Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
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32 | SEPTEMBER 2015 nshoremag.com only calls Andover home but has also been actively involved in the Andover Trails Committee for 20 years. He says Andover is rightly known for its history, downtown, and schools, not only with Phillips Academy but also the prestigious Pike School and the high-perform- ing Andover public schools. But it's also known for its dedication to conservation. "I think equally important to the character of the community is the extraordinary open space that we have," he says. Among those open spaces are more than 1,100 acres of AVIS reservations, portions of Harold Parker State Forest, 1,600 acres of town-owned and -managed con- servation land, and The Trustees of Reservations' 700-acre Ward Reservation. Explorers can paddle the Shawsheen River, hike the Bay Circuit Trail, explore a rare quak- ing bog and see insect-devouring pitcher plants in the Ward Reserva- tion, and see views of Boston from the top of Holt Hill, the highest point in Essex County, all without leaving Andover. There are so many great places for people to enjoy close to home in Andover," Golden says. "Why go travel to other, distant places?" Existing alongside that wealth of conservation land is also a downtown that's alive with local commerce. "I think it's very important to have a vibrant downtown," says Holly E. Nahabedian, president of the Andover Business Community Association and vice president and branch manager of Century Bank. "You want to make it a destination." In addition to promoting the downtown's great small businesses and restaurants, the all-volunteer Andover Business Community Asso- ciation succeeds in making down- town Andover a destination through its signature events, including Holi- day Happenings, Boutique Blowout, and, most especially, Andover Day, held each September, with a mini amusement park, farmers' market, and about 200 vendor tents. It's easy to see why Andover Day would attract nearly 10,000 people who want to celebrate each other and this unique town. As Golden says, Andover is "as good as they come." Poet Anne Bradstreet, actor Michael Chiklis, entertainer Jay Leno, Red Sox players Jim Rice and Ryan Hanigan, writer Mary McGarry Morris NOTABLE RESIDENTS Bancroft Elementary, High Plain Elementary, Sanborn Elementary, Shawsheen Elementary, South Elementary, West Elementary, Doherty Middle, West Middle, Wood Hill Middle, Andover High School PUBLIC SCHOOLS I THINK EQUALLY IMPORTANT TO THE CHARACTER OF THE COMMUNITY IS THE EXTRAORDINARY OPEN SPACE THAT WE HAVE." —Steve Golden, Andover Trails Committee photographs by Hanna Whirty Bill DeLuca of Bill DeLuca's Woodworth Chevrolet Cadillac showcases his private collection of vintage cars. Harold Parker State Forest P LACE S