Portsmouth, New Hampshire, City Council Meets Saturday About McIntyre Project

The Portsmouth City Council meets Saturday afternoon with one topic on the agenda: the McIntyre Project.

The meeting, which was announced Friday afternoon, will begin with a non-public session at 3 p.m. The public session begins at 4 p.m. The agenda for the meeting does not include a specific item up for discussion.

“The City continues to keep the City Council informed on the McIntyre project, in the most timely manner appropriate," city spokeswoman Stephanie Seacord told Seacoast Current in an email.

Built in 1967, the Thomas J. McIntyre Federal Building on Daniel Street was home to many federal government offices including the IRS, the Social Security Administration, the FBI, and the US Postal Service. It was phased out of use in 2016 as the agencies moved elsewhere.

The City Council in 2016 began the process to acquire the building and make it part of the Historic Monument Program as a way to free it from the General Services Administration who owned the property.

The intention was to reconnect the site with surrounding downtown area. The lower level would become home to non-profits and retail.

A plan from developer Redgate/Kane was ready for approval by the City Council in 2019. But five members who backed the plan lost re-election and the new members put everything on pause when they took office in 2020.

The city signed a contract in January with RKG Associates of Virginia to review its  "community plan" for the site to be submitted as part of an application to the National Park Service. If approved the building could be purchased for $1 from the General Services Administration.

According to an update on the project by City Manager Karen Conrad in December, the cost of the plan ranged between $74 million and $147 million.

Dan Alexander is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at dan.alexander@townsquaremedia.com

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