1. Project Overview

The City of Keene, NH ("the City") seeks to hire a qualified consultant or consultant firms to assist the Planning Board, a special Master Plan Project Steering Committee, City staff and City Council to prepare an update to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP).

This update will be done in two phases, beginning with a renewal of Keene's Community Vision. Public involvement and input will be a critical component of this phase, with a focus on neighborhood engagement throughout the City and strategic visioning around the future of Keene's downtown and growth areas/nodes. In the second phase, each of the 2010 CMP's multiple topic-oriented chapters will be examined and updated to reflect current community priorities. Throughout the process, citizens and community partners will be asked to join with the City to identify priorities and establish a list of goals and action steps for implementation. This input will inform the development of an actionable implementation section that will outline and prioritize strategies for achieving the Plan's updated goals and objectives.

This project is anticipated to take place over a period of eighteen months. Funding will support professional services and materials to organize and facilitate public engagement activities, collecting and analyzing current demographic and socioeconomic data and historical trends, the development of updated plan language, the development of existing and future land use maps, and the reorganization and graphic layout of a revised document.

2. Background

The City of Keene is a community of 23,437 residents, located in the southwestern corner of New Hampshire near the borders of Vermont and Massachusetts. The City serves as the county seat and economic and cultural hub for the predominantly rural Monadnock Region. Keene is also home to three higher education institutions, nonprofit and human services organizations, and the region's major hospital.

The City of Keene has made it common practice to take new and creative approaches towards solving community challenges. The City continues to be recognized within the state, nation, and internationally for its innovative, practical efforts and solutions to contemporary issues. These issues include climate change, community sustainability, and resiliency.

Keene's current Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP), adopted in 2010, began in 2008 with an award-winning "Community Vision". The CMP embodies the community's vision of how the city and region could, and should be, for future generations. This plan is a guide to assist the community and City government in making decisions to move the community forward toward a more sustainable and resilient Keene. The 2010 CMP covers a broad scope of twenty-one topic areas, ranging from "Community Sustainability" to "Economic Development", "Community Health & Wellness" to "Climate Change". The process to develop this Plan involved extensive public outreach and engagement, through which over 2,000 people participated in community forums, focus groups, and/or study circles.

It is now 13 years later, and many aspects of Keene's economic, environmental, and social context have changed. The community is actively engaged in conversations regarding several major community development issues that should be taken into consideration with this planning effort, including:

• Housing – Keene has identified housing as a critical challenge for many years and it is now at the crisis stage, affecting the local economy and workforce retention and recruitment. A recent Housing Needs Assessment report concluded that, over the next 10 years, Keene will need new, improved, or alternative housing arrangements for over 4,200 households in addition to a need for approximately 1,400 new housing units. In addition, homelessness is a growing issue and Keene has seen a recent surge as the pandemic-era restriction on evictions ended.
• Economic Development – Keene continues to strive for a vibrant local economy that provides living wage job opportunities for residents, maintains a high diversity of business and industry, and creates a healthy balance among industrial, commercial, institutional and residential uses. Major economic issues include attracting and retaining a skilled workforce, addressing the need for quality housing options, creating living wage job opportunities, and taking advantage of emerging opportunities such as outdoor tourism.
• Downtown Infrastructure – The Keene downtown area is the economic engine for the community and represents the spirit and place of Keene. Some elements of Keene's downtown utility infrastructure including water, sanitary sewer, stormwater, electrical, telecommunication and gas date back to over 120 years and are in critical need of improvement. The City has budgeted funds in the Capital Improvement Program to replace this infrastructure and reconstruct the streetscape. This project is currently in the design phase, with construction expected to begin in 2025 and last for three years.
• Climate Resilience – Major flooding events have occurred in Keene over the past couple decades, placing a strain on local infrastructure and causing major damage to private property. Other climate-related impacts include an increasing number of high heat days, changing winter precipitation patterns and deteriorating snow conditions, and negative impacts to air quality. Building resilience to these impacts in order to protect human health, mitigate economic impacts, and protect the quality of our natural environment remains a high priority for the community.
• Sustainable Energy Supply – In 2019, the Keene City Council adopted a resolution to transition to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030 and 100 percent renewable energy for heating, cooling, and transportation by 2050. The City was an early adopter of Community Power in New Hampshire, offering residents and businesses an electricity supply option that is competitive and includes voluntary renewable energy above the state RPS requirement.

3. Project Schedule

It is anticipated that the services under this proposed contract would start in January 2024. The expected project completion date is July 2025. The City reserves the right to revise the following tentative schedule:

• Oct. 4 - RFQ Issued
• Nov. 3 - Proposals due by 4:00 pm
• Nov. 15-17 - Interviews
• Nov. 21 - Presentation to Finance, Organization, and Personnel Committee
• Dec. 7 - To City Council for Approval
• Dec. 14 - Contract signed by City Manager

Please visit https://keenenh.gov/finance-purchasing/current-projects to download the full scope of work.