With word that The Mule will be staying open late serving up tacos and cocktails beginning next month, it shines a spotlight on the future of night life in the city.
It’s an aspect of Cambridge’s entertainment sector that the city feels is on the rise.
“I think you'll see the night life continue to grow,” said James Goodram, director of economic development for the City of Cambridge.
“We’re on the cusp of something really good here. With the investments over the years by the city, private land owners and businesses that have come to the community, we have good momentum happening.”
The Mule, digital light shows and the plans for the Gaslight District are all examples of an attempt to draw residents out.
The focus for the city continues to be on attracting people to work, live and visit the downtown core, Goodram says.
“It’s kind of like the chicken and the egg,” he said.
“What comes first? The night life or the people? Well, it’s kind of both. We have programs in place for housing and I think we’re headed in the right direction. It would be great to have more businesses open late, but some are still dealing with the impact the pandemic had on staffing.”
Goodram points to the work the city and the Downtown Cambridge BIA have been doing to make the core appealing.
The Galtway urban alleyways project and the Main St. closure in the summer time are just a few ways they’re trying to make the core a more vibrant, engaging place to spend time.
Collin McKinnon is the co-owner of Farm League Brewing on Ainslie St. and has been promoting evening entertainment in Cambridge through scheduled programming and events.
“I grew up in Guelph and the whole premise there is around night life with late night bars and music venues,” McKinnon said.
“My mom moved here 10 years ago and I immediately felt a difference. We want to be a late night entertainment spot as often as we can.”
The brewery, led by head of events and marketing Jocelyn Kivell, schedules weekly programming that runs later into the evening. Three or four times a month they'll host ticketed events.
Live music, holiday themed parties and even a euchre club have all been popular options.
“We felt like the town shuts down early,” MacKinnon said.
“We wanted to fill a gap in the community as we heard there’s not a lot to do. There’s a lot of amazing restaurants, cafes and breweries but people didn’t know what to do after a certain time. A lot of people said they go out of town.”
Through his interactions with customers and the community, MacKinnon agrees that the demand continues to increase.
“I think there’s less of a demand for the 1 a.m. bars,” he said.
“But the hunger for wanting to do something after 9 p.m. is rampant right now as people’s fear about being social from COVID is going away.”
Putting on events and running activities is crucial to being a successful late night spot in the city as opposed to being just a place to eat and drink, MacKinnon says.
“I think programming is how you get people to believe in what you’re doing and then the whole ecosystem grows,” he said.
“You have to create the scene and that scene doesn't happen over night. People are saying they want to stay in town more. Nobody wants to have to travel to have fun.”
