The city of Boston has created a task force to investigate opportunities to enhance its nightlight and create a more vibrant late-night culture—and Northeastern undergraduate Marvin McMoore has a seat at the table.
McMoore, SSH’15, is one of two college students on the late-night task force, which is comprised of 24 members representing Boston’s businesses, law enforcement, restaurants, and students. He’s excited to play an integral role in this endeavor and represent the city’s many college students.
“I want to give the city’s college students a voice and let the task force know about our views,” he said.
The task force, formed by Boston Mayor Martin Walsh, has already met twice; it is examining, among other issues, neighborhoods that would benefit from later closing hours, transportation accessibility, expanded entertainment options, and law enforcement needs.
McMoore said the task force’s focus isn’t just about extending bars’ hours. It’s about making the city more attractive to recent college graduates and young professionals by supporting a safe and vibrant late-night culture.
“At Northeastern we recently finished with finals and when students were done studying at Snell at 3 a.m., we had no place to go to get something to eat,” McMoore explained. “For recent graduates, if they don’t have a job in Boston or family in Massachusetts, an attractive nightlife is one way to keep them in the city.”
McMoore noted that keeping areas of the city open later is feasible, pointing to the MBTA’s late-night subway and bus service pilot program on Fridays and Saturdays as a foundation for possible changes.
His membership on the task force aligns with his passion for civic involvement, which has blossomed at Northeastern. In 2012, he worked on behalf of Ed Markey, who was running for U.S. Senate. Markey’s camp hired McMoore to be a student representative and travel to other college campuses in Massachusetts to promote Markey’s candidacy.
McMoore’s study of political science and international affairs at Northeastern has helped prepare him for his new responsibility. He has taken courses analyzing the growth and decline of cities, and his involvement with Northeastern’s College Democrats has allowed him to work on campaigns and with residents.
Earlier this year he was elected president of the College Democrats of Massachusetts, which will work to get students involved in the upcoming midterm elections. He is currently on co-op at Northeastern’s Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security, working as a research associate.
McMoore believes his experiential learning opportunities as well as the connections he has made factored into his being invited to serve on the task force.
He said he expects the task force to meet several times in the coming months, though there is no timetable to implement specific changes. “I’ll sit on this task force for as long as the mayor wants me to,” McMoore said.
– By Joe O’Connell