Business View Civil and Municipal | April 2021

30 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL ARIL 2021 With the community’s popularity causing housing prices to rise, a new apartment building is now being developed to fill a desperate need for affordable housing. Newburyport offers a wide variety of job opportunities, from entrepreneurial shops and restaurants to a very prosperous and active business and light industrial park. Tourism is another large economic driver for the city, in part because of their beautiful downtown full of interesting shops and more than 36 restaurants throughout the community. There are numerous outdoor activities for cyclists, walkers, joggers, families, and water sports enthusiasts, as well. The President and CEO of the Greater Newbury Chamber of Commerce, Frank Cousins, knows there are many draws to the city. He recounts, “Newburyport is unique, where it’s not a huge land mass. Since it was laid out back in the early 1700s, everything flows off of High Street down to the river. It’s very walkable, very easy, we have great new bike and walking paths that the Mayor has really expanded and completed down to the river from our train station. It’s got a great access point. The key is it’s a great city to walk, we are not overrun with traffic. Newburyport is kind of a hub of outdoor activity for the Greater Newburyport Area.” Newburyport officials were committed to Massachusetts’ Smart Growth plan for creating mixed-use hubs near public transportation, focusing on replacing the jumble around the MBTA rail station with an attractive hub of housing and retail that would fuel economic development. With Minco Development’s planning and development experience, and acquisition of a key parcel from the MBTA, in 2016, the Planning Board unanimously endorsed Newburyport Crossing: “This project’s architecture, landscaping, lighting, and pedestrian-oriented spaces have been designed to create a livable and vibrant new center in Newburyport… and greatly enhance the character of this underutilized area.”