What an excellent page one news story and photo by Deborrah Porter in the July 13 Athol Daily News! Though I don’t know everyone in that photo of a meeting of the Downtown Vitality Committee, I have long been acquainted with many of them. These are people who care and who are willing to give their time and energy for the sake of progress.
As aware humans, they probably complain now and then about bothersome things, but their overall approach is positive thinking with an eye toward the future.
Vitality is a good word to be included in such a group just as the Orange Revitalization Partnership has a related word in it. A little research into the etymology of “vital” yields this: “Meaning: ‘of or manifesting life,’ from Latin vitalis ‘of or belonging to life.’”
In other words, the North Quabbin Region’s two largest towns are not dead yet, even though they once were more prosperous and lively with shoppers, especially on Thursday nights right after factory pay checks were cashed!
No one likes to admit to being naive or foolish, but I will confess to revealing some of those traits when I wrote a column trying to discourage the town fathers of Athol from pursuing the development of a large commercial mall near Exit 18. At that time, premised on my idealism about such things, I urged them to put energy instead into downtown. But the North Quabbin Commons, located right off Route 2, has certainly brought progress here and it would be a waste of energy to accuse that development of harming Athol. Positive elements there are the attraction of consumers from all directions, the construction of retail establishments and a movie complex, and the tax dollars coming into town offers.
When I decided to write about downtown for today’s column, I put some thought into my own connection to downtown, and I realized that for me and probably thousands of others, downtown remains important. I still dine and drink at the Blind Pig on Exchange Street. I buy gas from both gas stations, use the post office and the public library regularly, have chosen the Athol Pharmacy over the big chains elsewhere in town, and I do business with Lisa Cary, CPA, the Athol Savings Bank and Cornerstone Insurance.
If a recreational marijuana outlet opens as proposed in the former gas station across from the post office, I will be one of its first customers, especially to celebrate the long-overdue change in the law.
Also, I have a friend who benefits from having an affordable rental apartment downtown.
The newspaper report listed parking, safety and zoning as priorities mentioned at the recent meeting of the Vitality Committee. I presume the members of that committee are tuned in to all levels of reality, but I didn’t see any reference in the article to the residents of downtown. There are diverse individuals and families residing on the upper floors of Main Street structures, including senior citizens and handicapped individuals living in the Pequoig Apartments (formerly Pequoig Hotel). If the committee has not yet done so, I urge the inclusion of downtown residents on board to address their concerns.
I am confident the committee will also concern itself with the aesthetic aspects of downtown, such as trees, flower boxes, routine and holiday lighting, and more. Architectural integrity and preservation and signage are other topics.
Preservation of the original Athol Savings Bank building is happening right now, for which we should all be grateful. I think the ornate old building is a bit of a white elephant in the eyes of the bank’s modern leaders, but they presumably also understand it is part of this community’s heritage.
Back in the 1980s, the grand Pequoig Hotel was in trouble, and was saved with the effort of an ad hoc committee including Countryside Realty’s Arthur Platt and Plotkin Furniture’s Sherman Plotkin. The Gardner Savings Bank, owner of the vacant building, was hit with a big water bill after a pipe leaked, and the bank was angry about that and threatened to proceed with demolition. The ad hoc committee found a private developer and also got help from U.S. Congressman Silvio Conte and others to preserve the building and transform it into an apartment house.
The Vitality Committee also needs to discuss the problem with some structures on Exchange Street – in particular, the former Maroni and Plotkin buildings – that need to be purchased and repurposed. That’s a relatively new word – repurpose – applicable not only to buildings but to entire towns! In a sense, that is happening to Athol, Orange and many places in the United States and elsewhere. I’m glad this Vitality Committee exists, am impressed with its devoted, caring members, and wish them all success in their endeavors.
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