The Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA) on June 3 approved the sale of portions of city-owned land on Hackett Hill to the Manchester-based Socha Company, following recommendations by the BMA Lands and Buildings Committee earlier in the night to make the land surplus and forego a request for proposals (RFP) process.
In order to skip the RFP process, where bids for the property would be opened to anyone interested in purchasing the land, BMA Chair Joseph Levasseur shared several points of public good that would come about by skipping the process and working with Socha.
Socha seeks to buy six parcels (outlined in blue) within the Northwest Business Park seen here.
First, Levasseur noted that the land has lain dormant for over two decades following a land swap with the University of New Hampshire and provided no discernable benefit to the city other than potentially becoming the center of a new technology business park. Several months ago, a biofabrication company decided that it would no longer seek to purchase part of the land although their interest in the property took it off the market for nearly a year.
He added that four years ago a potential sale of the property was stopped when the BMA was informed that the technology park component envisioned for the area would not be pursued.
Levasseur noted that the biggest issue in Manchester and New Hampshire right now is affordable housing and that key way to lower rent costs is by building more housing, something Socha plans to do in the Hackett Hill land along with some limited retail in some mixed-use areas.
The land expected to be developed by Socha will also spur development of a 2.5-million-dollar road that will loop from Hackett Hill Road to Front Street with the hopes of an expected highway exit near the southern end of the road near Manchester Community College.
“We’re looking at finally getting something done,” he said.
Levasseur had praise for Socha’s employment of local workers and strong track record, a sentiment shared by Ward 3 Alderman Pat Long, who noted that Socha has also constructed properties nearby. Long added that the mixed-used development would also be a positive for the area given the lack of nearby shops for residents of northwestern Manchester.
These articles are being shared by partners in the Granite State News Collaborative. For more information, visit collaborativenh.org.
