UPDATE: No Farms. No Food. No Dice?

From Dave Brigham:

I'm happy to report that the long-fallow Arrigo Farm, tucked into the northeast corner of Waltham, Mass., and spilling over just a bit into neighboring Watertown, will soon be blooming again.

As I wrote in February 2018, the site "has been continuously farmed since 1650, and perhaps as early as 1635, when, according to oral tradition, Watertown founder, John Warren, purchased the land from the Watertown community" (see February 15, 2018, "No Farms. No Food. No Dice?"). Also at that time, I indicated that the City of Waltham was considering acquiring the site and returning it to its purpose.

Well, that deal went through in May 2018 and the City plans to use part of the property as a tree farm. Much of the land has been cleared, as you can see in the photos below. The City will lease the remainder of the land "for the purpose of preserving the historic use of the land as a farm," according to this November 2018 Request for Proposals. I'm not sure whether a tenant has signed on, and I'm not sure what might become of the old house and barn.

Things are looking up at Arrigo, but just across the street from the farm Francis Food Mart has closed after nearly 70 years in business.

I found this at the Boston Restaurant Talk web site, from March of this year: "According to a poster within the Friends of Boston's Hidden Restaurants Facebook group page, Francis Food Mart in Watertown is no longer in business, with a call placed to the Belmont Street shop confirming that it has indeed closed. The grocery store, which dates back to 1950, offered produce, dairy products, meats and seafood, baked goods, everyday food items, and more, along with beer and wine."

The store also featured this amazing sign.

Stay tuned for any updates about what goes into this space.