KEENE, NH – Keene officials say “complicated” grant funding could push the start of the Downtown Infrastructure Improvement and Reconstruction Project back one year, to 2025.

In an interview on WKBK’s Open Mic program Wednesday morning, Keene City Manager Elizabeth Dragon said the timing of the grants is what complicates the process.

“It already appears that the project is going to need to be pushed out a year, just based on our grant applications that we have,” Dragon said. That includes the infrastructure work underground and the redesign portion, which has yet to be finalized.

The city won’t know if they’ll get a $1.1 million design grant until next year, so Dragon said to ensure that funding aligns with the project, it’ll need to be pushed back. However, Dragon did note that the City Council can do whatever they feel is best.

“Just moving through the process, it doesn’t look like we can accomplish it by ’24.”

Dragon is also applying for federal funds for Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Congresswoman Annie Kuster. The city has already received some public works grants through the American Rescue Plan, which needs to be utilized by various deadlines. The city can go back to the federal government to ask for some wiggle room to make the funding fit within the project.

No estimated dollar amount as to the cost of the project as a whole has been provided by the city, but Mayor George Hansel did previously say on WKBK that there is no final amount yet as the redesign portion has not been finalized. Dragon said she’s estimating it in the $9.5 million range.

Two weeks ago, more than 50 downtown business owners signed a letter to the council urging them to delay the project to 2026, to allow them to get back on their feet financially following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two public meetings have been held on the project for the community to learn more and provide feedback, now the fate of the project lies with the Keene City Council. It’s unclear at this point how exactly the council plans to proceed, they could discuss it and make a decision as a whole or send the matter to the Municipal Services, Facilities, and Infrastructure committee for further examination and discussion. The project is set to appear on their agenda for their meeting on Thursday, March 2nd.