Dedham Square Leaders Urge Patronage During Project

leaders are looking to a 2012 with plenty of excitement as a $6 million-plus project gets underway, but reminded supporters Monday evening that businesses in the Square will need plenty of patronage.

The Dedham Square Improvement Project will cause detours through the Square, construction workers will tear up sidewalks in front of businesses and parking will be limited, but DSC leaders stressed shoppers must recognize that now is the time to support the Square.

"There's no doubt about it, it's going to be slightly inconvenient from time to time, but we have to think to the future," said Susie McIntosh, DSC president. "Please patronize our merchants, even if it is hard to get to."

DSC and Town Hall are working together to market Dedham Square during the construction - expected to last through June 2013 - and hope that will turn into a big marketing pitch for the town following the completion of the project.

"It will be a one-two thing," said Karen O'Connell, the town's economic development director. "There's a lot of new growth, but at the same time there is an honoring of the historic past."

While the town is paying the lump sum of the project, and the state kicking in $1.7 million, it was the DSC that started the momentum.

"You're not just a Chamber of Commerce, you're both [merchants and residents] pulling together because your mutual interest is the Square - the heart of your community," O'Connell said.

Dedham Square Circle addressed supporters at in its sixth annual State of the Square.

Successes in the Square has led to the formation of other groups looking to transform their neighborhoods, including the Mother Brook Community Group in East Dedham and the Oakdale Square Alliance, O'Connell said.

"It's a model organization within the Town of Dedham," she said. "You've shown that by coming together for a cause, you can achieve results in a short amount of time."

Group leaders took turns highlighting successes of the past year beyond approval of the Square Project. Those successes include new promotion and marketing events, and the largest investment by DSC's sign and facade improvement program.

Along with landlords and business owners, the DSC helped design and pay for seven new signs in Dedham Square, McIntosh said, and added the group plans for more this year.

"There is another building [...] that we are talking to. And fingers crossed, it could be a game-changer," McIntosh said.

DSC also in the middle of formulating a strategic plan to pave the way forward, McIntosh said.

"This will guide us for the next couple years. Strategy is just as important as execution," McIntosh said.

But for now DSC - and Square businesses - now is focused on keeping shoppers in the area.

"In this country, we cannot lose our main street," said DSC chairman Peter Reynolds.