Stoneham's Commercial District Has Room For Improvement: Study

STONEHAM, MA — A state examination of Stoneham's commercial district identified areas of improvement aimed at helping businesses bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Department of Housing and Community Development's Rapid Recovery Plan found people felt the area could be safer and more accessible for pedestrians, local regulations could be reviewed to make things easier for businesses and a central group could help the district with things like marketing and dialogue with local government.

"Almost everyone reported being impacted by COVID," Katie Kemen, one of the plan facilitators, said in a May 27 presentation.

Businesses surveyed expressed some dissatisfaction with the condition of the district's public spaces and sidewalks, including how narrow they are in places where there could be outdoor dining and retail stands.

They also said some of the local regulations, particularly those around signage and parking, pose a problem.

There was also a desire for an increased administrative capacity to help with things like cross-marketing and district improvements — indeed, shared marketing and advertising were at the top of businesses' wish lists.

The Stoneham Planning Department has just one full-time staff, as does the Chamber of Commerce. A volunteer Downtown Merchants Group was beginning to mobilize before the pandemic.

Customers noted the challenge of crossing the street and poorly lit or maintained alleys, as well as snowbanks that block parking and pedestrian access in the winter.

"Crossing the street in some parts of the district, we could have used more crosswalks or lights to help people get across," Kemen said.

The Town Center was given a thumbs-up, but there were concerns that as the district extended north it became far less walkable than the south.

The study found there are 130 storefronts in what was deemed the commercial district, and since the start of the pandemic, none had to permanently close. As of April of this year there were nine vacant storefronts and two vacant developable lots. There are about 1,700 parking spaces in total, including public and private lots in the area.

The state offered the study to communities to help develop a plan made up of actionable steps that would address specific challenges. The first phase — collecting data — has wrapped up. Now comes developing around 10 recommendations the town could implement to help support businesses.

What do you think about Stoneham's commercial district? Email me at mike.carraggi@patch.com.

You can see the full presentation below. Remember to subscribe to Stoneham Patch for free local news and alerts and like us on Facebook