After years of scouring the Seacoast for a suitable location, a new home appears to be in sight for the Smuttynose Brewery.

Company president Peter Egelston said he has a purchase option on a 10-acre lot on Route 1 in Portsmouth that has remained vacant for years. Until the deal is finalized and specific plans are outlined, he’s holding back on releasing further details.

“We have a specific site in mind, although honestly it’s not carved in stone until the final approvals are received and the finances are in place and you stick a shovel in the ground,” Egelston said on Jan. 3. “But we do have what we consider to be a great site for future Smuttynose brewing.”

The property, located south of Market Basket on the west side of Route 1, is overgrown with tall grass and lined with small evergreens. Egelston said the land was once fully wooded. He hopes to alleviate anxiety among neighbors who are sensitive about the future of the property.

The brewery enjoyed record sales in 2006, and the current facility on Heritage Avenue in Portsmouth is too small to accommodate the growing demand. Owners previously explored the possibility of moving into a vacant mill building in downtown Newmarket, but unresolved negotiations with town officials caused the deal to collapse.

Founded in 1994, the independently owned brewery offers five year-round beers and three specialty seasonal brews, which are sold on tap at the Portsmouth Brewery restaurant on Market Street in Portsmouth. Egelston said he envisions a new facility with a restaurant and visitor center, similar to the Redhook Brewery at Pease Tradeport.

Finding a suitable location in Portsmouth has been a challenge for Egelston. Housing a commercial restaurant and visitor center under the same roof as a manufacturing facility would qualify the site as a mixed-use building, which creates thorny zoning issues.

Egelston supports a proposed amendment to a non-residential planned unit development ordinance currently before the Planning Board. If passed, the amendment would allow businesses like his brewery to exist in zones where they would not normally be allowed, if they adhere to certain conditions. The conditions include that the parcel be at least 10 acres and have a “campus-like” setting, said Jerry Hejtmanek, vice president of the Planning Board.

“We are involved with promoting that to give us more flexibility in finding a location here in Portsmouth that will suit our needs,” Egelston said.
The Planning Board will address the ordinance during a work session on Jan. 18. Egelston hopes to make an official announcement in the near future.

“We’re hoping to stay within the city limits of Portsmouth,” he said. “What we’re proposing lines up very, very well with the larger goals in the (city’s) master plan in terms of promoting mixed use and other things like that.” —MK