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What is happening Downtown?
New Bedford Economic Development Council
 Downtown
New Bedford’s evolving streetscape reflects a national,
even international, trend: downtowns are increasingly
the place to be.
As long ago as nearly a decade ago, the Fannie Mae
Foundation and the Brookings Institute projecting urban
population growth from 1998-2010 showed that several of
America’s largest cities would become increasingly
favorable in the housing market, even those cities that
had experienced serious decline in the 1960s and 1970s
such as Chicago, Detroit and Philadelphia. Nearly ten
years following these projections, the forecast has
largely been realized, extending to smaller cities.
Recognizing this trend, local developers have created a
number of innovative loft and condominium projects
throughout the downtown area. Factors that appear to, in
part, drive the renewed interest in urban living are the
decline in crime rates and rising gas costs, leading to
a desire to live in a pedestrian-friendly environment
close to amenities like libraries, theatres, museums,
banks, restaurants, post offices, and shops.
With a long-established core of art galleries, the
Zeiterion, and world-class museums, the New Bedford
urban pioneers are finding a growing cadre of eclectic
restaurants and drinking emporiums (from the very
un-buttoned No Problem taqueria to the elegant Cork
tapas bar) and diverse shops offering clothing (Attia),
personal care products (Blush Beauty Bar) and even
second-hand bagpipes (Joe Piper). Showcase events like
the monthly Arts! History! Architecture! (AHA) theme
nights have had significant success in drawing people
downtown to sample different types of music, food,
shopping experiences, free museum access, and
family-oriented activities.
Both anecdotal and formal research information show that
the new housing opportunities in downtown New Bedford
reflect the national trend of appealing to young people,
college students, and “empty nesters” who are generally
better educated and consumers of the arts, cultural
events, and locally-owned restaurants and bistros rather
than the nationally-owned, ubiquitous chains. By
attracting them to the downtown neighborhoods, the
demand for goods and services will increase at a
sustainable rate because so many consumers will be
continually present throughout the day and into the
evenings. Locally-owned businesses, in turn, cycle money
throughout the local economy by using local accountants,
lawyers and other professional services to support their
business.
The emergence of the New Bedford downtown landscape has
been driven in part by the relocation of a significant
portion of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth’s
College of Visual and Performing Arts and a New
Bedford-based campus of Bristol Community College,
through the adaptive reuse of the old Star Store
building which once served a vibrant downtown community
decades ago and once again becomes a key focal point for
re-energizing the neighborhood. It is a success story,
created by the synergies of the state and local
governments recognizing a new opportunity and working
with private development to make it happen.
Eugenie Ladner Birch, in her article Dowtown Living: A
Deeper Look (July 2002 issue of Land Lines published on
the web by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy), noted
this type of phenomenon: “Public/private partnerships
have been essential in achieving changes in downtown
living. The existence of productive interplay between
focused interest groups, especially the growing number
of business improvement district leaders, and public
planning and economic development units has resulted in
bold, imaginative, creative and thoughtful approaches to
creating opportunities.”
The initial work to invigorate the downtown area
probably seemed very slow but those residents and
businessmen who persevered through some difficult times
are doubtless reaping the benefits that a critical mass
of new condos, apartments, shops, offices and
restaurants have reached today.
As the national data indicate, the tide is rising for
our downtown and others around the country. The
continuing emergence of the City’s targeted efforts,
many new shop owners, and many pioneering foundational
owners are making New Bedford’s downtown a destination
all over again.
Much more to come in the near future…..
September 24, 2007 |
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