town of Wolfeboro, 146 N.H. 449, 452, 773 A.2d 633 (2001). There, the plaintiff contended that the occasion requirement under RSA 231:8 did not apply to its petition, and, that even if it did, the defendant was not permitted to consider anticipated impacts associated with potential development that could result from the upgraded and reclassified highway.
In cases in which subtle distinctions were not at issue, we have used different terms to describe our consideration of the same basic question —referring variously to the "need," "necessity," "exigency," "convenience," and "interest" of the public, and balancing those public considerations in various ways against the rights of the affected landowners and the burden of the layout on the town. Compare Dudley, 5 N.H. at 560-61, with Wolfeboro Neck Prop. Owners Assoc. v. Town of Wolfeboro, 146 N.H. 449, 452, (2001). The case before us is the first in many years involving landowners' objection to a proposed layout.
Id. "A performance bond guarantees to the owner that a prime contractor will perform according to the contract referenced in the bond." Id.; see Wolfeboro Neck Prop. Owners Assoc. v. Town of Wolfeboro, 146 N.H. 449, 453 (2001). "A payment bond assures the owner that the prime contractor will pay its subcontractors and suppliers, who might otherwise file liens against the owner's property."
V.S.H. Realty. Inc. v. City of Manchester, 123 N.H. 505, 508 (1983). The court must make "an independent determination of the occasion, or appropriateness, of laying out a road as requested."Wolfeboro Neck Prop. Owners Ass'n v. Town of Wolfeboro. 146 N.H. 449, 452 (2001) (quotations and citations omitted). "Determining whether occasion exists is a two-step process."