In this occasional series, we try to inject some facts into wild and woolly rumors which float through town and social media.
Rumor: You’re giving $400,000 to Macado’s to come to Bridgewater.
Not at all. The Town is paying a company related to Macado’s $125,000 for some land we will use as a parking lot. The lot will be on the corner of West College and South Grove, and it will extend over our Old Town Hall property.
Rumor: The parking will mainly benefit Macado’s.
Maybe. We’ll have to see how usage pans out, but remember the lot will also be right next to the post office, Francesco’s, Sipe Center, and the 111 South Main event venue.
When Sipe Center was built, we told folks that we would add public parking in the area as we could. And now we’re doing it.
Rumor: Because the Town is building the parking lot, Macado’s will save the $275,000 construction cost.
Well no. Macado’s was required to build a dust-free parking lot, but it would have been asphalt or washed stone. It might have been a $50,000 or $75,000 expense.
We plan to build something better. It will be brick pavers which will look great behind the Old Town Hall. The pavers will also be pervious, so we won’t be diverting water over to the Old Town Hall and we can pay for the whole project with ARPA funds. As an added bonus, we’ll get a little MS4/TMDL credit. (That’s nerdy stuff, and we’ll talk about it another day.)
Rumor: You’re doing something for Macado’s you didn’t do for others.
We can see why some people might feel that way, but we see it as buying something the public really needed—downtown parking. We have tried to buy land from lots of other people in the neighborhood, but so far, only Macado’s has said yes. And their promise to come to Bridgewater is just icing on the cake!
Rumor: Nothing is final yet, and no deal has been signed.
Absolutely true!