Turners Falls RiverCulture (TFRC): Corkboard

Congratulations!

It is a well deserved award and I am very happy for you. Thank you for all the hard work, energy and passion you put into your work and to making our community vibrant and culturally rich.

bien fait Lisa...

Listen to a little preview with Rachel Teumim and Monte Belmonte about the Fabrication fashion show at the Block Party here!

Thursday December 18 at 8 PM.
Lisa Davol and Steve Alves host an evening of holiday songs at the Rendezvous in Turners Falls. Come join in the fun! Special quests include: Emily Brewster, Patricia Pruitt, JD Keating, Hillary Smith, and Captain Tim. Song lyrics will be provided.

Well said Jared!

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by PCD

- Tue, Aug 28, 2007, 6:48 P

Loitering

Wow.

I agree with some of what you say, but that type of cynical viewpoint isn’t healthy.

The Town is comprised of many different types of people, and for those that are proactive, no stance should be ignored. They should all be considered as we move forward towards positive development.

As for the folks by the Cafe, whatever it’s called, they might look back on these days with joy and longing as they become productive members of our taxpayer society who, in general, despises the concept of what they are doing because it appears bohemian or lazy.

I have made the argument off this site that the regenesis of this town will come at a price, an economic price, and that will be largely determined by the people that open their hearts and wallets to a new Montague, either by moving here, spending here, or by opening businesses here.

It doesn’t have to be NOHO, and will never be. But it might be a happy medium.

PCD

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by holmesy

- Tue, Aug 28, 2007, 6:20 P

Loitering

It amazes me how out of touch the so-greatly-concerned citizens of Montague are. Turners Falls has all of a sudden become "a great cultural mecca" while at the same time turning into a typical Northampton where diversity is judged upon by the thickness of one’s wallet.
"Oh dear, what must we do of the loitering on the Avenue?" A funny question since most of those asking this come from the baby boomer generation that flocked to Haight-Ashbury back in the 60’s. Such a big disruption on my way to the Avenue A cafe hint hint Greenfield Recorder it’s no longer called Cup O’ Joe for those who only pass through downtown on your way to work you may have totally overlooked this.
I happen to be one of those kids who used to drum in downtown Greenfield. I played the same snare drum as I proudly paraded in the Block Part y parade. Alot of people seem to forget that in their teen years and early twenties people are going through the most experimental time of their lives. That’s why I don’t freak out about the kids loitering because I know in a year or two a majority of them will be productive taxpayers that will probably look down upon what they are doing right now. But people seem to forget what being a teenager is like.
Alot of the new breed moving into this community have this illusion that they are so open minded but at the same they are being selective in their ways of improving the town. Everyone complains about the VFW but no one cares to discuss how they went under in the first place or why no one owns the property yet. From what I heard the first people interested in buying the property backed out on it.

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by lorena

- Tue, Aug 28, 2007, 9:53 A

Loitering

I like the idea of dialogue with the teens or with each other for that matter. When I drove by Cup o Joe’s the other day and saw a crowd of teens and adults together playing it warmed my heart. Teens are a wonderful asset to our community. My son started a trend in Greenfield of drumming on the common over 12 years ago. It was a place for them to gather, they were visible, and staying out of trouble. I know that my son has carried on the tradition on Nantucket Island where he now lives with his family. He still plays music and has an art studio. I am not sure that without the encouragement of the greater community that he would have continued along that path. While I know that it is important to not interfere with the business community’s ability to do their business, I also know that our young people are struggling and need to feel a part of our community. I like the idea of them having space in some of our lovely parks. I also like the idea that they are out in the open so that the community can assist in ensuring their safety. Everyone’s safety in our community is important, store owners, shoppers, and teens alike. In as much as teens rally against authority they are very much still in need of our support and guidance, to know that we care about them and that they are important.

I do love how downtown Turners is looking these days. I have been here all of my life and have seen it go through many transformations. I know that it is with caring, connection, and communication that our community is transforming to a safe and wonderful place to be/ live again. My Great Grandparents lived in Turners all of my life. My Great Grandfather (they called him Zephy) would "loiter" with his friends on the park benches that used be on Avenue A. He bought his "Chew" at Equie’s and brought us there for a treat every now and then. It was a great place to be as a kid, I played on the boardwalks. I think if Zephy were visiting downtown and ran accross the teens on the street he would stop and talk to them and offer them a pepermint (he always had them in his shirt pocket). I wish that I had more time to get to know my "neighbors". I work in downtown Turners now and am happy to be back here and impressed with what people are doing in terms of making the community a better place to be.

I also want to say that the block party was wonderful!!! Great Job on all who organized and all who attended!! It was a beautiful day and a wonderful event. I hope there are more to come.

I say, Yeah to everyone and what is being done for good. Yeah to peace and community. I love it here and hope it continues to move in a positive direction.

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by mik

- Tue, Aug 28, 2007, 9:28 A

Loitering

Jared,

I agree completely. 100%

So, as you say, back to square 1. How to get people to come to Turners and reignite the downtown?

Well, having something to go to is important. The eminent opening of the Rendezvous, with the later hours of the cafe, are very helpful. Hopefully David can do something with the old VFW to add to the mix.

What is downtown Turners missing? Another eatery would be great for people who work in town (as I sometimes do) or some other business that people would find useful in walking distance. If we all think about it, what else would be useful to have right there? A deli / minimart / bodega of some kind? A family-style restaurant?

Has anyone done a study of the current store-front businesses in Turners and compared it to other thriving downtowns? This is not rocket science.

Lastly, a nice friendly sign on Route 2 welcoming drivers to Turners, and perhaps a business listing sign touting some of the businesses? We need to market the strip to passers-by and remind residents and local workers what they have.

I think the bookstore missed the blob by a year.

Loitering/police station:

I actually thought PCD’s first post, using comparisons between Northampton and Greenfield, was very well done! He touched on key issues including social class and its impact on development strategies that are very real and need to be considered seriously. He was not attacking teens or poor people or section 8 housing but he was saying that if you have too many people just loitering, drunk, doing drug deals, etc you reach a tipping point that undermines the social and economic life of the community.

On a more specific level, I thought that Mark1’s comments about some of the past policies of the town was very good. Allowing storefronts to be used for housing is a real loser, for example, and we should end it. It also seems to me that reducing the number of absentee landlords is important alhtough I am not sure what the community.town government can do about it

Clegg’s comments about abusive behavior next to one ot the parks are appropriate. And I think Blacksnake’s concerns about loitering are also very appropriate. At some point if too much of this stuff goes on you reach a tipping point. If there is not one already, there should be some sort of downtown organization including small business, government, the social service agencies and activist residents (there are quite a few of those) that deals with these issues. I hate to propose another bunch of meetings for the same people to go to but I think this would be helpfull,

Finally, I am very concerned with the proposed new police station being moved to the top of the hill in Turners. It seems to be a done deal. Maybe it is the right thing but I feel the police station committee essentially made that decision outside the context of development strategies for downtown Turners and with little if any real public discussion of the pros and cons. The police station committee will be making a presentation to the Finance Committee this Wednesday tentativel at 6:30.

Pmar2,

I think I was pretty careful to talk about facts not people but I guess you only see things through your personal lens. Yes, anyone of us can be ’next’ but the mantle of noble suffering only gets you so far.

I think that the ’problems’ that face Turners, or any similar village - and Turners isn’t really that unique, there are lots of struggling communities in this country - require people to get beyond the ’think about ME and MY situation’ mentality.

The point I was trying to make, and I’ll make it one more time, is that there are significant structural barriers to progress in Turners, but if enough people get beyond their own situations and contribute to the solution, things will improve. People behaving better on the street, landlords being held accountable for their properties, and creative thinking by the select board and active citizens are part of the solution.

Mark1

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by pmar2

- Fri, Aug 17, 2007, 5:09 P

Comments

WOW!!!! I have never felt so bad about my situation as I do now, I was a person who worked hard all my life and together with my husband "earned" $120.000 a year, owned a home and had a great job.

It’s all tragic and simple, my life changed and now I am in section 8 housing. "There but for the grace of god go I" I believe is how it is put so be careful what you say out there, you could be next.

.....and to Mark1, I have nothing to say to you....and to PCD...Well said and I really mean that, your very articulate, To blacksnake...I understand that you didn’t mean it to go this far. Don’t worry it’s not you, just people who 20 years ago didn’t achieve their goals and now they have nothing better to do then throw stones under the guise of bringing change.

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by Highlander

- Fri, Aug 17, 2007, 11:38 A

Loitering

Three cheers for blacksnake! I’ve been rooting for her all along. She has the right attitude.

One thing no one has mentioned and I think is very significant is the vacancy of the former VFW. Not for one moment would groups of anyone be allowed to congregate there if the members of the VFW still occupied that space. They were a no-nonsense group of people. After all, they fought in wars.

Some of the group that hangs out in front of the cafe and VFW are homeless; some are homeless wannabes (believe it or not). The fact that many of them occupy the sidewalk and force people, especially senior citizens, away from adjacent businesses (I have observed this) is unacceptable. It demonstrates their generally passive-aggressive behavior: no respect for others. This is my major issue with them. I don’t care about their age, class, or whatever, but I do care about the fact that they seem to enjoy intimidating people. The street and businesses thereon belong to everyone. This is a lesson they need to learn.. How to teach it? I thought loitering and vagrancy (like sleeping in the doorway of the VFW) were matters of law.

Dear blacksnake, don’t stop giving your opinion! I and many others need to hear from you. Yes.

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by Mark1

- Fri, Aug 17, 2007, 8:02 A

Loitering

When I moved here nearly 20 (!) years ago, I worked and lived on the Ave in Turners for five years. My job was to identify buildings that could be turned into tenant-owned cooperatives. That didn’t work for a variety of reasons but as part of that project I did a lot of primary research on property ownership patterns in downtown Turners.

What I learned is relevant to the discussion of loitering, business in downtown and yes, even Section 8 (the program, not the people).

1. I researched ownership of every single residential or mixed commercial/residential property located between the river and 7th St, the canal and L Street. At that time over 85% of rental housing was owned by absentee landlords, many from out of the region. That probably holds true (+/- a few points) today. This means that it is difficult to hold property owners accountable for the appearance of their properties and the behaviors of their tenants (loitering, messiness, vandalism, etc).

2. The town participated in decisions many decades ago that hamstrung the transformation of Turners from where it has been to the vibrant community many people want. Primary among these decisions was turning street-level storefronts into subsidized rental housing, much of it Section 8. Walk down Ave A and you will see a number of these properties on the west side of the street.

The town and low income housing developers effectively cut off any future growth in downtown business by doing this. It was an incredibly short-sighted decision, and one that is baffling today. It seems as though the town just gave up on a future of Turners beyond over-reliance on subsidized housing downtown. In many interviews with long time residents I heard of how the town strove to ’clean up’ the village by shutting down rowdy bars and converting storefronts to housing. Not a very visionary approach, but one born out of the wreck and ruin of deindustrialization and the closing of mills throughout the region.

Despite these barriers, Turners is starting to evolve. People are working to apply a veneer of arts and culture activities in the village and this is good. But for things to really turn the corner there needs to be more people willing and able to live in downtown properties that they own, so that the village has a better mix of renters and owners.

Continuing to squabble about teens, low income people, Section 8, etc just distracts from the structural problems inherent to the future evolution of Turners. A combination of approaches can help continue this transformation: community organizing (getting loiterers involved in other activities), enforcement (a downtown police beat; better building code enforcement) and incentives for property ownership (tax breaks for owner-occupied housing; see Holyoke for other potentially useful examples).

Mark1

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by PCD

- Fri, Aug 17, 2007, 7:46 A

Loitering

I want to make it abundantly clear that I am not passing judgement, in any way, regarding folks that utilize section 8 or low income housing. In fact, I have suggested in my previous post that our community can become polarized against certain "types" of perceived group on the basis of impression and not fact, which can be even more damaging and significant.

I am making the observation, simply, that from a socio-economic perspective, the types and quality of housing options in a given community (based on majority and proximity to a downtown business district) have an effect on the nature of that district.

Northampton has a downtown full of mid to up scale residential options, which fuel the City’s downtown economy, for example.

Turners does not, for example.

It’s just an observation, not a judgement.

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TF Culture Talk

Posted by blacksnake

- Fri, Aug 17, 2007, 7:31 A

Loitering

I’ve posted my last thoughts on the downtown issue. It’s pretty clear that some folks are determined to turn this into a "social discussion" on the merits of teenage life, low income life etc.
I only posted about the loitering , and that is what it is, as a deterent to Downtown shopping. Why does it have to turn into a poor-versus-not, a teen-versus-druggies, all this comparison only clouds the issue. The question is : do you want a downtown that brings business to Turners, or do you want a downtown that serves as a "social center" for various groups who could find other places to be social than on our downtown streets.

I would imagine that a lot of opinions that concentrate on the "social issues" are not and probably won’t be business owners downtown., otherwise there would be a willingness to see that we are only addressing how the loitering affects the viablility of downtown, not bad rapping teens, poorer people, Section 8 or any other social problem of the modern world.

I’ve said enough on it.