 Mass MoCA: How Can Public Investment
Pay Off? North Adams Massachusetts is a postindustrial
old factory town with little hope. North Adams Massachusetts is a vibrant
center for the arts poised to take off. Which of those two statements is true? How about both?
North Adams is one of dozens of very
similar towns spread all across New England much like small Pennsylvania
manufacturing towns which were centered on steel, coal and railroads. Towns
like North Adams, Lowell, Pawtucket, and so on produced a broader range of
goods that supplied the world with textiles, clocks, brass, firearms and 20th
century electronic components.
What
happened to those New England factory towns is what happened to the
Pennsylvania and other rustbelt towns: relocation by major employers, changes
in global trading patterns, and subsequent impoverishment and depopulation for
the communities themselves.
A recent article in the Valley
Advocate, an
alternative newsweekly serving Central and Western Massachusetts posed a
question: why, after millions of dollars spent and hundreds of thousands of
visitors since Mass MoCA’s opening in 1999 has the city not benefited as much
as it could have.
The focus of
the article centers on a film done by a local university team is on the damage done by the
postindustrial shift, and posits that the wars in South Asia and the Middle
East, recent corporate bailouts, and income disparity have delayed or halted
revival of North Adams. The director calls for a new New Deal, to solve
the problems of towns like North Adams.
It is clear
that such a New Deal is unlikely to happen anytime soon. The original New Deal had a finite existence,
and a re-launch would eventually end as well. The relationship of Mass MoCA to the continuing problems of North Adams
is not clear, but valid issues of urban layout and disincentives to invest are
clearly ongoing problems
Problems and Solutions Closer to home
Regional planners and urban design experts
have noted that the streetscape in North Adams may not be conducive to
attracting visitors to downtown, which has seen many businesses come and go since
1999, hoping to capitalize on the presence of so many well-heeled visitors.
The planners
have a point. I've been to North Adams on many occasions, both before and after
Mass MoCA opened. It does take some work
to get from Marshall Street to Main Street.
The Mohawk Trail (Route 2) has the unfortunate effect of diving onto the
streetscape before splaying out into a multilane road bordered by large parking
lots, presenting a fairly significant pedestrian barrier just in getting to
Main Street. To continue to the complete essay
follow this link. |
 |
|||||||
CategoriesAct 47Africa Agricultural Policy Allegheny County Australia Baltimore Berkshire Canberra Clairton Connecticut Current News Item Economic Development Economic Policy Economic Rent Economist Education Federal Tax Policy Fiscal Policy and Taxes Gentrification George Osborne Harrisburg Hartford Healthy Communities Housing Housing Policy Hurricane Sandy India Ireland Jimmy Tayoun Kenyatta Johnson Land Policy Land Value Tax Lanesborough Law and the Constitution Maria Quinones-Sanchez Martin Looney Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Monroe County Montreal Moonachie Namibia National Tax Policy New Jersey New London NY Oregon Parking and Transportation Patricia Dillon Pennsylvania Philadelphia Pittsburgh Portland Property Assessment Property Tax Reform Public Opinion Public Resources Public Works Regional Tax Base Sharing Regionalism Rochester Scranton Smart Growth Taiwan Tax Exemption and Abatment Titusville Uncategorized United Kingdom Urban Rejuvenation Urban Tax Policy Wales Wilson Goode Jr. |
|
 |
|||||
    |
|||||||
