Nearly four decades after it was originally conceived, construction of Exit 4A on Interstate 93 took another step closer to completion this week after the Executive Council approved a $10.8 million contract with engineering firm VHB of Bedford to complete design of the project.
The contract provides for the design work to be completed by May 1, 2025.
The project consists of construction of a diamond interchange a mile north of Exit 4 that would provide access to the east side of I-93 and a one-mile connector road from the interchange to Folsom Road where it joins Tsienneto Road in Derry. Both Folsom and Tsienneto roads, along with the intersections along their length, will be improved to the junction with Route 102 (Chester Road), a distance of 3.2 miles.
The project is intended to reduce congestion in Derry by providing an alternative to Exit 4 for eastbound traffic from i-93. At the same time, the exit will provide access to some 200 acres in Londonderry envisioned for future development as part of the Woodmont Commons project, which straddles the highway.
The project, expected to cost $56.8 million, was delayed last year when bids came in $30 million over the estimate. With another $30 million in land acquisition costs, the total cost climbed to $120 million.
Key federal funding for New Hampshire schools has not been affected by the shutdown in Washington, Department of Education Commissioner Caitlin Davis said Thursday, Oct. 9 — at least the money that flows through the state Department of Education.
New Hampshire voters aren’t feeling much relief from their anxieties about the state’s housing crisis. The continued reduced housing inventory, which pushes home prices higher, is also dampening labor market in the Granite State, according to a pair of studies.
New Hampshire’s attorney general says no improprieties by state officials preceded the sale of a large Nashua commercial building to China’s largest water bottler. But Attorney General John Formella’s report to Gov. Kelly Ayotte dated Oct. 3 says the provisions of federal law should have taken place prior to the sale of the 337,391-square-foot building at 80 Northwest Blvd. in Nashua by a subsidiary of Nongfu Spring.
Despite a shift in policy, New Hampshire officials expect 100% of the households and businesses in the state will have access to broadband internet by 2026.
The Trump administration’s Department of Justice is suing New Hampshire Secretary of State Dave Scanlan, arguing he is illegally withholding the state’s voter file from federal officials.
Brian Gottlob uses these words to describe the state’s current economic climate: “Uncertainty rules.” The director of the New Hampshire Employment Security's Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau raised several issues — from immigration and unemployment, to housing prices and consumer spending — as reasons for both hope and concern for the economy into 2026.
Gov. Kelly Ayotte led the visit, which included a selection of policymakers as well as businesspeople representing a wide array of enterprises.
Nashua Mayor seeks funds to buy the long-vacant Daniel Webster College site from Chinese-owned Xinhua amid rising debate over foreign property ownership.
While home prices might be moderating in other parts of the country, the median price of a single-family house in New Hampshire rose to $550,000 in August, the second highest price point this current year. That price is just $3,000 more than the $547,000 recorded in July, but it is $47,500 more than January’s $502,500. The highest median price in 2025 was $569,450, recorded in June and the most ever recorded in the state.
