After spending a few years working to bring economic activity to Newton, I’ve come to the conclusion that, while we’re doing a lot of good things, we’re not doing enough in some areas that have been proven to work in other communities. While Newton has some unique challenges, much of what works elsewhere can work here. Our villages, which most of us see as a key part of our identity, are actually a challenge when it comes to economic activity, as they don’t concentrate enough businesses in a single area to encourage growth.
All that said, I believe we should start seeing Newton as the destination, not an exit on the highway, not just a place you run through for marathon training, and not just a place you leave from in the morning and return to at night. So in the spirit of the holiday season, I’m giving you all of the ideas that I’ve floated and/ or tried, but need additional help to make happen. Feel free to run with any of them.
- The alley project — Every village has an alley or two. Newtonville has two that cut from Walnut Street to Bram Way, Newton Centre has one that connects Union and Beacon, while another goes from Centre to
An example of alley art in Laurel Highlands, PA
the parking lots in the back. Then there is the one in W. Newton that gives you access from Washington Street to L’Aroma. I would love to see the city work with the property owners to turn these from weed-strewn afterthoughts into inviting pedestrian pathways. Different cities have done things with sculpture, wall art or lights, and they bring life and joy to an area. - Village Signage — Each village is unique, so what about giving each village the chance to showcase that? Again, this is a collaboration between property owners and the city, but I would love to see large signs painted that welcome people to a village. We’ve seen some of these murals around (Nonantum has had some great ones in Pelligrini Park) but we don’t encourage them. If we gave some money and some encouragement to the area councils as well as to the residents, the villages may start a bit of friendly competition to become the most-photographed.
- Activate Comm Ave. — Comm Ave is one of the top running destinations in the area, so let’s use that to our advantage. First, I’d love to see huge block letters that, over the course of the Newton Hills, spell out “Heartbreak”. Another is putting a large “#Newton” sign at just as you reach the peak, or maybe even in front of City Hall. That is, a place for runners to stop and photograph. We’ve seen this work with the Johnny Kelley statue, which is often decorated, photographed and used as a gathering point. The other thing I’d love to see is food trucks on Comm. Ave on Sundays. Again, the runners are there, but how about we invite in their families to wait or watch them? Or a place to sit and get coffee or a snack when they’re done with their workout?
- Food Trucks — Building on the idea above, we tried food trucks at Wells Ave and they essentially failed, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad idea. Food trucks are where innovation in food happens as it allows people to experiment with food concepts and locations with relatively little cost. They also need foot traffic to survive so they can achieve a minimum amount of sales. Suburban locations tend to subsidize trucks to bring in their vitality. The Wells Ave. program was built without subsidies, so when the trucks received better, more lucrative offers/ locations, they simply rolled away. I propose that we allow food trucks in places that are already active, like Newton Centre, as a way to become food destinations. We then promote those areas through a marketing program to attract a bigger lunch crowd. The goal is to attract more innovative restaurant ideas to the city.
- Art in the Environment — I loved doing the Greenway Arts project, but it now needs to be entirely rebuilt. The woman who had directed our partnership with Studios without Walls moved west, and the project needs a new direction to proceed. That said, I’d love to see a larger program from the city that extends this same idea into parks and paths around the area. Imagine finding sculpture in the park near the Cove, or discovering an inspiring sculpture in Cold Spring Park? With maps, scavenger hunts, and promotions, we could make this a way for people to rediscover the area parks. Throw in some celebrations, the farmer’s markets, and a few other things and we have new ways to engage our citizenry.
- Come and Climb — The D-line happens to slow down as it cuts through Hammond Pond, but what if we make that a flag stop? I know, it sounds odd, but hear me out. Hammond Pond Reservation is a major
destination for rock climbers, as it offers a ton of great climbing close to Boston. Rock climbing is also a fast-growing sport with a huge following and one that will likely get bigger since it has a debut in the 2020 Olympic Games. So let’s encourage climbers to get on the T and come to Newton. We could do the same thing with timed shuttles that run either from Chestnut Hill or Newton Centre. My instinct is to choose the Centre just because of the ability to cross-sell with commerce. This is also a chance to work with WS Development, owners of the Street, and use their marketing muscle. - Pedestrian Villages — Each village has a street that we can close for an entire weekend, or at least a full day, and not really miss. Some that come to mind: Union Street in Newton Centre (Langley also works); Elm St. in West Newton; West Street in Nonantum (maybe even Washington Street); Lincoln Street in Newton Highlands; Windsor Road (at Beacon) in Waban; and Walnut Street in Newtonville. Each of these streets has adjacent commerce and alternatives for through car traffic. And before everyone starts saying “but how am I supposed to drive through?” that’s exactly the point. You aren’t supposed to drive through, you’re supposed to stop, get out of your car and spend both your time and your money. Everywhere we try this it works, from Newbury Street in Boston to Times Square in Manhattan. Also, this isn’t about a street fair, though it will have some similar features, it’s about giving room to the existing vendors to open their doors and do things like serve food outside. We want more commerce, not less, we want vendors, we want people selling things. Let it build over time, like every Saturday or Sunday for an entire summer, morning to night, with things like morning yoga and evening music.
- Parklets — Right now, we don’t allow these, but they work. If we took away just a few on-street parking spaces we could give some of our restaurants better outdoor seating and also allow for better gathering points. Places like Nonantum, Newtonville and Newton Centre come to mind as key locations for this concept. These have proven to work around the Boston area including in Lexington where one sits right in front of Ride Studio Cafe.
What a great set of ideas!
Chuck,
When you say “ideas for improving Newton’s economic future,” do you mean improving economic future for Newton’s tax revenue and fiscal balance, or improving economic future and wealth for Newton’s existing home owners?
If it is the latter, the best idea for improving Newton’s economic future is preserve all single family zoning and property values and discourage dense new housing development.
If it is the former, perhaps more housing development — but come to think of it, where new dense housing brings new school age kids to the City, that’s a net loss as well.
So under both meanings, the single best idea for improving Newton’s economic future is preserve all single family zoning and property values and discourage dense new housing development.
(That’s not to say others may find there are non-economic or societal improvements otherwise.)
Beyond that, what additional idea there is to improve (and/or preserve) Newton’s economic future in 2020 must rely on November voters in red and battleground states.
Slight addendum/correction: since higher single family zoned home property values also mean higher City tax revenue (without any need for override), under ALL scenarios and interpretations, the best local idea for improving Newton’s economic future in 2020 — and beyond — is preserve all single family zoning and discourage any new dense housing development in Newton.
Ten years ago, maintaining the quality of the school system would have been high on this list. Now it doesn’t even make the list. Think about that.
Sorry, second addendum for improving Newton’s economic future: no new dense housing development will also mean less need to expend for increased city services and infrastructure to accommodate the new density.
@Jim: there’s so much to respond to here, but to pick just one thing: changes in property values have no effect on aggregate property tax revenue. The total tax levy increases each year and the tax rate is adjusted to accommodate changing property values.
Let me clarify slightly. I looked at these as concepts we can execute without requiring major changes in zoning, infrastructure, or taxation. These are things that can add to the vitality of our villages and help attract businesses, using only what we have in place today. Some will require actions by city council (food trucks and signage are two such issues) but they’re possible in a shortened timeframe.
This isn’t to say that we don’t need other improvements and changes (we do) and this doesn’t get to the eventual override that we’ll need to fund the schools and other financial liabilities (we will).
But let’s be clear, while schools are important we are here for so much more. Other places in the state have good schools, but they don’t have what makes Newton a great place to live. They don’t have the path along the river, and cinema in W. Newton. They don’t have Jerry Reilly and Susan Paley. They don’t have the Suzuki School in Waban and my own LigerBots. I’m sure we can all list lots of things that keep us here.
The schools are a big part of Newton, but we are also more than that.
David,
You make a valid point, but what about all my other pounts?
Jane,
I agree. Maintaining and spending on top schools will have a net economic benefit for Newton — so long as enrollment goes no appreciably higher than currently which would offset that added investment.
I’m with Chuck here. Some good ideas to improve livability in a city. Not a replacement for well run gov’t and schools, for sure, but still worth considering.
I love food trucks but I would hate for village center restaurants to suffer. We need brick and mortar restaurants to survive and be part of our community.
@NewtonMom restaurants tend to be worried about food trucks stealing their business, but the research shows that when food trucks come in they tend to add to the audience, not necessarily pull business away. By increasing options and adding an element of variability, they can bring more people to an area like Newton Centre, which benefits everyone.
Chuck, how many other communities have schools as good as ours coupled with our proximity to Boston?
@Mary that’s the point, it’s a coupling. It’s our schools AND our proximity AND other things.
Off the top of my head I would say that Needham, Weston, Lexington and Wellesley all have similar proximity and schools. Brookline also comes to mind as an excellent school system with good proximity. I’ve met students who moved to Boston for the exam schools, and I’ve met parents who chose to live proximate to Boston in a place like Watertown or Waltham, then send their kids to private schools. I also know people who live in Newton and send their kids to private schools for any of a number of different reasons. Everyone makes the decision that is right for them.
As I noted above, schools are important, they’re a key part of our identity. But they are not everything.
I love this thread and want to pick up on a couple of ideas
Parklets and Foodtrucks! Newton Centre desperately needs more alfresco dining options. And I don’t mean picnic tables. The picnic tables at both the Station Diner and the Baramor are the worst! So uninviting and difficult to climb in and out of. Closing streets and allowing restaurants to set up more outdoor seating would be great.
And while I am on the topic of picnic tables, ditch the two picnic tables in Newton Centre Green (for the same reasons stated above) and put in some real seating such as they have on the Rose Kennedy Greenway and most parks in Europe.
Envision seating like this: https://c8.alamy.com/comp/R27GT3/open-plaza-on-rose-kennedy-greenway-with-tables-and-chairs-and-tall-buildings-of-boston-financial-district-behind-R27GT3.jpg
If the city thinks it needs to be “nailed down” it could use something like this:
https://kaypark.com/product/street-scape-round-table-with-seats/
or this:
https://parkwarehouse.com/product-category/picnic-tables/ada-accessible-picnic-tables/
With more seating available in the park, it could support on only food trucks but also some of the many Newton Centre restaurants that offer very limited seating.
@Claire – I’m with you on the seating, having recently read this about the moveable chairs in New York’s Bryant Park:
“The chair is a metaphor for the management of public space”, Manshel said. “It’s one of a whole suite of things you need to do to communicate that the public space is civilized and appealing.”
https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/how-bryant-parks-iconic-chairs-revolutionized-public-spaces
@Allison thanks for sharing that article. It nailed it! And ironically referenced Jardin du Luxembourg which is my inspiration. I seems to me that the movable chair is the antithesis to the picnic table. Newton Centre has two huge picnic tables. But they are not welcoming. If one or two people are sitting there no one else is going to come up and sit down, even though they can accommodate eight-10.
The movable chair (and table ) would be a great social experiment in Newton Centre Green. Maybe the City could launch a donate/adopt a chair program. I’d be willing to buy in to create such an wonderful communal space
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/05/5c/29/055c29507e365228047604583bb3ca0d.jpg
These are great ideas! How do we get them from theory to reality? We also have a bunch of small parks around the city that could be activated in some way. In Montreal, I saw a bunch of great concepts with small temporary structures made from shipping containers. Things like sheds that are filled with toys for kids to play with or temporary theaters. They all require programming and maintenance but could work in Newton with the right funding and personnel.
@ Chuck These are great ideas! How do we get them from theory to reality?
The answer to that is, in part, in my post “The movable chair (and table ) would be a great social experiment in Newton Centre Green. Maybe the City could launch a donate/adopt a chair program. I’d be willing to buy in to create such an wonderful communal space”
And how much better if the new Senior Center were right next to these enhancements at the Newton Center green, so folks could easily wander between the two amenities!
EXACTLY Paul!!! And that would make it a naturally multi-generational destination while the Seniors could still have their dedicated space!
Paul,
I hope you’re including the possibility of the Citizens Bank Bldg. (as well as the triangular parking lot) since that would be right next to these enhancements as well.
The only business on West Street is the West Street Tavern and that bridal shop I think.
I think the next step for Nonantum Village businesses should be raised table crosswalks on Watertown Street, of the kind you see in Cambridge, Somerville, and even Watertown. Make it a more pedestrian friendly experience.
I almost forgot, along the lines of Chuck’s listed items, I’d add this, and put it as #1: plant trees, many trees, and then still more trees, throughout Newton, especially to fill in along streets where there has been tree loss. This would be in addition to the great tree contributions of the Newton Conservators (which requires neighborhood coordination).
The city should affirm a willingness and capacity to try experiments of potentially great things.
We have a bunch of people with ideas, visions, things worth trying. We also have a lot of skeptics who can give you a hundred reasons why something won’t work or why some other idea is better or more worthy.
Experimentation and evaluation let us prove ideas on a small scale. Make experiments cheap and easy. Support trying them out. Let good ideas get filtered out from the chaff. Let sparks light a fire of excitement and newness, or let them burn out harmlessly.
We can make change seem less scary through demonstration. Existence proofs are powerful things. And by becoming more open to small-scale experiments, we may change how we see ourselves.
My experimental proposal? With buy-in from merchants, close Langley Rd adjacent to the Newton Centre triangle to motor vehicle traffic for a summer weekend afternoon street fair. Evaluate the impact afterward. If the experiment works, consider a more pedestrian-oriented street, and consider other locations for similar treatment.
We jumped the gun in Upper Falls. I put out a few comfortable lawn chairs last June by our new bocce court at the Upper Falls Greenway and they were used on/off all summer.
And adirondack chairs were donated by users of the Cabot Dog Park and none “walked”
What Mike Halle said.
Excellent thread, Chuck.
@Jim, re: Citizens Bank site: Yes. There is a creative solution there, with a deal to be negotiated with the bank.
Thumbs up, Chuck
Keep ‘em coming!
These are all great ideas. I think there will be a lot of uphill competition for a food truck in Newton center since there are so many great dining options already there. Village days do some of the things suggested on a single day, might be hard for a whole weekend- just takes money but I’m game.
Paul,
Since you may be in a better position than me, do you think you (or someone you know in City government) can explore the possibility of the Citizens Bank Building being rehabbed for NewCAL? There may or may not be reasons that this is unfeasible, or maybe they City has already contacted the building owner (perhaps for the City’s acquisition).
@Chuck. These are all thoughtful and doable visions and I don’t think there is much to quibble about wherever you stand on the pace of development development or other issues that tend to divide people in this city. I guess I’ve thought about things related to most of these suggestions, but but the T stop in Hammond Woods was something that had never crossed my mind. Great job.
@Jane Frantz. Point taken, but I think Chuck was raising items and innovations that would benefit from new or additional focus in the community.
Chuck,
Wonderful ideas, keep them coming, thank you. I suggest a City commission to pull these ideas together to include merchants, Susan Paley from the Village Bank, members of the arts community, like NCA (Newton Cultural Alliance), Jerry Reilly, area councils, enthusiastic citizens and others to make Newton a more livable, walkable, fun city. Newton Lower Falls, for example, would be a great place for food trucks in the parking lot next to the Hamilton Community Center on weekends during soccer and baseball season, the place is packed every weekend.
This really is a wonderful thread and I like Rep. Khan’s suggestion for a commission to flesh out these and other ideas.
Great post Chuck. I love all of the ideas both in your post and in the comments. Bryant Park is one of my favorite places and their signature chairs and tables enhance the experience there. In the fall through New Years, they are both close to the food pop ups and the ice rink. They encourage grabbing something to eat, goodies abound, along with a special drink to have while resting before doing more shopping.
I also enjoy the parklets along bustling streets for the same reason and of course they add beauty with flowers and greenery.
All great ideas.
I feel as if I want to visit Bryant Park!! How great would it be if we could have something inspired by this vision in Newton
https://www.pps.org/projects/bryantpark
Chuck, I would recommend changing the subject line to *8 Ideas for Supporting Newton’s Village Vibrancy in 2020″
Economic benefits will follow, but aren’t the key point
I agree with that point, Claire. And love to see the enthusiasm on this thread for creating vibrant places.
I added ‘The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces’, by William H. Whyte, to my ‘to read’ list a while back, and this thread has inspired me to get my hands on a copy as soon as possible. V14 virtual book group, anyone?
I’m especially interested in #1,2,3,5,8. Why? Because they are all doable in some form quickly. Why can’t the city do small projects like these quickly on a trial basis?
Let me add a few others:
Let’s take Newtonville:
1) Ask landowners to activate private spaces. For instance, in Newtonville, the Bank of America building has a small sliver of land bordering Austin St.. Right now, it is a few ugly bushes and some stones. Could we have some benches and a few seating areas there? Same with the church now office building that borders the Pike. (or could they at least trim back the dead trees in their front yard that drop dead branches onto Walnut Street (look up and be worried))
2) Could we get more tables and chairs in front of the senior center? Those used to be there, with umbrellas for sunny days. slowly they have disappeared. Could we make sure we get actual tables and chairs at the new park next to Austin Street?
3) Parklets: I’d love for Brewers Coalition/AHI and Rox Diner/Rancs to each get a parklet with outdoor seating. Boston has done this in multiple places. It is a great way to activate spaces.
4) Lights: With the new lighting being installed in Newtonville, is it possible to include outdoor electrical outlets so that public string lights could decorate the poles and trees during the winter season?
5) Grants for awnings and new signage. Some communities supply matching grants for signage and awnings.
6) I love the idea of signage for the villages. Newtonville already has a distinctive look on its bus sign along Walnut Street. Sort of an old school vibe. We had lighting pole signage years ago, but it was too involved and a hodgepodge of different ideas and visuals. How about just a simple Newtonville?
7) Do something better with the bridge. Newtonville is one village, broken in two by the Pike. Not going to do much about that in the short term. But we could make sure that trees are planted or replanted as much as possible along the edges, and do something artistic with the bridge to try and tie the two halfs together. And for the sake of everyone, plow the damn bridge and salt it. Can’t have one village if you can’t cross it safely people.
8) Better signage for parking and bike parking. I’m hoping this will be corrected in 2020, but man, the lack of signage is such an oversight.
9) CLOSE DOWN THE PHILIP BRAM WAY FROM AUSTIN STREET TO STARBUCKS!!!! Seriously folks, this is a no brainer. There is no need to have that be open anymore, the traffic can be routed through the parking lot at Austin St. It was closed for 2 weeks last month, and no one cared. But surely an closed off park with tables/chairs, maybe a bocce court or something would be a better use than slightly easier access to a parking lot (that already has access through Highland and Austin Street near Shaws. C’mon Newton, be a little creative!
10) Encourage the flowerpots and flowerboxes along Walnut. And encourage businesses to adopt a tree and flower patch along walnut.
11) Partner with Day/North/Cabot to give each school a landscaped patch to maintain (although maybe only the Cabot kids will care about that)
12) I still like the alley idea. I saw one recently where they had strung string lights to form a canapy, and then also had designed lighting attached to the walls. Very cool.
Some of this can be easily added for both West Newton and Newtonville as they get their long awaited facelifts this coming year.
We take our village spaces for granted. But they can be spruced up, made more user friendly, made more walkable and active and just plain better.
Ding, ding, ding – V14 Best Thread of the Month award goes to Chuck Tanowitz
This thread is great! There are so many little and big things that can be done to improve our community. One thought from me: my family went to “Time Out” in the Fenway the other night and it was great. Basically an indoor food court of curated selections from higher end restaurants + bars on both ends with long community tables in the center. It was hopping and the mood was so warm and convivial. There is a (small) ice skating rink set up outside along with what I think was a pop up Trillium beer garden with outdoor heat lamps and people hanging out under them. I don’t think it would require a ton of space to create this type of venue and I do think it would do well in Newton. A great place to take the family, or for an easy date night (the age range there was very broad), or even solo, just to read a book and enjoy the atmosphere. I loved it.
Newton WaterFire – Take Providence’s urban WaterFire event, transform it for the Charles River and make it more of nature/parks event. Floating fire with music on the shores of the Cove or Hemlock Gorge.
I’ve got some matches 🙂
P.s. I agree with Claire. From where I’m sitting the focus of all of this isn’t really ‘economic development’ its quality of life and fun. If a bit of economic boost somehow fell out of some of these ideas that would just be a welcome bonus.
Hmmmm! Where, in Newton, would be a good place for an indoor/outdoor beer garden including a firepit?
Now we just need to form a group that can get it all done. Question: is this a city group or a private group that works with the city? Is there a group that already exists that we can use to get moving?
I think this is a grass roots group that can mobilize the city
Jim came in right before the buzzer with a contender for NIMBY comment of the year 2019.
How damn shortsighted can you be to think the best thing for Newton’s economic future is to stop all growth, limit the number of residents, and keep us on an unsustainable path. This article was about ways to improve our economic future, not increase existing property values.
Unlike Jim, I don’t view new kids entering our schools as a “net loss.” I see it as a sign that our city is growing and that we have a future, rather than becoming a gated retiree community.
Single family zoning is bad for our planet, perpetuates inequality, and stifles growth. We are a city with far less missing middle housing than we should have, and it is our obligation to do our part and allow more development if we want to be around for the next generation.
Jerry/Chuck:
I wonder if we could form a non-profit that is similar to a Better City, except slightly smaller in scope.
https://www.abettercity.org/
Frankly, a non-profit with the right board can make a huge difference in pushing a city or town to do things. Getting the right participants, creating a short list of 5 ideas to change newton a year, and pushing that year to get all 5 done in some form could be a great new addition to the city.
If folks are interested, let Greg know, he can reach me via my figgy account.
Mr Butch,
The fallacy of your position is predicated upon an arbitrary person-made boundary of what we call the City of Newton. Apply what you claim, to say, the Boston Metro area, or Eastern Massachusetts — and you’ll see that there’s something for everybody — single family here, apartments there, more expensive housing here, less expensive housing there, areas desiring less densification and human occupancy here, areas desiring more densification and human occupancy there, etc. etc. Why must you progressives dictate every aspect of the way we live our lives — under the false God of climate change (which has been changing for 4 billion years). And BTW, my single family home is located on a lot which provides habitat for a wide variety of birds, small mammals, variety of trees and a host of other protoplasms of life here in planet earth. That’s pretty darn good for the environment.
“Not be around for the next generation”??? Yikes! The only threat of that is thermonuclear war (and the best way to avoid that is keep MAGA going this November).
Your comment came right in under the buzzer as well — contender for most ill-informed of the year!
@Jim Epstein, @MrButch – I spoke too soon. I was just marveling at the almost unthinkable. We had a very active, very interesting, Village14 thread with nearly 50 comments and hadn’t devolved in to an off topic fight between a couple of commenters
… alas
Mr Fig – Excellent idea!
Jerry,
I believe your critique should be directed at Mr. Butch. I merely corrected his comment which had initiated the gratuitous slight. In light of that, which is clearly evident, wondering why even my name was listed first in your comment?
Nah Jim. You do this to threads all the time.
@Fig, Excellent thought. ABC has done a good job on many issues by building a broad (nonpartisan) constituency and focusing on how to improve the quality of life in the urban area. A similar, broad-based board with a focused agenda could get a lot of things done in Newton each year.
To quote my mother who raised seven kids in close quarters – “I don’t care who started it. Stop fighting! Now go to your room” 😉
@Jerry’s mom: “No internet for a week” would be a more effective punishment. Just sayin’
Piggy backing on @ANP’s comment…
How about next Spring, we cut the number of parking spaces in the middle of Newton Center in 1/2 and in it’s place…
1. Variety of food trucks
2. Beer Garden
3. Tents and seating
4. Toys and games for kids
“Summer at the Centre” pop up in Newton Centre!
Would love to see how viable this would be in our community. If we build it, will people show up?
Side comment: please get off Jim’s back. While his opinions may not always be most popular, they are refreshing and honest. All he’s done “wrong” is deviate from the far left.
Jerry,
Cute, but not apropos. What I point out in RESPONSE to Mr. Butch, that the borders of Newton are arbitrary, that it would be more useful to apply the borders of metro Boston, for example, when discussing — as does Greg endlessly — the need to densify housing throughout Newton, which, any way you slice it (and no matter how much Greg repeatedly says otherwise) only adds congestion. Some communities, such as in Boston, Somerville, and Watertown more than welcome the dense new housing replacing deteriorating industrial areas. Why must Greg persist in jamming this down our (Newton homeowner’s) throats?!?
And then there are the Mr. Butchs’ who claim we must destroy single family lot living to accommodate (lunatic) perceptions that if we don’t, and we “don’t allow more development” in Newton, we won’t “be around for the next generation”!
I’ve been loving this thread – too bad a high jacking occurred.
I like most all of the ideas. A grassroots, non-profit or not-for-profit, definitely non-partisan, committee to spur things along is a great idea. I think there are a lot of residents who would enjoy being on such an optimistic, fun inspired committee.
Marti,
I’m reluctant to add or reply to your comment because apparently you have the means or authority to delete my comments you don’t like or go back and revise yours — as you have recently done. Is that the case here?
I shouldn’t have taken Jim’s bait. Let me take another stab at this:
Food trucks and pedestrian villages would be AWESOME! Id’ love to see a sort of rotating Time Out type market showcasing some of Newton’s restaurants and it’d be a great way to bring people together. I’d love to see us permanently close streets in parts of Newton Center and allow restaurants to provide outdoor seating and food trucks to set up shop.
This has been a great thread (for the most part). At this point there are a host of ideas on the table and lots of enthusiasm for trying to get some of them off the ground.
We’re looking in to setting up a meeting in the near future to gather up all the readers (and others) that want to help make this a reality.
With that, I’m going to close down this thread but I’ll start a new one once we have the meeting scheduled.
Thanks for all your ideas and special thanks to Chuck for getting the ball rolling and to Fignewtonville and others for urging that we take the next steps to help make some of these ideas happen.
— comments now closed —