On June 18, 2026, at Arts Alley in Concord, NH, Plan New Hampshire honored our 2026 scholarship recipients, announced our 2026 Merit Awards of Excellence winners, and presented the inaugural Plan NH Champion Award.
2026 Merit Awards of Excellence Program
This year, the Plan NH Merit Awards Committee chose the following 8 projects to be recognized with a Merit Award of Excellence:
- Apartments @ 249 Main – Nashua, NH
- Canal Street Riverfront Park – Concord, NH
- Easterseals NH Military & Veterans Campus – Franklin, NH
- Gather Community Food Center – Portsmouth, NH
- Madbury Road Complete Streets Project – Durham, NH
- Old Bridle Path Restoration – Lincoln, NH and Franconia, NH
- Rockingham County Municipal Complex – Brentwood, NH
- The Truette Apartments – Dover, NH
Read more about each project here.
Plan New Hampshire Merit Awards of Excellence recognize transformative projects that positively impact New Hampshire communities through outstanding planning, sustainable design, and visionary redevelopment. With projects ranging from mixed-income housing, facilities for community service providers, parks and trails projects, and street redesign, these winners exemplify the power of collaboration and creativity to build a resilient, vibrant, and more connected New Hampshire.
Each year, a distinguished jury of industry professionals reviews each nomination and determines those that are truly outstanding and deserving of recognition. The 2026 winners were announced at the Plan NH Awards Evening on June 18 at The Arts Alley in Concord, NH alongside the Plan NH 2026 Scholarship & Fellowship recipients and the 2026 Plan NH Champion Honoree.
The 2026 Awardees join a long list of outstanding projects including the 2025 Merit Awards of Excellence Awardees:
- Allenstown Community School in Allenstown, NH;
- Jackson Square Affordable Housing in Nashua, NH;
- Penacook Community Center in Concord, NH; and
- The Souhegan River Trail in Merrimack, NH.
In 2024, Merit Awards of Excellence were awarded to the following projects:
- Brick Market, located in Portsmouth, NH;
- Capitol Shopping Center, located in Concord, NH;
- Mill Girl Stair Improvements, located in Manchester, NH;
- Nashua Soup Kitchen & Shelter, located in Nashua, NH; and
- The Livery, located in Sunapee, NH.
In 2023, Merit Awards of Excellence were awarded to the following projects:
- Berlin Riverwalk, located in Berlin, NH;
- Harmony Place, located in Durham, NH;
- Makers Mill, a Community Makerspace & Vocation Hub, located in Wolfeboro, NH;
- Pope Memorial Library Addition & Renovations, located in North Conway, NH;
- Ruth Lewin Griffin Place, located in Portsmouth, NH; and
- Rethinking Pleasant Street, located in Claremont, NH.
2026 Scholarship & Fellowship Program
The Plan NH Scholarship and Fellowship Program recognizes and honors outstanding students who call New Hampshire home and who are studying a field that supports the Plan NH mission to foster excellence in planning, design and/or development of New Hampshire’s built environment. These students truly represent the future of design, architecture, engineering, and construction in the Granite State. The Plan NH Scholarship & Fellowship Committee, in partnership with the NH Charitable Foundation, awarded a total of $31,500 to the following 20 Scholarship and Fellowship Recipients:
Alfred T. Granger Student Art Trust Fund Recipients
- Benjamin Bousquet – Animation, Maine College Of Art and Design
- Peyton Gowell – Architecture, Keene State College
- Hunter Haht-Acres – Architecture, Roger Williams University
- Maisie Hilliard – Art/Fine Arts, Plymouth State University
- Alisa Janollari – Architecture, Civil Engineering, University of New Hampshire
- Mattie Jolin – Environmental Science & Policy, Plymouth State University
- Joanna Mellon – Graphic Design, Saint Anselm College
- Elizabeth Petrov – Architecture, Civil Engineering, University of New Hampshire
- Alani Ramas – Fine Arts / Printmaking, State University of New York, New Paltz
- Jocelyn Roache – Art Education / Art History, Plymouth State University
- Olivia Suttonn- Art/Fine Arts, Human Services (Social Work), Mental Health, Social Work, Colby Sawyer College
- Mallory Taylor – Fine Arts, Arts Education, Ceramics, University of New Hampshire
Paul and Ann Harvey Scholarship Fund Recipients
- Isaac Borge – Mechanical Engineering, Clarkson University
- Hailey Favreau – Aerospace Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
- Jason McIntosh, Jr. – Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New Hampshire
- Lily Szulc – Mechanical Engineering, University of New Hampshire
- Helen Velko – Architecture, Wentworth Institute of Technology
Plan New Hampshire Fellowship Fund Recipients
- John Paul Donovan – Civil Engineering, University of New Hampshire
- Aubrie Glidden – Landscape Architecture, Cornell University
- Dillin Munroe – Civil Engineering, University of New Hampshire
The Plan NH Scholarship and Fellowship Program recognizes and honors outstanding students who call New Hampshire home and who are studying a field that supports the Plan NH mission to foster excellence in planning, design and/or development of New Hampshire’s built environment. These students truly represent the future of design, architecture, engineering, and construction in the Granite State.
These students were acknowledged alongside the Merit Awards of Excellence winners and the Plan NH Champion awardee during the Plan NH Awards Evening on June 18, 2026. If you or your company are interested in contributing to the Plan NH Fellowship Fund, we encourage you to contact us at 603-452-PLAN, or email: tiffany@plannh.org.
2026 Plan NH Champion Award
New in 2026, the Plan New Hampshire Board of Directors has established the “Plan NH Champion” Award to recognize individuals whose extraordinary commitment, advocacy, and generosity strengthen our mission to foster excellence in planning, design, and development and our vision of healthy, vibrant communities across New Hampshire.
We are thrilled to announce Randy Knowles as the inaugural recipient of the Plan NH Champion Award, recognizing his extraordinary commitment to fostering vibrant, healthy communities across the state. A licensed landscape architect and Vice President of Planning at The Dubay Group, Randy has spent nearly three decades dedicating his time, leadership, and artistry to Plan NH as a board member, committee leader, and volunteer on nearly two dozen community charrettes. He is widely celebrated for his unique ability to listen to local residents and translate their aspirations into beautiful, future-focused hand-drawn illustrations that help towns envision what is possible. Described by colleagues as a brilliant, humble, and dependable “hidden treasure,” Randy perfectly embodies the collaborative spirit of this organization. Please join us in congratulating Randy on this well-deserved honor and thanking him for his unwavering service—New Hampshire is truly a better place because of him!
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Plan New Hampshire extends a special thank you to our event partners at AIA New Hampshire and our 2026 Plan NH Awards Evening sponsors: The Dubay Group, Harvey Construction, Milestone Construction, Nathan Wechsler & Company, NHSaves, St. Mary’s Bank, and Stibler Associates.