South End Rising

RisingSouth End

by Steven Froias

Its precise boundaries are sometimes disputed. Many say it begins at Cove Road. Others bring it all the way up to Rivet Street.

Even its very name is in question. Some refer to it as the Peninsula. Some call it by the more colloquial “down the Fort” – referring to Fort Rodman… or even Fort Taber. For most, however, simply the South End will do. As in the South End of New Bedford, home of the city’s municipal beaches overlooking New Bedford harbor to the east and Clarks Cove to the west. Those beaches were once this neighborhood’s main claim to fame. But no more. In fact, the South End hit critical mass during the summer of 2021. So much so that you could say that the South End is rising to the top of the heap in New Bedford as a destination all on its own. It’s a place where you can spend an entire day and linger into the evening, thanks to a unique combination of recreation and cultural offerings. It is home to the popular Reggae at West Beach music series, the Fort Taber Military Museum, and so much more. Consider this partial list of attributes:

Recreation

You can swim in the South End of New Bedford off those beaches. You can take an urban hike on either the Harbor or Cove Walks atop the historic Hurricane Barrier. You can cycle all around the South End along dedicated bike lanes. You can march through Fort Taber Park and pass by Fort Rodman. This past summer, even more recreation joined the list. The West Beach Boathouse had been out of use for several decades until the New Bedford’s Department of Facilities and Fleet Management undertook a rehab of the building and created space for recreational equipment rentals such as paddleboards and kayaks. The Community Boating Center of New Bedford, having already operated sailing and education programs based for two decades at both City-owned Fort Taber and their Clarks Cove facility, was selected to run the kayak and paddleboard rental program. Blue Lane Rentals is the result. It is designed to ensure all residents have access to the new resource, with affordable rental rates, lessons, and an emphasis on safety. Equipment reservations can be made online at bluelanerentalsnb.com.

Food & drink

The South End is where the hottest new eating and drinking establishment in the city – make that the region – made its debut in July 2021. Cisco Brewers Kitchen + Bar opened at the former Davy’s Locker at 1482 East Rodney French Boulevard and

changed the dining paradigm in the city. Cisco Brewers New Bedford is an offshoot of the famed Cisco Brewers Nantucket. The New Bedford project is a collaboration between Cisco Brewers and local restaurateur Steve Silverstein. The South End Cisco Brewers New Bedford is

best described as a 3.5-acre entertainment complex, complete with a stage for daily live music in the summer months, five outdoors bars and a restaurant, and Cisco Kitchen and Bar proper, which itself has two patios and a rooftop bar. Meanwhile, Kilburn Mill is now home to one of the city’s most electrically delicious new cafes: DoCo at 127 W. Rodney French Boulevard. In the massive former mill where Madewell jeans were once made, scrumptious delights like Steak & Yuca Frites and Vegan Hash now await. DoCo is but one element of the sprawling Kilburn complex, which also boasts a rooftop entertainment area in addition to its 20,000 square foot event space. That hosts everything from weddings to the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra. Plus, there’s a plethora of creative small businesses which run the gamut from antiques

It's a place where you can spend an entire day and linger into the evening, thanks to a unique combination of recreation and cultural offerings.

to art galleries to fitness and wellness training in the building.

Civic infrastructure

To cap off a season of remarkable transformation in the South End, on Thursday, August 5, the City of New Bedford officially unveiled its first new fire station built since 1956 and its first new police station built since 1965. They’re both housed in the new South Public Safety Center. It is a modern, 25,000-square-foot facility, including a four-bay fire station and South End police substation, at the site of the former St. Anne’s Church in New Bedford, a late-1940s era building closed as a parish by the Diocese of Fall River in 2004. Ground was broken in September 2019 for the new facility, located at the prominent intersection of Brock Avenue and Ruth Street which was occupied by the vacant church since 2004. The operations of Emergency Management and Animal Control, located in the former Fire Station 3, and Fire Prevention services, located at 1204 Purchase Street, are also to be located in the new consolidated complex. It may have been a happy coincidence that the South Public Safety Center opened after a surge of private investment in the South End at places like Cisco and Kilburn Mill. However, taken together, and including other existing amenities such as baseball fields, fishing piers and jetties, and those historic municipal beaches, the combination has resulted in a season of remarkable transformation in the South End of New Bedford. Wherever you place it or whatever you call it.

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