Pointe Place – Dover’s mixed-use success story - by Brian White

Pointe Place in Dover, N.H. is a vibrant mixed-use community with a combination of new commercial, apartment, residential condominium and assisted living buildings. The Pointe Place development is the brainchild of Dover developer Chad Kageleiry, who as the principal member of Varney Brook Lands LLC and owner of Summit Land Development, purchased the former Thornwood Apple Orchard in 2008. At that time, the property was 65 acres of land improved with several older greenhouse buildings, dilapidated apple orchard structures and acres of former apple orchards. After remediating some isolated environmental contamination on the property, Kageleiry began formulating the development plan for the property. The first step taken in 2008 was to sell-off a small section of commercial land to an abutting Ford dealership. Given the fact that 2008 was the start of the Great Recession, which lasted for four years, this early land sale may have helped the development weather the recession setting it up for being the successful mixed-use development that it is today.

By working with the Planning Department for the City of Dover to see what development features were important to the city, Kageleiry was able to put together a master development plan that included the installation of a main interior road (Pointe Place) that extends from Dover Point Rd. to Middle Rd. There was also a 15-acre section of land adjacent to a wetland area that was set aside with a conservation easement and the developer installed a grassed public ball field. The initial master approvals from the city of Dover allowed for the property to be developed with 236 residential units, 73,000 s/f of commercial space, 20 townhouse style residential units, 31 detached residential units along with additional land that can accommodate several mixed-use buildings. 

After completing extensive site work and completing the initial installation of the Pointe Place road, a 5.5-acre parcel of land was sold off in 2013 to an abutting age-restricted development who constructed 14 detached residential units (now Teresa Dr.). In 2015, the Pointe Place road was largely in place and a 12.5-acre parcel with approvals for 31 detached age-restricted was sold to the Stabile Companies, an established residential developer from Nashua, New Hampshire. The Stabile Companies purchased a 1.5-acre parcel in 2017 that was approved for 20 townhouse style units. Both of the Stabile condominium developments sold-out quickly and the Point Place development began to take shape. In 2017, Kageleiry began the construction of two large four-story mixed-use buildings that are now completed with each having several commercial units on the first floor and 58 apartment units above. At the same time, a three acre parcel was sold to an assisted living operator who has constructed a 50-bed facility (Spring Village at Dover – completed in 2019). With a strong economy and the demand for commercial and apartment space in the Seacoast area of New Hampshire remaining high. Kageleiry is now planning on constructing a third mixed-use building in the development. This four-story building will have 9,000 s/f of first floor commercial space and a total of 39 apartments above. Construction is scheduled to begin on this building before the end of this year and a fall of 2020 completion date is anticipated. Conceptual approvals are currently in place for a fourth and a fifth multi-story building. These two buildings will each have a first floor garage area with 40 residential units located above. The fact that the residential units in these two buildings will each have a dedicated garage parking space makes these buildings possible condominium developments. The demand for similar style condominium units in the greater Portsmouth area remains strong making these potential condominium buildings a logical next step for the Pointe Place development. Kageleiry has indicated that he is typically a “buy and hold” developer but he may look to move these potential approved condominium site areas rather than develop them himself. 

The final development component of the Pointe Place development is one that was initially planned to accommodate a 10,000 s/f free-standing commercial building and a larger 20,000 s/f free-standing commercial building. Kageleiry has recently modified the plans to be more in-line with the current demands in the marketplace. These areas are now planned for development with two additional mixed-use buildings. The success of the Pointe Place development from the start has been driven by the developer’s ability to have a plan and yet be flexible to modify as the market dictates. This sounds like a simple concept but the Pointe Place development is a prime example of taking that concept from thought to reality.

Brian White, MAI, SRA, is the 2019 vice president of the NH-VT Chapter of the Appraisal Institute and operates White Appraisal, Dover, New Hampshire.