Manchester Infill & Small Developments

Smuttynose said:
I would say Salem is about 20 minutes or so from Manchester. It's probably more a suburb of Boston than Manchester seeing as how it's perched right on the stateline. Even though it's closer to Manchester, there are a ton of Boston commuters living there.
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ah yes and things like this would explain why manchester has a smaller metro area than portland by a few hundred thousand people, even though there are more people living around manchester thsan there are living around here....many of them are sucked into the boston metro i bet.
 
hey guys i am starting to get sick of looking at my own city, where are all of the manchester pictures?!?! seriosuly, if you guys have the time and live nearby the city or in it i would love to see some pix from the perspective of New Hampshirians...
 
Patrick said:
hey guys i am starting to get sick of looking at my own city, where are all of the manchester pictures?!?! seriosuly, if you guys have the time and live nearby the city or in it i would love to see some pix from the perspective of New Hampshirians...
Click to expand...

I will take some as soon as i can figure out how to fix my camera...

might be a while
 
Will condominiums come to Millyard?

By GARRY RAYNO
Union Leader Staff

Manchester ? Is it time for residential condominiums in the city's historic Millyard?

Speculation is rampant that the recently purchased Tower Mill Center building at 300 Bedford St. could be converted to condominiums by its new owner College Street Management LLC.

The New Haven-based company is known for converting office or commercial buildings to residential uses, but declined comment yesterday on its plans.

Although no condominiums or residential units have been developed in the many Millyard buildings, they are not forbidden under the city zoning ordinance for the Amoskeag Millyard Mixed Use District.

Permit needed
Residential is not a permitted use in the Millyard, but it is allowed if a developer obtains a conditional use permit from the city planning board.

Because the Amoskeag Millyard district is also a historic district, any major change to a building is likely to need approval of the Millyard Design Review Committee and the Manchester Heritage Committee.

Several people associated with development in the Millyard say no condominiums were built because it costs a lot more money to create condominiums than office space in the old mill buildings.

Condominiums have always been one of the potential uses of Millyard buildings, said Don Clark, director of property management and development for Millyard businessman and property owner Dean Kamen.

About the money
"But it's got to make economic sense," Clark said. It would depend on how much it costs to purchase a building and renovate it, compared to what the condos would sell for, Clark said.

"I don't think it's a bad idea if you could make money at it and it would be a good use of some of these buildings," he said. But he said at what point do you saturate the market with condos.

Arthur Sullivan, of Brady Sullivan Properties, said until recently the cost would have prohibited converting the buildings to residential condos rather than office space on a cost-per-square-foot basis.

But Sullivan believes there is an opportunity now for condominiums in the Millyard. "Residential with mixed used would make a lot of sense," he said, and could help ease some of the parking crunch.

The Millyard was not as active in 1995 when his company bought the Waumbec building on the south end of North Commercial Street and began renovating it, he said.

Timing matters
"The time is ripe now where it wasn't four or five years ago. There's a lot more activity now," Sullivan said.

Former Manchester Economic Development Director Jay Taylor said the rents and sale prices in the Manchester market have never been sufficient to warrant the kind of investment someone would have to make in a mill building to convert it to condominiums.

But he said with the development of Manchester Place and the new condominiums by the baseball park and along the Merrimack River, the numbers may be a little closer to working.
Phased in

Taylor said condominiums in a mill building would probably need to be built in phases so the market isn't saturated.

Pat Long, Ward 3 alderman whose district includes the Millyard, said he was in favor of condominiums in the Millyard.

"The idea is to get more residents in the downtown area so why not," he said.

The big problem in the Millyard is parking, Long said, so a developer would have to do something to take care of parking.
 
in between manchesters two tall buildings I remember seeing either an open space or a very low rise building, like two floors or something. Is there any possibility that this land will be developed?
 
^I don't think there are any completely open lots, but there are one and two story buildings that should be developed. Unfortunately, there are too many of those around downtown Manch. There's a one story building on Elm just north of the Verizon, which I find particularly annoying, seeing as how it's such a high traffic area.
 
I cant make out anything much between these two buildings...what is there and why is it not developed? is it a park or open space or something? and why isnt there more high rise on the opposite side of elm street? i always found that strange.
NH_Plaza_Exterior_Full_Shot.jpg
 
Right next to the Hampshire Plaza tower is an open courtyard kind of area that leads to the Hampshire Plaza Mall - a very poorly designed one story indoor mall with a parking garage below. That particular building is really crying out for redevelopment seeing as how it has never really worked and is a pretty depressing sight.
 
Smuttynose said:
Right next to the Hampshire Plaza tower is an open courtyard kind of area that leads to the Hampshire Plaza Mall - a very poorly designed one story indoor mall with a parking garage below. That particular building is really crying out for redevelopment seeing as how it has never really worked and is a pretty depressing sight.
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yeah. i was really stumped as to why there were these two high rise buildings with a (very) low rise in between them. I would have expected to see a ten story or something like that..but a one story mall? any chance that will be torn down and replaced? my real concern, however, is the other side of the street. if i recall correctly there is at least one high rise over there (13-stories) but it doesnt fit in well because it looks like it is only 5 stories in comparison to its giant neighbors across the street. a nice high rise would go well on that side i think.
 
^I think you're probably refering to this building on the left - The Citizens Bank building - one of the nicer buildings downtown in my opinion. It is 10 stories.

12-elm-street.jpg


That side of Elm Street is a little more "together" in my opinion, because the buildings are more consistent in height. Very few 1 or 2 stories, though I would certainly welcome a highrise there too. I'd also like to see the parking lot behind City Hall Plaza developed as well to kind of help bridge the gap you see here between the Elm St. corridor and the millyard.

09-900-293-river.jpg


Not my photos! Photos are from Jamesedcookphotography.com
 
The Riverwalk Place developers had a 'sneak peak' at the tower floorplans back in April, which is a good sign. There will be 132 units ranging in size from 800 square feet to 2200 sf. If you're patient enough to sit through this short flash intro on the project, there's a rendering of the towers at the end.

http://www.riverwalkmanchester.com/intro.htm
 
wow! those are excellent photos thanks for sharing them. Im assuming they were taken from the top floor of hampshire plaza? observation deck by any chance?

The thing i find weird about manch is that it has two really tall towers and then, like you said, a parking lot behind one of them, an open space in between them, and then an opposite side of elm street that looks like a city should: compact. I just dont get it, but i think when the city becomes more developed things will fall more into place....and with manch's reputation growing, i dont think you guys will have to worry about future development. I never really realized how close the "millyard" was to elm street....thought it was a diff section of town.

and lastly, it is extremely odd that manchester has a 6-story development that looks like those towers, because portland has one on the horizon that looks almost identical, same height too i think, and it is also called riverwalk, although the official name has changed to the longfellow. it was called "{riverwalk for the longest time).

portlands riverwalk:
z3ho.jpg


source:
http://www.thelongfellow.com/pdf/renderings.pdf

but i think manchesters looks like it will be a taller 6-stories than portlands. both nice projects that i like a lot.
 
The whole project is called Riverwalk. The condos closest to the water are called The Longfellow.

Patrick, you gotta take a pic of the new Merrill Auditorium signage(marquis?) at night. Saw it for the first time tonight and it looked very "city" like. Too bad you only see it going down that side street or real quick driving down Congress.
 
Manchester pedestrian bridge project has funds

By RILEY YATES
Union Leader Staff

Manchester ? Don?t tell Helen Closson her longtime pet project is a bridge to nowhere.

Next week, the Hands Across the Merrimack Bridge reaches its fifth anniversary of planning. And money is there to go ahead with construction.

Aldermen approved $250,000 for the bridge in the community improvement budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The funds would allow the project to go out to bid ? though in an abridged form due to rising construction costs.

?It?s been a long, difficult process, but it?s worth it,? said Closson, who has headed fundraising efforts.

That is not the view of two aldermen who have consistently fought the project. Bill Shea of Ward 7 and Ted Gatsas of Ward 2 labeled it a ?bridge to nowhere? during budget fights this month, questioning its cost and whether people will use it in seasons other than summer.

?I?ll call it pork because that?s what they call it in Washington,? Gatsas said during debates at City Hall.

The project will rehab the abandoned railroad trestle that spans Interstate 293, constructing a pedestrian and bike path that will connect an area near the ballpark with the West Side by Second Street.

Already, the city has secured $1.9 million in federal, state and local funds, on top of the $250,000 that was approved. Private fundrasing has reached about $300,000, Closson said.

Rising costs have led to construction officials scrapping a plan to build an archway for the bridge, and a needed $500,000 paint job will be delayed in order to allow the project to go forward.

Deputy Public Works Director Kevin Sheppard said a meeting is planned this week to discuss a timeline for the project. Final designs are being worked on, and officials hope to have the project out to bid in time for this construction season, he said.

Mayor Frank Guinta said the bridge is one of the first things drivers see when coming into the city.

?There?s always been this historical debate in the city about the divide between the east and the west,? Guinta said. ?This is a bridge that provides this connectivity.?
 
What are the respective populations of east and west manchester, does anyone know? Is it evenly split? Is the city cohesive or are there local centers on each side?

also, i was on myspace.com this morning and i got a bulletin from one of my "buddies" that read:

NH GET READY FOR THE BADDEST PARTY SOUTH OF BOSTON!!!


STARTN' JULY 7TH COME JOIN US AS WE INVADE N.H @ CLUB ENVY FOR "FIRE FRIDAYZ!!"FT THE 45 CREW MEMEBERZ DJ SAM SMOOVE PLAYN REGGATONE WITH A TOUCH OF HIPHOP AND R&B and RENEGADE SOUNDSTATION BLAZN' THE DANCEHALL, ROOTS, SOCA, CALYPSO n everything reggae. ALSO HOSTED BY JAMN 94.5's CRAZY KULO!!

"FIRE FRIDAYZ!!!"CLUB ENVY (ENVYNIGHTLIFE.COM)
"SOMEBODY SAY FIIIIIIIIIIIIIRE!!!!"

my question is since when was NH south of boston?
 
Patrick said:
What are the respective populations of east and west manchester, does anyone know? Is it evenly split? Is the city cohesive or are there local centers on each side?

also, i was on myspace.com this morning and i got a bulletin from one of my "buddies" that read:

NH GET READY FOR THE BADDEST PARTY SOUTH OF BOSTON!!!


STARTN' JULY 7TH COME JOIN US AS WE INVADE N.H @ CLUB ENVY FOR "FIRE FRIDAYZ!!"FT THE 45 CREW MEMEBERZ DJ SAM SMOOVE PLAYN REGGATONE WITH A TOUCH OF HIPHOP AND R&B and RENEGADE SOUNDSTATION BLAZN' THE DANCEHALL, ROOTS, SOCA, CALYPSO n everything reggae. ALSO HOSTED BY JAMN 94.5's CRAZY KULO!!

"FIRE FRIDAYZ!!!"CLUB ENVY (ENVYNIGHTLIFE.COM)
"SOMEBODY SAY FIIIIIIIIIIIIIRE!!!!"

my question is since when was NH south of boston?
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Since umm....since umm....thats a hard one. I'll have to do some research.

East Manchester is bigger than West Manchester in population and land area. Unlike Portland and So. Portland, E and W Manch are the same city.
 
Smuttynose said:
Manchester pedestrian bridge project has funds

By RILEY YATES
Union Leader Staff

Manchester ? Don?t tell Helen Closson her longtime pet project is a bridge to nowhere.

Next week, the Hands Across the Merrimack Bridge reaches its fifth anniversary of planning. And money is there to go ahead with construction.

Aldermen approved $250,000 for the bridge in the community improvement budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The funds would allow the project to go out to bid ? though in an abridged form due to rising construction costs.

?It?s been a long, difficult process, but it?s worth it,? said Closson, who has headed fundraising efforts.

That is not the view of two aldermen who have consistently fought the project. Bill Shea of Ward 7 and Ted Gatsas of Ward 2 labeled it a ?bridge to nowhere? during budget fights this month, questioning its cost and whether people will use it in seasons other than summer.

?I?ll call it pork because that?s what they call it in Washington,? Gatsas said during debates at City Hall.

The project will rehab the abandoned railroad trestle that spans Interstate 293, constructing a pedestrian and bike path that will connect an area near the ballpark with the West Side by Second Street.

Already, the city has secured $1.9 million in federal, state and local funds, on top of the $250,000 that was approved. Private fundrasing has reached about $300,000, Closson said.

Rising costs have led to construction officials scrapping a plan to build an archway for the bridge, and a needed $500,000 paint job will be delayed in order to allow the project to go forward.

Deputy Public Works Director Kevin Sheppard said a meeting is planned this week to discuss a timeline for the project. Final designs are being worked on, and officials hope to have the project out to bid in time for this construction season, he said.

Mayor Frank Guinta said the bridge is one of the first things drivers see when coming into the city.

?There?s always been this historical debate in the city about the divide between the east and the west,? Guinta said. ?This is a bridge that provides this connectivity.?
Click to expand...
I must say this is great news. I've been wanting this thing to get built for a while.
 
M. Brown said:
East Manchester is bigger than West Manchester in population and land area. Unlike Portland and So. Portland, E and W Manch are the same city.
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but how do they "feel." do they feel like the same city, or is the river a boundary of sorts?
 
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