What Makes a Town Unique? A Student’s Perspective
The City of Franklin, New Hampshire, is currently finding success with its efforts to revitalize the Franklin Falls Historic District. While this is vitally important for the future of the city, it is also important for Franklin to preserve what makes its downtown unique: its industrial mill town architecture.
There have been many recent economic improvements to Franklin, including the $12 million C.A.T.C.H. Housing renovations to the former Franklin Light and Power Mill and the just-opened $26 million Peabody Place senior living facility. There are also a number of major building projects in the works, including a $12 million Cumberland Farms project and the recently approved $26 million State of New Hampshire veterans services campus. These major development projects, in turn, have attracted many potential investors to town, including a number of out-of-staters. As Outdoor New England owner Marty Parichand says, “Wherever I go, everyone’s talking about Franklin.”
As newcomers enter the town, buying up previously abandoned and/or neglected buildings, the new occupants may feel the urge to redesign these buildings in a more modern style, rather than return them to their former glory. But what would such a redesign do? It seems possible that redesigning these buildings in contemporary styles would destroy the character of Franklin’s downtown, jeopardizing the appeal of Franklin’s historic architecture and the current revitalization efforts.
As Crystal Alpers, Director of Franklin’s Parks and Recreation Department explains, “Downtown Franklin is considered an historic district. So, there are certain colors you can use if you want to paint the front of your building. There are certain styles of signs that you can put up. Do I think we should come up with more uniformity? Absolutely. It would show that we are a community. That we are unified.”
Does this mean that Franklin should ban all new developments? Of course not. Instead, the town must work to ensure that new designs will blend into the cityscape of downtown Franklin, paying homage to its architectural past while ensuring its future. New England towns are known for their quaint buildings and small-town feel, and in Franklin, this was certainly something that locals and passersby noticed long before the current revitalization efforts got underway in 2015.
“Wherever I go, everyone’s talking about Franklin.” — Marty Parichand
As Sam Hilario, partial owner of Granite State Hedgehogs on Central Street, recalls, “I’d always drive by this town, every year, and just park. And, I’d look at the strip… And, I’m looking, and I realize, ‘Wow! This is a really nice little town.’”
In order to avoid the sense of chaos that all too often accompanies rapid economic growth, Franklin should consider creating a cohesive look and feel for the historic district. With care and attention, this should help to keep the mill town character that has stopped people in their tracks for over a hundred years as they walk through this town.
“Do I think we should come up with more uniformity? Absolutely. It would show that we are a community. That we are unified.” — Krystal Alpers
One example is already underway in downtown Franklin: the Chinburg Properties’ renovation of the old Stevens Mill complex. The former mill sits alongside the river just behind Central Street, and this $32 million dollar project — one of the largest taken on by Chinburg — should have an enormous impact on downtown Franklin. Fortunately for Franklin, the Chinburg group has decades of experience renovating former mill buildings and is committed to preserving and highlighting the unique New England architecture that defines the city. Dave Daigneault, the Stevens Mill Site Supervisor, explained that Chinburg Properties does its best to “bring a lot of old artifacts [back] into the buildings [once they’re completed] to preserve the space.”
At the moment the building site has only undergone demolition, and so is far from completion. But from all we have seen and heard, Chinburg Properties is dedicated to preserving the character of this old mill, the largest in the city.
Franklin is lucky to have such a partner in its revitalization efforts — one that looks to the future while preserving the past — and as the revitalization of Franklin continues, it is our hope that all the development that takes place in the downtown historic district receives as much attention to detail as Chinburg Properties’s Stevens Mill has received. After all, new construction that doesn’t compromise Franklin’s unique mill town character is essential to the revitalization efforts that are currently underway.
This article was written by Carly Solomon with help from Tom Morgan. Additional editing by Kirstin Bass.
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