Losing – and Reweaving – Our Community’s Threads
By the Concord Independent Business Alliance (“Concord Indies”)
Change may indeed be life’s only constant. But sometimes, changes gather together and start forming patterns. Cumulatively, they may signal sweeping change in the fabric of our community.
Take our Milldam shopping district at the moment. In April, we lost two long-time fixtures of the district when Anderson Photo and Imaging and the Concord Harness Shop closed their doors. These shops represent long threads woven deep into the fabric of our community, now displaced or lost.
Both of these establishments were locally-owned, independent businesses – not surprising considering that currently the Milldam is occupied predominantly by Indies. Furthermore, these business owners were long-time members of the Concord community – not just the Concord business community, but also the greater community. These business owners worked at these locations. They live in Concord or a few miles away. They raise their children here, and have friends and family locally. They showed strong support for local causes, and went far out of their way to be helpful community members.
At our recent Annual Town Meeting, by far the majority of town residents attending were in favor of new bylaws to restrict the number and size of formula businesses that could set up shop in Concord’s business districts. The vote was just short of the two-thirds majority required for passage of these proposed bylaws, but the message was loud and clear: Concord’s residents want to preserve the tapestry of our small-town character.
A vital part of that character is the personal relationships that citizens have with our Indie owners. Downtown Concord hasn’t been just a place for them to make a living; it’s been a place for them to have a life. “I simply could not believe the outpouring I received when I announced my retirement,” said Lynda Anderson, last owner of 60-year-old Anderson Photo and Imaging. “The cards, the emails, the bouquets of flowers… I just didn’t expect such a huge send-off.”
Did the franchises and chains that have come and gone from Concord know such warm embraces and fond farewells when they closed? Did Woolworth’s, Papa Gino’s and Friendly’s corporate owners receive gifts and tear-stained goodbye letters? Were we looking forward to knowing the owners of Citibank when they wanted to open a retail banking center on Walden Street? How much did these corporate owners seek to become personally woven into our community fabric?
Dr. Thomas Lyson of Cornell University did a comparison between US counties dominated by locally-owned businesses, and those dominated by outside corporations. Those primarily owned by locally-owned businesses displayed better health, education and social welfare indicators. Their residents were more likely to vote and they also experienced less crime. These are the very strengths we want to continue to weave through our community.
At our last Town Meeting, owners of commercial property in Concord spoke passionately against the proposed Formula Business Bylaws. They said that they would be sensitive when choosing new tenants. They would select businesses to maintain the right balance, and keep Concord’s business districts strong and vibrant. They said no Formula Business Bylaws would be needed because as property owners, they would be good stewards of the greater public good.
At this moment, new tenants are being selected for these now-vacant business locations. The same vast majority of Town Meeting voters look forward to the sensitive reweaving of our community’s business and social fabric, with new tenant chosen to preserve Concord’s small-town character.
For more information about the Concord Indies, go to www.ConcordIndies.org or visit Indies President, Marie Foley, at Concord Hand Designs at 33 Main Street.
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