A Love Letter to Cambridge, MA
I grew up in North Cambridge, Mass at 184 Richdale Avenue – a stone’s throw from Porter Square. This was the 90s and Cambridge was a very different place back then from what you see today. There was a large undeveloped empty lot directly across the street from my house that remained vacant for years. A set of train tracks separated this empty lot from Rindge Baseball Field. A corner store went by the name of Thistle and Shamrock—the adults would buy groceries and alcohol—I would invest in baseball cards purchased in cash at the counter.
I have many fond memories of school trips to Harvard Square, outings to Warburton’s (a popular bakery and muffin store at the time which unfortunately seems to have disappeared from the scene entirely). We would take school outings to this iconic venue in Harvard Square, and I remember crying on one particular school outing when I was politely (and foolishly) the last kid in line and ended up with a bran muffin…as that was all that remained. All the other kids had chocolate chip or blueberry. What 6 year old wants a bran muffin?
My childhood was pickup baseball games, baseball camp in the summer, popsicles, hockey in the street, touch football games in the paved lot adjacent to our neighbors with my dad and friends. My best friend lived in Somerville and I remember him coming over one winter day–both of us decided it was our civic duty to assist our neighbor uncover his snowed-in car. We went about this endeavor by standing on the hood of his car and dutifully chipping away with ice chippers and a large tree branch that would loosen the crust with repeated thumpings. To our surprise he didn’t appreciate this and threatened to call the police. I remember his name to this day.
We randomly had a massive pear tree in the back of our house that would litter the yard with green hard pears. They were great for throwing.
One summer my father decided to test 8 different potential exterior paint colors on the side of our house—he had failed to run this by my mother and I’m not sure she ever forgave him. I thought it was a bold and enterprising move. We never did paint the house.
I had no sense of fashion and wore two-tone sweatpants and turtle necks to school. Boston to me was joy, friends, sports and family. The tang of woodsmoke in the Fall and school trips to the Longfellow House, Arnold Arboretum and Plymouth Plantation. It was glorious and it was home.
Sports and books were key parts of my life, beginning with T-ball and progressing to Little League. Games were Tuesdays and Thursdays at Danehy Park. I played on the Mets, my best friend Jason on the Braves. The terror of the league was a twelve year old, six foot one inch beast of a manchild named Miguel who looked like a fully developed college freshman and aptly pitched for the Giants. I still remember how small his child-sized uniform looked on him. I would retreat inwards and worry for days, losing sleep before games where I knew I would be batting against him. And by batting, I mean standing there at the plate praying I would not die. He threw serious heat and with a mere 60 feet between the mound and the plate generally the opposing team wouldn’t make contact or reach base the entire game.
I’m not sure what happened to him, but I could assume he went on to immortality and superstardom somewhere. I recall he was surprisingly kind and good natured for a giant. I think he felt slightly bad for all the normal kids who were 5’1’’.
A pizza truck came to every game. I still remember the taste of that amazing pizza: a post-game ritual that I cherished. Twenty years later I would visit my childhood park with my wife and was astonished to find the same man running the same pizza truck. We chatted. He remembered Miguel.
Baseball was my life. I had five different gloves including a first baseman’s glove. When it rained I would read a book and sit on my catchers mitt for hours with a ball in its pocket to break it in. I was Roger Clemens for Halloween and my father would take me to Fenway Park for games. We would buy nosebleed seats and then casually drift down and claim empty seats closer to the field—as one does. My father was always up for a game of catch and I love him for this.
Fenway was and always will be a complete thrill.
Sandlot baseball was played in the vacant lot across the street from my house. The kids from the street would gather and play–like in the movies. My childhood friend Patrick Renna actually was in a movie when we were all twelve –The Sandlot. It became a cult classic. The movie almost represented our life and in our eyes Patrick essentially played himself—all of us went to see it in the theatre when it premiered. It was the best and he was a star.
I would often cross the tracks directly across my house to Rindge baseball field to watch the high school baseball games. My dad would pitch to me there in the batting cage or crush me at Tennis (he had played at Stanford).
Pop Warner football came to Cambridge when I was 12 years old–also at Danehy Park. I played for a year and as I was slightly tall for a 12 year old, I played center—that glorious position responsible for hiking the ball to the quarterback. There is nothing worse than playing center at age 12. It’s like getting jumped every 3 minutes for hours on end in the cold. There is no glory, running, tackling or throwing—just motion and pain. Very unrewarding. I quickly eliminated this from my career goals.
We played Somerville, Watertown, Brookline, Newton, Wellesley and others and got crushed by all in turn. We were the new kids on the block–year one. We had heart and kept showing up, but the W’s were few and far between. It was brutal but I loved wearing an actual football helmet. I would have worn it to school if my mother had let me.
My grandfather had been the President of Cornell in the 60s and education ran in our family. My mother was the Dean of a private school in Jamaica Plain. Up we would get in the dark to make the drive every day and I would read in the car. When I view this from the vantage of adulthood her consistent dedication, love and care are moving. Breakfasts in our small but well-loved second floor unit were often eggs and toast, sometimes an incredible bagel—the real Boston kind.
When I was introduced to Dunkin donut holes in Porter Square at the age of 4 or so I was pretty sure I had reached heaven. This became a ritual treat for my mother and I.
Books and sports were my immersive obsessions. I spent hours at the Belmont Public Library and numerous book stores in Harvard Square. I would sit on the floor and lose myself in TinTin, Asterix and Obelix and every biography I could get my hands on from George Washington and Harriet Tubman to the Wright Brothers. A book or a baseball glove (sometimes both) were my constant companions.
My cousin had a family summer home in Wellfleet down on Cape Cod. My best friend Jason and I would make the summer trip to this land of pure joy….soft serve ice cream, pocket knives, endless fiddler crabs to catch, delicious seafood, the beach, ping pong and this iconic home that seemed rife with memories from generations past and an opportunity for endless exploration. And fireflies….infinite fireflies.
My childhood was not wealthy, but I never felt or knew that. I was raised in such a way to respect and love people, work hard, read, learn and connect with the world. And I feel these values are woven in the fabric of the people that are Cambridge. I’ve now lived and worked in the Middle East, Asia, London and Europe and have gained an international perspective on life, people and values. I cherish my Cambridge roots and would not trade my childhood there for anything in the world. For me it was love and it was perfect.
My parents sold our family triple decker when we moved in the early 1990s for about $260,000 (the entire three-family home, not the unit…) Today’s its valued about 2M. It doesn’t look much different–a well-worn, well-loved and lived in three-family built in 1887.
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck dropped their Oscar-winning Good Will Hunting in 1997. I was a Sophmore in HS at this point at an international school on the west coast and the memories came flooding back. Matt grew up in Cambridge and his mother taught at Leslie University there. I thought this film captured the spirit of Cambridge and Boston so beautifully.
Photography is one of my creative loves. I’ve walked Cambridge since returning as an adult recently and these are some of my shots, lovingly captured with my Leica Q2 that rarely leaves my side.
Cambridge Today:
Fast forward to 2026 and Cambridge is one of the most loved and expensive cities in Massachusetts. It’s proximity to major educational institutions MIT and Harvard only bolsters its demand.
Cambridge is located directly across the Charles River from Boston. It’s about 6 miles from Logan International Airport and has a population of nearly 120,000. Originally founded in 1630 Cambridge, MA was named after the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England.
Located in Cambridge, Harvard University was founded in 1636 and is the oldest educational institution of higher learning in the United States.
Recommendations for coffee and a good meal in Cambridge:
Broadsheet Coffee Roasters:
Toscano Harvard Square:
www.toscanoboston.com/harvard-square/
An overview of Cambridge real estate today:
“Cambridge remains popular with buyers, offering easy access to Boston and the felt presence of Harvard and MIT. It’s a walkable city with many nice small parks. The Cambridge market has sprung back to life in 2026 after the typical holiday slowdown. Buyers are out looking in earnest in the new year. Market activity year-to-date suggests a very busy spring market ahead.”
Charles Cherney – Compass
Today Cambridge real estate is some of the most expensive and sought after in Boston .
There are currently 98 properties on the market in Cambridge, ranging in cost from $509,000 for a 620 square foot one bed / one bath to a 9,473 sf, 7 bed, 6.5 bath masterpiece at 153 Brattle Street complete with theatre and sauna on the market for $15,800,000 — listed by Michael Harper of Coldwell Banker.
www.redfin.com/MA/Cambridge/153-Brattle-St-02138/home/11588055
Cambridge is considered a very hot market with homes selling an average of 36 days after hitting the market. Median sale price at the end of last year in December was 1.1M.
There was a major shift in Cambridge zoning policy last February wherein exclusionary single-family zoning was abolished. In layman’s terms this now allows for 4-6 story homes to be built across Cambridge—allowing for a projected 3,500 new homes over the upcoming years aimed to combat the housing crisis.
Real Estate Professionals in Cambridge:
I recommend Charles Cherney. Charles went to Harvard University and has been doing real estate in Cambridge and Somverille for nearly three decades. A local resident, Charles has an extremely down to earth and informative YouTube Channel called “Living in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts” which is actually how I originally found him. We have worked with him for years now and he is unsurpassed in his local knowledge, care, professionalism and attention to detail.
Youtube Channel: Charles Cherney – Living in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts
My friend of 25 years David Supple established NEDC in 2005 and I am proud of him for it. It’s a genuine passion and vehicle for him to effect positive change in the industry. His integrity and dedication to process and client experience are second to none. He and his team at NEDC are a joy to work with and have done a number of beautiful whole-home gut remodels across Cambridge and are mid another such project there now.
Each visit to the job site reminds of my childhood growing up in Cambridge.
Love,
Evan
Refs:
https://www.redfin.com/city/2833/MA/Cambridge
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/07/06/metro/danehy-park
https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1993/10/13/dump-succeeds-as-park-pthe-city