Fitchburg Businesses Bank On Revitalization Bringing Foot Traffic — And Revenue — Back To Main Street

PHOTOS/COURTESY A.T. LEONARD & ASSOCIATES, ASHBY Top: a photo of a stretch of Fitchburg's Main Street; below, an artist's rendering of what it would look like after completion of a downtown revitalization.

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By Emily Micucci

Fitchburg has struggled to find its footing since the city's mill industry crumbled decades ago, and there may be no better symbol of that struggle than the depressed Main Street corridor.

What was once a bustling center for retail and community events is now home to business offices, social service agencies, a few restaurants and a jewelry store or two – along with many vacant storefronts.

The business community is far from thriving, but business leaders are committed to recreating downtown Fitchburg as a hub for culture, dining, shopping and leisure, just like in the old days.

Now, they have the support of City Hall, which has embarked on a revitalization project that could resurrect something like the downtown they used to know. The City Council authorized spending $95,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) money in June to pay for a downtown revitalization study aimed at streetscape improvements and changes in traffic patterns.

The object, according to Larry Casassa, business manager for the Fitchburg Department of Public Works, is to complete the study by September so the city can apply for a grant through the state's MassWorks Infrastructure Program, which would pay for the improvements outlined in the study.

Kent Bourgault, manager of Shack's Fine Clothing on Main Street, said that if the grant application is successful, it will be the first time in at least 20 years Main Street has seen streetscape improvements.

“I don't see it being a magic wand, but I think it will definitely help,” he said.

Bourgault is president of Fitchburg Pride, the nonprofit organization of local business leaders who have joined forces to make Main Street a better place to do business. He's optimistic about the revitalization study, but talk to him about the current climate on Main Street and you get the idea that there's a long road ahead.

His greatest pet peeves are bicyclists riding down the sidewalk, traffic whizzing down the one-way street, and loiterers hanging around with no intention of patronizing businesses.

Bright Spots?

But there are signs of hope, according to Bourgault. New housing is being developed just off Main Street, and a few new restaurants have opened in recent years.

But there have been setbacks too, notably the fire that destroyed the Johnsonia Building, a historic Main Street structure that had been redeveloped into apartments and condominiums before it was gutted in 2011.

Hundreds of residents — people whom Bourgault said rejuvenated support for Main Street businesses — were displaced. And with an unsound roof, there is talk City Hall may relocate from the otherwise-stately building sandwiched between Main Street and Boulder Drive.

The DPW's Casassa said the city sees the revitalization study as a first step toward addressing the numerous needs of the sputtering downtown. Improving streets and sidewalks, upgrading lighting and signage, and creating new recreational spaces are first — yet important — steps.

“There are so many design elements that need to be addressed that would make the downtown a much more usable space,” Casassa said.

Mayor Lisa Wong, who previously worked for the Fitchburg Redevelopment Authority, has pushed initiatives like the construction of Riverfront Park on Boulder Drive, which runs parallel to Main Street, as well as the hosting of downtown cultural events aimed at attracting more people to the area. The four-year-old Nashua River Brewers Festival now draws thousands to Riverfront Park.

“The redesign is not just to renovate our streets, but to also reinvigorate our community with new businesses, public art and green spaces,” Wong said in a statement.

No Quick Fix

Andrew Leonard, owner of AT Leonard & Associates of Ashby, said this mix of events and infrastructure improvements is a recipe for creating a vibrant downtown, though it could take years for Main Street to earn a reputation.

Leonard, the landscape architect charged with creating a plan that makes Main Street more welcoming for pedestrians, said it was determined in meetings with citizens and Fitchburg Pride that the community would like to see downtown Fitchburg developed as a destination, and not just the epicenter of a college town.

But Fitchburg State University (FSU) is a huge asset to revitalization, Leonard said, and it's crucial to connect the campus on North Street — which runs perpendicular to Main Street — to downtown businesses.

This can be accomplished by extending the streetscape from downtown businesses to the campus on the other end of Main Street, according to Leonard, and improvements must focus on making pedestrians feel secure with adequate sidewalks, curbs and lighting, as well as beautification.

“I'd say this is one of those things that, if you build it, they will come,” Leonard said.

Civil engineering firm Tighe & Bond, headquartered in Westfield, is overseeing traffic improvements for the study.

Leonard hopes downtown Fitchburg will someday emulate the likes of Keene, N.H., a college town with a downtown people flock to for leisurely fun. But cities closer to home have also made great strides in breathing new life into their Main Streets.

Lessons From Marlborough

Marlborough, for example, carried out a revitalization project about a dozen years ago, similar to the one Fitchburg is contemplating, and has since enjoyed a relatively successful downtown with a variety of dining venues and fewer empty storefronts.

The key to success, said Tim Cummings, operations director at the Marlborough Economic Development Corp., is persistence. Streetscape improvements are necessary, but they'll only pay off if there's an effort to create constant downtown events to attract a supporting population.

“You have to constantly pay attention to it and make it a priority,” Cummings said.

And, the community has to be willing to embrace change, said Marlborough Mayor Arthur Vigeant. Some have a tendency to want to recreate downtown retail centers, but he said it's more important to focus on creating cultural attractions and events these days.

“They'd love to see it change back (to a retail hub), but I don't see it ever happening,” Vigeant said.

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