Rosalie A. Prosser, another tenant and owner of Alice Darling Secretarial Services, said she doubts that most present tenants could afford rent in a new, upscale arcade.

"The figures I'm hearing are almost double what is the highest rent now," Prosser said. "We're being forced out, and the Harvard community will be at a loss."

Hemner said that such transitions are typical of any urban retail neighborhood and that the bank is committed to keeping rents low by constructing four floors of retail space.

"Rents are beyond the bank's control," Hemner said. "The best alternative for realtors is to link the ground floor to mezzanine space, lowering the cost per square foot to tenants."

But the changing face of Harvard Square--from last summer's buyout of Out of Town News by a New Jersey firm to the recent announcement of Barnes and Noble's takeover of the Harvard Coop--is not something to be taken lightly, said Warren M. Little '55, executive director of the Cambridge Historical Society.

"The Square is a place we're all proud of," Little said. "Some change over time is good, but I'd like to see some of the funkiness of the Square remain."

"It's a large reason for its tourist appeal," he said. "Once it's gone, it will be tough to recapture.