There was a low-key ceremony in downtown Peabody Sunday welcoming the first residents of a Habitat for Humanity-sponsored housing complex on Park Street.
The event provided yet another reason for optimism over the future of the city's oldest commercial district, which in recent years has been known more for the occasional flood than the kind of downtown revitalization that's taken place in other communities like Salem, Beverly and Danvers.
Things may be changing.
The City Council and Planning Board are nearing completion of work on a comprehensive rezoning measure that advocates say will work to encourage, rather than inhibit, new development in the area. A final council vote is due before the end of the month.
The council was also integrally involved in the Habitat for Humanity project, freeing up hundred of thousands of dollars in city funds for the renovation of deteriorating properties and some new construction on Park Street that will provide homes for more than a half-dozen families when completed.
Council President Anne Manning-Martin termed it "a beautiful addition to the neighborhood," and Mayor Michael Bonfanti expressed great pride in the fact the city was able to help provide housing for people who might not otherwise be able to afford a home of their own.
Much credit also goes, of course, to the North Shore's very active Habitat for Humanity group, led by Beverly's Don Preston, and its many dedicated volunteers.
For too many years more effort went into complaining about the flooding and worrying about an influx of unwanteds than trying to do something to revitalize Peabody Square. But attitudes seem to be changing, and the flood mitigation measures accomplished during the Bonfanti administration (with more work on the boards) has kept the area — much of which was formerly a mill pond — relatively dry.
People are starting to get interested in investing downtown again, and Bonfanti said this week that just like last year, there are lots of applications for the $100,000 in grant money the city is making available for facade and signage improvements.
While some chief executives prefer the grand gestures, Bonfanti over the past 10 years has sought to change things one small step at a time. The approach appears to be paying dividends.
He recently noted with great delight, for instance, how the replica antique clock in the parking lot on Central Street across from the courthouse is working again. The hands had stopped moving some time ago, but the administration managed to cobble together some Community Preservation money and find someone with the skills needed to get it telling the right time again. A little thing, but yet another positive sign for the downtown.
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