After 393 Years, a Historic Honor Pending

Downtown Portsmouth could be named to the National Register of Historic Places by 2016. 

Peter Michaud, of the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources, told the Portsmouth City Council on May 5 that the downtown could be listed by June of that year, should the study of the area proceed as expected and without obstacles.

"We are thinking that Portsmouth probably is nationally significant," said Michaud, referencing the city's heritage, including its bustling seaport days.

The National Register nomination is being prepared through funding to the Division of Historical Resources as part of the mitigation for replacement of the Memorial Bridge.

"What the National Register does not do: it does not overlay any type of protection on a property that doesn't already exist," Michaud said in his update to city councilors. "It is only honorific."

While it does not put any type of overlay on the city center, the National Register of Historic Places designation would provide a 20 percent federal tax credit for qualified property development within the honored district, according to Michaud.

The application will likely go before Governor Hassan and the Executive Council for approval this summer, and by fall the work to identify a less "amorphous" boundary of historic downtown.

Michaud said every property in the suggested boundary area would be analyzed, and whether or not it contributes to the district.

He said property owners would be notified by official letter, and the designation would continue if a majority of the citizens agree to it.