Too many Gloucester fire stations are still closed too often. The city's prime I-4, C-2 property is not only still empty, it doesn't have a single bidder.
A debate is already raging over a rezoning proposal and Fort hotel project pegged for the former Birdseye site. And residents are still taking up sides over the use of the Fuller School building — let alone whether to even think about building a new West Parish Elementary.
With all of that in mind, the pomp and circumstance over groundbreaking for the city's planned Harborwalk last week may have raised a few eyebrows, not to mention a few red flags.
But while the Harborwalk, at this point, might not seem to carry the highest priority, it is in fact one idea that is ready to go to construction. It's also one that's being largely built with state grant funding that is already secure, and it will form an important piece of Gloucester's waterfront development puzzle when it can indeed be joined by some type of new commercial development on the I-4, C-2 lot and in the Fort.
By all counts and planning, the Harborwalk is more then a walkway, and offers more to the city. With stations depicting Gloucester's history, the walk will no doubt serve as an attraction in and of itself, providing visitors and residents alike with something akin to a self-guided waterfront walking tour. It will also provide a boost to existing businesses — giving a waterfront-side access to, for example, pubs and restaurants on Rogers Street. And, by extending across Rogers Street at its eastern end point and heading up toward Main Street, the walk should indeed steer visitors to shops, restaurants and other businesses too many visitors still miss.
The Harborwalk's construction will neither make nor break, on its own, the economic future of Gloucester's waterfront. It is, however, one building block in that waterfront's development. And in that vein, it's good to know it should be in place, as Mayor Carolyn Kirk said, by June.
Its groundbreaking means that at least one piece of the waterfront development puzzle will soon be in place. We can only hope other pieces soon follow.
