Opera House may be part of larger development plan

LACONIA — Plans disclosed by businessman Scott Everett on Monday to revitalize the historic Laconia Opera House are part of a broader redevelopment discussion he is having with the city.

City records show he has assembled a portfolio of at least eight properties in Lakeport, including multi-acre parcels. His interest in the area comes at a time when the city has changed planning rules to promote development.

Planning Director Dean Trefethen said these changes, including so-called performance zoning, were discussed with Everett in a recent meeting that also included City Manager Scott Myers and Mayor Ed Engler.

The meeting went beyond just the Opera House, which has been mostly vacant for decades. That building, which was built in the early 1880s, is to be the new home of the Laconia Daily Sun, which now leases property at 1127 Union Ave., that is being sold.

Trefethen said Everett talked generally in the meeting about his interest in redevelopment.

“It sounds very positive,” Trefethen said. “He seems to want to do some very positive things for the right reasons. He’s trying to make improvements.”

In a brief interview on Tuesday, Everett said it is too early to talk about revitalizing Lakeport in the way developer Rusty McLear turned around the economic fortunes of nearby Meredith in the 1980s with shops, restaurants and hotels.

“But the area is beautiful and does have the opportunity to do that if the community rallied around it,” Everett said. “I really, really want to improve the whole area.”

The new flexibility with zoning rules should help, he said.

“It allows for more density for the right developments that could make a darn nice, robust community,” said Everett, who operates a national mortgage loan business out of Texas, grew up in Gilford and spends summers locally.

Trefethen said performance zoning allows the Planning Board greater flexibility on issues such as density, setbacks, signage and parking. Part of the Lakeport area also falls under a new Urban Commercial District that is intended to permit expansion of existing uses or the redevelopment of parcels to new or different uses.

The city’s population of about 16,000 has not grown for many years and the demographics skew heavily toward an older populace. Much new development in the city has been too expensive for those with average income, but instead is being purchased by people wishing to retire or maintain second homes.

City officials have been looking for ways to attract new business and younger people. They want to boost the workforce and foster economic development by encouraging construction of smaller homes attractive to people early in their careers.

Councilor Andrew Hosmer, who represents Ward 6, which takes in Lakeport, said he’s thrilled that Everett is investing in the area.

“I can't help but see the potential for mixed-use development, a combination of residential and commercial,” he said. “The idea that one person or multiple people are looking to make significant investment is exciting not just for Lakeport, but is amazing for the whole city.

“I think so much of the credit goes out to Councilor David Bownes and Mayor Ed Engler for their work with the Planning Board on performance zoning and to make sure we have zoning ordinances that are conducive to enticing entrepreneurs to come into the city and make these investments.”

Lakeport has its own tax increment financing district. Such financing allows municipalities to fund infrastructure improvements in a given district by borrowing money and paying off the debt with increased property tax revenue fostered by those improvements.

Another potential area for development in the city is just northwest of Lakeport, where a state panel is considering options for about 200 acres of land that was once home to the Laconia State School, at Meredith Center Road and North Main Street.

Residential and commercial development, including a sports complex, a healthcare facility and a small hotel, are being considered for that area. The Lakeshore Redevelopment Planning Commission is tasked with turning that property into a development that would stimulate economic development and create jobs.

Open areas to the north of that property, along Parade Road, have also been discussed as having the potential for residential development, if needed infrastructure – water and sewer service – could be brought to the area.

According to city property records, Everett’s Antaeus Holdings LTD purchased the 13,792-square-foot Opera House, 781 Union Ave., at the intersection of Union Avenue and Elm Street, on June 24 along with a home behind the building. The residential property could be used to help with parking.

All told, Everett acquired 11 Laconia properties last month, including three buildings near the intersection, 49-63 Elm St. Late last year, he purchased 41 Elm St.

Other previous acquisitions by Everett in the Lakeport area include 5 acres at 290 North Street in 2017, 5 acres at 527 Elm St., 5.8 acres at 493 Elm St., which is near 2.3 acres without an address that he also owns nearby.

Many of the properties he purchased last month were older apartment buildings around the city. He has not disclosed his plans for these.

His purchases on June 10, 2019:

— 49-63 Elm St.

— 781 Union Ave.

— 27 Clinton St.

— 6 Dixon St.

— 24 Baldwin St.

— 20 Baldwin St.

— 33 Pine St.

— 377 Union Ave.

— 114 Messer St.

— 25 Grove St.

— 71 Academy St.

Previous Everett purchases in Lakeport:

— 41 Elm St., on 12/3/2018.

— 290 North St., on 11/20/2017.

— 527 Elm St., on 8/9/2013.

— 493 Elm St., on 8/9/2013.

— Elm Street (no address), on 8/9/2013.

Other select Everett holdings in Laconia:

— 16 Paugus Park Road.

— 242 Paugus Park Road.

— 250 Paugus Park Road.