Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP Some of the people who gathered on the corner of Main and East Pearl streets Tuesday morning watch the beginning of the demolition of the former Alec's shoe store, a process that is expected to take about a month. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

NASHUA – While work has been going on for months inside the former Alec’s shoe store building and the adjacent former apartment building on Garden Street, this week marks the first time members of the public have been able to see the project taking shape.

That came in the form of the start of demolition of the building, at 201 Main St., that was vacated several years ago when Alec’s moved to Southwood Drive.

Before Alec’s, the building was home to the former Miller’s department store, like Alec’s, a downtown Nashua fixture for generations.

Many of the 20 or so city officials, downtown business people, and those associated with the Performing Arts Center project, described themselves as “excited” at witnessing the first steps of the roughly 18-month project.

Among them was Pete Lally, president of Spectacle Management, the firm that will manage and operate the PAC.

Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP The operator of a demolition excavator began taking down the former Alec's shoe store building Tuesday by peeling the letters, one by one, off the front facade. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

“I’ve seen so many renderings of this corner … to see it come to fruition is really exciting,” Lally said, referring to the artists’ renditions and computer-generated concepts generated during the planning process.

“It’ll be here before we know it,” he added.

A full story, with additional information, photos and graphics, including a timeline for the project, will appear in The Sunday Telegraph.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.