Published July 5, 2023

266-278 State Street

Written by Andrew Samonas

To learn more about what the planning, approval stages, timelines, and what final sites will look like for this development click here for the Portsmouth town planning site.

266-278 State Street

Petition & Planning Stage

Completion TBD

NEWSPAPER ROW

A plethora of history is wrapped up in this lot. On the corner of Pleasant and State Street, these 3 former buildings were the heart of the Brewster Family Publishing company, known as "Printers Row". These buildings housed a grocery store on the ground level and the Portsmouth Journal, started by the Portsmouth Historian Charles W. Brewster.

The brick "Times Building," you'll know as the tallest on the block, was home to the Daily News and the States & Union newspapers. Gutted by fires in both 1902 and 2017, this historic building is now at the center of a decision that leaves the future of the property uncertain, between preservation and future development.

TIMES ARE A'CHANGING

Current owner of the Times Building is seeking to have it demolished to redevelop the site. The city's Historic District, would like it to be restored. Owner of the building sought reports from multiple engineering firms, who concluded, though the structure had not been damaged enough for a full demolition, cost for repairing it and bringing it up to code could be enormous.

The Historic District sought a structural engineering firm for their input on the matter and concluded that the remaining fire-damaged structure appears to support a full or near full restoration of the building.

Currently, a judge has denied the owner’s request to demolish the historic downtown building.

To learn more about what the planning, approval stages, timelines, and what final sites will look like for this development click here for the Portsmouth town planning site.