Donez J. Cardullo, of Cardullo’s Gourmet Shoppe, notes that the Pit adds flavor to the square and without it, “It just wouldn’t be Harvard Square, it’d be Porter Square.”
She says that Cardullo’s has been in the Square for 59 years and the Pit hasn’t affected business and is “not a concern at all.”
Similarly, Chris Kotelly, the owner of Crimson Corner News Stand, which is directly across the street from the Pit, commented that as long as the young people in the Pit do not cause trouble, it is not a problem. He added, “Some of them are our costumers, I respect them.”
Rakesh Kaftey, an employee of Out of Town News also said that the Pit is a source of business, because many people who hang out there come in to buy cigarettes.
The area’s history as a spot for those off the beaten path has kept it a destination for youth and homeless people.
Some come to the Pit for the counterculture scene, while others stop in Cambridge during a longer journey, said Berman.
The Pit is like any popular bar or restaurant, Berman continued, people come because of its reputation.
—Staff writer Kerry K. Clark can be reached at kclark@fas.harvard.edu.