An Historic Old Mill Finds New Life

The China Mill Conversion

Dateline: Nov. 10, 2020
The numerous meetings during the past year between the Allenstown Planning Board and representatives of One Wall Allenstown, LLC have finally come to a successful conclusion. On September 2nd, 2020, One Wall Allenstown, LLC received conditional approval of their site plan from the Allenstown Planning Board, allowing them to convert the historic China Mill on Canal St. into 150 upscale apartments including various amenities.

China Mill aerial view

China Mill Aerial View

The developer, One Wall Allenstown, LLC, is a Brady Sullivan Properties (BSP) company, which is one of the largest residential real estate developers in New Hampshire, with a successful history of converting historic mills into elegant apartments.

RSA 79-E Tax Exemption Approved

On September 21, the Board of Selectmen approved a request for a seven-year tax exemption under RSA 79-E. John Cronin, Project Attorney for One Wall Allentown, LLC, said they expected to invest $21 million to renovate the property. Compare this to the purchase price of $200,000 and the 2019 assessed value of $1,346,500.

The tax exemption is a state law that encourages rehabilitation of underutilized downtown buildings by allowing a town to hold the assessment at its current value for an approved number of years. This gives the property owner time to recover the investment before the property is reassessed at its future value, and in the end gives the town an improved economic climate and more tax revenue.

In the RSA 79-E application, Mr. Cronin listed numerous public benefits such as construction jobs, permanent employment, and clean, new housing (see the application). In addition to details in the application, he estimated that, at the end of the exemption period, the property would generate $500,000 per year in tax revenue. The expected completion date would be Spring 2022.

Laying the Groundwork Back in 2019

Back in April 2019, department and committee heads met with agents of Brady Sullivan at the Community Center to discuss their interest in the mill. A large number of pizzas made for a congenial time together.

The mill owner wanted to sell and Brady Sullivan was considering a conversion to one-or two-bedroom apartments. They also expressed a desire to apply for the RSA 79-E tax exemption, but the selectmen said they would have to set up a special election to rezone the property and extend the 79-E district to the mill.

To make thing happen as soon as possible, the town put a great effort into the planning of a special election in October 2019 at which voters decisively extended the Suncook Village Infill Development District to include the old China Mill, and changed the zoning from Industrial to Residential/Commercial. In response to the town's rezoning efforts, One Wall Allenstown, the new owner, moved ahead with the plan to redevelop the historic mill into apartments.

According to the tax map, the mill property had been purchased in August 2019. The property consisted of the main mill building and two smaller outbuildings on six acres, and the two-acre Hemlock Island in the Suncook River. For some reason, the island was on the Pembroke side of the river. There are no plans to make use of it.

Preliminary Design Review

At a preliminary design review with the Allenstown Planning Board on February 19, 2020, three agents discussed a draft site plan for the mill conversion and offered many details. They also answered numerous questions from Planning Board members and from a few residents in the audience.

Site Plan First Review

At its July 1, 2020 meeting, the Planning Board was able to discuss the state planner's initial site plan review dated June 12. The plan included a mix of apartments totaling 150 units, exterior renovations, replacement of interior systems, and various amenities for residents. The Site Plan First Review document included several issues and conditions for approval. In addition, it was determined to have regional impact, so time was given for Pembroke to submit its review comments.

Consultant Mark Fougere conducted a study of the impact on the school system at other New Hampshire sites and determined that less than two children might be added here.

Potential Revenue

On a positive note at the July 1st meeting, Mr. Fougere estimated that the project would bring in an estimated $660,000 for water and sewer hookups, as well as an estimated $373,000 in revenue from property taxes and motor vehicle registrations.

Final Site Plan Details

At a final site plan review on September 2nd, the Planning Board reviewed final details and approved the site plan with conditions as stated in the Final Site Plan Review document.

China Mill Site PlanSite Plan for Lofts at 25 Canal
Courtesy of Brady Sullivan Properties

  • The site is to be called the "Lofts at 25 Canal."
  • The current plan includes an estimated 150 units in the main mill building, the "Store House" near Canal St., and the "Waste House" near the Suncook River.
  • The two-story "Store House" is to be converted into a dozen residential units. The two-story "Waste House" is to be converted into eight apartments. The Mill is to house 130 units.
  • Parking is to consist of 263 spaces. Two driveways onto Canal St. are to be reconfigured perpendicular to Canal St. to improve safety.
  • The current plan also proposes a mix of one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units. Each unit is to have its own washer and drier, eliminating the need for a community laundromat.
  • Widening and other improvements to the section of Canal St. along the mill property are planned.
  • Within the main mill building, there are going to be interior spaces not suitable for apartments, so they are to be converted to community spaces like an Internet cafe, a small theater, game room, or an exercise room.
  • The target market was stated as young professionals and empty nesters. It was also mentioned that some tenants may want to operate home businesses.
  • Impact studies were requested to assess the impact of the project on municipal services and the school district. Capacity was available from Pembroke Water Works and the Allenstown Sewer Dept. A Traffic Study indicated that traffic growth would have no adverse effect on the level of service. A study of school age children at several other mill conversions in New Hampshire yielded an increase of less than two children for this project.
  • The board asked what might be the minimum rent for the smallest apartment. The answer was that the rent would not include utilities and would be close to "market rate."
  • When asked if they would consider any part-time commercial businesses onsite, like a dry cleaning service or a coffee shop, they reluctantly declined, stating that this site was off the main route and their attempts to include some commercial businesses at other mills were unsuccessful.
  • The conversion would include the following phases:
    • Install a new roof.
    • Install new rooftop A/C units.
    • Install new windows and doors.
    • Restore the exterior brickwork to original condition.
    • Replace electrical, plumbing, heating, and mechanical systems.
    • Construct the apartments and other interior spaces.
    • Perform site work (paving, landscaping, fencing)

Some History

The China Mill was built in 1868 between the south shore of the Suncook River and Canal Street in what was then called Blodgett Village. The four-story building is 510 feet long and 72 feet wide with its front side facing Canal St.

The location is only 1,000 feet from the Merrimack River into which the Suncook River flows. In October 2019, the boat ramp at the end of Ferry Street was renovated and dedicated to former Road Agent Ronnie Pelissier, making it an attractive site for local boaters.

China Mill circa 1900China Mill circa 1900
Courtesy of Matthew D. Cosgro, nashuacitystation.org

Built as a textile mill, it used the power of the Suncook River to operate much of its machinery. With the construction of the Webster Mill and Pembroke Mill along the Suncook River, ads in Canadian newspapers brought French Canadian workers from Quebec in large numbers.

By the late 1800s, Suncook had become known as "le Petit Canada" with 800 people employed at the China Mill. At that time, they were producing 330,000 yards of cloth per week. That amounted to a whopping 187.5 miles of cloth per week, which is about the north-south length of New Hampshire!

Over the years, additional businesses developed in the village. Today the brick structures stand as an excellent example of a small 19th-century commercial center in southern New Hampshire.

What You Can Do

Stay tuned for further developments. The best way to stay informed is to go to the town subscription service called E-Alerts, (http://www.allenstownnh.gov/subscribe) and sign up for the Planning Board Meeting Agenda Updates and Meeting Minute Updates.

Heck, you might as well check all of them. It's better to get all of them and delete the ones you don't need than to wonder what some committee is up to and not get their agendas and minutes.

Make sure to check "I'm not a robot" at the bottom of the form.

This story was originally published on Nov. 10, 2020 on allenstown-alt.org by Michael Frascinella, Chairman, Economic Development Committee. It was then duplicated here for users of the town web site.