The owner of Martha’s Exchange laid out preliminary plans Wednesday to build a new canopy on Main Street and create an outdoor dining area on the second floor of the business.

“We’re trying to put a little excitement into downtown,” restaurant owner Chris Fokas told the Committee on Infrastructure, describing his plan to add a second-story dining area with seating capacity for as many as 75 people.

Martha’s Exchange already features an outdoor dining area along Main Street. The project would add a new canopy measuring 80 feet by 13 feet outside the business at 185 Main St.

Fokas, whose family has owned the restaurant for decades, said he took inspiration for the project from the original design of the Merchants Exchange building, which dates to the 1870s. Historical photographs show the building once had an overhang supported by columns on Main Street.

The new canopy would evoke the original look of the building, while giving the restaurant a new area to serve lunch and dinner. The second-story dining area would be accessible through the windows along the existing function hall. It would potentially allow Martha’s Exchange to expand the role of its function hall, opening the space to showers and wedding parties.

The project is expected to cost in the range of $400,000 to $500,000. Fokas said he’s giving city officials a preview of the concept to help gauge any potential stumbling blocks.

“We’re just hoping that we don’t run into any insurmountable obstacles legally from the city’s point of view,” he said.

A relative opened the first iteration of the Fokas family business in 1932, known as Martha’s Sweet Shoppe. Fokas’ father, James Fokas, expanded the shop to include a luncheonette with 28 stools, and the business carried on for decades as a popular lunch destination, according to a history available on the restaurant’s website.

Chris and brother Bill Fokas took over the business in 1985 and renovated the Merchants Exchange building, which came to house a restaurant and bar known as Martha’s Exchange with a function hall on the second floor. The business added a microbrewery and expanded the size of the bar in 1993.

The Fokas family hired TMS Architects of Portsmouth to design the latest expansion involving the new canopy. Chris Fokas said the firm also worked on successful projects on the Seacoast and in Newburyport, Mass.

The preliminary design includes overhead lighting for the first-floor dining area on Main Street, as well as greenery on the second floor and heaters or other mechanisms to help the restaurant use the area earlier in the spring and later in the fall.

Fokas said the restaurant aimed to have the project in construction this spring, but timing the endeavor with the city’s sidewalk project has been tricky. It’s possible construction will still take place this year, but the project might be pushed into next spring. Fokas said he is working with the city’s economic development office to navigate the city’s approval process and coordinate with the sidewalk construction.

Jim Haddadin can be reached at 594-6589 or jhaddadin@nashuatelegraph.com. Also, follow Haddadin on Twitter (@Telegraph_JimH).