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Imagine [ERIE

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Hollis

Distribution of Land Uses by Land Area

Development
Patterns

A broad land use plan of

Nashua shows patterns of
development representative of
many communities in the United
States including large residential
neighborhoods, with concentrated
strips of development consisting
of commercial, heavy commercial
and industrial development. The
land use plan is an important tool
and lever that the City can use to
guide future policy decisions.

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Merrimack

https://imagine.nashuanh.gov

Litchfield

Heavy Commercial

Open Space/ 2%
Conservation

Commercial

Industrial

52%

Municipal/
Institutional

Hudson

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Hollis

Merrimack

E Litchfield

Zoning Map

Zoning

Along with land use, zoning rules
and regulations play a major role
in informing on-the-ground policy
decisions. While this master plan
does not involve a full zoning
rewrite, recommendations from
this plan will directly affect future
zoning code and policy in the city.
Nashua is currently divided into
fifteen base zoning districts, eight
overlay zoning districts, and two
special zoning districts.

ZONING

R-40 Rural Residence

R-30 A Suburban Residence

R-18 B Suburban Residence

R-9 C Suburban Residence

R-A A Urban Residence

R-B B Urban Residence

R-C C Urban Residence

D1 Downtown 1

D3 Downtown 3

LB Local Business

GB General Business

GB/MU General Business/Mixed-Use
HB Highway Business

GI General Industrial

GI/MU General Industrial/Mixed-Use
PI Park Industrial

PI Park Industrial/Mixed-Use

Al Airport Industrial

Comprehensive Master Plan

Land Use and Development

Hudson /

ZONING OVERLAY

VIS /,

Planned Residential
Development

Flexible Use Overlay
District

Ground Water
Monitoring District

Historic District

Transit Oriented
Development

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Tryst Nashua

Community Engagement
Extensive community outreach
and surveying through Social
eaiaT oxen mem ey-Umad (ol [eynKola
digital mapping platform,
gave members of the Nashua
community the opportunity

to share their thoughts and
Cole) [aTceasMelaM-Nket-tm A MALoOlIAVG
that need improvement,
redevelopment, or protection.
Many of the community’s
concerns and comments have
directly informed the scenario
planning and preferred visions
for the priority areas, while
more specific comments for
other areas in the city have
been incorporated in topic
area recommendations.

Development Pipeline

i" daevameYanaiOlMiarmeneelns
“what might be” scenarios,
it’s important to understand
what projects are in the
development review pipeline,
including those that are
anticipated, that have been
approved, or have recently
been completed. The City
created an online “Story
Map” to share key ongoing
projects within the Imagine
Nashua focus area corridors
of Amherst Street, East Hollis
Street, and Daniel Webster
Highway. You can learn more
about the story map on the
Imagine Nashua Website.

https://imagine.nashuanh.gov

The planning team worked collaboratively with the Master Plan
Steering Committee to identify key areas for targeting redevelopment
in the city, and generated scenario studies exploring the best and viable
land-use and urban design outcomes.

Areas for Targeted
Redevelopment

The planning team worked
collaboratively with the Master
Plan Steering Committee to
identify key areas for targeting
redevelopment in the city, and
generated scenario studies
exploring the best and viable land-
use and urban design outcomes.
Some of the study areas including
the Amherst Street Corridor, the
Daniel Webster Hwy, the Daniel
Webster College site, the Beazer
remediation site and the East
Hollis Street area have been on
the City’s horizon for priority
planning before the advent of the
master planning process, while
the additional three sites including
Main St, Northeastern Boulevard,

and Broad Street are additional
prime areas identified for
redevelopment planning through
discussions with the City and the
Master Plan Steering Committee.

The scenario studies and
recommendations for the priority
redevelopment areas seek to
accommodate future growth and
redevelopment in a sustainable
and equitable manner, and aim to
create a more livable and vibrant
city for Nashuans by providing and
planning for:

more walkable communities,
with access to a range of
mobility options and amenities
a variety of housing options
that meet the needs of different
individuals and families of all
backgrounds

During public meetings, the Nashua community expressed desire to see future development

on the DW College site successfully integrate with surrounding neighborhoods.

mixed-use corridors and Scenario Planning
neighborhoods that promote

economic growth and access to The process of scenarios is an
job opportunities important part of coming toa
services and infrastructure community-wide consensus
needed to support growth and about preferred outcomes. It
redevelopment is very easy, in the abstract,
access to parks and recreational for stakeholders to declare
spaces, with respect for natural that one value or set of values
and environmental resources should be prioritized over all
enhanced cultural resources others. It is much harder, when
and programs and opportunities looking at potential scenarios—
that enable all residents to to physical manifestations of sets
fully participate in and enjoy of prioritizations—to continue
civic life to promote pure single-

issue priorities. Moreover,
conversations related to
scenarios quickly become

Scenario planning helps to build upon and
envision future public realm improvements
across all of Nashua’s neighborhoods.

Comprehensive Master Plan

Land Use and Development

The planning team, through
previous work, has found

that asking stakeholders to
evaluate potential scenarios
is the best way to persuade
all stakeholders to weigh the
totality of future outcomes and
consider the needs of fellow
stakeholders. This means that
the end result of this plan,

Aol oar Meteo) nal anlcaare=ua(ola rs

that can enable the potential
redevelopment, should be
balanced to meet the range of
community needs as best as
possible.

ee

Redevelopment

Retrofitting Major Corridors

Amherst St Corridor

Considered the most important
large-scale site for long-term
planning for Nashua, Imagine
Nashua proposes retrofitting
this major corridor to be more
attractive and coherent, and
promote local business activity.

Priority Redevelopment Site

Daniel Webster College

Integrate the Daniel Webster
College site into its surround-
ings by developing an appropri-
ately-scaled neighborhood.

Daniel Webster

. College
Enhancing Interchange Streets

Broad St

Leverage Broad Street’s strate-
gic location by considering
upzoning, improved urban
design and enhancing ground
floor retail.

Industrial Repositioning
Northeastern

Northeastern Blvd Bivd

Reposition the Northeastern
Boulevard commercial area by

encouraging higher density
development and appropriate
placemaking.

Focus Areas

IN \
4 AS st Hollis, St

Main St

pe Pe
oe

La Ya tis
I

. Lt
ty

?

Redevelopment Site

Beazer Site

Plan appropriate development
in the Beazer remediation site

with a phased strategy for
mixed use primarily focused on
medium-density single and
potential multifamily housing.

Building Cohesive Mixed-use
Districts + TOD

East Hollis St

Build East Hollis St area as
cohesive and vibrant mixed-use
district anchored by develop-
ment of future commuter rail
station on 25 Crown St.

Improving Public Realm

Main St
Facilitate public realm expan-

sion and improvement on Main
St to maintain downtown’s
commercial activity.

Retrofitting Major Corridors
+ TOD

Daniel Webster Hwy

Retrofit this major corridor by
making it more attractive and
coherent to promote local
business activity, though with a

much more tentative outlook
and timeline than Amherst St.

Tryst Nashua

Amherst Sts

Issues and Opportunties:

Heavy traffic road,
auto-dominated design
characterized by large
surface parking lots
between buildings and the
Sin ketoie

Lack of pedestrian and
bicycle infrastructure and
poor connectivity

Access management and
traffic-related issues

No clear corridor

identity due haphazard
afew rel Co) a anea nian arena ke) a OTS

Located on an important
state highway (Rt. 101A)
that connects communities
to the west to Route 3
Opportunities to provide
needed housing in this
area with walkable
mixed-use development,
including residential and
commercial office/retail
uses

Advance city’s goal to
create mobility-oriented
roads and streets that
balance multiple uses

Top Goal 1:
Redevelopment
Opportunity

Promote redevelopment that

is mixed-use, multimodal, and
sustainable in targeted areas with
access to transit, infrastructure
and amenities.

Action: Retrofitting Major
Corridors

Make commercial corridors more
viable by encouraging a wider
range of commercial uses, mixed-
use development, and active
ground floor uses; improving
multimodal infrastructure;
incorporating landscaping and
green infrastructure; enhancing
public realm through on the
sidewalk; and developing a form-
based code and facade and
signage regulations.

Existing commercial uses on Amherst Street.

https://imagine.nashuanh.gov

Amherst Street Corridor

In collaboration with the City and
stakeholders, the Master Plan team
has identified the Amherst Street
corridor as the most important
large-scale site for long-term
planning for Nashua. Many issues
come into play here—the effects
of regional and macroeconomic
shifts in employment as we enter
deeper into the 21st century,

the challenges associated with
shifting transport and mobility
away from being dominated solely
by combustion-engine single
passenger vehicles, balancing the
opportunities of denser and more
walkable development with the
necessary infrastructural and land
use changes—and we believe that
pushing forward a progressive and
transformative reenvisioning of
this corridor will serve the entire
city well as it grapples with how
to address these issues in other
locations as well.

In collaboration with the City and stakeholders, the Master Plan team
has identified the Amherst Street corridor as the most important large-
scale site for long-term planning for Nashua.

Recommendation 1

Timeframe: Near-term

Allow increased height/greater

density to encourage land values
that will justify redevelopment of
existing income-generating uses.

9.6’ 19’
Sidewalk Convenient Diagonal
Parking or Extended Plaza

Multi-tree
pits under Active commercial
permeable fronts and mixed-use
pavement development

Comprehensive Master Plan

Land Use and Development

- Set allowable height toa
minimum number of stories
for mixed commercial and
residential development, the
minimum viable density for
many market-rate developers

* Reorient commercial buildings
to the street and allow for
mixed-use typologies

1v’
12 Bike Path Planted Filter
Carriageway 11x 3
Bidirectional Bioswale with rain Road
For local traffic protected bike —_ garden plantings and
and connected to path a few trees with an Q’ Transit with less
additional parking buffer from road interruptions

behind buildings

Amherst Street Visioning Concept: Recommendations propose retrofitting the corridor
to be more attractive, coherent, and promote local businesses.

63

Imagine EGY

Amherst Street as

pyri afar Wace) f)

Imagine Nashua seeks to
enhance Amherst St’s role

as an important connecting
elarcvarclmiamanlomein’arclaremel iol
the corridor to grow into

a successful commercial
destination for Nashuans and
visitors. Allowing a wider mix
of uses on Amherst Street can
create more diversified traffic
patterns and help preserve
and enhance the City’s
commercial tax base, while
creating a welcoming and
vibrant environment for every
Ore WAUIIon

What is Green Stormwater
Infrastructure (GSI)?

GSI is a set of tools and
practices that mimic natural
methods of storing, infiltration
and/or filtering stormwater.

Learn more about GSI tools
and strategies on page 143.

Recommendation 2

https://imagine.nashuanh.gov

Recommendation 4

Timeframe: Near-term

Adjust dimensional constraints to
enable new development to have
a less suburban, auto-oriented
character and a more walkable,
active corridor character

- Relax minimum lot size,
frontage requirements, and
setbacks.

- Right-size parking
requirements and require it to
be located in the rear

Recommendation 3

Timeframe: Near-term

Create active commercial front
and improve access management

- Explore carriageway layout
with diagonal parking on
commercial front as incentive
to businesses for increased
customer attraction, and as
a traffic calming technique,
through further feasibility or
traffic studies, coordination
with private property owners,
and a temporary pilot layout.

- Create signage and storefront
guidelines on commercial
corridors such as Amherst St.
and Daniel Webster Highway to
enhance the corridor’s identity.

Timeframe: Mid-term

Reposition the street as a
mobility-oriented corridor

- Evaluate opportunities for
developing protected bicycle
lanes and opportunities for
creating shared bicycle/
pedestrian pathways
to increase safety and
accessibility for all ages and
abilities

- Evaluate sections of the
corridor where introducing a
carriageway is appropriate in
terms of commercial activity
and means of traffic calming

* Provide highly visible
crosswalks at key intersections
with safety enhancements such
as crosswalk lighting systems
or rapid flashing beacons,
where warranted

* Provide sheltered bus stops
with clear transit information
and consider as community
placemaking opportunity.

- Add additional stops through
the development process,
at retail locations like
supermarkets. Determine
what regulatory changes need
to happen to encourage this
process through the public-
private process.

Comprehensive Master Plan

Land Use and Development

Allowing a wider mix of uses on Amherst Street can create more
diversified traffic patterns and help preserve and enhance the
City’s commercial tax base, while creating a welcoming and vibrant
environment for every day use.

Recommendation 5
* Develop a comprehensive - Inareas of high concentration

wayfinding strategy with Timeframe: Near-term of runoff, consider the
a focus on multi-modal ; incorporation of underground
connectivity. Incorporate landscaping and storage cells, preferably under
* Develop entrance corridor green stormwater infrastructure paved surfaces, to encourage
signage that both welcomes development and improvement stormwater infiltration
and guides visitors to key
destinations in Nashua
» Perform a traffic analysis study
to better accommodate safety
concerns.

* Provide planted filter for
stormwater management and
as a traffic buffer

- Integrate stormwater
infiltration and vegetal filtering

* Provide narrow long continuous
multi-tree pits under
permeable pavement.

BEFORE AFTER

9.6’ Sidewalk

19’ Convenient
Parking

12’ Carriageway

11’ Bike Path

12’ Planted Filter

-t

CH EH 11’ x 3 Road

Streets throughout the city should be evaluated and repositioned to encourage a range of mobility options. The image
above explores a carriageway layout with diagonal parking.

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