Newbury Street — Boston’s premiere outdoor shopping and dining street — will be open to pedestrians only on Sundays from July 2 to Oct. 15, the city announced in early May.
The event, named “Open Newbury,” has been held nearly every year since 2016, closing the street to cars from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Berkeley Street to Massachusetts Avenue, allowing for outdoor dining, shopping and play to be extended into the street.
The event expanded from just three Sundays in 2021 to six in 2022, and will expand further to 16 consecutive Sundays this summer from July to mid-October.
In a statement from the Mayor’s office, Meg Mainzer-Cohen, president and executive director of the Back Bay Association, said they are pleased to welcome pedestrians, shoppers, diners and visitors to Boston’s “iconic” Newbury Street in the coming months for Open Newbury.
“Many retailers, restaurant owners and businesses have quantified the success of Open Newbury, that led to increased sales, customer engagement and an overall creative use experience of this public way,” Mainzer-Cohen said, according to the statement.
Hailey Widdison, a student at Northeastern University, said she thinks the expanded pedestrian-only days for Newbury Street is “really cool.”
“It opens it up more to the public in terms of walking around, giving some people to do more outdoors in the summer,” Widdison said.
Widdison said Newbury Street is “iconic,” a possible reason for the popularity of Open Newbury in previous years, and a “touristy” place she brings friends when they visit from out of town.
Widdison also said she’d be interested in seeing similar events in other places around Boston as well.
Diego Martinez, a recent graduate of Berklee College of Music, spends most Fridays and Saturdays on Newbury Street singing songs for shoppers and diners as they pass.
Martinez said he thinks the expansion of a pedestrian-only Newbury Street is “beautiful.”
Martinez also said having Newbury Street weekend long, including Friday and Saturday, “would be amazing.”
“As a pedestrian I would love that,” Martinez said.
Five other streets throughout the Boston area will also be car-free on various Saturdays and Sundays through the summer as part of “Open Streets Boston,” a series of single-day events closing streets to cars and opening them to pedestrians — which is being held for the second consecutive year.
This includes Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, Blue Hill Avenue in Roxbury, Harvard Avenue and Brighton Avenue in Allston-Brighton, Dorchester Avenue in Dorchester and Meridian Street and Bennington Street in East Boston, according to the Mayor’s website.
“These events demonstrate what can be possible on our streets when we open them to everyone … Families and neighbors get to explore their communities in new ways and enjoy a safe, fun environment for walking, biking, and recreation,” said Jascha Franklin-Hodge, chief of Streets for the City.
The Mayor’s website describes Open Streets as “events [that] help people experience streets as public spaces where communities thrive. City streets transform into vibrant, pedestrian-friendly boulevards where people can dream, play, and explore.” The website also provides information on how businesses, vendors and volunteers can participate in the events.
Shadan Safavi, a street-vending jeweler who sells handmade jewelry on Newbury Street, said last year’s event was “very good for all the small businesses.”
Safavi said Open Newbury Street and other Open Street events can give all of Boston’s neighborhoods “more character.”
“It’s really nice to see the vibe of everybody. They are happy, they are in the street … shopping, walking freely, it’s really nice,” Safavi said. “We are very happy about it.”
In a statement, Mayor Michelle Wu said last year’s events were a “reimagining” of what is possible when it comes to Boston’s streets, going on to say the expansion of Open Streets and Open Newbury this summer is part of her administration’s commitment to making Boston “the best place in the country to raise a family.”
For people like Diego Martinez, Open Newbury brings Boston’s communities together to share the streets and neighborhoods in a fun-filled way.
“It’s very refreshing to see the community come out and enjoy all the vendors and the live music,” Martinez said, speaking about Newbury Street. “It really brings a special taste to Boston.”
