On July 17, 2024, the Salem Master Plan Steering Committee (MPSC) heard a presentation from Utile Design regarding an update on process and timeline, a summary of public workshop engagement, four framework areas of the draft Plan, and two development vision focus areas.

To view the full PowerPoint Presentation, please click here.

To view the recording of the July 17, 2024 MPSC meeting, please click here.

Process & Timeline Update: The Master Plan process is currently in between the two public engagement rounds. The first was the initial visioning survey which ran from March to May 2024. The next round of public engagement will occur in Fall 2024 and will include a survey on the draft Master Plan and a public workshop in September.

Please view slide 3 of the linked Presentation to see the full timeline of the Master Plan process.

Public Workshop Engagement Summary: What do you LOVE about Salem? What would you CHANGE about Salem? Over the past month, comment cards have been available at Town Hall for the public to provide answers to these questions. In reviewing these comments, Utile found some of the following themes:

Love: Community / Growth (shopping convenience) / Nature / Education / Corridors

Change: Housing affordability / Growth (lack of regulation) / Pedestrian safety / Greener energy / Establish town center

Currently, ‘comment cards’ are available at Town Hall and the Library for you to provide feedback throughout the summer! Electronic versions of these cards are currently in process and the Town will put out more information once those are available.

Please view slides 4-8 of the linked Presentation to see a summary of the public workshop engagement and the comment cards.

Draft Plan Framework: The four pillars of the Master Plan framework were overviewed in Utile’s Presentation. These include the following:

• Missing Middle Edges – encourage quality housing aligned with residents’ budgets and family sizes
• Mixed Use Core – focus and contain higher density mixed use in the core, and deter elsewhere
• Town Connectors – connect key assets and gathering places with safe and complete streets
• Gathering Spaces – invest in beautification and infrastructure to reinforce gathering spaces

Please view slides 9-20 of the linked Presentation for additional information and background on the four Plan Framework pillars.

Draft Vision Focus Areas: Finally, Utile presented the two proposed development vision focus areas, which are the Historic Town Center and the Depot. The Plan will suggest improvements / goals for these two areas, as follows:

1. Historic Town Center

• Street Safety & Traffic Calming
• Public Realm Improvements
• Adaptive Reuse & Street Activation for Existing Historic Buildings
• Programmatic Activation of Salem Common

2. Depot

• Adaptive Reuse of Historic Train Station with Public Realm Improvements (already in progress)
• Recreational Development on Vacant Town-Owned Parcels
• Rail Trail Enhancements & Continuation
• New Mixed Use & Multifamily Residential Development

Please view slides 21-22 of the linked Presentation for additional information on the two development vision focus areas.

Next Steps: The MPSC and Utile will host a Draft Plan Framework Public Workshop in September, tentatively on Wednesday, September 18 at 6pm. The location is still being determined, but the Town will send out the final date and time once it is all set.

Please stay up to date on the Master Plan by frequently checking back to the Town’s Master Plan page: salemnh.gov/masterplan

On this page, you can learn more about the ‘Why?’ of the Master Plan, can review prior meeting materials and recordings links, and more!