Centers And Squares
Welcome to Centers and Squares
As a Cambridge real estate agent, the city squares of Cambridge, Somerville and Medford and the town centers of Arlington, Watertown and Belmont, Massachusetts are my home turf. And as a lifelong New Englander who’s lived within twenty miles of Boston most of my life, I can introduce you to other nearby towns as we search for your new home. If you’re planning to sell your home in Cambridge, MA or nearby you’ll find plenty of info about the home selling process here too. Questions? Send me an email or call me at 617-504-1737.
Somerville Christmas Lights Tour
Don't Miss the Somerville Christmas Lights Tour
This is the info for the Somerville Christmas Lights Tour in 2009. Here’s the scoop on the 2010 Somerville Illuminations Tour.
Tickets went on sale yesterday for the Somerville Arts Council’s annual Somerville Christmas Lights Tour. If you’ve never been on the Illuminations tour you’re in for a real treat. This year the tour takes place on Saturday, December 19, 2009.
Some of the houses in Somerville do it up for Christmas – completely over the top – and the Illuminations Holiday Tour takes you around by trolley car to see the best of the best.
The tour begins and ends at City Hall in Somerville at 93 Highland Avenue. Coffee, hot chocolate and cookies will be served at City Hall.
How to Buy Tickets for the Somerville Christmas Lights Tour
Edited to add on Dec. 18th – the tour is sold out but once that happens the map is put on sale and you can have a do-it-yourself tour of the Somerville lights.
- Blue Cloud Gallery, 713 Broadway in Ball Square, Somerville
- On the evening of the tour at City Hall, 93 Highland Ave. Sat., Dec. 19th, 4-9pm.
- And beginning on Monday, Dec. 21, at Magpie, 416 Highland Ave., in Davis Square
Ticket prices:
- $10 adults
- $5 children and seniors (12 and under / 60 and over)
The Blue Cloud Gallery, 713 Broadway, in Ball Square is the only place to purchase tickets.
Illuminations Holiday Tour of Somerville Lights
The tour takes about 45 minutes. Your tickets will be for a particular time slot and trolley. Three trolleys go out for every tour time.
Tour times are:
- 4:30 p.m.
- 5:00p.m.
- 5:45 p.m.
- 6:15 p.m.
- 7:00 p.m.
- 7:30 p.m.
- 8:15 p.m.
- 8:45 p.m.
- 9:15 p.m.
In case the weather is bad on the 19th the phone number to call is 617-635-6600 x2985 to find out about weather cancellation.
The Illuminations Tour of Somerville Christmas Lights is scheduled for Saturday evening, December 19, 2009 and leaves from Somerville City Hall at 93 Highland Ave.
1600 Mass Ave – Cambridge Condos at 1600 Massachusetts Avenue
Condominiums at 1600 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge MA
Cambridge real estate buyers who want a modern condo near Harvard Square will want to check the condos at 1600 Massachusetts Avenue.
1600 Mass Ave is an eight-story elevator building with 56 condos. It was built in 1982. The building is professionally managed and there’s an on-site superintendent.
1600 Massachusetts Ave condos are particularly popular with Harvard Law School students since it’s so close to the campus.
The T in Harvard Square is just down the street and the bus runs out front.
1600 Mass Ave Cambridge MA Features:
- Most units are two-bedrooms with 1.5 or 2 baths, 915 – 1262 sq.ft.
- Wood burning fireplace in some units
- In-unit washer / dryer hookups
- Many units have garage or outdoor parking
- Central air conditioning
- Balcony
- Sorry – no pets are allowed
1600 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridge MA Real Estate Sales
In the last eighteen months:
- Five two-bedroom, two-bath condos have sold
- For sale prices from $530,000 to $590,000
If there are condos for sale or rent in the building they’ll appear below. Click on the small photo for additional photographs and more information.
1600 Mass Ave Cambridge MA 02138 condo sales info from MLSpin
Cambridge Copycat Houses
22 Fayerweather Street in Cambridge is a copy of Elmwood
I know that there are “copycat houses” out there – replicas of well known houses – Mount Vernon has been recreated more than once and I’ve come across copies of Cambridge’s Longfellow House in magazines.
During a tour that was part of this summer’s Cambridge Discovery Days I learned that there’s a copy of a Cambridge house in Cambridge.
22 Fayerweather Street is a copy of Elmwood, once home to several historic figures including writer James Russell Lowell and now the Harvard President’s residence.
Elmwood in Cambridge
Elmwood was built in 1767.
22 Fayerweather was built in 1898 when the Colonial Revival architectural style was popular. The house was designed by Boston architect Herbert D. Hale. H.D. Hale was the grandson of Edward Everett Hale, the writer, reformer and Unitarian minister.
Have you come across any “copycat houses”?
Watertown Home Sales – November 2009
Watertown Real Estate Report
Like other towns in the area, Watertown home sales in November 2009 had a boost because of the potential end of the first time homebuyer’s credit. The credit has been expanded and extended but the earlier version required real estate buyers to close on properties by November 30th.
Watertown Homes on the Market
102 Watertown homes were listed for sale in the MLS on November 30, 2009 priced between $183,900 and $1,395,000. Average days on market was 133.
Watertown Home Sales – Nov. 2009
Total value of Watertown home sales closed in November was $$11,337,520
See Also:
WATERTOWN REAL ESTATE SALES Oct. 2009
Info about Watertown homes sold in October 2009 from MLSpin
Aberdeen Lofts – 1 Aberdeen Way Cambridge
Aberdeen Lofts at 1 Aberdeen Way in Cambridge MA
Aberdeen Lofts – 1 Aberdeen Way Cambridge MA Cambridge real estate buyers who want a loft but aren’t keen on living in an industrial area, should check out the Aberdeen Lofts at 1 Aberdeen Way in Cambridge MA. Located in the West Cambridge residential neighborhood of Strawberry Hill, the Aberdeen Lofts are close to Fresh Pond and the Mount Auburn Cemetery and not far from Harvard Square.
The Alewife T station is nearby, you can easily hop onto Alewife Brook Parkway to Boston, Route 2 or Route 93, and the Star Market (aka Shaw’s) is a stone’s throw away. There’s also a branch of the Cambridge Public library adjacent to 1 Aberdeen Way. You’re close to the Watertown and Belmont line with restaurants and shops on Mount Auburn and Belmont Street.
The Aberdeen Lofts are pet friendly and Fresh Pond at the end of the block is a destination spot for dogs and their owners.
This brick building was built in 1914 and used over the years as storage space and as a factory – first for the manufacture of coats and uniforms, later for wooden boxes.
The building was gutted in 2005 and converted to 55 loft condos. There’s an elevator in the building.
The lofts were designed as 1-bay, 1.5 bay, and 2 bay units. This refers to the number of windows and the width of the unit. All units have a bath on the lower level, larger units have an additional bath on the mezzanine level.
- One bay condos – 684 – 768 sq. ft.
- 1.5 bays – 962 – 1082 sq. ft.
- Two bays – 1042 – 1507 sq. ft.
Aberdeen Lofts Features
- Huge windows, 15 – 16 ft. ceilings
- Open layout with mezzanine sleeping area
- Bamboo floors, exposed brick, rafters and pipes
- Granite kitchen counters, stainless steel appliances
- In-unit washer /dryer hookups
- Some first floor units have a private patio
- Central air conditioning
- Outdoor parking
1 Aberdeen Way Cambridge MA – Lofts Sold
In 2009:
- One bay units sold for $290,000 to $312,500
- A 1.5 bay unit sold for $382,000
- A two-bay unit with two parking spaces sold for $592,000
If there are Aberdeen Lofts on the market, they’ll appear below. Click on the small photo for additional photographs and more information.
SEARCH FOR CAMBRIDGE LOFTS FOR SALE
The Aberdeen Lofts are located at 1 Aberdeen Way, Cambridge MA 02138
Turn Your Cambridge Yard Into a Wildlife Habitat
Certified Wildlife Habitat in Cambridge
When I spotted this sign in the Agassiz neighborhood during our weekly tour of new Cambridge real estate listings I couldn’t help but be intrigued. How did this city yard become a Certified Wildlife Habitat?
Turns out it’s a program from the National Wildlife Federation, which I know best as the publishers of Ranger Rick, my brother’s favorite magazine when he was a kid and nature buff.
To qualify your yard – no matter how small – as a Certified Wildlife Habitat you’ll need:
- Food sources
- Water sources
- Places for cover
- Places to raise young
- Sustainable gardening
Read more about the Certified Wildlife Habitat program.
It sounds like a fun and rewarding project for the whole family. I’m planning on adding a bird bath to my yard as I work my way through the steps.
Celebrate Somerville Mural – Park Street, Somerville
Celebrate Somerville Mural
I haven’t been able to find out any information about this Celebrate Somerville mural on Park Street but it’s an appropriate choice for Thanksgiving Day. I’m not sure the mural depicts a Thanksgiving meal but it’s certainly a feast. The hills of Somerville are the backdrop to the meal with guests at the table meant to depict the diversity of the city.
The mural is on the side of a building that looks to be part of the Ames Safety Envelope building. Ames has been in business in Somerville for 90 years.
If you know anything about the artist[s] or the history of the mural I’d love to learn more.
Happy Thanksgiving!
The Celebrate Somerville Mural is on Park Street which runs between Somerville Ave and Beacon Street.
1643 Cambridge Street – Cambridge House Condos
The Cambridge House Condos at 1643 Cambridge Street Cambridge MA is a seven-story building built in 1969. There are 36 one and two-bedroom condos in the building with garage parking on the lower level.
- Cambridge House Condos – 1643 Cambridge Street
1643 Cambridge Street is just down the street from Harvard Square and offers reasonably priced condos in an elevator building, many with garage parking, in a walk to Harvard location. Darwin’s, Harvard Market. the Mona Lisa Restaurant and Skenderian Pharmacy are next door. An elaborate brick and stone Victorian with a turret was on the site before this building was constructed.
1643 Cambridge Street Cambridge MA Features
- Elevator
- Professionally managed
- Many units have garage parking
- Heat and hot water included in the condo fee
- One bedroom, one bath condos, approx. 525-700 sq.ft.
- Two bedrooms, one or two baths, approx. 700-900 sq.ft.
- Common laundry facilities
- Pets are not allowed
Recent Cambridge House Condos Sold
- The most recent two-bedroom sale in MLS was in 2007 when a two-bedroom, one bath condo with parking sold for $339,000
- In the last 18 months three one-bedrooms have sold for prices from $258,250 to $320,000
If condos are currently available for sale or rent at 1643 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 they will appear below. Click on the small photo for additonal photos and more information.
1643 Cambridge St Cambridge MA 02138 condo sales data from MLSpin
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