Present: John Badger, Chairman Newmarket Planning Board, Peter Roy, Vice Chairman Newmarket Planning Board, Arlon Chaffee, Newmarket Community Development Corporation, Eric Botterman, Town Council, Mike Provost, Newmarket Community Development Corporation, Gerry O’Connell, Newmarket Business Association, Ed Wojnowski, Town Administrator, Diane Hardy, Town Planner
Introductions: John Badger opened the meeting by welcoming everyone and reported that the idea for this committee was germinated at a meeting that was held in September at the request of Arlon Chaffee, of the Newmarket Community Development Corporation. Arlon Chaffee spoke about the future role of the Newmarket Community Development Corporation. He explained that NCDC still owns key parcels in the downtown that they would like to focus on for redevelopment. He spoke of the “Newmarket Tomorrow” project which include a design charette which helped to create a collective vision for the downtown and laid the groundwork for the some of the work that followed, including the mill redevelopment, the Riverwalk and the Main Street reconstruction.
Needs: John Badger spoke of the need to facilitate quality commercial, industrial, retail and office development in Newmarket. It was noted that Chapter 6 of the Town’s Master Plan, titled “Economic Development” hasn’t been updated since 2001.
Both the Planning Board and the Town Council discussed this at their respective meetings. It was agreed the stakeholders in economic development should work together to create opportunities for economic development. The Economic Development Committee was formed, as a working subcommittee of the Planning Board to represent the various interests in economic development, including the Planning Board, Town Council, Newmarket Community Development Corporation, Newmarket Business Association, and real estate, business and Industry.
The Committee expressed its desire that the Master Plan chapter provide some action- oriented recommendations so that it doesn’t become a static document, i.e. the proverbial master plan that sits on a shelve and collects dust. John Badger referred to the implementation section of the Water Resource Plan that was just updated by the Planning Board, which includes action items, a timeframe for completion and assigns responsibility to an entity or department for completion of the action item. Diane Hardy passed out a draft outline of the Economic Development Plan.
Peter Roy said we need to work with the strengths that Newmarket has with respect to economic development and recognize that there are some disadvantages. For instance, Route 108 is not a major thoroughfare and, therefore, it is difficult to compete with other communities, such as Epping, Exeter, Dover and Portsmouth which are located on a major interstate highway. Gerry O’Connell agreed stating that we should focus on our assets, as we are somewhat restricted as to what we can realistically do. Mike Provost talked about Newmarket’s local setting, charm, ambience and historic character as being assets to be capitalized upon. Arlon Chaffee talked about the prospects for growth in businesses and population. With the efforts to make downtown more attractive and address parking, Newmarket is becoming a “destination”, which sets us apart from others. Ed Wojnowski talked about the close proximity of UNH, four miles away, as an asset as well as the town’s major investment of funds in the downtown. He noted that six new businesses have located downtown since the Main Street project was completed. Diane Hardy suggested as part of the work of this committee we should take a look at the zoning on Route 108 and Route 152 and in the Black Bear TIF district area and decide what types of uses should appropriately be encouraged in these areas and recommend incentives in the zoning ordinance to facilitate that development. Eric Botterman mentioned that in surrounding communities, medical support facilities, affiliated with the local hospitals, are being built. There seems to be a strong market for that type of use and he wondered if that might be an untapped resource that should be pursued. It was noted that Pease is almost at “build-out’ and there may be more opportunities for future growth and development in outlying communities, as that space becomes filled. Diane Hardy suggested that these ideas be jotted down on a flip chart for the committee to refer to later and started to list the topics.
Newmarket’s Assets
North/south access on Route 108 which is state highway
Character of the town
History, cultural and architectural resources and historic buildings
Lamprey River
Scenic qualities of Great Bay
Cultural arts interest
College town atmosphere with the University nearby,
Access to University academic and technical resources
Availability of water and sewer infrastructure
Newmarket Community Development Corporation
Quality of life
Public transportation
Walkability of the Town, sidewalks in the urban neighborhoods, ability to walk to downtown
A core of buildings along the Main Street that are still intact
High density neighborhoods
Availability and diversity of housing stock
Quality recreation and community facilities
The farmer’s market
Quintessential, small town feeling
Large amount and quality of open space/trails
An active business community/Newmarket Business Association (NBA)
A caring and engaged citizenry
Culturally and economically diverse community
the Heritage Festival
Progressive town programs and policies, such as the TIF, and downtown program
Access to economic development resources and tools, such as the Rockingham Regional Development Corporation (RDC), and the New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development (DRED)
Newmarket is located in New Hampshire which lacks a sales and Income tax; has been rated one of the most liveable states in the union; has a low crime rate, and offers a stable labor force and high quality of life.
Liabilities
Perception that the Town’s development review process is time-consuming and arduous pointing to the need to find ways to streamline regulations and process
Locational disadvantages, town is situated somewhat off the” beaten path”
- Lack of readily available industrial sites with access and water and sewer
Not a large staff and resources available for economic development
Lack of organizational structure to conduct economic development in a comprehensive fashion
Recommendations for further consideration
Promote the expansion of existing businesses. The Town should work with existing businesses and encourage them to growth and prosper. Often, the best economic development strategy is one which works with existing businesses and seeks out opportunities for growth. It is easier to get a well-established business to expand and locate in the Town, than to attract firms from other states and locations. Consider an ambassador program, where volunteers meet with local businesses and industries to identify and resolve local needs.
The Town should become knowledgeable about various economic development financing programs and become a resource to local business and potential new businesses and developers regarding programs for grants, loans, financing programs, tax credits and incentives, guarantees, and equity participation options and become a local resource for information, referrals, and contact information.
The Town should adopt RSA 79E as an economic development tool to foster the re-use of downtown buildings.
Conduct and maintain a detailed inventory of underutilized and vacant business, industrial, retail, and commercial sites which also allows access to data to assist in the evaluation of the development capability of the land.
Conduct a community profile to assist potential businesses who are interested in locating in Newmarket. Such profile would include information, such as Newmarket’s current conditions, demographics, the setting, trends, and other factors affecting economic development potential.
The Town should become part of the “economic development” network to share information with others and coordinate efforts, and possibly to engage in regional approach to economic development. The Town should participate in groups such as the Northeastern
Economic Development Association to find out what others are doing to promote economic development in order to become more competitive, and to work collaboratively with industrial developers, and federal and state agencies.
Newmarket needs to develop a marketing strategy involving promotional and advertising techniques. This could include updating its economic development brochure, developing a traveling slide show for prospective tenants, or using a “flash drive” approach to marketing (like Rochester has) for information sharing.
The Town should develop a website for economic development. The website should include a community profile, access to inventory data, and a promotional literature that expounds upon the virtues of Newmarket, as a place to do business, prosper and grow.
The Town should identify and evaluate large tracts of lands which could be available for economic development and consider for rezoning. The Town should consider the “form-based” approach to zoning, as Dover has done, as an option.
The Town should consider sponsoring a design charette/community visioning event to get policy direction and to build support for future economic initiatives. Consider funding assistance from groups, like “Plan New Hampshire”, the UNH Cooperative Extension (visioning program), or NH Charitable Foundation.
The Town should streamline its development review process for economic development projects. There should be a “Gant”-like chart on the town’s website to simplify the process for the public and developers alike. Consider a “one stop shopping” approach and assign a point person for economic development.
The Town should be prepared for spontaneous community visits by prospective developers that may be coordinated by NH Department of Resources and Economic Development.
The Town should continue to support NCDC activities in pursuing site specific redevelopment activities within the downtown, including sites such as the former Joyce’s Kitchen, the Coffee Kiosk, and Riverdale.
The Town should continue to participate in the Rockingham County Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) process and assure Newmarket’s eligibility for Economic Development Administration (EDA) grants and other forms of funding.
The Town needs to determine an appropriate organizational structure for engaging in economic development activities, be it a Town economic development department, a separate private for-profit or not-for-profit economic development organization, or adding the function of economic development to an already existing department and decide what level of staffing would be appropriate.
The Town should continue efforts to facilitate the development of the Black Bear TIF District, conduct further analyses of costs, and determine an implementation and funding strategy for providing infrastructure and improving access to available land across the railroad tracks, perhaps in concert with the Town of Newfields. The costs of upgrading the railroad bridge verses other access options should be weighed.
The Town should define the type of commercial/industrial development it wants and develop zoning to encourage it. Consideration should be given to developing design standards and regulations which will provide the type of development that the Town determines it wants, while not discouraging growth.
The Town should position itself to take advantage of new tools and financing techniques, such as the economic stimulus funding, tax exempt bond financing, NH Revitalization Enterprise zones, and New Market Tax Credits.
The Committee will continue its work to define (and refine) its economic development goals, objectives and recommendations at the next meeting. Town Planner Diane Hardy will prepare a base map of Route 108 corridor so the Committee can identify and evaluate opportunities for businesses and commercial uses. She will also start to update economic data and trends for the Master Plan Update chapter.
Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 2, 2010, 7:00 p.m.
