URBAN DESIGN
Topography
(top left)
The Downtown gently
slopes to the Nashua
River from the south,
with the land dropping
more steeply to the river
on its north side. The
lowland stretching from
the Nashua River to
Salmon Brook
represents unstable soils
for development and
bas therefore historically
been an industrial area.
Commercial
(middle left)
Main Street retail
development north of
Hollis Street is a
relatively dense
concentration of small-
scale, street-oriented
buildings that form
pedestrian-scaled spaces.
South of Hollis Street,
the commercial
buildings on Main
Street are scaled to the
automobile.
Residential
(bottom left}
Many of the City’
neighborboods are
intact; however, their
edges are frayed.
Nashua’s neighborhoods
engage neither the river,
nor Main Street. .
Nashua Downtown Master Plan
Streets RQ
(top right)
The street framework of
Downtown Nashua is
comprised of several
grids, South of the
Nashua River, the grids
are organized relative
to Main Street. North
of the river, the street
grids respond to the
several diagonal
arterials that converge
at Railroad Square.
Building Footprint
and Flood Plain
(middle right)
Downtown is generally
comprised of medium ~
sized commercial
buildings, small-scale
residential buildings,
and long, linear
industrial buildings.
Several of the original
Nashua Manufacturing
Company buildings,
now conuerted to other
uses, were originally
built in the 10-year
flood plain (shown in
light blue)
Neighborhoods
(bottom right}
The neighborhoods of
Downtown Nashua are
delineated by the
arterials and corridors
that carry cross town
tr
