EASTHAMPTON — Twenty years ago, Easthampton residents may have said Cottage Street was just a route to get to Northampton. Now, it is considered to be a destination of its own.
On any given night on Cottage Street, ice cream lovers enjoy their treats while relaxing on the boardwalk along the iconic Nashawannuck Pond, friends bump into one another on their way to dinner and bar-hoppers bounce to their next destination on both sides of the busy road.
“I have always liked this whole community,” Easthampton resident Deb Edelman said while eating ice cream and holding a stranger’s dog on her lap. “I love that you can just come here and park, and I love that I see so many people I know.”
This bustling activity is a phenomena that many didn’t envision 20 years ago when Cottage Street’s turnaround began.
“When I started here, I wouldn’t call it a rough street for business, but it was not close to where it is now …” said Jim Ingram, proprietor of Mt. Tom’s Homemade Ice Cream & Candy Store. “People just went to Northampton and didn’t come here as much. As things started to improve, momentum started to build.”
Ingram opened Mt. Tom’s 21 years ago. Since opening, he has seen a steady increase in popularity each year, not just for Mt. Tom’s, but Cottage Street as a whole, “This is the most popular street in town now really.”
Business has always been a part of the history of Easthampton. The city evolved from a rural farming village to a mill town and in 1996 changed its form of government from a town to a city.
Now, the city hosts numerous artists, retail shops and restaurants — and the role of Cottage Street can’t be understated, experts say. Today, the street attracts visitors from throughout the region who can park free-of-charge and walk from one end to the other stopping to hear live music, buy a comic book or grab a bite to eat.
“The business growth on Cottage Street has developed in many ways,” said Laurie Lamoureux, president of the Greater Easthampton Chamber of Commerce. “I’m a believer that once momentum starts then it gets going … What’s been happening on Cottage Street is there’s been some new business, some new excitement and then that propels the next person’s excitement for wanting to give it a shot and start a business.”
Lamoureux said that while the Chamber has focused on building business in all of Easthampton through gaining members and implementing programs, Cottage Street has played a critical role in the growth of retail shops and restaurants that have increased substantially over the past 20 years.
Significant developments
Through the years Ingram has seen numerous students stop by on half-days of school to buy sweets, CityArts help grow artistic possibilities and the construction of Promenade Park, also known as “the boardwalk” along Nashawannuck Pond.
The boardwalk was officially opened on June 13, 2015, kicking off the Second Annual Cultural Chaos, under former Easthampton Mayor Karen Cadieux.
“A big contributor to the Cottage Street revitalization was when the city did all the walkways and boardwalk around the pond,” said Lamoureux.
When asked what they have seen change most on Cottage Street, owner of Harry King Rug & Home Jared Quinn said two things, “foot traffic … and rents have doubled.”
While there is a resounding favorability from businessowners toward the growth on Cottage Street, they have seen a downside. A spike in popularity comes with a spike in rent prices.
Jared and Christine Quinn originally opened Harry King Rug & Home in the Eastworks building in 2004 before moving to Cottage Street in 2009. When they made the move, business ramped up, and over time, so did rent prices.
“When the (Great) Recession hit, we needed to go to a place that thousands of cars drove by everyday,” Jared noted about Cottage Street. “Easthampton was nothing special back then.”
“Either you take less profit or you raise your prices,” Ingram said about rent increases.
“Cottage Street is the center of Easthampton at this point,” said Dave Witthaus, who owns Platterpus Records. “It’s kind of weird. Cottage Street had nothing. It used to be a street that you passed through to get to Northampton.”
Witthaus has been in business for 42 years but made the move to Cottage Street about 14 years ago after the records industry “collapsed,” seeking a cheaper and more accessible space.
“For small businesses like this, you need people to come in,” he said. “When I moved I almost had my pick of stores. So many were vacant.”
“Business has been a lot better here than on Union [Street],” said owner of Comics N’ More Christian W. Z. Reader.
Reader moved to Cottage from Union Street in spring 2019, a year before the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily shut down businesses. Before businesses closed and once they reopened, Reader saw an increase in revenue on Cottage Street.
“It was great when we first moved here and its continued to be great. Restaurants and businesses offer a great small-town vibe,” said Reader.
Entertainment, restaurants key
For Dave DelVecchio, Greater Easthampton Chamber of Commerce board member, there are many components to Cottage Street’s growth. While businesses have come and gone, there have been some restaurants that have remained, such as Nini’s Ristorante and Amy’s Place.
“When you look at Cottage Street, it has turned into such a restaurant and entertainment center in Easthampton …” he said. “For the longest time, Easthampton had a reputation where the only two types of businesses that seemed to be in our retail districts were package stores and pizza places.”
“If you look at all of the work that Easthampton has done on a project by project basis, all of a sudden, twenty years have gone by, you look up and we’ve got this hidden jewel of a community we all call home.
Chamber of Commerce Board Member, Dave DelVecchio
In 2012, the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC) named Cottage Street a cultural district in Easthampton. Cultural districts are designated by the MCC as a specific geographical area in a city or town that has a concentration of cultural facilities, activities and assets.
“I’ve noticed more of a culture here in Easthampton compared to Northampton,” said Andrew Curran who works at Marigold Theater. “The general consensus is that the nightlife, bars, music is much more community-based and lively than Northampton is.”
Curran lives in Northampton but sees the bars and entertainment businesses there less centralized than in Easthampton.
“I’ve been coming here for 10 years and the age demographic has gone down by about 20 years,” said Sam McDonough, who works at the Brass Cat.
“There’s a lot of good and close establishments in Easthampton compared to Northampton …” said Curran. “I think the rent in Northampton is a lot higher if you want to stay afloat.”
For tenants and business owners, rent increases in Easthampton has been a frequently discussed topic.
“What does rent cost here and is it affordable,” questioned Melanie Salvaggio about rent prices on Cottage Street.
Salvaggio moved to Easthampton nine years ago into the apartments at One Cottage Street and co-opened Valley Paddler on Nashawannuck Pond in 2017. Recently, she had to move out of the city due to family changes and rent increases.
“Easthampton has gotten more pricey …” she said. “Cottage Street is great, I love the restaurants here but it makes me wonder how long people will be able to sustain with these prices, especially artists.”
The mill building at One Cottage Street was built in 1859 to produce batten, twine and elastic thread, powered by a dam through Nashawannuck Pond. Now owned by Riverside Industries, it is known for housing tenants and mainly art studios. Last year several artists had to leave their studios due to rent increases.
Lamoureux acknowledged that rent increases have gone up but still feels they are significantly less than certain surrounding areas and are still manageable. She added that while business on Cottage Street has increased in recent years, it is only part of the Chamber’s greater focus on all business in Easthampton.
“It takes a village,” said DelVecchio about business growth in Easthampton. “No single activity is the sole reason why Cottage Street is what it is today and it’s taken a community working together to have it become the jewel of the area.”
