Mayor Joseph Curtatone last night challenged Somerville business owners to work with the government to promote long-term economic growth, emphasizing the city's potential to compete with economic centers like Boston or Cambridge.
Curtatone, speaking at the sixth annual Somerville Business Town Meeting at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square, said that the city is ready to shake off its nickname of "Slumerville." With help from local business owners, he said, Somerville aims to transform the outdated disrepute by revitalizing infrastructure and employment growth.
"We need to think about how we are going to be in the position to take advantage of the next economic cycle," Curtatone said. "During the most recent economic waves, we got leapfrogged again. We can't hide in a corner."
Community business owners and civil servants of Somerville attended the talk, which was sponsored by the Somerville Chamber of Commerce.
Curtatone, now in his fourth term as mayor, described Somerville as a family-friendly environment and discussed the city's economic and historical past, present and future.
"We're always chasing this train and we've never caught up to it. We're going to catch it now," he added. "We need to identify the next wave of innovation and market to it."
It is most important to the future of the city to keep successful small businesses and the valuable workforce in the city and attract new industry, the mayor said.
"We know where we're going and what it's going to mean 15 to 20 years down the road," Curtatone said. "We need to identify where we conserve, enhance and transform."
Curtatone explained how past changes curtailed Somerville's development as a major center of commerce. The removal of public trolley stops in the 1950s cut Somerville off from commuters and the business they bring.
"When the stops were taken away, things changed. That's when Somerville started to become ‘Slumerville,'" Curtatone said.
Curtatone compared Somerville population statistics with those of other Massachusetts cities in the Boston area. Since the 1990s, there has been almost no job growth, he said, though the percentage of college-educated residents has risen to 55 percent of today's adult population.
"We have a talented, educated workforce in this city," Curtatone said. "There's a disconnect between Somerville jobs and Somerville workers."
Somerville Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Stephen Mackey emphasized the importance of continuing diversity among industries in the area.
"Business development and economic diversity are vital to developing the way of life," Mackey said.
Somerville residents, business owners and civil servants must work together toward this effort, Curtatone said.
"You can't think about the city in a vacuum, like in previous years. I need you to think about the long term for your business and our city," Curtatone said. "Get engaged now; we're here and we want to act, and not just chase to compete, but set the stage. We need to lead the charge."
Curtatone said many of his goals for the city revolve around facilitating public transportation. He hopes, through projects like the extension of the Green Line through Medford and Somerville, to eventually bring transit stops to within a half-mile of 85 percent of Somerville's residents.
