The Rebirth of a New England Downtown
Article and Photos by Eric H. When the very large Emerald Square Mall opened in 1989, downtown North Attleborough (also known as North Attleboro), MA, soon took a hit that nearly turned its town center into a ghost town. With true New England work ethic and spirit, the North Attleboro and Plainville Chamber of Commerce, local elected and appointed officials, as well as those special people forming the Downtown Associates of North Attleboro proved that there's room for both an impressive, modern shopping mall and a quaint, old downtown. Now, even during a tough economy, downtown North Attleboro thrives with many unique shops, excellent restaurants and colorful banners and tasteful store signs competing with each other to liven up this tree-lined, supersized Mayberry RFD town center. While certainly not a tourist destination, the hard-working citizens of North Attleboro (population around 29,000) have created a viable, service-oriented downtown for its residents. There's a won...