MANCHESTER, N.H. – A proposal impacting two long vacant properties on Brown Avenue needs additional review after concerns from the Manchester Planning Board during their March 5, 2026 meeting.
A site plan for the two properties, located at 2035 and 2055 Brown Avenue would merge the roughly two acres into a single development site, transform what had once been a bank and a car rental business into a new coffee shop and convenience store gas station, respectively. The former bank building would be renovated while the car rental building and adjacent woodland would be torn down, with the convenience store going where the car rental facility once was and a canopy with 12 gas pumps going where the woodland once stood.
Planning Board members expressed concerns with the coffee shop’s traffic flow which would have an entrance feed into a 10-car parking lot and a drive-thru lane that could hold a maximum of 10 cars, with both the drive-thru lane and parking lot leading into right-turn only exits back onto Brown Avenue. The coffee shop entrance would also have another lane cutting into the 5,209 square foot convenience store parking lot, which would hold a maximum of 21 parking spaces. Between the gas pump canopy and the convenience store would be another piece of pavement connecting to Brown Avenue that holds an entrance lane and right-turn and left-turn exit lanes.
“Anyone wanting to go south would have to buy coffee from the convenience store rather than the coffee shop,” said Planning Board Vice Chair Bob Gagne.
Planning Board Chair Stephen Meno suggested a pedestrian walkway between the coffee shop and the convenience store in case someone at the coffee shop wanted something from the convenience store, or vice versa. Duvall said that such a connection could be added. It was also indicated that new sidewalks on Brown Avenue would be constructed.
TF Moran Engineer Robert Duvall, speaking on behalf of applicant 4KV LLC, said that the traffic safety and traffic flow at the two new buildings would be comparable to the McDonald’s next door, where he said there has not been a crash in three years. He also said that a left-hand turn out of the coffee shop exits were not necessary given the lack of expected demand of drivers to cut across oncoming traffic back onto Brown Avenue, looking at gaps in traffic rather than vehicle count from nearby businesses.
However, Manchester Department of Public Works Highway Engineer Caleb Dobbins said he had obtained the gap analysis only four hours before the meeting, making it impossible for him to comment on the analysis during the meeting due to a lack of time to review the data. While Dobbins understood the need to rehabilitate the property, he noted that the McDonald’s next door has lanes where motorists can completely circumnavigate the building. He also noted that there have been 19 accidents over the past three years at nearby traffic signals.
The only letter to the board came from Alderman At-Large Dan O’Neil who felt that there was not enough traffic at exits to nearby businesses on Brown Avenue to mandate right-hand only exists, adding that he supported the redevelopment of the vacant properties.
The public hearing for the application will stay open until the April 2 Planning Board meeting.
