Dover Download

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Natalie Bogart, Deputy Director of the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority (NNEPRA), which operates the Amtrak Downeaster.

Bogart describes the Downeaster's reach: 12 station communities across three states, five daily roundtrips, and over 550,000 riders last year, about 30,000 of whom traveled to or from Dover. She highlights the service's diverse ridership — commuters, day-trippers, college students, and seniors and kids who ride at 50% off — plus a discount program for medical travelers.

The conversation covers scheduling complexities (including why late-night Portland-area service, like return trips from Thompson's Point concerts, involves Amtrak, CSX, and NNEPRA), NNEPRA's ongoing 15-year service development plan, and priority infrastructure projects: relocating the Portland station onto the rail mainline and adding double-track sections to increase capacity and speed.

Parker and Bogart also discuss Dover's partnership with NNEPRA, including grant funding for station improvements, wayfinding signage developed years ago, and the volunteer ambassador program that welcomes arriving passengers. Bogart notes that fares are affordable — $16 to $26 between Dover and Boston, as low as $8 to Old Orchard Beach — and describes onboard amenities such as business-class seating and the Downeast Cafe. She closes by encouraging listeners to visit AmtrakDowneaster.com to learn more about the Downeaster's station communities and submit feedback on future service.

In This Week in Dover History, we look back at July 25, 1890, when the New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled that Dover's own Marilla Marks Ricker could be admitted to the state bar, the first woman in New Hampshire history to do so. A lifelong freethinker and suffragist, Ricker had already been the first woman to attempt to vote in Dover in 1870, and went on to practice law in Washington, D.C., where she was known as the "Prisoner's Friend." She ran for New Hampshire governor in 1910 and died in 1917, just before the 19th Amendment secured women's right to vote.

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Lauren Petraitis, Director of Development at the Dover Children's Home, continuing a series spotlighting local nonprofits.

Petraitis explains that although the 133-year-old organization was founded in 1893 as an orphanage, it's now known as a residential treatment program for youth serving any young person in New Hampshire, not just Dover. The main house serves up to 12 youth ages 10–21, while a separate independent living program houses up to 4 residents ages 18–21 as they prepare to live on their own. A former high school teacher, Petraitis found her way to the nonprofit through volunteering and now leads fundraising, grant-writing, and community partnerships.
She describes a staff of about 25 working around the clock, guided by a "trust-based relational intervention" model that emphasizes relationship-building and personalized care—down to decorating a new resident's room with their favorite colors before they arrive. Stays vary widely, from six-month juvenile justice placements to five-year stays for youth working toward independence. Looking ahead, the organization is considering expanding services, potentially adding a higher level of care, housing for young adults aging out of the system, or vocational training.

State funding covers the bulk of the budget, supplemented by fundraising events (including an annual golf tournament each September), an Amazon wishlist, a meal-donor program, and a robust volunteer and mentorship network. More information is available at doverchildrenshome.org.

In This Week in Dover History, we hear the story of Plato Waldron, a formerly enslaved Dover resident who worked as a courthouse janitor and church sexton before his body was found in the Cochecho River in July 1835, his death still shrouded in mystery.

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Margaret Joyce and Jed Allen of the Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce about the 40th annual Cochecho Arts Festival. The free, family-friendly summer concert series kicks off July 9 with a community band performance, followed by the Friday night headliner series beginning July 10 with Jon Nolan & Good Company, and the Tuesday children's series starting with the Seacoast Science Center's "Coastal Critters." Margaret and Jed describe this year's diverse lineup, the fundraising and logistics behind the festival, and several new additions, including a third tier of raffle buttons, the return of the popular "duck race," a yard games area, and a weekly "artist of the week" showcase. A highlight this year is the new Cowabunga Fest, a partnership with the Woodman Museum celebrating Dover as the birthplace of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, featuring a pizza crawl and an Aug. 23 skate jam. They also preview the Creative Arts Showcase on Aug. 1, spotlighting local artists, poets, and singer-songwriters. The pair thank the festival's many sponsors, including The Truette, Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, the Rotary Club of Dover, and La Festa Pizza, and note this year's festival is dedicated to the memory of longtime volunteer Cliff Blake. For more about the festival, visit dovernh.org/artsfest.

In This Week in Dover History, we learn about William Riley Clark, known simply as "Riley," a beloved gatekeeper at the Cocheco Manufacturing Company mills in the early 20th century. Riley began working at the mills at age 11, served with the Strafford Guards and later the Coast Artillery, and returned to Dover in 1870 to resume his career, becoming the mill's gatekeeper in 1883.

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Mike Gillis for an end-of-June recap of city government activity. June was an unusually quiet month, with the City Council holding only one regular meeting, plus a special meeting and workshop on June 3. The special meeting addressed a procedural housekeeping vote on the waterfront TIF, ensuring the $6 million in bonding was properly noticed. Parker explains how tax increment financing works, with growth above a baseline funneled into a dedicated bucket that pays debt service, and notes the city only issues debt when funds are actually needed. The accompanying workshop covered stormwater management and nutrient loading in Great Bay, plus an update on the Tolend Road landfill Superfund site, a long-term obligation that later prompted a roughly $530,000 appropriation from unassigned fund balance. The council also weighed in on state legislation, supporting HB 1491 (later vetoed) and opposing HB 1588 as an attack on local control.

The Planning Board met twice, granting conditional approval to convert below-grade canal-level space at the Cocheco Falls Mill into residential units, and experiencing a rare 4-4 tie vote on a conditional use permit for the historic Samuel Wyatt house at 7 Church Street. Parker announced a July 14 ribbon-cutting for Nebi Park, comparing its cost to the newly renovated outdoor pool. The School Board accepted 16 retirements totaling 369 years of service, and both Parker and Gillis praised Dover Adult Learning graduations and the Dover High commencement at the Whittemore Center.

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Deputy Community Services Director Ken Mavrogeorge and City Engineer Jillian Semprini about the construction projects underway across Dover. The conversation begins with how projects move from the Capital Improvements Program through design and engineering before any work begins, noting that a major reconstruction like Horne Street can require 10 to 12 months of design plus public input meetings, followed by 18 months to two years of construction.

A central focus is the Central Avenue water main project, replacing infrastructure roughly 150 years old, with future phases planned southward from Broadway to Washington Street to Silver Street. Mavrogeorge explains the city's shift toward keeping good roads good while improving the worst, expanding paving and reclamation work as reconstruction costs climb (Court Street alone nears $10 million). They discuss complete streets principles, bike lanes, sharrows, and how public meetings and polls shape decisions, citing the Fifth and Grove one-way conversion that added parking and improved safety. Other highlights include the Henry Law Avenue and Payne Street reconstruction, downtown bump-outs and lighting, roundabouts for safety and lower operating costs, and accessibility upgrades at parks and ballfields. They also note the Jenny Thompson pool, library renovation, and court resurfacing wrapping up this summer, plus project web pages available on the city site.

In This Week in Dover History, we begin a month-long look at Dover's role in the American Revolution and 1776, focusing on the Association Test, a loyalty oath that forced residents, including the area's pacifist Quakers, to declare themselves patriots or risk treason.