Worcester Business Journal

20 Worcester Business Journal • June 6, 2016 www.wbjournal.com Join the WBJ's LinkedIn discussion group by scanning the code to the left on your smartphone. To scan the code, you need the NeoReader. Visit get.neoreader.com to download it onto your phone. Want to participate in the conversation? F L A S H P O L L T A L K B A C K HISTORICAL PRESERVATION The Notre Dame des Canadiens Church is set to be demolished to make way for the CitySquare development in Worcester. "I travel to Europe to tour and view beautiful churches and architectures. Then here, when we have a structural work of art, we are destroy it? It doesn't make sense. If I can tour and view a church in Germany and Italy created in the 1600's, why can't we preserve a church created in the 20th century?" Anonymous WBJ poll commenter FOOD INVESTMENT The Worcester Regional Food Hub is asking the legislature and the governor to fund the Massachusetts Food Trust program. "Nice to see mention of the program in @WBJournal today & its importance to #WorcesterMA. Happy to continue my longstanding support." State Sen. Michael Moore (D-Millbury) via Twitter Do you think historic, landmark buildings should be demolished in the interest of progress? Progress matters more than historical preservation T he developer of CitySquare is moving to demolish the Notre Dame des Canadiens Church, but the Historical Commission has questioned the steps the organization actually took to try to save the structure and find a reuse. The demolition of the church would, in some ways, represent the destruction of a piece of Worcester's history for the sake of progress. When asked, Central Massachusetts business leaders leaned toward having such properties put to their highest use, regardless of historic standing. COMMENTS: A recent study examining the cost of living versus an area's median income has found Worcester County residents have the greatest purchasing power in all of Massachusetts. This study joins a raft of others ranking the city highly, but in very specific ways using a select data set. Despite the large number of rankings similar to this one, Worcester Business Journal readers felt these announcements are positive for the region. Online ratings good for Worcester Do you think these ratings are helpful for the city? COMMENTS: Yes. The more good attention the city gets, the better. 52% Yes. These metrics are a way to directly compare different parts of the state and country. 24% 6% Yes. The land should be put to its highest use. 21% "There are companies that specialize in fixing up historic, landmark buildings. Federal and state grants combined with charitable contributions can cover these extra costs. If you can't raise the capital, then tear it down. It must not be that historic." "We have to be careful with statistics here. The area's cost of living may be lower than in other parts of Massachusetts due to disproportional large number of low-cost housing units, such as triple-deckers." Yes. But only if the property is too far gone to be reused. 37% 0% No. Enough funds can fix nearly any structural deficit that might be present. "Our history and architecture is what makes Worcester, Worcester!" "I would hate to see historical buildings torn down as a matter of course; however, in this particular instance, I can't imagine what such a white elephant of a building could be used for." No. The city was growing before these studies came along. "I'm just afraid that taxes will go up if city hall realizes we have more money to spend!" "While some of these studies provide positive PR, there are so many of them, from so many disparate sources, that the results can be (and often are) questioned." No. The architectural history of the city should be preserved and put to new use. 36% No. These studies are too focused to truly capture the merits of any community. 24%

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