MANCHESTER, NH – The initial goal may be sidewalk and streetscape improvements to a two-block area of downtown, but recommendations in a report stemming from community discussion on the project see a much bigger picture.
Recommendations in the report released this month following April community listening sessions focus on sidewalk and street improvements to Manchester and Hanover streets, the area covered by the federal grant that required the study.
But the report also recommends upgrades for both safety and appeal to Victory Parking Garage, adding public space and pedestrian access that connects the streets in the study area, expanding the arts and culture district, creating a popup small business incubator program, and even a vintage neon sign installation.
The Plan NH report follows a community charette in April that included two public input sessions, a tour of the area that’s the focus of the report, and discussions with city and business officials.
“We’re appreciative of the efforts of the Plan NH team and we support the recommendations and look forward to incorporating them into the sidewalk improvement plans,” Jodie Nazaka, Manchester economic development director, said Thursday. “By improving multimodal safety, accessibility, lighting, and aesthetics, the project will encourage walkability and create spaces that invite residents and visitors to linger, shop, dine, and engage.”
A $1.875 Federal Aid Local Public Agency grant will pay for improvements to the Hanover-Manchester street portion of the Downtown Sidewalk Improvement Project area, which is bordered by Elm, Chestnut, Concord and Manchester streets. The grant will pay for 80% of sidewalk and streetscape design, right of way work and construction, with the city covering the other 20%.
The report, though, considered the entire three-block DSIP area, making recommendations that are more big-picture than how to improve pedestrian access. Plan NH is a Portsmouth-based nonprofit that looks at community design, housing and smart growth principles.
Public outreach is one of the requirements of the $1.8 million federal grant. Work must start by September 2027.
Nazaka said Thursday that the upgrades will support the growth of downtown residential developments “contributing to a 24/7 vitality that benefits local businesses and enhances community connections.”
The charette – a multi-factor community input session – centered on the street environment and connectivity, as required by the grant, but also looked at using public art and culture connections to reflect the city’s history and strengthen community ties. The final goal was to understand the relationship between infrastructure, economic opportunity and sense of place to recognize and leverage underused histories and spaces, the report says.
Nazaka said in April that the community design charrette provides a platform for meaningful public input and collaboration, despite the small area that the money is designated for.
“Unfortunately, 1.8 million is not nearly enough funding to cover the whole of downtown, so this block face is the first priority area,” she said. The downtown block that includes Hanover Street, “is an economic and historic anchor within the city,” she said. “These streets serve as critical connectors, linking residents, businesses, and visitors to essential commercial, recreational, and cultural destinations,”
In listening sessions held April 18 and 19, residents said that broken-down sidewalks and minimal lighting make downtown feel unsafe, and the transportation infrastructure feels like it’s designed more for cars than for people.
But they also had some good things to say. Public murals, Cat Alley, and street art add to downtown’s charm. The growing population, restaurants, and entertainment draw visitors and foot traffic.
Residents found that there was a lot of inconsistency in the downtown aesthetic, as well as things like sidewalk materials and the level of investment.
Concerns from city leaders included the uneven sidewalks, some with dislodged or out-of-line bricks and tree roots that are tripping hazards, a variety of concerns around lighting, many around pedestrian safety and ease of navigating, lack of handicap access, traffic issues, and more.
Plan NH representatives walked the area with city leaders to get insight into what the issues are. The report was developed from what they learned.
Manchester Street improvements
Focus on Manchester Street, which parallels Hanover Street, was a big part of the report. The section of the street between Elm and Chestnut Street “has been overlooked but could become a vibrant streetscape.”
“Pedestrians perceive travel to be unsafe due to sidewalks in disrepair, inadequate lighting, and vacant storefronts,” the report says. New ownership of buildings and businesses at different stages of rehabilitation on the block, as well as addition of hundreds of residential units on blocks to the east and south, increases the need for improvements, the report said.
The plan recommends making the streetscape more pedestrian friendly, with traffic-calming bump-outs, repairs to sidewalks, screening parking areas, replacing trees with those that are better suited for the wear and tear of being downtown, and finding ways to better use vacant or underused spaces.
The plan also recommends overall better pedestrian design for the two-block area between Manchester and Amherst streets, with alternative walkways, landscaping, and infrastructure changes. These would create cross-district pedestrian connections to support access to parking, both for Victory Garage and other parking zones of the project area.
Hanover Street, vibrant but congested
Everyone loves how vibrant Hanover Street is, but the sidewalks with their outdoor seating, trees, signs and planters, make it congested and tough for pedestrians, the report said. It noted that issue is also true for some other downtown streets.
The report suggests ways to “gain width” for both pedestrians and amenities on the street. One way to do that without losing on-street parking would be to create flex space on the north side of the street that could be parking most of the time, then used on summer weekends and evenings as outdoor dining and other human space.
Parking could also be reconfigured on side streets and lots, to help increase pedestrian access between Hanover and parallel streets.
Victory Garage ‘a blank canvas’
Input from the charette was that access to Victory Garage, which is a block from Elm, is challenged by poor lighting and “lack of comfortable space on the sidewalks.”
Calling the 850-space, five-story concrete garage “a blank canvas,” the report says, “Victory Garage is an underused resource for the city. Visitors are unaware of its use as a public parking garage. Members of the public find it uninviting and potentially dangerous due to a lack of lighting and its gray, nondescript surface.”
The report recommends both logistical improvements to connect Hanover and Manchester streets, including better pedestrian access and making the area around the garage itself more welcoming and safe.
The report also suggests improving the garage’s image artistically and with lighting, using it “as a canvas to showcase aspects of the city while simultaneously becoming more welcoming and noticed by the public as a resource for visitors to engage with locally promoted events.”
Traffic Calming
Reducing traffic speed and increasing pedestrian safety “were major concerns” for all the streets in the project area.
“Pedestrians need to see and be seen by passing vehicles” the report says.
It suggests reducing the size of the roadway with bump-outs and increasing visibility of crosswalks, or raising them to incentivize drivers to slow down. Street trees also can give the illusion of a narrowed roadway, and also improve the visual appeal of the streetscape with greenery and shade.
Another possibility is making side streets like Londonderry Lane and Vine Street one-way, to create a “circular pattern” for traffic that keeps drivers from using those streets as a fast pass-through.
More murals, a neon installation, and pop-up shops
The report also recommends that using underused spaces – both blank walls and empty lots – can enhance the area.
“Opportunities abound in Manchester to utilize blank walls, alleys, and other public spaces that can highlight the great historical, arts, and cultural assets the city is known for,” the report says.
Obvious areas for murals are Nutfield Lane, Victory Garage exterior and stairwells, Red Oak garage, and the Consolidated Communications building on Vine Street.
Specifically, it suggested that Nutfield Lane would be a great place for a vintage neon sign outdoor gallery, using the Manchester Historic Association’s collection. Th lane parallels Elm Street, and runs from Concord Street to Hanover Street.
The move would “clean up and revitalize Nutfield Lane,” which could be used as a pedestrian connecter from The Rex on Amherst Street to Hanover Street.
It would also “provide an opportunity to share and celebrate physical artifacts of Manchester’s history…The signs provide visual interest, education, and lighting to draw pedestrian traffic and increase safety after dark.”
The report recommends the city start a pop-up shop incubator program, similar to one in Portland, Maine, that provides small spaces for new businesses to launch for a period of time, before they go to a more permanent bricks and mortar location.
The Portland popups are a private development in a building made from shipping containers. Manchester’s would also be “an incubator for emerging retail businesses, repurposing and subdividing shipping containers,” but would pop up on vacant and underdeveloped lots.
Possible sites cited by the report are the corner of Merrimack and Chestnut streets, which is currently being used for construction staging; Hartnett Parking lot, where a mixed-use development is proposed; Victory Park and Veterans Memorial Park.
The report also notes that arts and culture districts are often managed by a municipal-led arts commission, guided by a cultural plan.
“The creation of a cultural plan would identify opportunities and priorities for economic and community development driven by arts and cultural businesses and activities,” the report says.
Expanded Arts and Cultural District
With the Palace Theatre on Hanover Street “an anchor” for downtown, the report recommends that the city redraw the boundaries of the Arts and Cultural District “to capitalize on this demonstrably significant impact more directly.”
The proposal would expand the district south to Veterans Memorial Park, rather than stop at Manchester Street.
The report notes that assets in the surrounding area include:
- 14 arts organizations and creative businesses
- 17 murals
- 46 restaurants
- 5 retailshops/boutiques
- 11 service businesses
- 2 parking garages
- City Hall Plaza pocket park
- Victory Park
Expansion to SNHU Arena, on the corner of Lake Avenue and Elm Street, within the proposed expanded district, “would capture additional economic impact, which may boost statistics for grant applications in future.” But the report says, too, that the new boundaries would also prioritize small business development.
“We recommend the City’s Arts Commission or other assigned group undertake a more in-depth asset count to best identify the existing opportunities and inform planning for further investment/development,” the report says.
“A defined and promoted arts district can contribute to local spending and economic growth,” the report says.
For instance, an Arts & Economic Prosperity study in Portsmouth two years ago reported that local visitors to arts events spent $37.16 per person and non-local visitors spent $67.93 per person at restaurants, hotels and for parking and transportation. That’s aside from the cost of the event tickets and what was spent at the venue.
The calculation was also only for the day of the event, and visitors spending more than one day in the area would represent an even greater economic impact.
The report noted that research shows arts and cultural districts:
- Attract new businesses
- Act as a considerable draw for tourism
- Increase desirability as a livable community
- Improved aesthetics and increased foot trafficcan lead to increased safety
- Increase property/lease values
- Create benefits that bleed over into adjacent neighborhoods
- Leverage potential for private and public investments.
Perfect time for design standards
Since the city is in the midst of rewriting its zoning code, it’s a good time implement new regulations, like design standards “that can create a sense of consistency.”
“Materials, fixtures, and treatments of city sidewalks and public areas can help construct the brand of a community and have the potential to unify Manchester’s streets through zoning regulations,” the report says. “Establishing a menu of ‘approved’ options and regulating their use can shape future developments in ways that will create safer and more unified city streets.”
One example is requiring the use of resilient materials in sidewalks to cut down on maintenance needs, such as stamped concrete rather than bricks.
“New zoning regulations can build upon what is already in the downtown,” it says. “Ongoing work and completed treatments at Victory Park provide great examples for the city to follow.”
The report says that the city’s 2021 master plan already meets the planning goal of “aligning the concerns, desires, and goals of the public with the main visioning documents of their community,” based on the input from the charette.
“Recommendations from the plan speak to some of the same key themes and focuses that the public brought to this charrette,” it says.
These include adopting a framework that accommodates all modes of traffic, calming traffic, cultivating an environment that supports walkable neighborhoods and commercial districts, rightsizing streets, and more.
“The next step is action,” the report says. “With examples and potential visions for the future design of Manchester’s streets, we hope that this charrette provides substantial momentum in Manchester’s journey to continue towards its mission statement: ‘“To be a first-class city to live, work, and visit, built upon our rich history or culture, education, environment, and commerce.’”
