Below are fair questions from a quiet listserv member. I do know CLF is having discussions with City Council; the problem being that the City does not seem to understand much about small business survival. Sorry to say. Ruth ****************************************************** Ruth - If he can't afford to take a day off, I'll bet the real reason he's closing is he's been working for free or maybe at a loss, which begs some questions: Why can't a well-loved and well-run flower store make a go of it? Two years ago the City took a traffic lane out of Brattle St in order to put in a two-way protected bike lane, making it a single traffic lane with awkward parking and no or fewer loading zones. Did Brattle St Florist lose their drive-to clientele, say 20% of their sales off the top line and most or all of their bottom line? Was there any new bike-to business to offset the loss? Let's say they had been doing $1M a year in sales. Now Harvard Square flower shop patrons will have to order those plants and flowers on line or get in their cars and drive somewhere else. Is this a good policy outcome for Harvard Square? Given existing vacancies in the area, is that space likely to sit vacant for 3 to 5 years? Is that a good policy outcome? Can the City intercede to broker a rent the store can handle? What if we start to lose restaurants and other retail on Upper Mass Av will PSNA just wring our hands? What can we do NOW before it is too late to attract and save valuable retail services? On Monday, December 27, 2021, 05:00:06 PM EST, Ruth Ryals <rryals@comcast.net> wrote: ---------- Original Message ---------- From: raryals <raryals@gmail.com> To: PSNA <portersquare@googlegroups.com> Date: 12/27/2021 4:56 PM Subject: [Porter square] Sad news for retailers and shoppers alike! https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/12/27/business/after-century-brattle-square... Very sad news, which says a lot about the health of historic retail stores right now, in Harvard Square and right here in the greater Porter Square area. Ruth Ruth Ryals raryals@gmail.com mailto:raryals@gmail.com