Cambridge resident Kevin Montague says the Square lost its unique atmosphere when large companies and banks moved into the area and began to advertise heavily.

"The Square has lost 40 percent of its alternative flavor...it has become more commercialized," says Montague, a volunteer at the Harvard Square Information Booth for more than eight years. "You used to come into the Square and not see all the advertising."

As a testament to the changing nature of the Square, Montague describes the businesses that surround his booth situated at the top of the Harvard "T" stop.

"We look out our window and we see the Coop, a department store, CVS, and six banks," Montague bemoans. "It's disappointing, you don't need a bank on every corner here."

Many employees and Cambridge politicians say the number of visitors to the Square has declined because the stores no longer offer unique merchandise and because what they do sell is too expensive.

"The Square is beginning to resemble the Burlington Mall," City Councilor Kathleen L. Born says. "And it's a terrible thing, because there is ultimately going to be a big loss in tourist dollars."

"There used to be a lot of low-cost cafeterias that would serve residents and students, now the cheapest meal you can get is at the Tasty," Born adds.

Store owners agree their surrounding neighborhood is beginning to resemble the local mall, a trend which they say is very disturbing.

"It used to be a small village with no chains at all except Woolworths," Harvard Shop owner Paul Corcoran says. "We're becoming more and more like a shopping center...this is not a good trend for the Square."

Harvard Bookstore owner Frank Kramer says trying to keep the mall-atmosphere out of the Square is "good business, not altruism."

"If we made Harvard Square into a mall just like any other mall, who would come?" Kramer asks.

City Councillor Francis H. Duehay '55 says he regrets the transformation of the Square within the last decade, but adds that the Square's changes have merely mirrored the times.

"I think the Square is dictated by the economy; there is too much fast food, fast clothing, [and] I would like it to be a little...quieter," Duehay says. "There are too many new, trendy stores and it is hard for people in Cambridge to find shops and restaurants that appeal to them."

Business-Smart

While some Cambridge city councillors and many small business owners blame the "mall-ification" of the Square on large chain stores, owners and employees in these stores say their businesses have helped the Square attract more people.