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URBAN DESIGN ASSOCIATES

Parking Strategy
Upon completion of the
proposed garages, the
Downtown core will be
well served with
parking, as denoted by
five minute walking

radii. (left)

A well-defined parking
lot in the beart of
Lowell, Massachusetts
illustrates that small,
surface parking areas
can be tucked in and
around buildings and
landscaped creating a
pleasant street wall.

(right)

behind buildings, are more effective and
efficient than fewer larger lots, but the
location and availability may be difficult
to discern for visitors.

On-street parking should be intro-
duced wherever possible. If peak hour
traffic flow is an issue, parking can be
prohibited during rush hours. Cars
parked on the street provide convenient
short-term parking as well as acting as a
traffic calming barrier between cars and

pedestrians.

No new parking garages are immediately
needed. There is adequate parking to
serve today’s inventory of occupied com-
mercial/office/retail space as well as to

absorb the current vacancies (approxi-

Nashua Downtown Master Plan

mately 200,000 sq..ft. of 60
commercial/office/retail space). How-
ever, implementation of the Master Plan
will further intensify downtown uses and
necessitate the conversion of some sur-
face lots to structured lots. The Master
Plan proposes five potential sites for
parking garages. These new parking
garages, combined with the three exist-
ing garages will adequately serve down-
town upon build-out. The proposed
locations will correspond with places
where there is a current parking deficit,
or where new development will generate
future parking demand. With two
garages currently located on the west side
of Main Street, priority should be given
to a new structure on the east side of
Main Street. Any new parking facility
should be matched with a private sector
initiative. Parking should be shared to

balance the daytime and evening uses.

Spring Street Institutional Spine

The Master Plan proposes Spring Street
as an institutional spine. Currently sev-
eral public buildings are located along
Spring Street. However, they are not
connected to each other or related to

Main Street or the neighborhoods.

UREAN

DESIGN ASSOCIATES

A streetscaping program will create an
appropriate setting for the five public
buildings located on Spring Street.
Also, four additional sites along
Spring Street have been identified for
public buildings. One of the sites could

be used for the relocation of Saint

Patrick’s Gymnasium from Main Street.

Moving the gymnasium to this site

maintains the facility's adjacency to the
parish but rebuilds it on a more appro-
ptiate site and frees up the Main Street

site for a town green, or Commons.

Nashua Downtown Master Plan

Spring Street

Institutional Spine
Anchored on the north
by the Performing Arts
Center, an improved
Spring Street is an
ideal address for civic

and public buildings.

UR EAN DESIGN assocrates Nashua Downtown Master Plan

vi Main Street South

MAIN STREET SOUTH — or “Driving Main Street” — stands in 62
sharp contrast to Main Street North or “Walking Main
Street.” Main Street South has an exceedingly wide road, a
large number of auto-dependent uses, and the absence of an
intact historic fabric. Historically, Main Street South was resi-
dential, not commercial. However, over time, as traffic volumes
increased, Downtown commercial uses grew south towards
Salmon Brook. A few grand houses and apartment buildings
still exist; however, most have been demolished. Main Street
South was formerly identified by Salmon Brook and its wet-
lands. However, the wetlands have since been filled and the
stream was covered and culverted by the Globe Plaza (now
Main Street Marketplace) in the 1960's.

TW Main Street South

UR EAN DESIGN assocrates Nashua Downtown Master Plan

Main Street South can become an
important part of the overall Downtown

experience, its retail strategy, and its cir-

culation and park system. The half-mile
length of Main Street South should be

developed as a series of spatial experi-

ences varying one’s perception of the 63
long straight road, not as a single mono-

lithic avenue. The initiatives contained in

the following pages develop Main Street

South as a progression of unique places

with a mix of uses.

Main Street South
A Streetscape program
B Redevelopment sites
C Salmon Brook Park

UR EAN DESIGN assocrates Nashua Downtown Master Plan

Streetscape Program

‘The Master Plan recommends the City
undertake a comprehensive streetscape
and road improvement program for
Main Street between Hollis Street and
Allds Street. Creating a high quality
pedestrian environment does not require
major traffic flow modifications. The

Master Plan proposes preserving the cur-

rent lane configuration. The moving and 64
turning lanes that exist today, will

remain. However, the curb should be

moved east or west 8’ to create on-street

parking lanes wherever possible. The

parking would be set between bulb-outs

at the corners in order to minimize the

pedestrian crossing distance of Main

Street. Easements or acquisition of prop-

Main Street South
Existing (left)

Proposed (right)

URBAN DESIGN ASSOCIATES

erty would be required in front of most
properties to create sidewalks and a
planting zone. Buildings between Otter-
son and Hollis should be set back
approximately 15” the sidewalk to pre-
serve the residential/institutional fabric.
Buildings between Otterson and Salmon
Brook should be built to the sidewalk.
The streetscaping program will

improve the overall pedestrian and vehic-

Nashua Downtown Master Plan

ular experience of Main Street South. A 65
new streetscape program should locate

utilities underground in accessible

trenches. In addition, the streetscape

should provide generous street trees, low

level pedestrian scaled lighting, high level

street lighting, textured (possibly brick,

extended from Main Street North) side-

walks and crosswalks. The streetscape

should be designed to calm traffic by cre-

Street Sections
Existing Main Street
North, between Hollis
Street and the Nashua
River (top)

Proposed Section for
Main Street South
between Salmon Brook
and Otterson Street
(second)

Proposed Section for
Main Street South
between Hollis Street
and Otterson Street
{third}

Existing Section of
Main Street South
between Otterson and
Salmon Brook {bottom}

UR EAN DESIGN assocrates Nashua Downtown Master Plan

Existing Condi- 66
tions of Main
Street South:
Sidewalks are located
directly adjacent to
moving lanes of traffic.
The lack of street trees
and presence of
overhead utilities creates
a dangerous and
unattractive pedestrian
environment.

(top two images}

Proposed Plan and
Section for Main
Street South:

The moving lanes of
traffic remain
unchanged. Parking
bays are created, street
trees are planted. A new
sidewalk is constructed
on private property. No
building demolition is
required.

(bottom two images)

UR EAN DESIGN assocrates Nashua Downtown Master Plan

ating visual interest and subtle cues to
drivers that Main Street is an environ-
ment that balances the needs of automo-
biles and pedestrians. All street
furnishings (benches, light poles, trash
receptacles) should be coordinated
through a carefully selected palate of

materials and colors.

Circulation and Parking

The Master Plan recommends improved
commercial circulation by creating rear
lanes to access most of the properties
along Main Street and installing traffic
signals at key cross streets. The rear lanes
will provide parallel access to Main
Street. Traffic destined for establish-
ments on Main Street South will access
the properties at controlled intersections
and rear lanes as opposed to via curb cuts
directly on Main Street. In addition, a

rear lane allows local traffic travelling

from one establishment to another on

Circulation and

Parking

Regional through traffic
on Main Street (shown
in yellow) will be aided
by the reduction of local
traffic and curb cuts
from Main Street. The
network of cross streets
(shown in magenta)

and parallel lanes
(shou in green)
provide local access to

parking and service.

UREAN

DESIGN ASSOCIATES

Nashua Downtown Master Plan

Main Street South to avoid Main Street

altogether. By removing as much local
traffic and curb cut access from Main
Street as possible, Main Street can func-
tion more effectively as a regional

through route.

Salmon Brook Park

Located south of Main Street Market-
place, Salmon Brook Park is the southern
Gateway to Downtown. The park can
create a “green” gateway.

Studies and a public design charette
for Salmon Brook Park have explored the
possibility of daylighting the culverted
brook south of the Main Street Market-
place and creating a pedestrian underpass

under Main Street. Additionally, the

park would restore and stabilize remnant
historic industrial structures where a dam
and turbine once stood. Implementation

of this plan will require a partnership

with the private property owner.

Redevelopment Opportunities

Main Street South presents many oppor-
tunities for redevelopment. Most are
located between Otterson and Salmon
Brook. With the exception of a few of
the grand residences between Hollis and
Otterson, most of the buildings are
either disposable, obsolete, or of no his-
toric value. Over the next ten years, it is
likely that many of these properties will
be redeveloped. The Master Plan recom-

mends this redevelopment occur incre-

Salmon Brook Park 68
Section A:

Section across Salmon

Brook: dam and

turbine are restored as

an historic industrial
remnant and public

sculpture. (top left}

Section B

Section through Main
Street: a pedestrian
underpass under Main
Street is created
connecting Salmon
Brook Park to Main
Street Market Place.
(top right)

(section drawings from
Salmon Brook
Charette}

The reconfigured park
celebrates and preserved
this part of Nashua's
early heritage and
development (bottom)

Nashua Downtown Master Plan

mentally and be primarily driven by the

private sector. A public streetscape pro-

gram is recommended however whole-
sale public sector acquisition and
redevelopment is not necessary.

In sum, the Master Plan identifies
approximately 10 to 15 sites for private
redevelopment. Most of the sites on Man
Street South are located at the proposed
retail node between Otterson and
Salmon Brook Park. With the redevelop-
ment of the Main Street Marketplace,
this retail node will complement both the
form and types of retail on Main Street
North. Storefront buildings would define
the street and sidewalks. Overall, this
retail node can absorb between 50,000
and 75,000 additional square feet of
retail, further widening the array of
Downtown businesses.

Retail sites along Main Street South
should redevelop according to the fol-
lowing principles:

* a build-to line should be established
at the back of the sidewalk, and a
building's frontage must occupy at
least 60 percent of this frontage line

* parking must be located behind the
building; parking may be located in a
60° wide lot beside the building pro-

vided it is adequately screened from 69
the sidewalk and street.

buildings must have windows and
activities that animate the sidewalk;
at least 50 percent of a building’s
facade on Main Street must have
windows and ground floor glass
doors opening onto the sidewalk.
primary entrances must face Main
Street South

in order to minimize parking
requirements and encourage develop-
ment, parking should be shared
between adjoining properties; a park-
ing maximum of one space per 4000
square feet should be enforced
properties must be developed
between .25 FAR and .5 FAR (FAR
stands for “floor-area-ratio”, meaning
the ratio of the building's floor area
to the overall area of its site).
buildings must be a minimum of 2 to

3 stories in height