One-room school restoration gets a boost
Members of the Atkinson Historical Society Monday accepted a $55,000 grant awarded by the state to continue renovations on the town’s one remaining single-room schoolhouse.
New Hampshire’s Land and Community Heritage Investment Program awarded Atkinson the funding as one of 26 communities and nonprofits statewide to rehabilitate 14 historic buildings and conserve more than 3,314 acres of farm, timber and ecologically significant land.
“We are most appreciative of LCHIP’s investment in the restoration of the Center School,” said Kate Rochford, president of the Atkinson Historical Society.
“The… award will help us realize our goal of restoring this historical gem, which will surely spark the imagination of all future visitors as they experience an 1800s one-room schoolhouse.”
The grant, which was applied for in June, will fund work to three sides of the building and the interior tin ceiling.
“We applied for this grant a year ago and we didn’t get it so we were a little apprehensive to apply again but the benefit of this grant, when we applied in 2023, is that we were novices,” Rochford said. “They did another site visit in September and they could see the progress that we made on our own without the grant, which was positive.”
As part of the program standards, the historical society will have to match each dollar contributed by the state, with at least one dollar added. Since the project began in January, the Atkinson Historical Society has fundraised $100,000 of an estimated $300,000 needed for the totality of the renovation.
In the new year, contractors will begin reinforcing the basement and the attic, with exterior siding and interior ceiling work to follow in the spring.
Rochford said she hopes to have renovations complete by fall 2026, pending funding, and to open the schoolhouse museum shortly after, which will feature décor from the 1800s staged to make the building look more like a functioning school house.
The Center School on Academy Avenue operated as one of five single-room schoolhouses in town from 1880 to 1949 and is the last one left standing.
Over the years, it served as the town’s police department, town offices and a family counseling center. The interior of the building was partitioned to create rooms and offices, which have since been removed, then the space returned to a large, single room.
The building, which is owned by the town and leased by the historical society, was rumored for demolition when the historical society stepped in and said they wanted to restore it. Efforts to save the building were championed by getting the school placed on the New Hampshire Register of Historical Places in 2022.
The historical society signed a lease-agreement with the Board of Selectmen to restore the building and preserve it as part of the town’s history.
In May, the board approved the historical society’s request to tear down one of the two additions that acted as a storage room in the 1990s when the building was being used as a family counseling center. The second addition put on as a bathroom will be kept intact. — Jamie L. Costa, Eagle-Tribune
St. Paul’s School Coit Dining Hall, Concord, NH received a comprehensive range of upgrades and improvements in a recent project completed by North Branch Construction.
North Branch Construction completes dining hall renovations at St. Paul’s School in Concord
North Branch Construction announced the completion of several renovations at St. Paul’s School in Concord. The renovations, which took place over the summer, focused on the Coit Dining Hall and aimed to enhance the dining experience for students and staff.
The project included a comprehensive range of upgrades and improvements, beginning with the installation of a new epoxy floor in the dish room. This durable and easy-to-maintain flooring solution helps streamline operations and improve cleanliness in one of the busiest areas of the dining hall. In the kitchen area, North Branch Construction facilitated critical mechanical and electrical upgrades to support new kitchen and service equipment. These upgrades were designed to improve efficiency, safety, and the ability to handle increased food preparation demands. A new food storage room was built and finished in the Middle Dining Hall. This new space offers enhanced storage capacity, ensuring that St. Paul’s School can better manage food inventory and supply for its dining services. The corridors of Coit Dining Hall were updated with new finishes and trim work, creating a refreshed, modern aesthetic throughout the space. These updates contribute to the overall functionality and visual appeal of the dining hall.
“We are pleased to have partnered with St. Paul’s School to complete these essential renovations,” said Joseph H. Campbell, President of North Branch Construction. “The improvements we’ve made to the Coit Dining Hall will help the St. Paul’s School community provide excellent service to students and staff for years to come.”
Two local projects receive state LCHIP grants
The Park Hill Meeting House in Westmoreland and Grassy Brook Headwaters in the Marlow-Alstead area are among 26 conservation and preservation projects that received state matching grants, officials announced Monday.
The N.H. Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) provided the funding.
The meeting house in Westmoreland, known for its Greek revival-style portico and steeple tower, received a $22,933 grant award to repair deteriorated ceiling and wall surfaces. It has served as a church and a meeting center since 1762.
This is its fourth LCHIP award. Earlier grants helped repair the roof, foundation and wooden steeple, as well as the sanctuary’s plaster ceiling.
“We are very appreciative of LCHIP’s repeat investments in the Park Hill Meeting House,” said Patti Seymour, director of the Westmoreland Historical Society, in a news release.
Also, a $225,000 grant was given to The Conservation Fund to permanently protect 1,353 acres of wildlife habitat in Marlow and Alstead.
The property has been managed for the past 40 years to improve habitat for upland birds by selective cutting of small patches in the forest and removal of forest understory, according to a news release from LCHIP. It contains diverse forestlands as well as wetlands, fens, marsh and sedge meadows.
Other area projects receiving grants:
* Antrim’s conservation commission was awarded $115,000 to add 112 acres to the Campbell Pond forest, which will be put under a conservation easement held by the Monadnock Conservancy.
* The Monadnock Conservancy received $150,000 for an agricultural easement on the Comeau family’s 51-acre livestock farm in Bennington, which will ensure the property remains farmland, according to the news release.
Gov. Chris Sununu announced the latest round of LCHIP awards Monday. They total $3.3 million.
LCHIP Executive Director Paula Bellemore spoke of the importance of preservation.
“There’s a connection between land conservation and historic preservation,” she said in an interview. “It’s not just the buildings we live in, but the lands we live on that tell the story of New Hampshire — the timber used to construct the buildings, the mills that powered the economy.”
New Hampshire has a good track record for preserving historic buildings, and LCHIP can further that cause, Bellemore said.
“One of the things we look for are buildings that are going to be put back to daily life, so people can see the craftsmanship and really appreciate them,” she said.
The N.H. Legislature established the funding program in 2000.
LCHIP’s matching grants are invested in community-based public-private partnerships seeking to voluntarily conserve and preserve the state’s natural, cultural and historic heritage.
This is the 23rd round of grants. Applicants go through a competitive vetting process and 58 percent of applicants received funding this time.
Grant recipients must match the state funding dollar for dollar. — Rick Green, Keene Sentinel
85-unit Meredith Bay Colony Club. (Courtesy of Continuum Advisors)
Continuum Advisors closes 85-unit senior living asset sale in New Hampshire
Continuum Advisors, a national senior housing investment sales and advisory firm, announced it facilitated the sale of Meredith Bay Colony Club, a premier 85-unit Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in Meredith, New Hampshire.
Built in 2008, the 11+ acre campus offers a full continuum of care for residents with 41 independent living apartments, 20 assisted living units, 24 memory care units, and an additional 18+ acres of undeveloped land for future expansion. The campus features abundant amenities, including an underground parking garage, indoor pool and fitness center.
Financially strained for several years, the community was sold through a court-directed process with OnePoint Partners serving as the Rehabilitation Trustee and Continuum Advisors retained to market the CCRC for sale.
Co-heads David Kliewer and Jay Jordan led the sale to close on Nov. 1, resulting in a purchase price of $11 million, plus the buyer’s assumption of approximately $10.5 million in resident entrance fee refund liabilities.
The buyer, Taylor Community, is a nonprofit owner and operator also based in the heart of New Hampshire’s Lakes region. It currently operates three other sites in the local area and was a natural fit for this property with deep roots in the region.
“Meredith Bay Colony Club is an attractive community whose current and future residents will experience a senior housing operator committed to excellence in its highly personalized care approach,” said Jay Jordan, co-head of Continuum Advisors.
Just two hours north of Boston, Meredith Bay Colony Club is set amongst a pristine White Mountains backdrop on the picturesque shores of Northwest Lake Winnipesaukee, a highly popular destination known for its abundant recreational activities and stunning scenery. Meredith was recently named one of the “best small towns on the East Coast” by Travel & Leisure magazine, adding to its regional allure as an idyllic retirement haven in New England.
The deal marks Continuum Advisors’ 175th senior housing transaction across 35 states with an additional $350 million in its national sales pipeline currently under contact.
A semi-furnished unit at Red Oak Apartments at the recently renovated project managed by North Branch Construction at 83 Hanover Street in Manchester, NH.
North Branch Construction completes renovation of 83 Hanover Street in Manchester
North Branch Construction announced the completion of the Red Oak Apartments project at 83 Hanover Street in downtown Manchester. This renovation of a five-story, 35,000-square-foot, late 1800’s wood-framed, brick-faced building has transformed the space into a vibrant mixed-use development, featuring modern residential apartments and commercial spaces, as well as the addition of 1,750-square-foot for a high-end restaurant with a state-of-the-art commercial kitchen.
Renovations to floors two through five offer mid- to upper-level residential apartments offering a variety of unit sizes and configurations, ranging in size from 328-square-feet to 939-square-feet. Other work included historic preservation-sensitive updates to the building’s façade and structural integrity. Modernization of the building’s infrastructure and amenities include the installation of a new elevator, and upgrades to mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.
The project involved a comprehensive renovation of the existing building, which had been vacant for years, while respecting its historic character and incorporating modern amenities and infrastructure. The building, although not on the National Historic Register, was carefully updated with a focus on preserving its architectural charm while providing contemporary features for both residents and commercial tenants.
“The completion of the project at 83 Hanover Street for Red Oak Apartments project is a significant milestone for both North Branch Construction and the City of Manchester,” said Joseph H. Campbell, President at North Branch Construction. “We are proud to have been part of transforming this historic building into a vibrant mixed-use space that will contribute to the city’s continued growth and revitalization. This project not only brings much-needed residential space to downtown, but also introduces a high-end restaurant that will enhance the local dining scene.”
