Jonathan Edwards, Director
Planning@HanoverNH.org

Rural Study Group 2007

Other Documents
Downtown Hanover Vision
Guiding Growth in Rural Hanover
'Something for Everyone' Scenic Locales Report
Class VI Roads In Hanover

Zoning
Zoning Board of Adjustment
Zoning Ordinance


Conservation
Conservation Commission
Open Space Priorities Plan
Trails
Flora and Fauna
Protected Lands

Affordable Housing
Affordable Housing Commission
Affordable Housing Study
Gile Tract Housing

Inspections
Building Code
Building Code Advisory Committee






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2.5 School Street

2.5 School Street

School Street has similar characteristics to the vision proposed for South Street including its role as a secondary access route (though heavily used) to the Downtown and public parking facilities. Both streets are primarily residential in character but have some smaller commercial uses integrated within house form buildings. They also act as transitional and buffering zones between higher density commercial uses and existing stable neighborhoods.

Two options should be considered for the east side of School Street, which is presently in the GR-2 district (see figures 35+36).

Option 1 would re-designate the east side of the street between Allen and Maple within the proposed D-2 zone which will allow for residential intensification up to an FAR of 1.5 while allowing for small commercial uses at grade within a height limit of 35 feet. Buildings on the east side of the street have the potential to be better integrated into the parking areas that extend mid-block between Allen Street and Maple Street. The development of retail oriented to the interior of the block should be encouraged which will in turn allow the facades facing School street to remain residential in character.

Option 2 would simply leave the existing GR-2 zoning in place to protect the residential character of the street.

In both options the Marshall parking lot located on the east side of School Street south of Maple should be considered for re-designation to a GR-3 district to permit a medium density town-house type development (figures 32+33). This will only be feasible if the existing supply of surface parking can be replaced through the development of additional structured parking facilities in the area.


Figure 32 View showing the potential redevelopment of the Marshall parking lot as medium density housing.


Figure 33 Diagram illustrating infill redevelopment on South Main Street and Maple Street.

The existing two-level parking structure that occupies street frontages on both School and West South is unsightly and should also be considered for redevelopment in the future. A residential or mixed-use building should be developed on this site as replacement parking becomes available either through a below-grade facility or the development of garages on other sites.

2.6 Structured Parking Locations

The Town is currently undertaking a parallel study to recommend amendments to the Town's parking policies aimed at the removal of requirements to provide parking on site for development in the downtown. The on-site parking requirement in association with required parking ratios and height limits have served as the Zoning Ordinance's density control mechanism.

A comprehensive plan has been developed which sets outs a new zoning framework to allow parking obligations to be met through cash-in-lieu contributions to be paid to a municipal parking fund that will be used to develop public parking facilities.

This strategy is a critical ingredient if Downtown growth is to be accommodated in a rational manner. Public parking structures should be located in a manner that facilitates easy access from the periphery of the Downtown and minimizes the draw of traffic through core Downtown streets. These facilities should also be as unobtrusive as possible and where feasible should not front onto public street edges. Where garages face public streets the lower floor of the facility should be designed to accommodate at grade retail or other active uses.

Three key locations are proposed on the accompanying map (figure 34) indicating future garage locations;

1) Grand Union site: potential garage locations mid-block or fronting Maple Street.
2) Lebanon and Crosby: a potential below-grade or mid-block facility on the College lands near the intersection of these two streets.
3) Behind Town Hall: A potential mid-block facility in the location of the present surface parking lots.

Below-grade parking is desirable wherever possible but is generally an expensive undertaking.

Figure 34 Potential parking structure locations.

Figure 35

Figure 36