HAMPTON BEACH, N.H. (AP) – Planners are looking about 100 years into the past for an idea of how they would like Hampton Beach to look in the future.

If the state and town and regional planners have their way, many of the restaurants, arcades, T-shirt shops and low-budget motels that dominate Ocean Boulevard will be on their way out.

On the way in will be a conference center, pedestrian-friendly walkways and parks, upscale retail shops, cafes, restaurants and an indoor performing arts center.

The idea is to cater to more than visitors who jam the town during the summer, transform the resort area into a year-round destination and clean up some less-than-desirable residents who live in the motels during the winter.

“We want to make it a nice place to live for us who are year-round residents here,” said Town Planner Jennifer Kimball.

She told Foster’s Daily Democrat the master plan is leaning toward a Victorian-style look, reminiscent of the way Hampton Beach was at the turn of the 20th century.

Alison McLean, the state’s parks bureau supervisor, said the state will be a partner because it controls most of Hampton Beach, the Sea Shell bandstand, parking along the shore and the state parks.

McLean believes the state will add year-round visitor centers and contact areas. She also envisions attractions such as a museum and converting the bandstand into an amphitheater.

The first step already ha been taken, when contractors broke ground this month on a $12 million project to replace aging sewers, drainage, sidewalks and utility poles.

Kimball acknowledges it will take at least 50 years for the town to realize its vision.

Many property owners on Ocean Boulevard are content to remain seasonal because they already do a good business.

The key, she said, will be to get more people interested in living at the beach year-round to eventually acquire those properties and transform them.

Town Manager James Barrington envisions a mix of upscale retail shops, more hotels like the Ashworth by the Sea Hotel that will cater to families and couples seeking winter and summertime getaways, more cultural entertainment and a convention facility to cater to business groups of 600 to 1,000 people.

He said some beach businesses that stay open year-round do very well, proving there is an untapped market.

“Seeing the ocean in the wintertime is a completely different (experience) than seeing in the summer,” Barrington said.