Worcester, Revving Its Engine

Worcester’s recent economic development moves have prevented a tragedy, more than creating a DaVinci. If the City Square Project collapsed; if UNUM moved out of the city; if the quickly opened and shuttered Shaw’s on Grafton Street remained closed; if the Crown Plaza Hotel became a vacant building in the heart of downtown; if the wrecking ball came to Notre Dame des Canadiens Church; if the Worcester airport continued to drain city funds; the sound we would hear in the air would be a flushing sound. None of this has occurred. Instead, we stabilized. We did not necessarily improve, but we did not descend down the economic ladder. This was actually a great achievement, but it should not be confused with significant progress.

However, there is one recent accomplishment that cannot be deemed as keeping us in neutral. Instead, like a teenager replacing a car engine on a hopped-up road runner, the deal with CSX that will allow large numbers of commuter trains to and from Boston and Cambridge can be compared to the act of taking a V-4 out of the car and replacing it with a turbo-charged V-6. With this act alone, Worcester is setting the stage to be able to speed into the coming decades.