KEENE, N.H. — The Keene City Council approved the final design for the city’s downtown infrastructure project on Jan. 1, voting 12–1 after a series of amendments that narrowed and clarified which elements will be included in the base bid and which will be offered as bid alternates.

The council’s action authorizes the city manager to implement the project’s specified streetscape furnishings, materials and design preferences. Councilor Mitchell H. Greenwald, who led the Municipal Services, Facilities and Infrastructure (MSFI) committee through the multi-hour review, moved the council carry out the committee’s recommendation; Councilor Filho seconded the motion.

Why it matters: The approved package sets materials and fixtures that will define the public experience downtown for years — including sidewalk material, bike lanes, tree wells, lighting and furnishings — and frames what contractors will price in the base project versus optional add-ons.

Councilor Mitchell H. Greenwald described the council’s framing of the vote: “This project is for the betterment of all Keene residents and visitors,” Greenwald said, urging colleagues to view choices through a long-term maintenance and community-benefit lens.

Most major design choices were included in the approved base bid. Sidewalks will be stamped concrete (not pavers); bike lanes were retained in the plan; raised crosswalks will use stamped concrete; benches and tree grates follow the committee’s recommendations; and gateway arches and simulated rails in Railroad Square are included in the package. The packet presented by the consultant, Stantec, and MSFI also incorporated standards for trash receptacles, bike racks, planters and lighting fixtures.

Two council decisions during the meeting altered what bidders will be asked to price. Councilor Filho offered an amendment to remove a proposed covered shade structure for Railroad Square from the base recommendation; that amendment passed. Councilor Michael J. Remy then moved — and the council approved unanimously — to list the shade structure as a bid alternate rather than as part of the base scope, meaning contractors will bid it separately so the council can consider adding it later if funding or fundraising allows.

Councilor Philip M. Jones moved, and Councilor Remy seconded, an amendment to add bid alternates for compacting recycling/trash receptacles (so-called “big-belly” style units). That amendment passed 12–1; the base bid will retain standard trash receptacles and the bid documents will seek price alternatives for compacting/recycling units.

City staff and councilors also debated finish and color details for the bike lane. The council confirmed the bike lane will be integral-colored (dye in the concrete) rather than painted, and directed staff to return with color samples (muted tones rather than day‑glow green) before final selection.

Other details noted by the committee and carried forward in the adopted package include: bike racks of the U-shaped type favored by the Bicycle Pedestrian Path Advisory Committee; plans to retain and relocate existing granite bollards and chains where practicable; standard fluted light poles with alternates for protective cages over string lights in Railroad Square; and a plan to retain the fountain in the common, with its final design to be addressed separately.

City staff told the council the project will be phased and that an ombudsman will coordinate between contractor, city and downtown businesses during construction. The manager and Public Works staff also told councilors they will return with fine-grain specifications (for example, exact tree-well grate sizes and bollard details) and color samples prior to bid advertisement.

Outcome and next steps: The council approved the design, authorizing the manager to take the steps necessary to implement the project and instructing staff to include two bid alternates (shade structure and trash compactors) and to bring back final color samples and detailed specifications before bidding. The project will move to procurement and subsequent phasing once those items are resolved and bids are evaluated.