From the Town Administrator's Desk

Next Planning Focus: The Village
By Gregory T. Federspiel
June 7, 2025

To plagiarize Danial Webster who is said to have told the Supreme Court in a famous case involving my Alma Mater: “It is, Sir, . . . a small college (insert village). And yet, there are those who love it.” No doubt many residents genuinely feel this way about Manchester’s village with its historic buildings and harbor views. Indeed, it is a charming New England village that the community enjoys and wants to see maintained. Discussions on how best to maintain the core commercial area of the village are planned for this Monday, June 9, at the High School cafeteria beginning at 6:30. Members of the community are encouraged to attend.

The Town’s Master Plan calls for maintaining a “dynamic downtown.” Survey results revealed a high favorable rating for the core village area with 67% of responders saying they patronize local shops regularly and another 32% at least occasionally. Master Plan survey respondents went on to flag the town center as an important asset AND an important challenge to address. Maintaining a vibrant village will mean different things to different people and it requires active measures to ensure vibrancy. Right now, there are empty storefronts that need new businesses, and with uncertain economic conditions brewing concerns exist about the remaining commercial enterprises.

Both the Downtown Improvement Program (DIP) committee and the Planning Board are focusing on new initiatives aimed at maintaining the village core as a vital center of the Town. DIP is pursuing a new partnership with the Cape Ann Chamber aimed at filling vacant storefronts. The Planning Board has hired a consultant expert in small town economic development to help create a more specific vision for the village center and action steps that can be taken to realize the vision.

Monday’s meeting in the cafeteria of the High School is designed to generate ideas from the public. The Planning Board wants to hear from residents about what they like about the village and what concerns they have for its future. One area of interest is to re-examine the current zoning for the village center to see what changes might be beneficial.

The General District that encompasses the village center extends approximately from the far end of Bennet Street to Sweeney Park. It may make sense to create a sub-district that is focused on thse core area containing most of today’s shops and restaurants. What might some of the new provisions be for this new sub-district? Monday’s workshop aims to solicit ideas.

Suggestions might include requiring commercial space on the first floor of buildings in this area, eliminating front and side-yard setbacks, and expanding the table of possible uses (e.g.: Bed and Breakfast accommodations).

Are there non-regulatory initiatives that could contribute to a thriving village center? Buy local campaigns can give a needed boost to our merchants. So can special events that draw people to the village center. The annual Festival by the Sea is an annual event we have. Are there others that could be established? What public improvements are needed to the streetscape to make the center more welcoming? Providing public restrooms and an information spot for visitors has been discussed but has yet to be created. More space for transient boaters is in the works – should more be done to make Manchester a destination for boaters or do residents prefer to keep the harbor and town center quieter? If the preference is for quieter, how does this mesh with the desire to keep the town center economically viable?

The Planning Board is hoping residents will take time to voice their opinions on these types of questions. Such input will be important as efforts get underway to propose new approaches ensuring the dynamic downtown that residents have said they want.

Summer Beckons!
By Gregory T. Federspiel
May 30, 2025

With much of May being cold and wet (at least it eliminated state drought postings!) it is nice to see the sun shining and warmer temperatures. It came just in time for the Town’s traditional Memorial Day observances. The gatherings at the Legion along the Inner Harbor and at Rosedale Cemetery were well attended and provided poignant reminders of those who served in the military. These observances helps us appreciate the freedoms we enjoy and our obligations to use and protect them. Community events like this provide an important opportunity for residents to gather for a common purpose and contribute to a strong sense of place and connectedness to one another. Many thanks to the American Legion for organizing the day.

Memorial Day also marks the sprint to the end of the school year. Soon another graduating class will receive their high school diplomas as other students prepare to advance to their next grade level. With the recent passage of the override in Essex the School District will be able to continue to offer their excellent programming.

Opening day for Singing Beach took place this past weekend. The beach is officially open on just weekends for a few more weeks. Daily operations begin June 16. The Parks and Recreation Department works behind the scenes every winter to line up all the needed lifeguards and parking attendants that it takes to ensure the beach remains the star attraction that it is. For over a decade Parks and Recreation Director Cheryl Marshall has managed this large undertaking every year. On busy weekends the beach can see thousands of patrons.

The harbor is waking back up as well. Boats are going in daily, re-occupying close to 700 moorings in the harbor. The marinas, two of the largest private employers in Manchester, have been very busy getting the boating season underway. The Harbormaster’s launch service returns for a second season after a successful inaugural run last year. Not only has the service been well received by mooring holders, but also by those wishing to take a tour of the harbor as well.

Since May 1 parking enforcement has started again. The work of the seasonal parking enforcement officers is being assisted by the automated “parking sticks” that were installed last year and more added for this season. The “sticks” automatically monitor the 2 hour parking limits in the village core area. With the automated system, the officers can monitor other areas of town, including White Beach and residential streets.

New this year are public restrooms in the village. The Town arranged with both Dunkin Donuts and Bravo by the Sea to have their restrooms available to the general public. Their

cooperation in this is much appreciated. The restrooms at Town Hall are also open 7 days a week. The goal of having a combined harbormaster office and public restrooms on the water either at Reed or Masconomo Park remains and will continue to be pursued.

Warmer weather also means a more active construction season. Much of the road and utility work that the DPW is doing should be completed by the end of June and pick up again in the fall. The new water and sewer line installation is wrapping up on Mill and Forest Streets and Pleasant Street will get new sidewalks and a topcoat of paving before the end of June weather permitting.

Local elections are another milestone of the spring season. There was strong interest this year as four elected positions had contested races. Thank you to all those who stepped forward to put their name on the ballot to be considered. Having high interest in elected positions is yet another sign of the strong interest in community affairs residents have.

May the nice weather continue to be with us!

Diversifying the Housing Stock
By Gregory T. Federspiel
May 23, 2025

It has been a busy few years regarding housing. The Town’s first 40B application in decades came in, an apartment complex was purchased with the intent of making all units officially affordable in the eyes of the state and zoning changes have been adopted that should allow for smaller lower-cost homes or apartments. However, the Town has yet to see any appreciable new construction that increases the diversity of housing options in town.

The proposed Shingle Hill apartment complex remains tied up in the appeal process. This 134 unit complex proposed on land off Upper School Street across from Atwater Avenue was turned down by the ZBA over various safety and environmental concerns. The Developer appealed to the state’s Housing Appeals Committee. The HAC granted approval but the Town and the Ten Citizen’s group have since appealed this ruling to the courts. The land is simply not well suited for the proposed project. We can expect the courts to take up the case sometime in the next 12 months or so. In the meantime, there are efforts underway to see if some sort of settlement might be possible.

During the earlier stages of the 40B project, an opportunity emerged to purchase the Powder House Hill apartment complex at the end of Elm Street and designate the 29 units as official affordable housing. This project emerged through a partnership with the North Shore Community Development Corporation (NSCDC) and private citizens. The process for getting the units listed as state recognized affordable housing has taken a long time.

The state requires an approved Affirmative Fair Housing Plan for units that are designated as affordable. Plans must provide for a lottery system that is open to all qualified individuals for selecting occupants of a unit. Because the current occupants did not go through a pre-approved selection process, none of the units at this time can been added to the Town’s official Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI). While this is disappointing, the good news is that going forward the NSCDC will have an approved selection process and as units turn over, they will be added to the Town’s SHI. Once 25% of the units have been added, all 29 should count. The state has a requirement that all towns have at least 10% of their housing stock officially designated as affordable. Manchester is only at 5% thus adding these 29 units will certainly help.

The new 3A overlay districts voters approved, while not expected to generate a flood of new units, should result in a modest number of new housing units in the coming years. The same is true with the recently adopted Accessory Dwelling Unit zoning amendments. We could see a modest increase in these units with the new rules in place.

The Affordable Housing Trust continues to pursue possible projects, including the option of partnering with the Manchester Housing Authority on a renovation and expansion project involving the Newport Park and The Plains complexes. There may be an opportunity to work with Gordon College on land they own along Upper Pine Street that would be a combination of land preservation and housing. Finding suitable sites for housing is a real challenge in Manchester particularly for government entities that cannot move as fast as private parties.

Diversifying the housing stock remains an important priority. Getting new projects built will require persistence and some old-fashioned luck.