In partnership with the City of Dover and The Children's Museum of New Hampshire, The Nature Conservancy has installed four oyster cages, filled with baby oysters, in the Cochecho River. This installation is part of an effort to help restore a declining oyster population.

Have you ever wondered how an oyster grows? What makes these simple creatures so important to the Great Bay ecosystem? Come learn about this and more at the Dover Community Oyster Garden!

This is an interactive oyster garden and you can help The Nature Conservancy monitor their growth. It’s as simple as pulling up a cage using the rope, from there you’ll be able to count and measure the baby oysters you see on the shells and then lower the cage back into the river.

The Nature Conservancy will be hosting public workshops where you can explore the importance and biology of oysters and learn how to collect data on how fast they're growing.

These interactive activities are perfect for all ages, including exploring inside the oyster cages and looking at what types of animals and plants occur in an oyster habitat.

You can find the schedule for Oyster Workshops at Dover's Community Oyster Garden by clicking here.

To see where the oyster cages are located, click here.

One of the members of our Planning Department recently tracked their bike ride on the Community Trail. Check out the graphics below to see elevation and levels of speed that a bicyclist can expect to experience on the Trail.

Do you have a story from the Trail or a favorite section to explore? Please email E.Bassegio@dover.nh.gov to see it featured in an upcoming newsletter!

As always, to keep up with the latest updates, click here to follow the Dover Community Trail on Facebook!

In addition to each week's email edition of Dover Download, the City of Dover offers a weekly podcast. The podcast is hosted by Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker, who chats each week about the city's programs, services, public bodies, and projects. Each episode also takes a brief detour to the past with a look back at the week in Dover's history.

This week's episode features a conversation with Dr. Jackson Kaspari, the City of Dover's Resiliency Coordinator. Kaspari discusses how the City of Dover is supporting a commitment to become a more resilient community, and the Resilient Dover initiative.

The podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and at https://anchor.fm/cityofdovernh.

Planning Word/Phrase of the Week: Abutter

An abutter is a person (or entity) whose property is adjacent to the property of another. Abutter is a legally defined term in the State of New Hampshire.

You may receive a notice from the Dover Planning Department when you are an abutter to a proposed item. This gives you an opportunity, as an abutter, to provide input on the proposed item. Input can be provided to the public body that the proposed item is subject to approval by such as the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment.

Have you received an abutter notice that you have questions or comments on? You can email Dover-Planning@dover.nh.gov to have it become part of the public record.

If you have a word of the week or topics that you want to hear about, please email E.Bassegio@dover.nh.gov.

Have a great weekend,

Director of Planning and Community Development

Erin Bassegio