Heather McGrail & Matt Cookson: Manchester is building NH’s future
T
he City of Manchester has certainly been a focus this political season. Due to this intense spotlight, it’s been a challenging narrative at times. We get it — it’s politics. But as we move past the election, we must emphasize that Manchester is a growing, inviting and vital driver of the state’s economy. Sure, our city — as the largest urban center of the Granite State — has challenges, but they are not uncommon to those of like-sized cities nationwide.
As the Chamber of Commerce for New Hampshire’s largest city, the Greater Manchester Chamber consistently communicates and collaborates with other chambers serving peer cities across the nation. We can assure you that the issues we face, such as homelessness, workforce and housing challenges, are not unique to Manchester. They are pervasive across America.
NATIONAL ACCOLADES
What’s unique to Manchester is that we have much to celebrate and are receiving national accolades that make our peers incredibly envious. This narrative is too seldom told and needs to be shared by all. Here’s a glance at some national unbiased rankings Manchester has earned:
US News & World Report — Top 150 Places to Live in the U.S. (2024, 2025)
US News & World Report — 15th Best Place to Retire (2024, 2025)
Livability.com — Top 100 Best Places to Live in the U.S. (2023, 2024)
Realtor.com — Hottest Housing Market (Sept 2024 and a record 30 times since 2021)
USA Today –10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards – Best Small Airport (2024)
LuvLink’s Traveler Survey — 13th Kindest Places in America (2024)
WalletHub — Safest Cities in America (2024)
Niche Best Places Ranking – 35th Best Cities for Outdoor Activities in America (2024)
Travel & Leisure — #1 Domestic Airport — Manchester Boston Regional Airport (2023)
It is no wonder that tourism and relocation are on the rise, with an 8% increase from 2022 to 2024 in out-of-the-area visitors spending at least a night in the city. Younger people are enthusiastic about Manchester’s quality of life and employment offerings, the Manchester Young Professionals program is thriving, and our median age has decreased to 37 years. As a growing urban center, we have thousands of newer housing units opened and under development for people relocating here. These individuals will enrich our culture and diversity, engage in our school systems and communities, and enhance a vibrancy that is palpable. Residents and visitors are filling up our restaurants, entertainment and retail and catalyzing the growth of new amenities.
We are investing more than $300 million in our schools to ensure they are ready to embrace and drive 21st century learning to the most diverse city in Northern New England.
GLOBAL EPICENTER
Manchester is becoming the global epicenter of the new biofabrication industry, a transformative opportunity for our city, region and the world. In July, the ReGen Valley of Manchester-Nashua was awarded a $44-million federal grant through the Tech Hub Program. It invests in regions that have the most potential to become globally competitive in the technologies and industries of the future — and create good jobs that remain in the U.S.
Recent federal investments in the budding biofabrication industry in Southern New Hampshire have surpassed over $250 million and we are seeing more startups and companies relocating and growing here.
To build our workforce, the University of New Hampshire was recently awarded $10 million to lead workforce development initiatives for the ReGen Valley Tech Hub in partnership with Manchester Community College and other academic partners. With an estimated creation of 7,000 direct jobs and over 35,000 indirect jobs in this sector alone, these specific bridges between education and employment are critical. The workforce pipeline is being built at the high school level too, with the Manchester School District taking an active role in securing internships and apprenticeships for teen talent. A promising picture for our region’s labor force, the Manchester-Nashua area is leading the way for tech employment in New Hampshire at 11.9% of total employment. In a state that has earned the fifth highest concentration of tech employment among all states, this statistic is even more significant.
POSITIVE OUTLOOK
As a Chamber, we see this in unique ways. In 2024 the amount of ribbon cuttings for new businesses was unprecedented. Manchester is increasingly seen as a welcoming home for budding entrepreneurs, as well as growing businesses and chain/franchise models, which invest in market research to pick their next location. While we will continue to face challenges common to urban areas, we are embracing a future of social, educational and economic vitality that is enviable.
The intellectual and economic capital flooding into the Queen City is extremely positive and will cause a resounding ripple effect in our great Granite State. Manchester has much to be proud of and a future to look forward to. We encourage you, too, to share your positive Manchester stories and experiences as a resident, business professional or visitor. Together, let’s set Manchester’s story straight.
