Partnership to Oversee Transit & Housing Initiatives in Kittery

KITTERYA coalition has been established to oversee the continued implementation of transit, housing, and communications initiatives identified in a 2019 Joint Land Use Study (JLUS) funded through a U.S. Department of Defense grant with the Town of Kittery and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNS). Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission (SMPDC) is leading the effort with a committee comprised of Kittery town staff, shipyard officials, City of Portsmouth representatives,

Maine and New Hampshire transportation organizations, and other municipal, state, and federal partners. The group conducted its kickoff meeting recently at the Rice Public Library in Kittery. The goal is to refine and implement strategies identified in the previous JLUS phases to improve traffic congestion and address housing affordability throughout the region in addition to building communication and collaboration between the shipyard surrounding municipalities.

A Joint Land Use Study is a planning initiative in which a local government and a military installation collaborate to create a blueprint for their mutual benefit – preserving military readiness while supporting community growth and economic development. In 2019, a JLUS planning phase was completed, focused on transportation, workforce housing, and land use issues surrounding the shipyard. It led to recommendations to improve traffic congestion, address climate and economic resiliency, and regional workforce housing challenges associated with the shipyard, and other large employers in the region.

See PARTNER on page 6 . . .

Small Business Saturday is November 26

STATEWIDESmall Business Saturday is on November 26 this year, helping to promote local communities and small businesses throughout the area. Many small businesses are incentivizing shoppers that upcoming weekend, helping to increase local holiday sales, rebuild from the negative effects of the pandemic, and reconnect with local communities, shop owners and restaurants.

Founded by American Express in 2010 and officially cosponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) since 2011, Small Business Saturday has become an important part of small businesses’ busiest shopping season. Historically, reported projected spending among U.S. consumers who shopped at independent retail- ers and restaurants on Small Business Saturday reached an estimated $23.3 billion, according to the 2021 Small Business Saturday Consumer Insights Survey commissioned by American Express.

Area businesses, the SBA, Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), and American Express will be kicking off the 2022 holiday season by encouraging consumers to support the nation’s nearly 32 million independent businesses this Small Business Saturday and all holiday season long.

For more information and the many ways businesses and consumers can participate, visit www.sba.gov/about-sba/ organization/sba-initiatives/ small-business-saturday and www.americanexpress.com/ us/small-business/shop-small.