The End of Main Street

A few weeks back, I documented my trip to the Polaroid site in Waltham, where demolition had briefly begun, then stopped in (I think) late 2010.

Turns out that it was my last chance, because the backhoes have started up again, and building W2, which you can see in the post linked above, is nearly gone. These photos were generously shared by Jean Snell, a 25-year Polaroid veteran whose father, son, mother, brother, and uncle also worked for the company. (Click on any thumbnail photo in the gallery below for a full view.)

There’s a further report here, at a local Waltham news blog called Brand New Watch, with more photos. The comments thread reveals that one building (Polaroid’s old W3, it sounds like, though I’m not sure) will be retained and reskinned and heavily overhauled into office space. Developer’s plans are here, and they seem okay–certainly better than a bunch of empty shells. But it is symptomatic of the new economy: When Polaroid was wrecked, Waltham lost a lot of good manufacturing jobs (with pensions and benefits), and the new complex will bring in its place service and retail jobs (with few of either). Better than nothing, worse than before.  (Click on any photo for full size.)