what you said! at what's next for downtown lynn? on may 23, 2013

What You Said!

Photo by James K. Lindley

Check out what participants

at the May 23, 2013 Forum

had to say about What’s

Next for Downtown Lynn.

Were you

there? This document is

a virtual

representation

of comments

made at the

May 23, 2013

Open House

and shortly

after. Comments

were collected

in quotes, on

brown paper,

on Post-its, and

with dots.

This document

does NOT

represent

MAPC’s views

but it will inform

our findings.

Event photos by

James K.

Lindley and

Jenn Erickson.

For interactive

polling results

and other info,

please visit

www.mapc.org/

downtownlynn.

Were you

there?


How did you hear about this event? Please place a sticker on all that apply!

Facebook or

LinkedIn

Blog or

website

Email or

e-newsletter

Saw a flyer Word of

Mouth

Other

Lynn is a diverse community

with a lot to offer.

Build on the vision!


A diverse

community

“One thing I

like about Lynn

is that it’s

definitely a

diverse city.”

- Walnut-da Lyrical Geni


What surprises you

about this data?

Race or income

doesn’t matter if it

is done right for

all people. - K

What do you know that

the numbers don’t say?

I LOVE THIS

STATEMENT!

Doing it right means

thinking about race,

income, privilege,

and the structures that

disproportionately affect

some more than others.

I agree – race matters

“black” “white” barely

captures all the

cultures/races, here

¡Muy buena

información!

The 18-25 year-

old dropoff is

very surprising.

Some punctuation and language was changed for clarity. In this example, most participants wrote directly on the brown paper, so the yellow and green do not signify before and after as in other examples.

Very interesting

I agree

Not all Latinos are

counted what

about

Guatemalans

How quickly the

economic factors

improve beyond

Lynn’s borders How few residents

have a Bachelor’s

degree

I know Lynn is coming

back and will be a

thriving business and

residential community

as it once was! I want

to be an active

participant in making

this dream a reality

Debbie Plunkett

Candidate for Ward

One Councilor 978-

818-3334

Photo by Jenn Erickson, MAPC

“I’ve lived in Lynn for

two years. I didn’t

know what the city

was all about when I

came here, but now I

love it here. I’m

originally from the

south, and so I’m used

to a lot of diversity.

Here, there’s just a

great mix of people. I

didn’t find that in

Boston. I felt Boston

was more segregated

than the south when I

first got here.”

– Jon Feinberg, formerly of

Boston and Atlanta

“I want to see Downtown Lynn bridge the divide

among various racial and ethnic groups. The barriers

are astounding. Knowing the data of who lives here

feels empowering and compelling!”

– Sarah Jackson, Downtown resident and business owner


With a lot to offer! Photo by James K. Lindley

“The people of Lynn

are very friendly.”

– Jolene Kelly



“We’ve lived here 10 years. I own a

house in Lynn. I know there are a lot

of good restaurants, but I didn’t even

know we had a museum down here.”

– Justine Celestin

“WalkScore needs bicycle

data. People love to ride the

wooded corridor from Salem

Woods through Spring Pond

Woods to Lynn Woods.”

- Katerina Panagiotakis


23

19 27

21

22

24 23 25

26 20 17

32

18

31

Participants added points to

the assets map and placed

dots next to the photos to

show their enthusiasm for

some of the places selected.


“This area is awesome,

yet we have this issue

where people don’t go

downtown. Some folks

in other parts of Lynn

don’t feel like they

have a reason to come

downtown. We need

more business down

here, and more

variety.”

– Walnut-da Lyrical Geni

What other existing

amenities would you add?

31. Union Street

Shops and

Restaurants

Main Church

Revitalize

beach!

Please look at the

Lynn Historical

Resources Map as

well. Thanks - K

Lynn Shore

Reservation

Christian Science

Church

Lynn Shore Dr.

25. Pho Minh Ky

Union St.

27. J.B. Blood 28.

Lynnhappens.com

21. GAR

Building

Yes!!

24. RAW Arts

Gallery

26. The Daily Item

Itemlive.com

Your local news!

23. Lynn Public

Library

20. Cupcake

shop and

dog bistro

22. Post Office

19. Operation

Bootstrap

17. Union/

Community Hall

Upright Youth

Zone Mission

Kids zone just

for kids Water Park for

Kids

Lynn’s food

shop

Parking lots

More organized

activities on

Lynn Common!

Lynn Haunted

House, Andrew

Alborn is scary

30. A zoo

Pelican Beach

Pub

Sand Bar Beach

Bar

Flex shared

office space

Health – is it

possible to bring

more specialists to

Lynn?

29. Shopping mall

with restaurants &

brand clothes, shoes

more

32. Salon

18. North Shore

Community

College

(agree)


“I came to the Open House because my

son lives here, and the community has

always been very helpful to us. It’s great

that Lynn has good public transportation

and health services.”

– Leonardo Albornoz, via Spanish-language interpreter

Tell us about places,

or share a story

about a memorable

encounter you had

in Downtown Lynn!

Lynnway Mark

et

Broad

Help Broad St.

w/ commercial traffic.

Rotary to draw

approach into

downtown via

Market St. - K

Arts After Hours

Musicals!!

Constantly seeing

friendly & familiar

faces while out &

about! Great

community. YES

LOVE MY

NEIGHBORS!

Love the

diverse cuisine

Movies & events

@ LynnArts

Meeting new

neighbors in

hallways of our

lofts

Just love the

great

architecture

and arts “vibe.”

Studying English

at night

Downtown

Hardware stores

Beden? = gone

Stationery stores

Arnold Belkin = gone

Department stores =

gone My parents (age 70)

share memories of

downtown! 4 movie

theatres, tons of shops,

restaurants!

Walking the downtown

streets until midnight

safely! I have been in

Lynn my whole life and

it’s a fabulous city.

We just need to work

together as a

community and restore

our downtown!

Join me in making this

happen and ourselves

and our kids

candidate Debbie

Plunkett, Ward One

Councilor

to Lynn Woods. Also

need bike trails to the

sea & downtown. - K

Walkscore needs

bicycle data. People

love to ride the

wooded corridor from

Salem Woods through

Spring Pond Woods

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes!

YES

Some punctuation and language was changed for clarity. In this example, red text is used for illustrations and to indicate when it appeared as though more than one participant commented on the same item.


“Lynn is the first place in 25

years where I’ve felt like I

lived in a neighborhood.” - Jolene Kelly, Owner of Cakes by NeeNee

formerly of Arizona and 3-year resident of

Downtown Lynn

“My parents, who are in their 70s, share memories of

Downtown! Four movie theaters, tons of shops, restaurants,

and walking the downtown streets until midnight!” - Debbie Plunkett, candidate for Lynn Ward One City Councilor


Build on

the Vision!



“I’ve been a resident for

three years, and already I’m

seeing a renewal and

changes in Lynn. It has

gotten a lot cleaner

Downtown. One the things

I’m seeing is that people are

coming here from the

outside. Long-term residents

always say that nothing ever

changes, but new residents

are creating a grassroots

environment.”

- Jolene Kelly, Downtown resident and

owner of Cakes by NeeNee

What does Downtown

need, and where?

Please fire Sasaki.

Their designs in Lynn

have been non-

contextual or friendly

to Lynn. -K

7. VNA-need retail

on ground floor this is

at a pivotal point:

2. Gateway residence

design on Washington-

non-contextual design,

too ‘Cambridge style’

lower buildings please

and to make:

1. Suffolk Court-

uncontextual to

neighborhood, color

choices for same

material too ‘Disney’

- K

pedestrian friendly. tie

into Diamond District

better, not block view

of others, parking,

massing too much, DISAGREE – I think

the Sasaki plans are

brilliant! It is the kind

of thinking Lynn

needs.

No skyscrapers

Redesign &

update downtown

RR bridge!

More restaurants

Streets cleaner

Special financing &

leasing for people

who want to open a

storefront!

Existing business

on Washington St.

not recognized by

plan.

Jobs! Jobs! Jobs!

Ditto, special

support for

people who want

to open storefront

businesses.

••••

••••••••

••••

••••

••••

transport connection

greenbelt around cities

nodes mix

residential/

commercial/

work

Waterfront industry:

wind farming, vertical

crop farming, utilize

clean air & prevailing

winds for energy.

Permitting is not

restrictive enough to

open for public process

and hearings, as

typical in other towns.

- K

Waterfront needs

to be open air.

Do not raise

buildings high

near waterfront

blocking rest of

city views.

Keep waterfront

industrial/

entertainment mix.

We need avenue.

More residential here

will draw crowds away

from existing homes in

Lynn. Keep similar to

South Boston/ Salem

Willows.

Also special

efforts to attract

strong businesses

and to fill unused

buildings.

Please do not only

listen to developers.

But open pre-permit

process to help

developers understand

community. – K

Make Lynn

“Green City”

Needs perception of

lively hood for

commerce, art and

intelligence at

gateway - K

5. K - Lynn Auditorium-

entry doorway

appearance revisit,

used to have banners

flags on windows,

needs warm welcoming

too connected &

institutional looking, too

much vertical in

massing/ bad

proportion, dislike

colors - Katerina

gateway through

downtown, grand

street to city hall at

center of mass

transportation system.

“We need

something for

folks to feel like

they can get

involved with.”

– Walnut-da Lyrical Geni



“It would be great if Lynn had more

doctors and specialists so that older

residents wouldn’t have to go all the

way in to Boston for care.”

– Leonardo Albornoz, via Spanish-language

interpreter

“I want more skateparks in Downtown Lynn.” – Woodson Mezidor, age 11


I’d like to see

a mall here.” – Roberto Celestin, Jr., age 12


Any inspiration

from other places?

Theater and

acting class

~

Beautification

Outside dining

Yes! Yes!

Waterfront

dining! Urban

scene!! Fix storefronts &

buildings

City ordinances

enforced for residents

& businesses to keep

things clean & kept up

That looks ok

More green

space

|

ditto!

Community arts

!!!

Some punctuation and language was changed for clarity. In this example, red text is used to indicate when it appeared as though more than one participant commented on the same item.

Photos were found on these websites, clockwise from upper left:

1. Not available

2. http://www.terrain.org/unsprawl/20/

3. http://waterbuffalomilwaukee.com/

4. http://mindshapedbox.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/2513910758_017243e4e6_z.jpg

5. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blind_musicians_-_Mexico_City_downtown.jpg

6. http://www.panoramio.com/photo/41522783

7. Not available

8. http://yarnchic40.wordpress.com/2011/06/20/photography-old-market-omaha/

What does Downtown need to

ensure a thriving, vibrant,

economically competitive future?

More people

Free off-street

parking for residents

to reduce traffic and

provide parking for

businesses

Density

& disposable

income

Better traffic

flow

I would like to see flex

office space like Officio

in Boston. Then, people

who work at home could

get out of their houses

and walk to work

Security and

marketing

More cleaning

Yes!

Yes! Littering

is a problem!!!

Security

•Less crime

•Less gang activity

•More community

volunteer opportunities

•Better schools!

Career training

& JOBS

End the one

way maze

More positive

images of Lynn

in the media

Renewable

energy

•Good attitudes

•Keeping the city clean

•Finding ways to

attract & support

successful businesses

Making sure youth

are engaged,

supported,

encouraged,

educated, etc.

Green Community

Stretch Code

We need people who

are passionate and

enthusiastic about the

city of Lynn. We need

a fresh perspective

More malls and

shopping malls

Beach become

alive place not

dead how is now!

More residents! More parking

less traffic

Park benches

for reading and

waiting

and people working

together to bring

Downtown back to the

successful city it once

was with plenty of

business, shopping, and

growth! – Deb

Plunkett, candidate for

Ward One


“Lynn is nice because we have the

train, but it would be good to have

more businesses downtown.”

– Justine Celestin

“There’s room for

improvement. We

need more arts and

culture here. The

artists are out here,

but they don’t have a

community that caters

just to them.”



“I would love to see Downtown Lynn even

more revitalized. I very much want to see

Lynn thrive. I would love to see more

successful businesses and filled properties.”

- Susan Kerr, realtor Photo by James K. Lindley

Help build on the vision!

How will you help?

I will _______.

Embrace

diversity

Challenge

perceptions of

Lynn

Us too! Daily

Item &

itemlive.com

Me too!

Centerboard!

I will

participate in

my community

and volunteer.

“I love Lynn – I want to see it be

vibrant and thrive!”

- Teri Faulisi, Downtown resident


“I have been in Lynn my

whole life and it’s a

fabulous city. We just need

to work together as a

community and restore

our downtown! Join me in

making this happen for

ourselves and our kids.”

- Debbie Plunkett, candidate for

Ward One City Councilor


“The people of Lynn have a

great willingness to

experiment. There are lots

of interesting organizations

working hard to create a

more representative vision

for what Lynn is all about.”

– Jon Feinberg, 2-year Lynn resident


The city has been great at studying itself. Now is the time for

real change. …Together we can achieve powerful things for

this great place we all love so much.” – Corey Jackson, via DowntownLynn.com


“Come a little closer.”



“Lynn is in!” - Jolene Kelly, owner of Cakes by NeeNee


what you said! at what's next for downtown lynn? on may 23, 2013

Documents

spring pond

language interpreter

city councilor

jolene kelly

salem woods

brown paper

jenn erickson

debbie plunkett