Waldron Towers, Riverview and Cochecho Park, mainly housing for the elderly, were constructed between 1976 and 1980. A massive downtown urban renewal project razed several buildings and homes in the area and even redesigned old streets, moving Green Street and eliminating much of Waldron Street. The Orchard Street parking lot was completed in the Fall of 1977 and the walkway along the Cocheco River was finished in Spring, 1978. The Trela and O’Neill houses, built circa 1827-30 as boarding houses for mill workers, were restored in June 1980.
From the1984 Heritage Walking Tour booklet