I’m taking a break from my usual entrepreneur-centered writing to highlight a few formerly vacant Manchester properties that are currently being utilized as well as some new-to-the-area businesses openings.
Last June I wrote some ideas about how several vacant commercial properties in Manchester should be utilized. Several of these properties have been filled or are currently being developed, which benefits everyone by bringing such thing as tax revenue, jobs, and utilized buildings.
One example is the building at 365 Lincoln St. that used to be home to Stop & Shop. I thought that the location would be a great place for a Price Right, which would be a new grocery store for Manchester. I have learned that in fact the location is now a Price Right, so someone took my suggestion, (okay maybe not). Much of the building is a Price Right and the rest is a Sky Zone Trampoline Park. The grocery store is a great fit for the area because it provides a place for people to buy groceries at a good price. And it is close enough to the Market Basket on Elm Street that people can have the option of shopping at both without traveling a long distance. (And while both Market Basket and Price Right sell groceries, they each have their specific niche and are far enough away from one another that they should be able to co-exist).
Another formerly vacant property that is seeing new life is the former Lowe’s at 707 Huse Road. The formerly vacant building is being transformed into the newest location of Chunky’s Cinema Pub. The 10-screen theater complex is scheduled to open in early 2017. The theater will take about half of the building with the remaining area available for retail businesses. The plan also calls for a 6,000-square-foot stand-alone restaurant in the parking lot. This is a good location for the cinema as it allows easy access to Interstate 293 and is next to the Mall of New Hampshire. Manchester has been without a movie theater since the South Willow Street location of Regal Cinemas closed in September 2008.
The former Stop and Shop at 777 South Willow St. is now home to two stores, Michael’s Arts & Crafts and off-price retailer Burlington, (formerly Burlington Coat Factory). Incidentally, this is Burlington’s third time having a location in Manchester. They were first on Dow Street, (corner of Canal – now Gold’s Gym / FitLab), then they were at 1525 South Willow Street, (now a Hobby Lobby), and now they are in their current location. Michael’s already had a Manchester presence and just relocated from their former location at 1111 South Willow Street.
The former Michael’s is now home to another new-to-Manchester business, Aldi, the German-based discount food store. Their low prices and rotating stock are great for the adventurous shopper – or someone with a flexible grocery list – and who wants to save money. I first experienced grocery shopping at Aldi a few years ago and they were one of the companies that I thought would do well in Manchester. I continue to think that Aldi will do well in the Queen City and that Manchester will be included in the company’s aggressive expansion plans to add 650 new stores in the U.S. by the end of 2018. Two prime locations are the property at 220 Londonderry Turnpike, (next door to Capital Auto Auction), which was mentioned in my previous article, and next door to Rite Aid at 122 McGregor Street, (next to CMC). The McGregor Street area has been in serious need of a grocery store since Vista Foods moved out. There has been talk of a Trader Joe’s moving to that property, but in my opinion the demographics of the area are better suited for Aldi.
The former Walmart, (and former HQ Home Improvement Warehouse), at 300 Keller St. currently sits vacant, but according to the websites of Walmart Realty and the local realtor handling the sale, NAI Norwood Group, the sale of the property is pending. Some ideas that I previously had for the property were an outdoor products store such as Cabela’s or Bass Pro or even the home store IKEA. I still like those ideas and believe they would do well in Manchester but am adding the idea of either splitting the store and housing an L.L. Bean or REI along with a second business, or keeping the size as-is and opening a large L.L. Bean “adventure center” type of store.
The former Shaw’s store at 375 South Willow Street is still available for lease, according to the American Retail Properties website. As previously written, I believe that the building would be a great home for the Hannaford currently located on John E. Devine Drive, (now next to a Walmart Supercenter). With the relocated (Colby Court) Bedford Hannaford now open in the former Stop & Shop on Kilton Road, relocating the Manchester location may be a consideration. (Especially if the new concept, largest in New Hampshire, store in Bedford is successful).
Another positive development on the property front in Manchester is the pending construction of a 125-room Hyatt Place Hotel along with a 450 car garage on the current Bedford Street parking lot. There had been talk of a proposed transportation hub – which would include a commuter rail station – being built at the site, but the expansion of rail service from Boston to Manchester is still in the proposal stages and the city should not wait and lose a solid opportunity to develop the property. The hotel would fit nicely with an idea that I have previously written about. The idea is of a riverside urban park along with an architecturally-friendly parking garage that would replace the current parking lot known as Arms Park. In addition to the park, I believe that a marketplace similar to Quincy Market in Boston surrounding the park on three sides, (with an opening next to the river that could be used as a performance backdrop), would be a great addition to the area.
It is a good thing that there aren’t many commercial properties in Manchester that are vacant – and that when there are that they generally don’t stay empty for too long. It is also good that the city is moving forward and allowing sites to be developed that will help it grow. There is much more that can be done to make Manchester a better place to live and keeping vacant commercial properties at a minimum is a good step in showing companies interested in moving to the Queen City that we are open for business!
Born in Nashua, Brian Chicoine spent his early years in Raymond before moving to Manchester at the age of 9. A few years after graduating from West High School, Brian moved to Providence to complete his undergraduate degree at Rhode Island College. After college Brian got married then he and his new wife Jackie spent a little more than five years in New Hampshire, where their two boys were born. The Chicoine family then returned to Jackie’s home state of Rhode Island and have been living there since. Brian has merged his passion for entrepreneurship and innovation with his love of new and bold ideas to bring fresh perspectives on the way things are done. Brian, Jackie, and their two boys currently live in Rhode Island, but their hearts are in New Hampshire.
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