January 6, 2023
Upcoming Land Use Meet and Greet
The Land Use Meet and Greet is an annual event that is being held for the first time since January 2020. The Planning Board hosts the event prior to their regularly scheduled meeting. Highlights and updates are provided by the participating Boards, Commissions, and Committees on their work in the prior year or their focus on the year ahead.

Planning Department staff will also provide updates on current projects that will be completed in 2023. Resilience Manager Jackson Kaspari will provide a first look at the draft of the city-wide Resilience Plan. More on the Resilience Plan, and the draft in its entirety, will be shared here upon its completion.

Director of Planning and Community Development Donna Benton and Outreach Coordinator Erin Bassegio will discuss Distinctly Dover, the Master Plan Vision Chapter update project. Staff, along with Vision Chapter Steering Committee Members, seek Vision Ambassadors to help with the update project and solicit feedback on the future of Dover from residents.

The full agenda for the Land Use Meet and Greet can be viewed here.
2022 Easement Monitoring Completed
The Dover Open Lands Committee completed its easement monitoring for 2022. The Committee completed 12 reports in 2022 that were submitted to various agencies: Southeast Land Trust of NH, NH Land and Community Heritage Investment Program, NH Department of Transportation, and NH Department of Environmental Services.

Properties were monitored throughout Dover on which the city holds conservation easements. The monitoring is conducted to confirm that conservation easement provisions are upheld on the more than 860 acres of conservation land in Dover.

Pictured here, conducting the final easement monitoring of 2022, are Open Lands Committee members and Resilience Manager Jackson Kaspari.
Transportation Advisory Commission to discuss the Downtown Pedestrian and Vehicle Improvements Project on Jan. 23
 
The Transportation Advisory Commission will meet on Monday, Jan. 23, for a public presentation of the Downtown Pedestrian and Vehicle Improvements Project. The project is to bring the 2015 Downtown Pedestrian and Vehicular Access and Streetscape Study into design, and ultimately create construction plans. Last year, the City Council authorized a contract with design consultant Greenman-Pedersen, Inc., of Portsmouth for the design of the project.

The Jan. 23 meeting will be used to discuss the 2015 study, highlight existing issues and concerns, present concepts, and gather input and feedback from the public. The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. and be held in the McConnell Center’s rooms 305 and 306.
Reading This Week: Urban Waterfronts

In place of a planning definition this week, here is something we're reading. Governing Magazine featured an article on the revitalization of urban waterfronts and the lessons learned and successes of revitalization efforts in communities across the country. The article, "Waterfronts Are Great for Cities - When They’re Done Right," highlights the histories of waterfronts in various American cities and the major assets they have again become. The article also points to the careful planning needed to ensure a successful, accessible waterfront area. This includes the observation that "...a lake or river retrofitted for public use is a better candidate for long-term results."

Here in Dover, the Cochecho Waterfront Development plans include a number of private and public improvements. In 2022, the developer, CPI Management, Inc. (Cathartes), received conditional approval for a site plan to build three mixed-use buildings, two multi-family buildings and three clusters of townhouses. A colored rendering of the CPI Management, Inc. (Cathartes) site plan and the architectural renderings of the proposed buildings can be viewed here.

The city's public improvements plan was also approved in 2022 and includes the construction of a new street system to provide access to the site, along with the utilities necessary to serve the proposed buildings. Other improvements include the construction of a new 3.4-acre public riverfront park, plans to stabilize the Cochecho River shoreline, site grading to raise the elevation to account for projected sea level rise and the installation of a stormwater management system with green infrastructure.

A colored rendering of the City public improvements site plan, including the new 3.4-acre public riverfront park, can be viewed in the image below and by clicking here.
The Governing Magazine article asserts, "The revival of urban waterfronts in American cities should stand as one of the major advances in urban life in the late 20th century." The groundbreaking for Dover's own waterfront revival, the Cochecho Waterfront Development, is expected for 2023, with plans to become a civic asset to the City of Dover.

Past information and current updates on the Cochecho Waterfront Development can be found here.
Vision Chapter updates will be found here in the Planning Review and posted on the dedicated project webpage.

Remember to respond to this survey to get involved with the visioning project. The survey asks, "what is your one wish for Dover's future?" Your response could be a specific feature, event, or overall quality; anything that you feel would contribute to a future that is Distinctly Dover.

Upcoming Visioning Events:

Tuesday, Jan. 17, at 5 p.m.
  • Online orientation meeting on how to volunteer as a Vision Ambassador to reach more community voices.
To apply, please email e.bassegio@dover.nh.gov.

Thursday, Feb. 9, 6-7:30 p.m.
  • Virtual Visioning Event to learn more about the Vision Chapter update and to share your input to create Dover’s Vision 2035. 
  • Registration is required.

If you have questions about the Vision Chapter or how to get involved with the update, please email e.bassegio@dover.nh.gov.
Dover Download podcast:
Your guide to what's
happening this week

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.

In this episode of Dover Download, the first of season two, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Erin Bassegio, the Planning Department's Outreach Coordinator, and Planning Director Donna Benton about the department's outreach efforts.

In This Week in Dover History, we look back to one of the city's most devastating fires, which destroyed an entire city block and destroyed one of the city's biggest businesses.

The podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and at https://anchor.fm/cityofdovernh.
Upcoming Meetings
Conservation Commission, 1/9/2023

The Conservation Commission will meet on Monday, Jan. 9, at 5:30 p.m. in City Hall's Council Conference Room. On the agenda:

  • Discussion of the Land Use Meet and Greet on January 10.

  • Information from Outreach Coordinator Erin Bassegio on the Vision Chapter update project.

  • Review of Correspondence Received From NH Department of Environmental Services.

  • Update from Forest Management Subcommittee. 

Find the complete agenda, where minutes and an audio recording will be posted when available, here:
Planning Board, 1/10/2023

The Planning Board will meet Tuesday, January 10, at 7 p.m. in City Hall's Council Chambers. On the agenda:

  • Discussion of Land Use Amendments/Goal Setting.

  • Public hearing and possible adoption of amendments to Chapter 153-4, entitled “Site Plan” of the code of the City of Dover. Amendments include clarifying site review applicability, Technical Review Committee process of reviewing minor site plans, and removing the 90-day extension per state statute. The full text of the amendments is available in the Planning Department and at www.dover.nh.gov located under Planning Board meeting materials.

The meeting will be televised on Channel 22 and online at dovernh.viebit.com. Find the complete agenda, where minutes and an audio recording will be posted when available, here:
Technical Review Committee, 1/12/2023
The Planning Board's Technical Review Committee (TRC) will meet on Thursday, Jan. 12, at 10:30 a.m. On the agenda:

  • Site Review for Stonearch Development Corp., (Owners: 59 Tolend Road, LLC and Eugene A & Donna L Sgrignuoli), Assessor’s Map E, Lots 65-1 & 65-A, zoned R-20, located between 53 & 65 Tolend Rd. & 22 Sun Hawk Ln. Proposal is to construct 104 townhouse units, 44 units obtained via Transfer of Development Rights (TDR). Related applications for an Open Space Subdivision, Conditional Use Permit, Lot Line Adjustment, and TDR will also appear before the Planning Board. (P22-78/SITE-2022-0021 & P22- 10/SUBM-2022-0007) [This item was previously heard on March 3, 2022]

Note: (PXX-XX) denotes Planning Board application number.

Find the complete agenda, where minutes and an audio recording will be posted when available, here:
DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
CITY OF DOVER NEW HAMPSHIRE
City Hall, 288 Central Avenue
Dover, NH 03820
(603) 516-6008
Monday - Thursday
8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Friday
8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.