NewburyportNews.com, Newburyport, MA

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'Port in Progress' lands on bookshelves

Published: August 19, 2008

NEWBURYPORT - The award-winning newspaper series that documented Newburyport's four-decade struggle to fight off the federal bulldozer blade and restore its downtown is now a book.

The 2007 Daily News multipart series called "A Port in Progress" has been published in a coffee table book format. It is now available for sale at The Daily News office, 23 Liberty St., Newburyport.

The 37-part series covers the successes and failures of Newburyport's urban renewal project that began in 1960. The original plan was to tear down most of the downtown and replace it with a modern shopping mall, but efforts by preservationists and city leaders changed the course and led to the restoration of the historic Federal-era downtown.

Many projects, such as the restoration of Inn Street, were deemed notable successes and won national awards. Others, such as plans to redevelop the waterfront, failed to win widespread support and have yet to be completed.

The book contains more than 200 photos, many of which compare pictures taken from The Daily News' 1960s-70s archives with the same view today. The comparisons are striking.

Earlier this year, the series won the coveted Publick Occurrences award from the New England Newspaper Association.

The cost is $41.95, including tax, or $47.90 if it is shipped by mail. It can be ordered through coupons published in The Daily News, in person at The Daily News office, or by Internet order at newburyport.pictorialbook.com

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