MANCHESTER, NH — A proposal to redevelop two long-vacant properties on Brown Avenue into a gas station, convenience store and coffee shop remains under scrutiny by the Manchester Planning Board, as ongoing traffic and site design concerns continue to delay a final decision.
The project, located at 2035 and 2055 Brown Ave., would convert a former bank building into a coffee shop while demolishing a former car rental business to make way for a convenience store and a 12-pump gas station. The plan also calls for merging the two parcels and reconfiguring access points along the busy corridor.
The application, brought by project engineer Robert Duval TF Moran on behalf of 4KV LLC, returned to the Planning Board on April 2 after being continued from a March public hearing, where board members raised concerns about traffic flow, site layout and whether the constrained property can safely accommodate the proposed uses.
Board members previously questioned whether the proposal’s layout — including multiple curb cuts, limited parking and concerns whether the coffee shop’s drive-thru should be two-way or right-hand-turn only and its location near the heavily traveled I-293 highway — would create unsafe turning movements or traffic issues on Brown Avenue.
Moran told the board that recommendations made in March had been implemented in what was a slightly modified proposal. The updated and simplified plan now includes a sidewalk on the proposed coffee shop lawn creating a pedestrian connection between the coffee shop and convenience store, a narrower dedicated lane for the coffee shop’s drive-thru area and widened internal travel aisle near the convenience store’s gas pumps allowing two-way traffic.
The amount of vehicle connection points between the property and the street were reduced to three, with only the southernmost connection allowing exiting and entering due to turning needs for fuel trucks to enter the gas pump area.
He also stressed the importance of the project to the city as a whole as well as the fact that the process has now faced significant review, with variances approved by the Zoning Board in August 2025 and continued discussion with the city since that time on how to make the proposal work.
“It’s a distressed property. It’s been vacant for many years. It’s an important location. It’s a gateway to Manchester. It’s a gateway to the airport,” Duval said, “It’s time that this property be put back into attractive and productive use,” arguing that outstanding issues could be resolved through standard conditions of approval before construction begins.
Regarding traffic flow, Duval told the board that a study indicated that cars exiting the coffee would see similar gaps in traffic as well as comparable traffic amounts to the McDonald’s currently located just south of the site
Despite the revisions, questions remain about whether the city has fully vetted the project’s traffic impacts.
During the March hearing, city staff indicated they had limited time to review updated traffic materials before the meeting, prompting the board to continue the public hearing for further analysis. In the April hearing, Department of Public Works officials indicated that some analysis of the plan is still being finalized.
Planning Board Member Maggie Baldwin also noted that the issue is not just the traffic amount or circulation, both a combination of both issues so close to the property line.
While Planning Board Chair Steven Mino clarified that no vote would be taken at the April 2 meeting, the public hearing was kept open until the board’s meeting on April 16 as well with the expectation that it would be closed following time needed for more Department of Public Works review and a decision would be made on that night.