Quincy Market: the once and future memory … er, urban marketplace
Last week’s special edition of Ideas, “Blueprints for a new downtown Boston,” presented 10 features dedicated to reimagining the city’s core. “Give Quincy Market an unsentimental reboot,” by columnist Joan Vennochi, generated a lively response from online readers that touched on many of the issues raised throughout the section. The following is an edited sample of those comments:
The Quincy Market of today is nothing short of moribund. Nobody is excited about going there, whether they live 2 or 20,000 miles away. It’s a dated, boring, trite husk of its former self. The time is long past for doing something productive and exciting there. (grahamsteve)
Quincy Market started declining when they brought in chain stores. Why would anyone want to drive in and pay for parking when they could go to the local mall for the same stores? Bring back the local vendors and nonchain restaurants. (greygull2)
I hardly ever go there, but the last time I was at Quincy Market, around Christmas, I didn’t see the problem as chain stores. There were plenty of little kiosks and stands, but the stuff they were selling was nothing special. It would probably be better to totally reinvent the place. (JSBergstrom)
Quincy Market needs to represent Boston. I use the italics to emphasize that when tourists visit, they know where they are, immediately — not because there’s some pushcart selling plush lobsters made who-knows-where with the word “Boston” on them. The Boston Public Market is a good example of what Quincy Market should be striving toward: a gateway to New England and the particular joys of this part of the country. Margaritaville is not it. Wagamama is not it. Sephora is not it. Where is the Portuguese restaurant representing that huge influence on the region, for one example? (MWK)
The columnist makes good points about how the city has been physically and mentally remapped by elimination of the old Central Artery. Unlike Vennochi, I grew up in Boston and, aside from being taken once by my parents to Durgin Park (which I did not enjoy), I was hardly ever in that area before 1976. I didn’t share much of the enthusiasm then for the revamped market supposedly signaling a renaissance, and I thought some of the patriotic branding in the spirit of ’76 was overdone. I see more clearly now how it was in step with the emerging spirit of brownstone gentrification. I’ll even admit to some vicarious satisfaction seeing busloads of tourists doing their bit for the city’s economy. Almost 50 years later, as someone who walks through the market mainly to get somewhere else, I feel the patriotic kitsch has gotten stale. (ChrisLovett)
My dad always had the same sunglass case in his front shirt pocket, like the guy in the photo from 1976 that ran with the piece. (Sigmund-Fraud)
Housing! Turn some of the upper floors in the North and South Market buildings into apartments. Make clear that the housing does not come with vehicular parking. A smart developer can transform some space into typical residential amenities such as a fitness center, common meeting space, etc. This would appeal to young people who want to live in Boston and live near their work. New life would be breathed into some of the restaurants, bars, and other establishments. Housing, people. That has to be part of the solution to reviving Quincy Market. ( jjshello)
We should take notes from San Juan’s La Placita, which by day is a food market but at night is a hotspot, with great outdoor dining options that effectively turn into one sprawling dance floor after hours. Quincy Market already attracts people for nightlife, albeit mostly college kids, but there’s a foundation there. Reclaim retail spaces and restaurants nobody wants to go to and encourage more bars and local restaurants to occupy space there. This could really breathe new life into the city’s nonexistent nightlife options. (mwitk)
Really appreciate this piece and agree that Quincy Market needs a fresh approach. Ted Landsmark, who Vennochi interviewed, should be part of any planning group. He’s fully aware of Boston’s complexity and changing dynamics. (econ)
I’m not sure what a successful formula for Quincy Market would look like. Its time as a mass destination point seems gone for good. (Boston Water)
Turn it back into a meat, fish, and cheese market. (petergriffith55)