Category — Four Corners*

The Tab wrote a nice article the other day about some of the ongoing efforts to bring vitality back to the Village Centers in Newton. Newton Villages continues to work to ensure that these remain good places for our community to come together, to eat, to play, to shop. We want to see them thrive for the long term.

We know that there are concerns that people no longer value our downtowns.  Or rather, people appreciate that the centers are there.   But instead of going to the Village Centers we shop online and stay in our own homes for entertainment.

We feel differently.  We believe that people will support the Village Centers if we bring in (and hold onto) interesting shops and restaurants.  We also feel that our hectic times require us to come together as a community, and that we need places that help make this happen, and help to maintain Newton’s identity.

Moreover, we think that – if we nurture them appropriately – our Village Centers are sustainable, can keep themselves going, and can continue to contribute to civic life.  Yes, the Centers need to adapt to changing times, but there is a strong future for them – and for our enjoyment of them – if we choose to make the investment.
Read the full Tab article here.

Daddy’s Junky Music officially closed its doors this past Wednesday, shutting the door on one of the last truly local chains of guitar and musical instrument stores in the region. In talking about why this small regional chain failed, Fred Bramante (the chain’s founder) noted competition from online retailers as the prime reason. By buying online, customers saved paying sales tax (ironic perhaps as Daddy’s first store was just over the line in NH in a specific bid to draw Massachusetts customers for tax savings). While Daddy’s is more of a Boston institution, local Newton merchants like the Boston Running Company, Big Sky Bakery & Café, and New England Mobile Book Fair have either closed or are seeking to transfer to new ownership.

Yes, the economy is certainly somewhat to blame, but not entirely. And, since the UPS truck still drops off boxes from Amazon and Zappos throughout our city, what does it say about the commitment to our communities if we lose the merchants and stores that we love? How do we justify allowing the businesses that we wax nostalgic about to disappear?

Local merchants provide goods and services that we need and that are specifically tailored to the local market. In many cases they provide the essential foundation upon which the community itself builds. How many of us recall and treasure the bookstore, coffee house, diner, hobby shop, or even a record store that featured prominently in our lives?

Local merchants are active participants in the community themselves. They are as tied to the community as we are to them. It is much harder for them to pull up stakes and move to a different town than it is for a chain store. Since their success or failure is so tightly wound with that of the community, they are often exactly the ones most willing to invest in that community, through sponsoring local events and helping to fund things like local streetscape improvements.

Yes, the internet is convenient and cheap, but the community loses if that is the only place we shop.

So there are a few things we can do about this. Some of them involve changing regulations to try to either make things easier for merchants or to make it harder for chain stores to come into our village centers. However, this also seems to ignore the basic market reality of the situation.

Local merchants are only successful if people buy their food, services, and goods. Local stores are worth a second (or even a first) look. When you need a lightbulb, try stopping by Swartz or Waban Hardware. Need a book? Try browsing Newtonville Bookstore. The coffee and baked goods at l’Aroma are at least as good as Starbucks, and they have better teas.

Or better yet, try spending a weekend afternoon walking through Newtonville, Newton Highlands, Nonantum, West Newton, or Newton Centre and sampling the stores along the way. In between an excellent lunch and a few fine cups of coffee, I think it very likely you’ll find some new favorite haunts, and maybe even make some new friends along the way. And, you’ll enjoy yourself and help to maintain the village life that makes our city great.

Peking Cuisine at 870 Walnut Street in Four Corners has closed and workers are preparing the restaurant space for Sweet Potato Bistro.

No information yet on the proposed opening date, but menus are available outside. The menu features, among other things, “Taiwanese Tapas.” Also, the restaurant will be serving dim sum on weekends.