Prince William and Princess Catherine have been looking quite at home while on their trip to Boston for their Earthshot Prize Awards—having stepped out looking radiant in coordinating suits and given a glimpse at their sweet chemistry while watching a Boston Celtics game courtside. But as happy as they seem to be on their visit, some residents are apparently not so happy to have them.
While some in Somerville, Massachusetts, are appreciative of the fact that the British royals will bring some positive attention to Greentown Labs, an incubator for start-ups aiming to tackle the climate crisis with tech-fueled innovation, others are annoyed about the inconveniences the Wales’s visit will cause for the city—traffic, for example.
A main concern on the social channels is how difficult it will allegedly be for residents to get to grocery store Market Basket, located on Somerville Avenue. A block of the avenue, from Dane Street to School Street, will be blocked during William and Kate’s visit to the area today, according to an email city officials sent to residents on Wednesday, The Boston Globe reported.
Both directions of travel, the sidewalks, and parking will also be closed to the public, and the MBTA’s route 87 bus will be temporarily rerouted, the city reportedly said, adding that the move was made "to accommodate security measures for the British royal visit."
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A spokesperson for Market Basket said the store will remain open, with access from the Union Square side, per the Globe. But even the Somerville city councilor is outraged at the possibility of having one entrance to the local supermarket temporarily, partially blocked for the royals’ historic visit—their first to the U.S. since 2014.
"Hey, did you know that the royal family is visiting Ward 2 tomorrow? Yeah, me neither until I read it in the press," City Councilor Jefferson Thomas Scott wrote on Twitter yesterday upon the royals’ arrival in Boston.
"I didn’t invite these people and was unaware of this visit until you found out too," he added. "The City is not handling the Prince and Princess of Wales’ itinerary, so the times of these transits and closures ending is unknown."
Scott additionally pointed out that he wasn’t sure how many "lookie-loos" the royals would draw and advised locals to avoid the area where the prince and princess will be altogether. "Also unknown is the number of lookie-loos. I’ve heard no estimates, but it might draw a crowd. (I hope not.)," he wrote.
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Of course, some residents are happy the royals are in town and even made festive signs to greet them.
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