Written by: Jeff McMenemy, Portsmouth Herald
PORTSMOUTH — The city — and Vaughan Mall — are slated to receive a gift of art from its siter city Santarcangelo, Italy, to help illuminate the city’s iconic downtown venue, according to city officials.
“The artwork, created by Italian artist Tiziano Corbelli, consists of illuminated script displaying the poem 'The Air' by Tonino Guerra in both English and Italian,” according to Sean Clancy, Portsmouth’s assistant city manager for economic and community development. “The installation is proposed for Vaughan Mall and would consist of suspended light elements arranged overhead.”
“Based on materials provided and discussions with the artist, the artwork is designed to complement the ongoing Vaughan Mall improvements and provide a unique cultural feature within this space,” he added.
Streetscape and landscape upgrades at Vaughan Mall
Reached June 16, Peter Rice, the city’s public works director, stated all “the underground utility work is done” at Vaughan Mall, which connects Congress to Hanover street.
The work focused on replacing sewer, water and drainage pipes that were 100 years old or older, Rice said, and ran under the mall.
The city is now working to finalize the restoration plan and redevelopment of the rest of Vaughan Mall.
That work will determine “what the surface plan” and streetscape improvements, along with a landscape redesign, “will look like,” Rice said.
But it will definitely include the installation of “poles to accommodate the donation,” of the artwork from Portsmouth’s sister city, Rice said.
Public art collection
Clancy said the city’s Public Art Review Committee “finds that the proposed gift meets the city’s criteria for public art, enhances the cultural and aesthetic character of Vaughan Mall, reflects Portsmouth’s international partnership with Santarcangelo, and represents a distinctive addition to the city’s public art collection.”
Rice expects the city will host a public meeting sometime in the next two to three months to highlight the planned streetscape improvements.
“We’re in the process of getting that done,” he said.
During a city meeting on the topic in July 2025, landscape architect Terrence Parker, who’s working with the city on the project, proposed a series of improvements including resurfacing, adding trees and Catenary lights, upgrading the stage that’s near the adjacent Worth Lot and building a 74-foot long multi-glass panel wall.
Rice said the project’s “general concepts are still the same,” but the final plan and layout of the reconstruction project still has to be worked out.
Work on that part of the Vaughan Mall project will likely start next spring, Rice said.
The work on Vaughan Mall is part of a multi-phase initiative, according to city documents, that will also include the Fleet Street reconstruction project, utility and sidewalk improvements along Congress Street and a new drain pipe down Maplewood Avenue.
Open heart surgery on a 400-year-old city
Rice estimated this week the work in total when completed will cost about $20 million.
“It’s like performing open heart surgery on a 400-year-old city,” Rice said.
The Fleet Street project includes sewer separation in the area, featuring water, sewer and drainage, along with “pedestrian enhancements,” according to the city website.
Rice noted “a lot of the infrastructure” that had been under Vaughan Mall was “there for 100-plus years.”
There were “pipes collapsing causing disruptions” to downtown businesses, he said.
“It’s a great step forward installing utilities that will serve the city well for the next 100 years,” Rice said.
City acknowledges work is 'incredibly disruptive'
The city recently completed work on Congress Street, which had shut one of the downtown’s busiest roads down to one lane at many times earlier this year.
Rice credited downtown business owners and residents for “for everyone’s patience,” during construction.
“We understand it’s incredibly disruptive,” Rice said.
Monte Bohanan, the city’s director of communications and community engagement, said now that constructive work is finished in the Vaughan Mall and on Congress Street, he’s hopeful more people will come downtown.
Mayor Deaglan McEachern called the artwork gift from Portsmouth’s sister city “incredibly generous.”
“We’re incredibly grateful,” McEachern said and noted city officials hosted both the artist and the mayor of the sister city when they visited Portsmouth recently.
“Vaughan Mall is really the gateway to downtown from the old North End,” McEachern said.
He added the gift of art from Italy is a fitting tribute to the Italian heritage of many people who used to live in the North End.
He credited city staff with finishing construction on the Vaughan Mall and Congress Street before the start of summer.
“It’s a big huge coordinated project and it shows all the effort that goes into these type of projects,” McEachern said.
He too hopes more residents and visitors will travel downtown to enjoy Portsmouth’s businesses, restaurants and arts community.
Chris Dwyer, the head of the city’s Public Art Review Committee, said the idea with the artwork is to show “a poem in English from one direction and Italian in the other direction.”
“It’s about a five-line poem so it will fit without disturbing the treescape there,” she said during the City Council’s June 8 meeting.
Read on Seacoastonline: https://www.seacoastonline.com/story/news/local/2026/06/17/portsmouth-vaughan-mall-italian-art/90559002007/