Posts Tagged ‘Town/Gown’
Allston Residents Left With a Pile of Dirt, Rats from Harvard University
It is true: North Allston, MA is no Cambridge, MA and certainly no New Haven, CT, but this area offers an eclectic and ethnic culture that has been cultivated over the years by student residents and immigrant tenants who proudly call the “gritty” neighborhood home. Go for a walk, better yet, go for a bike ride, through the neighborhood and you will quickly notice the diversity of the population by the different marks they have left on the land: College students have decorated their backyards with couches, immigrants have opened Vietnamese, Indian, and Italian restaurants that stand next to popular bars, and children and college students, alike, populate the playgrounds that pop up throughout the neighborhood. Rootsy, welcoming, and bursting with culture, North Allston offers a unique spirit to the Boston area, and it should not be treated as invaluable.
As of late, a five-acre empty constuction pit in front of a string of vacant buildings has made it hard to observe the culture, and contributes to it feeling dirty and neglected.
Allston residents thank Harvard for this.
After years of opposition, Allston residents finally gave in to Harvard’s $1 billion plans to expand their campus by building a science complex in North Allston. Instead of new customers, and opportunities for new businesses, Harvard’s renovation plans have only brought a large empty lot, and lots of empty promises so far.
Residents shouldn’t be too quick to hate on Harvard, though, when the situation brings up yet another excuse to cheer to the bad economy!
Allston- Love In Stockholm MP3
