The Cambridge City Council is weighing whether to change who runs the Harvard Square kiosk, the 1928 building at the center of the square, and whether to bring back its old Out of Town News neon sign and name. A policy order introduced at the council’s October 19 meeting, which was continued to Tuesday, October 20, asks City Manager Yi-An Huang to review the current operating model and report back within 60 days. No vote has been taken yet.
The order, PO26#189, is sponsored by Councillor Marc McGovern, Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui, Councillor E. Denise Simmons and Councillor Timothy Flaherty, according to the October 19 council agenda. Its title asks the city manager to “review and reconsider the Harvard Square Kiosk Operating and Stewardship Model.”
What the Harvard Square kiosk order would do
According to reporting by Cambridge Day and The Harvard Crimson, the order would:
- Ask the city manager to review the kiosk’s current management arrangement and identify whether the city could change, end or replace its agreement with the operator.
- Call for a long-term management plan with “clear and unified responsibility” for programming, maintenance, beautification, activation, partnerships and public use, as quoted by Cambridge Day.
- Seek dedicated resources for year-round activities and maintenance.
- Restore the historic Out of Town News neon sign and officially rename the building the “Out of Town News Kiosk,” while keeping it a public gathering space rather than a newsstand.
- Require a report within 60 days on how the current model is performing, the city’s contract options and a proposed long-term structure.
The order was not voted on. Councillor Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler used his charter right to delay it, saying he supported reviewing the kiosk’s operations but had questions he wanted answered first, Cambridge Day reported. Cambridge Day said the order would return at the council’s next regular meeting on November 2. The independent Cambridge Civic Calendar also lists the kiosk order for a special City Council meeting at 3 p.m. Wednesday, October 28, with no public comment.
Who runs the kiosk now
The city says the kiosk was fully renovated and reopened in May 2025 as a cultural incubator, community space and visitor information center, according to the Community Development Department’s project page. It is jointly operated by the Cambridge Office for Tourism, which provides visitor information, and CultureHouse, a Somerville-based nonprofit that runs arts workshops, music and comedy programs there, The Harvard Crimson reported. Since the reopening it has been branded the “KiOSK.”
CultureHouse is shifting this winter to a model of 10-week seasonal residencies, each with a theme and a lead artist or collective, Cambridge Day reported on October 12. The first residency is called “Mycorrhiza: Unseen Connections.”
What councillors and the operator said
McGovern said the concern was the fit of the programming with the location, not the operator’s work. “CultureHouse is doing what they do, and they do a very good job at what they do. I just don’t believe that that’s the location for what they do,” he said, as quoted by Cambridge Day. He also said, “It really needs to be something that is incredibly vibrant and attracts people all day long and multiple times.”
Simmons said, “I’m not putting any shade on CultureHouse. It’s just it’s not doing what we normally do,” and added, “So let’s put that sign back.” Councillor Patricia Nolan said, “It’s the wrong model for what’s going on now. It’s not working,” Cambridge Day reported.
Many residents who spoke at the meeting opposed the order and urged the council to credit CultureHouse’s responsiveness and use of limited resources, the Crimson reported. In a written statement, CultureHouse KiOSK manager Cleo Brigham said, “the challenge isn’t a lack of creative possibilities, or the terms of our contract; it’s the resources available to realize those possibilities.” Candice Beaulieu of the Cambridge Office for Tourism told Cambridge Day her office expects to remain in the building regardless of the outcome.
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Harvard Square plaza construction timeline
The plaza behind the kiosk, long known as “the Pit,” is still being rebuilt. The Public Works project page says plaza reconstruction is ongoing through fall 2026, with new granite steps and planters, brick paving, lighting, seating walls, drainage and irrigation by contractor Newport Construction. At the October 20 meeting, Deputy City Manager Kathy Watkins said “substantial areas of the plaza” would reopen this fall, and that work on surrounding roads and the plaza’s northern tip will continue into 2027, according to Cambridge Day.
A short history of the Harvard Square kiosk
The kiosk was built in 1928 as an entrance to the Harvard Square subway station. Out of Town News operated a newsstand there from 1984 to 2019, and the building sat empty during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Crimson reported. A city-appointed working group spent 2017 and 2018 setting a vision for the kiosk and plaza as flexible community spaces for civic, artistic and social gatherings, according to the city.
For more on Harvard Square, see our guide to Cambridge coffee shops and our report on Harvard Book Store’s new downtown Boston shop. Riders heading to the square should check MBTA Red Line service changes for November.
Sources
- Cambridge Day: Cambridge councillors seek overhaul of Harvard Square kiosk (Oct. 21, 2026): order details, quotes, charter right, plaza timeline.
- The Harvard Crimson: City Council Looks to Change Future Operations of Harvard Square Kiosk (Oct. 22, 2026): operators, history, public comment.
- City of Cambridge: City Council agenda, Oct. 19, 2026 (copy hosted by the Cambridge Civic Journal): PO26#189 sponsors.
- City of Cambridge Public Works: Harvard Square Kiosk and Plaza: construction scope.
Additional sources
- City of Cambridge CDD: Harvard Square Kiosk and Plaza project overview: 2017-18 working group.
- Cambridge Day: What should Harvard Square’s KiOSK be? (Oct. 12, 2026): residency model.
- Cambridge Civic Calendar: Upcoming meetings: Oct. 28 special meeting listing.
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