Everyone loved Benny’s. But not enough to keep the retro-style department store from going dark seven years ago. The family-owned, Rhode Island-based chain closed all 31 Benny’s in 2017, including its Plymouth location off Court Street. The Bromberg family, which had owned it since 1924, cited “the changing face of retailing today and the dominance […]
Author Archives: Mark Pothier - Independent Staff
Posted inReal Estate Sales
Want to know how much your neighbor’s house sold for?
If you own a home in Plymouth – or are looking to buy or sell one – you should read Andrea Estes’s May 29th story on how hot the local real estate market has become. For decades, the town was a relative bargain considering its proximity to the ocean, major highways, and commuter rail. That’s […]
Posted inBusiness Beat
From Asian hot pot to upscale Mexican, here’s what’s happening downtown
I’ve been looking for an opening to write this column. Now I’ve got a few of them to mention. A bunch of businesses have recently opened in the downtown area, or are on track to do so soon. They’re welcome additions to the town’s commercial tax base, which needs all the help it can get […]
Posted inGovernment
Want a say in how Plymouth is run? Start by casting a ballot in the May 18 election
There are fewer lawn signs than usual this year – chalk it up to the relative lack of candidates – but that doesn’t mean you should skip the annual town election on May 18. There are two contested races for offices connected to crucial areas that tend to attract the most grumbling from people who […]
Posted inWe Have Questions
‘We’re looking for college students in non-traditional places’
You might not be able to tell from his affable way and easy smile, but Rick DeCristofaro might have one of the toughest jobs in America at the moment – he’s a college president. DeCristofaro, 72, heads Quincy College. His pressures have nothing to do with student protests over Gaza. There are no encampments outside […]
Posted inBusiness Beat
Relief for visitors to Pilgrim Memorial State Park: bathrooms are back
Update: Good news for people in need along the waterfront. As of Monday, the closed public restrooms referenced in this column were back in service, complete with shiny new floors. Now if only I could get the same kind of action when it comes to the Water Street sewer relocation project. This column could use […]
Posted inWe Have Questions
Patty Cho knew nothing about running a restaurant. Nine years later, she’s learned a few things.
Patty Cho is in between jobs. Not that she’s unemployed. Hardly. It’s early afternoon on a spring Tuesday and Cho is making the walk from her Kogi Bar and Grill to Shikku Hot Pot, the restaurant she and her husband, Thuyet Phan, are scrambling to open in May. It’s a few doors away at 18 […]
Posted inCulture
At long last, a great unveiling at The Spire
We’ve published a lot of photos of The Spire Center for the Arts since the Independent launched last November. In most of them, the downtown venue has been shrouded in scaffolding and green mesh as it underwent a much-needed renovation. Over the years, the building, especially its steeple – more than 100 feet above the […]
Posted inCulture
Mayflower II returns to a foggy Plymouth Harbor
Well, that was one way to avoid the Water Street detours. The Mayflower II returned to Plymouth Harbor and its berth at State Pier on Thursday after spending the winter undergoing maintenance in Mystic Seaport. The 102-foot-long replica ship left Connecticut Wednesday morning and by Thursday morning was making its way through Cape Cod Canal. […]
Posted inEnvironment & Health
How to get rid of your hazardous waste without damaging the environment
If you’ve got rusting cans of old paint, buckets of dirty motor oil and other gross waste products taking up space in your garage, here’s a chance to dispose of them without harming the environment. The Town of Plymouth has scheduled its latest Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day for Saturday, April 20, from 9 a.m. […]