Dover Download

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Margaret Joyce and Jed Allen of the Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce about the 40th annual Cochecho Arts Festival. The free, family-friendly summer concert series kicks off July 9 with a community band performance, followed by the Friday night headliner series beginning July 10 with Jon Nolan & Go...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Mike Gillis for an end-of-June recap of city government activity. June was an unusually quiet month, with the City Council holding only one regular meeting, plus a special meeting and workshop on June 3. The special meeting addressed a procedural housekeeping vote on the waterfront TIF, ensuring the $6...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Deputy Community Services Director Ken Mavrogeorge and City Engineer Jillian Semprini about the construction projects underway across Dover. The conversation begins with how projects move from the Capital Improvements Program through design and engineering before any work begins, noting that a major re...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with project manager Jamie Stevens about the long-awaited completion of Dover's waterfront development, including Nebi Park, the rebuilt River Street, Seaport Way, and Payne Street. Three years after the June 2023 groundbreaking, the three-acre park is nearing the finish line ahead of a ribbon cutting o...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Katy Cordova-Brooks, executive director of the Strafford Nutrition and Meals on Wheels program, continuing the series spotlighting nonprofits that strengthen Dover. The program delivers hot lunchtime meals to seniors and adults with disabilities across Strafford County, helping people remain independen...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Director of Media Services Mike Gillis fills in for Deputy City Manager Chris Parker to discuss the major items from Dover's May public meetings. The City Council held three meetings. A May 6 workshop covered housing—where the median home sale price topped $570,000 and a two-bedroom rental requires roughly $90,000 in annual income to be affordable...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Chad Kageleiry of Summit Land Development, the principal behind Sky Hill, a major project off Littleworth Road. Parker calls it likely the largest project Dover has seen, with roughly 600,000 to 800,000 square feet of commercial space and 600 to 800 residential units across about 200 acres. The plan se...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Anne Hayes, executive director of Gather, a Seacoast-area food access and hunger relief organization. Hayes explains that Gather was founded in 1816 by women from Strawbery Banke to support fishermen's families and has evolved significantly since rebranding from Seacoast Family Food Pantry in 2016....

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Planning and Community Development Director Donna Benton and Housing Planner Abby Muirhead about Dover's ongoing housing efforts following their recent City Council presentation. Muirhead reports that Dover permitted over 500 housing units in 2024 and 159 in 2025, highlighting the city's Transf...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Mike Gillis about the major actions taken by Dover's boards, committees, and commissions during April. The City Council kicked off the month on April 1 by adopting a $227.3 million budget following weeks of workshops and public hearings, with Parker praising the balance between veteran councilors a...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with returning City Attorney Joshua Wyatt and new Fire Chief Brendan Driscoll. Wyatt, who previously served as city attorney from June 2019 to February 2025 before joining the Pease Development Authority as deputy general counsel, returned to the city role on Jan. 26, 2026. He walks through the broad scope...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Deanna Strand, Director of the Dover Adult Learning Center, about the organization's mission, programs, and recent developments. Strand shared how she came to DALC in 2009, stepping up from a coordinator role in Exeter to lead a much larger organization based at the McConnell Center. As the adult l...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with José Feliciano and Terry Ellen Carter from the Committee for Racial Equity and Inclusion (CREI). Carter opens with a land acknowledgment honoring the Abenaki, Penacook, and Wabanaki peoples, a practice the committee observes at every meeting. Feliciano, a mechanical engineer originally from Puerto Rico...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Dover Public Library Director Denise LaFrance about the library's upcoming move back to its renovated building after operating out of temporary space in the McConnell Center for most of 2025 and into 2026. LaFrance announces that the move begins April 20 and will take approximately six weeks, with a gr...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Media Services Director Mike Gillis about key actions taken by Dover's boards, committees, and commissions during March. The two discuss the City Council's decision to pursue diver-assisted mechanical removal of milfoil in Willand Pond, a state-owned waterbody shared with Somersworth, opting ag...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Community Services Director John Storer and Recreation Director Kevin Hebert to wrap up the podcast's look at the FY27 municipal operating budget. Storer opens by walking Parker through the complexity of building Community Services' proposed $38 million budget, the largest departmental budget o...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Police Chief David Terlemezian, Fire Chief Brendan Driscoll, Public Library Director Denise LaFrance, and Information Technology Director Annie Dove as part of an ongoing look at the City of Dover's FY 27 municipal operating budget. Chief Terlemezian, in his first budget as chief, explains that des...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Dover School District Superintendent Christine Boston about the district's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget. Boston outlines the budget development process, which begins each September with building-level administrators submitting their needs before she and CFO Michael Limanni compile and refine th...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Media Services Director Mike Gillis about the highlights of February 2026 in Dover city government. The conversation centers on the FY 2027 budget rollout, which dominated the City Council's February agenda across multiple meetings, including workshops, presentations, and a public hearing on the sc...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Finance Director Dan Lynch, Planning and Community Development Director Donna Benton, and Public Welfare Director Dave Balian about their respective fiscal year 2027 budget presentations. Parker begins with a brief overview of the Executive Department budget, noting it is largely personnel-driven with...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with City Manager J. Michael Joyal, Jr., about the City of Dover's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget, which was presented to the City Council on Feb. 11, 2026. Joyal, presenting his 21st budget to the council, provides an overview of the 900-page document, which reflects total spending of $227.4 million...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Amy Rich Crane, executive director of Reach for the Top Therapy, a nonprofit organization located in the McConnell Center that provides therapeutic services for children and young adults from birth to age 21. Crane, a dual board-certified pediatric occupational therapist with more than 15,000 hours of...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Mike Gillis, the city's Director of Media Services, to recap highlights from January's board, committee, and commission activities. The conversation begins with the Jan. 5 inauguration of the City Council, including four new city councilors and a new mayor, with Lindsey Williams unanimously sel...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Jackson Kaspari, Director of Member Services for the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire. Kaspari, who previously served as Dover's resilience manager and helped launch the city's Community Power program, reflects on the coalition's growth since Dover became a founding member in Octo...

In this episode of the Dover Download podcast, Deputy City Manager Christopher Parker chats with Melanie Haney of East Coast Evolution Leadership and Strafford County Commission Chair George Maglaras about the Strafford County Warming Center's current operations and future expansion. Haney explains how her company evolved from Thrive Outdoors' leadership development work to operating emerg...