Central Square Business Closings/Neighborhood Changes

Submitted by fire_walk_with_m3 t3_zzgbac in CambridgeMA

Does anyone else feel like the vibes in Central Square has started to change a bit?

First Darwin's, then Starbucks and the Art Supply Store on Mass Ave... there seems to be a higher rate of business turnover this past few months as we enter 2023. Does anyone know if these are related or what's driving this in particular?

No judgement/pointing figures - just curious and trying to stay an informed citizen.

Can sense a subtle shift in the neighborhood but have only lived here a couple of years. Wondering how others feel.

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Nabs617 t1_j2bmq8r wrote

Don't forget, Mary Chung is closing tomorrow.

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erbalchemy t1_j2eokjy wrote

I ate there once in '95 when I first moved to Cambridgeport. I'm happy to celebrate their getting 40 years out of that location, but I'm also looking forward to what's next. I love that cities are constantly in flux. Visiting my rural childhood town, I find it depressing how recognizable everything is. So little happens, so few changes...

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[deleted] t1_j2bi4ci wrote

[deleted]

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FluffehPanda t1_j2crqwh wrote

As a recent transplant that moved to the Davis area, what did it used to be like? My impression so far of the area has been super positive and outside of the Chipotle and Starbucks I haven’t noticed many chains.

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unresolved_m t1_j2beye0 wrote

I'm also being pestered by people on the streets and I don't like it one bit.

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kiwi-cucumber t1_j2bsc3r wrote

This. I used to bike there from Kendall for lunch, but as a woman, it’s also basically accepting a harassing remark from someone while you lock the bike up. Why deal with that if you can just go somewhere else?

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fire_walk_with_m3 OP t1_j2bhahk wrote

Forgot to mention that too - it also feels like it's a bit more unsafe around the T

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behind_the_armory t1_j2ceh2q wrote

That’s not new though. I’m not convinced that things have gotten worse.

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Hyperbowleeeeeeeeeee t1_j2cgn9q wrote

The whining about panhandling makes it clear what's happening. The tech people from SF have brought their awful values here with them. Thanks a lot. Nothing has changed other than that and rents.

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vimgod t1_j2cjbm0 wrote

More like nimbys that cause this homelessness by not allowing any housing to be built. That's the real issue, not people moving to Boston and just want to live lmao.

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coldsnap123 t1_j2djpjc wrote

Nimbys didn’t make people become addicted to opiates.

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vimgod t1_j2e5oro wrote

They cause homelessness which puts people in situations where they are more likely to abuse drugs. So yeah nimbys cause addiction

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coldsnap123 t1_j2e5yyt wrote

Ah yes, deflect responsibility.

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vimgod t1_j2e6f1t wrote

You must be one of them. Sorry I offended you ❄️

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unresolved_m t1_j2dgcu6 wrote

No idea what you're talking about. I'm not a tech worker from SF and I give money to the homeless if they ask. Doesn't change the fact around the winter situation with them gets particularly dire.

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rap_suckers t1_j2caxed wrote

I remember when Woolworths closed I thought it was all over. Then when my mom stopped working at the food co-op. Then when skippy whites left. When you spend time in a dynamic city, things change. It’s not different from the last 400 years.

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SpyCats t1_j2dcb57 wrote

Going back, the original Harvest Co-op losing its space (now H-Mart) and moving across the street (now Yamba) to become a shadow of its former self was a blow. It's hard to convey what a hub that place was, not to mention an awesome store.

Other hubs were Rodneys Books, Hollywood Express (now Life Alive). Probably more but I'm forgetting now.

The nature of the city is dynamic change, but yes, we're losing what made/makes Central great. I feel like the designation of cultural district was capturing the end of an era here in a way. Green Street Studios, the EMF music rehersal/arts space, Out of the Blue Gallery. All gone now. The Middle East is soon to follow. I know there's a lot going on with Starlight Square and other initiatives, but it really seems like the influx of banks and high rent storefronts are killing what made this place so great.

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littleprettypaws t1_j2drpi0 wrote

I feel very exactly the same way. As I get older I just get more nostalgic for the businesses that brought so much character to local areas. Although, I do love Life Alive.

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KeysToHistory1979 t1_j2cafvz wrote

I was on the Board of Directors for Harvest Co-op ~2010. By 2012, the owner of that row of building raided rents almost 50%. It was ridiculous. They couldn’t afford to keep the lease. I also know Prana Power yoga has the same issue. Starbucks is in that same row. So sad that it’s now happening on the other side of the street!

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SpyCats t1_j2dcx0c wrote

I heard something about a change in MA law that basically prohibited the work model that co-ops relied on (member working for discounts). Do you know if there's any truth to that? It could explain why Boston/Cambridge no longer has any food co-ops.

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wittgensteins-boat t1_j2dl02i wrote

No.
Food coops are forming regularly.

After pioneering access to hard to obtain foods, Food Coops, running from the 1960s and 1970s finally had well capitalized competition in the 1990s and onward.

  • You need capital and volume to succeed in the food business. And it helps to own the store, so that the coop is not subject to rising rent at the end of a lease. Real estate and buildings are costly. (Harvest Coop [a merger of the Boston Food Coop, and the Cambridge Food Coop] closed the Cambridge location in 2012, and the Jamaica Plain location in 2018, because of rent increases at the end of leases, and the potential cost of renovating a new location.)

  • There is now easy access to organic and natural foods at local stores:
    Stop and Shop, Shaws, DeMoulas Market Basket, and Whole Foods.
    And ethnic food stores are more common too, now. In 1970, you could get tofu only by going to a Japanese or Chinese restaurant that made their own tofu, or by making it yourself.

  • New England coops used to have their own cooperative warehouses, starting in the early 1970s, buying from wholesalers and importers in Boston and New York, and buying on the wholesale New England Produce Markets (NEPC) in Chelsea MA.
    New England Food Cooperative Organization, Inc. NEFCO, was in Cambridge. Also there were Regional food coop warehouses in Vermont, Maine and Western Massachusetts, that eventually effectively merged into NEFCO in the 1980s and 1990s, and NEFCO became Northeast Cooperatives.

  • United Natural Foods Incorporated, food distributors (UNFI) took over Northeast Cooperative's assets after Northeasts's financial crisis and insolvency in the 1990s That ended coop warehouses in New England.

  • There is a new revived northeastern multi-Coop purchasing association. Neighboring Food Co-op Association (NFCA) with New York and New England coops, about 45 coop store and pre-order coop members.
    Link at bottom.

  • There are local food coops forming all of the time.
    Assabet Coop in Maynard is opening soon in 2023, after having gathered about 2,000 members already, with the members raising capital for the new Coop.

References.

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mfball t1_j2e38ti wrote

Information AND sources! Very cool, thanks!

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SpyCats t1_j2dtng3 wrote

Wow, thank you for this history lesson!

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coldsnap123 t1_j2bxr6y wrote

There’s a mix of high rent, high operating costs, and shitty people on the streets. Businesses will risk high rent and high operating costs if there’s sufficient volume, but once you add in high crime then it’s game over.

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guimontag t1_j2bx43b wrote

Starbucks closed because they couldn't guarantee the safety of the employees who closed at night

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blackdynomitesnewbag t1_j2cmzus wrote

One employee got stabbed with a needle by a junkie

Edit: Downvote if you want. It won’t make it any less true. A city councilor’s aid told me

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some1saveusnow t1_j2cic96 wrote

Businesses do indeed come and go, but the increased rents and increased “wildness” of the streets in Central since COVID surely pushes longtime businesses to consider shutting their doors. In at least one, and likely another case, the union issue played a role. That will continue to hamper small businesses as worker shortages continue and folks aren’t afraid to challenge ownership. It’s just the reality of the situation, even if we’re all pro union in general

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littleprettypaws t1_j2dr7kf wrote

I used to live near Central, what do you mean by ‘increased wildness since the pandemic?’ Has crime risen that much in a couple of years? I used to be totally comfortable walking alone at night in that area, so what’s changed?

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some1saveusnow t1_j2e4pr9 wrote

Long story short is that with the increased presence of unhoused in the boston area, some of it has made its way to central. Not sure if it’s reflected in crime stats but the feeling in the square has changed a bit. It’s been well commented on in this and the boston sub over the past 2 years

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bananasorcerer t1_j2dl8th wrote

When Rodney’s closed a few years ago that was a big blow for me. If Pandemonium closes that’ll be it.

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nhf1918 t1_j2by2kr wrote

I think you’re definitely right. We’ve been in a major cycle of urban growth and development over the last 15 or so years. Just a theory, but I think we’re actually seeing the start of a cycle where people favor suburban and rural areas as work from home provides more freedom in terms of where people can live. This cycle might be painful for urban areas at first but eventually could lead to more affordable housing and independent businesses returning to urban areas as chains follow the money back out to the burbs. Just a thought and will take a while regardless!

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SpyCats t1_j2de73f wrote

I've been in the area forever and am actively looking at rural areas now that I work 100% remote. I love the city, but we would never be able to own property here.

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asuds t1_j2dvr59 wrote

RIP Manray and Cafe Liberty

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adorablogger t1_j2eie9h wrote

You may already know this but Manray has been talking about reopening for years in the former Improv Boston space. They even have a sign up and everything. I feel so bad for their timing with COVID and all.

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fordag t1_j2eipia wrote

I know the owner of Hubba Hubba specifically mentioned the homeless problem in moving the store out of Central Sq.

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unresolved_m t1_j2ek8dq wrote

I recall seeing a homeless woman sneaking into Bank of America building and asking for money from people near ATMs.

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betteroffsleeping t1_j2f1zfz wrote

It used to be an area I loved going to but I honestly don’t feel that safe going anymore by myself. It’s like a ticket for being harassed by some creepy dudes. I know businesses will come and go but the total environment is has an issue.

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Harmony_w t1_j2btlrd wrote

When Out of the Blue closed it was all over

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berryrad t1_j2c706y wrote

Lol, I grew up down the street from Central Square and I remember when Out of the Blue was Blockbuster. Rip DVD's

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SpyCats t1_j2diq32 wrote

I miss video stores in general. I would always make new discoveries and often run into people I knew.

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BuckyWunderlick007 t1_j2ev736 wrote

Central Square as a whole is much ‘nicer’ than it was in the past, if perhaps lacking a bit of character. However, the area immediately surrounding Carl Barron plaza has gone downhill over the past several years and during Covid. The police put a substation there for optics, but there is not really a regular, active police presence in this area.

Starbucks closed as a direct result of crime in the area. Drug use is rampant in Carl Barron plaza in the surrounding area. An area that was previously safe for our children to walk through alone no longer is. Counselor McGovern and others have a lot to answer for as the decline of this area began when the needle exchange opened on Green street.

Darwin’s closed because the owner decided to retire. That part of the square is pretty gentrified, so crime had nothing to do with that.

Overall, Central is still a great neighborhood IMO.

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duhrZerker t1_j2fgq3o wrote

McGovern is the patron saint of unintended consequences.

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pattyorland t1_j2ep029 wrote

Is Mary Chung’s open today (12/31)? They’re not answering the phone.

Edit: they’re too busy and not taking any more orders.

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SpyCats t1_j2fr4ik wrote

Same situation last week on Christmas Eve. And they were out of all chicken and beef dishes, and a bunch of other things.

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okethan t1_j2cbst6 wrote

An amazing church called Central Square Church opened this past year. Located at 5 Magazine in a beautiful church. Led by Larry Kim this church is growing and is an asset to CS.

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