The Grand Inhibitor

As a resident of Worcester I truly like to see Worcester thrive. Unfortunately for us this city can get out of its own way. If it's not the mayor, it's the City Council, if it's not the City Council it's the state. It seems like it is a never ending, but the one constant that seems to get in the way of many things in this city is the Worcester Preservation Society. Talk about a group that inhibits progress.
Last week there were two separate stories of properties that the Preservation Society had been active in, Worcester State Hospital and the Our Lady of Fatima church. With regards to the Preservation Society, where were they four years ago when Martin Scorcese wanted to use the sight for his movie "Shutter Island" and the city and state both said no because it was slated to be knocked down by the time cameras would begin to roll. That would have brought business and some notoriety to the city, but the answer was no and Scorcese took his film to Plymouth and the we got to watch Leonardo DiCaprio on the sidelines during the NBA finals while the old Worcester State Hospital had been untouched. Now when it is time for the wrecking ball to come in, the Preservation Society wants the demolition to stop. Thanks for nothing, that building is beyond saving.

The Fatima one bugs me the most for a couple of reasons. The first was that the Worcester Diocese had a buyer for this property a couple of years ago; however, the buyer had to walk away because Preservation Worcester blocked the sale because the new owner either wanted to change the integrity of the building or ultimately raze the building. Let's face it; there is only so much you can with a vacant church. So when those options were no longer available to buyer he walked away. So now a Chinese congregation buys the church and the Preservationists are happy. That's wonderful, they don't have to pay taxes it on it either which the other buyer was more than willing to do. So the property went from one tax free entity to another and the preservationists are excited about it. I should have them pay my property tax and my excise tax to make up for the lack of funds we get because we can't do anything with an old building in the city.

I am excited about the City Square project because I am seeing things get knocked down. Nothing says progress than "out with the old and in with the new". If the Preservation Worcester wants to save the old mill buildings that used to be home to pre-labor law work conditions and the dehumanizing of children in the name of history then they need to purchase those buildings and turn them into museums. If they don't want to pony up the dough and still be able to dictate what is going to be done with those properties, I say "GO TO HELL". Who are they to tell anybody what to do with their property, it's bad enough that property owners have to deal with the bureaucracy that is known as the City of Worcester, they don't need a non-profit organization telling them what to do if they are not providing any incentive to do so.

So in short, my message to Preservation Worcester is; if you want to save all of these old buildings, then buy them. If not, get out of the way and let progress happen in Worcester.

3D
Coming Right Atcha