Plan New Hampshire is pleased to announce the release of the 2026 Plymouth Community Design Charrette report! This publication represents the 86th charrette publication by Plan NH across 70 NH cities and towns.
Why Plan NH Came to Plymouth
On May 29-30, Plan NH gathered a team of talented volunteers for an intensive two-day charrette in Plymouth’s Depot Street/Railroad Square area. Plan NH originally received an application from the Town of Plymouth back in June 2025 for the Community Design Charrette program. The application was a request for a vision for the future of the Depot Street/Railroad Square area, with a focus on walkability, connectivity, housing availability, historic preservation, future rail travel, economic vitality, river access, and recreational opportunities. After some back-and-forth with the town, Plan NH staff and charrette committee members visited for a preliminary site visit in April 2026 in preparation for the May 2026 charrette.
In the application, local leaders wrote:
“The Depot Street/Railroad Square area represents an area of incredible potential, a few short steps away from Main Street. To the east lies a true hidden gem – the Pemi riverfront, developed with a cartop boat launch and outdoor amphitheater. Located between Main Street and this riverfront is the area referred to locally as “Depot Street/Railroad Square” – a veritable blank canvas, replete with underutilized and vacant properties, yet bounded to the north by a historic railroad station, to the east by the Pemi River, to the west by Main Street, and to the south by Plymouth’s skate park.”
What Plan NH Saw and Heard
Once the full charrette team arrived in Plymouth on May 29th, it was easy to see the potential in this Depot Street/Railroad Square area. The two-day charrette kicked off with a walking tour of the area, led by Plymouth Town Planner Joseph Perez. Starting at the Plymouth Regional Senior Center, where th
e charrette took place, the team walked down to the Pemigewasset River, up Green Street to Main Street, and down Railroad Square Road to the skate park before walking back on Route 3. The Railroad Square area (which is known locally by many names) with its close proximity to downtown, historically significant railroad station, scenic riverwalk, senior center, and skate park has a lot of potential!
During the afternoon and evening of Friday, May 29, the charrette team heard from key stakeholders and members of the public over the course of three listening sessions. In these sessions, the charrette team asked the community to share what they saw, what they wanted to see, and anything else the team needed to know before drafting their recommendations.
During these conversations, attendees talked about the area’s incredible, but perhaps underutilized, assets, including the amphitheater, skatepark, sculpture park, rail line, and senior center. The community shared the need for wayfinding, accessibility, lighting, housing and mixed-use development, greenspace, and much more. Attendees shared a desire to ensure the area feels connected to Main Street and the rest of the downtown and suggested ideas to activate the space, add multi-season recreation opportunities, and enhance the recreation opportunities that already exist. Those with property in the area also noted road maintenance, parking, confusion about property lines, flooding and drainage, and invasive plants issues as key challenges.
What Plan NH Recommended
On Saturday, May 30th, the team hit the ground running ready to bring the community’s ideas to life. The charrette team divided themselves into smaller groups and homed in on specific areas and ideas. The recommendations and imagery created by the charrette team reflect what the team heard directly from the community and included, among other things:
- Improvements to the riverfront, including completing existing trails and adding accessible boardwalks, enhancing the existing amphitheater, and adding a playground.
- Adding parking structures that take advantage of the change in grade between Main Street and Green/South Street.
- Improving the drainage challenges on Railroad Square Road and clarifying the town’s responsibility to maintain the road.
- Coming up with an “identity” or “brand” for the area and using that to create wayfinding signs, info kiosks, and art to help visitors find their way around town.
- Activating the space with events, like a farmer’s market or outdoor rock climbing wall.
- Creating a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district to pay for the improvements to Railroad Square Road.
- Exploring zoning changes, like embracing a form-based code or adopting design guidelines, to ensure future development is true to the community’s vision of a “village”.
- Connecting with UNH Cooperative Extension to discuss the Community Business Engagement Program.
Conclusion
What comes next is up to the people of Plymouth! The community has dedicated leaders, an engaged community, and a wealth of ideas to propel them into the future. Thank you to the Plymouth Regional Senior Center, the Plymouth Planning & Development Department, the Plymouth Economic Development Committee, and everyone who participated in the listening sessions.
Plan NH’s charrettes are only possible because of the architects, planners, engineers, housing experts, artists, and others willing to donate their time and expertise to the process. We’d like to extend thanks to the talented team who participated in Plymouth:
- Bob White, Robert White Landscape Architecture
- C.R. Willeke, NHDOT
- Cassie Cashin, Nashua Regional Planning Commission
- Chris Kennedy, MA+KE Architects
- Crystal Kidd, Resilience Planning & Design
- Dan Schandel, VHB
- Darren Winham, Town of Exeter
- Jason Plourde, BETA Group
- Julia Mistretta, UNH Community and Environmental Planning Major
- Kevin Aitken, Wiemann Lamphere Architects
- Kevin Russell, NHDOT
- Laura Black, NH Division of Historical Resources
- Michael Pritchard, Pritchard Architecture
- Randy Knowles, The Dubay Group
- Sarah Wrightsman, New Hampshire Housing
- Sue Cagle, UNH Cooperative Extension
- Taylor Barry, UNH Community and Environmental Planning Major
The full charrette report is available for download here.
About the Author
This blog post was written by Sarah Wrightsman, Community Engagement Manager at NH Housing, who served as a member of Plan NH’s Plymouth Community Design Charrette team. Sarah shares her reflections on the power of community-driven planning and the lasting impact of the charrette process.