Ruth Ryals and Susan Hunziker led a discussion of retail-related topics, starting with an unverified, best-guess list of vacant storefronts along Massachusetts Avenue north and south of Porter Square identified by their former tenants:
General Optical (old location)
Season to Taste (old location!)
Rod Dee Wok ‘n Roll
BA Property Advisors
WT Phelan Insurance (condo for sale)
Healing Hemp
Mucky Kids
Tibet Arts
Coldwell Banker
Newtowne Grille
Riverside Tattoo
Henry Bear Park
Evergood (empty for many years)
Former sporting goods store
Wrap Pro (becoming a sushi bar?)
Utso Boutique
Starbucks
Former Korean dry cleaner
Some of these storefronts have been vacant for many years and it would be good to understand why this might be. Is it the asking rents, zoning uncertainty (causing landlords to hold back), the regulatory thicket (licensure, improvement costs), a lack of awareness by prospective entrepreneurs, the need for a young entrepreneur recruitment program, the lack of neighborhood patronage, all of the above or possibly something else?
Katie Labrie, Executive Director of Cambridge Local First re-introduced CLF and gave an update on its activities and goals: Porter Square is the only square that does not have a business association of some type. If one is created it should include all of Massachusetts Avenue from Everett Street to the Arlington Line. In the past the owner of Tags (Si Shapiro) was the de facto leader of the business community but he retired. A grant was given by the City to hire a consultant to propose how to create a business association and what type it should be. The work is expected to take a year or longer and has not yet begun.
More broadly, the CLF is hosting a free Small Business Bootcamp starting in February. The program will have 24 participants in three cohorts and last 10 weeks. CLF also hosts six networking events a year, including a Small Business Summit and an annual Block Party. CLF hopes to also attract up to 1,000 Community Members to become VIP cardmembers entitled to discounts in exchange for a nominal monthly membership fee.
Retailer Deb Colburn (Nomad) and Small Business Owner Vie Cine (Paint Your Truth) spoke about the challenges they face. Deb mentioned that attempts have been made to start a Porter Square business association in the past and there was great interest but there was no money to fund a director who could devote the time needed.
SH noted that she lived near Porter Square, no longer has a car and finds she can obtain almost all the goods and services she needs within walking distance. It would be good to examine what gaps there are and publicize them to prospective entrepreneurs.
PK noted that the new development at the corner of Mass Av and Linnaean Street will displace Walgreen’s and the developer is not planning to replace it. That will eliminate an essential service that the neighbors rely on. This is a clearly bad outcome occasioned by the new zoning and the City should be aware of and take steps to remedy it.
Discussion ensued about the impact of the new Mass Av zoning more generally. Presumably the opportunity to convert one-story buildings into 12, 15 and 18-story buildings will result in considerable development, which will displace all of the impacted ground floor businesses for at least the duration of the construction and maybe forever. New buildings tend to pro forma market rents for their ground floor spaces that are higher than those on old, fully depreciated ones. They also want credit-rated tenants. Mom and Pop businesses can obviously not meet those requirements. It stands to reason that the Mom and Pop’s will be washed away and replaced over time with a mall-type streetscape. Councilor Flaherty noted that this would be a very undesirable outcome and spoke about the potential for tax credits to offset real estate taxes charged by the City on new retail space, as a means to encourage small businesses into the new buildings.
Someone asked if there would be ground floor retail at the new all-affordable buildings that Just-A-Start is proposing in the vacant Lesley parking lots. The zoning does not require it, yet a continuous retail experience is key to overall retail vibrancy. A two-block interruption will significantly reduce casual foot traffic from either side to cross. Another request for those buildings would be a community meeting space.
PK noted that while some new businesses came and rapidly failed, others appear to be thriving. Our area benefits from some of the best restaurants in the city. DC reminded us that there needs to be a blend, not just food and beverage, to make it all work.
AP noted that it is very difficult to lease space next to a vacant storefront and suggested encouraging or requiring empty storefronts to be used for artist studios pending new permanent tenants to maintain continuous retail vibrancy.
In the past PSNA has produced a map of businesses along Mass Av which has been well received. Should this continue to be an old-fashioned paper map or moved to a website which can be more easily updated? Retailers seem to prefer having a hand-out and not encouraging people to look to the internet.
Other ideas were proposed, including how to create more parking (and/or neighborhood transit) to offset the loss of parking spaces to bike lanes. The City has taken parking away and it should be proactive in helping to recreate parking since that is essential to the success of many small businesses.
It was noted that some unusual retail operations have opened recently to considerable success, and that there appears to be plenty of spending power in the surrounding neighborhoods when an interesting concept is introduced. It was noted that several new businesses have even garnered local support via GoFundMe campaigns.
It would be helpful if the City would approach this entire Massachusetts Avenue area in a business development fashion since no one else is positioned to do so.