As our City continues to grow, so will our businesses. We want to help local businesses navigate the process of developing their land, building a new building, and expanding their properties. We’ll discuss the process and be your advocates with the City.

• The Atlantic Sports Center is in discussions with the Planning Board about developing a large center on South Hunt Road, and we’ve been working with the developers to give our support to the plan. You can read more about that on our blog.
• McDonald’s on Route 110 is talking with the Planning Board about demolishing their current building, which is old and negatively influencing their business. Their plan is to re-design their parking lot to better serve customers, including coach buses and tractor trailer trucks. We’re working with the owner to walk them through the process with the Planning Board and City Hall.
• Amesbury Chevrolet is in the process of expanding their site, building a new Service building next to their showroom. We’re thrilled to see that they’re thriving and need to expand their business to better serve their clients. Follow their progress on their Facebook page.

The Chamber has long supported revitalization of the Lower Millyard in an effort to create a regional waterfront hub of history, commerce, information, recreation and opportunity. At every step in its progress, the Chamber has rallied community interest, gathered feedback and delivered recommendations to further the cause and influence government support.

• In 2018, a request will go out to have the Riverwalk extended back along the riverfront, as it once was
• Many local businesses have moved into the area and have improved the historic buildings there, and there are still many buildings available for development
• The Elm Street Project (starting in 2018) will facilitate the walkability of this area, and connects the residential areas of Amesbury to downtown

There are over 100 acres of prime commercial land at the confluence of I-95, I-495 and Route 110 in Amesbury. 22 acres of the land is wetland, and the rest of the acreage has been zoned for commercial use. Amesbury Animal Hospital and the Hampton Inn were the first businesses to make use of this land.

• There are also plans to connect the Amesbury Riverwalk with the Salisbury Riverwalk through this area.
• Partners Community Physicians Organization is in front of the Planning Board to develop a 60,000 square foot medical office building. This will affect the intersections in that area, and they are currently doing a traffic study.

This area of Amesbury is seeing a lot of action! We have some major development happening, and there's still more land that is available to be developed. This has been identified as a high-growth area for development in the City. It has, and will continue to impact traffic and intersections in that area. Zoning changes have been addressed and improved to allow the various businesses to operate in this area.

• The Atlantic Sports Center plans to break ground in Spring 2018 for their complex, and you can read more about that on our blog.
• The Heights Apartments is opening with 240 units on Haverhill Road, and we expect that by Spring 2018 all of their buildings will be complete and they will reach capacity shortly after that
• After many years of planning, the Bailey's Pond Project has gotten the green light to add 136 condo units to the area. They are still in discussions with the Planning Board, but we expect them to break ground soon.
• Hatters Point had 44 units, and they're in the process of adding another 30-40 units to their property

The wayfinding effort in Amesbury began in earnest in 2014, working with the City of Amesbury, to help guide travelers from our major gateways into downtown Amesbury. We still have a lot of work to do, but part of our efforts included having three Welcome to Amesbury signs put in the City (one on Route 110 and Elm Street, a second one at Route 110 and Route 150, and a third to be added at Merrimac Street and Main Street once the construction is complete).

Our next step is to apply for a grant to continue the work of creating more wayfinding signs.

As part of our continuing effort to both build awareness of Amesbury’s many assets and boost the local economy, the Amesbury Chamber of Commerce was pleased to support production of the brochure: The River Cities; Discover the Mighty Merrimack.

The River Cities initiative is led by Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives and Haverhill Representative Brian Dempsey to increase tourism along the Merrimack River, from Haverhill to the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean. After they secured state funding from the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism to produce the brochure, we arranged a boat ride up the river to share information about Amesbury’s beautiful waterfront parks, well-appointed marinas and rich maritime history with the North of Boston tourism group tasked with collecting the brochure content. Download a copy of the brochure here: http://northofboston.org/itineraries/therivercities/.

This is just the first step of many that Senator O’Connor Ives and local Chambers have planned to increase tourism along the Merrimack River. As more funding is secured and more plans can become a reality, we will keep you informed of our progress.