Kittery receives $252K grant for planning better traffic flow, housing
Courtesy / Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
An aerial view Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, the largest employer in Kittery.
An ongoing effort to improve traffic flow, create affordable housing and spur economic development in Kittery is getting a $252,000 boost from the Department of Defense.
The DOD’s Office of Economic Adjustment has awarded a grant for the next phase of a joint land use study the town is conducting with its largest employer, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and the Saco-based Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission.
The grant will help implement recommendations developed last year by the study, and may fund transportation, housing and communications solutions that will be procured, according to a news release from the commission.
A request for proposals is expected to be issued later this summer.
Joint land use studies are typically undertaken by local governments and military installations to create a blueprint for their mutual benefit, preserving military readiness while supporting community growth and economic development.
In 2019, the Kittery study examined transportation, workforce housing, and land use issues in the area surrounding the shipyard. The year-long project led to recommendations, publicly presented in January, to improve traffic congestion and parking issues. Affordable housing and improved communication between PNSY and the community are also a focus, according to the release.
Stephanie Carver, the commission’s transportation director, said: “This phase of the JLUS will focus on implementing housing, transportation, and communications strategies identified by the JLUS Policy Committee. We’ll look at commuting alternatives to single occupancy vehicles creating congestion in Kittery Foreside; creating affordable workforce housing in the region to reduce long commutes; and developing communication strategies to streamline information-sharing about traffic congestion.”
A proposal for a $59 million, nine-building mixed-use complex with over 300 apartments in Kittery went before the town's planning board last month, and if final approvals are received, could be built by mid-2022.
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, a sprawling, 300-acre complex on islands in the Piscataqua River, employed 7,310 civilians in 2019, including 480 in Kittery. The shipyard generated an economic impact of $1.16 billion last year.
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