Hi everyone,
Welcome to my City Council newsletter for March 2023. Feel free to forward this to anyone else who might be interested.
Anyone is welcome to subscribe by visiting here: https://www.steineredtech.com/newsletter/
It is hard to believe that Spring is nearly here and I am excited about some warm weather on the horizon. There are so many exciting things going on in Framingham and after a tough few years dealing with the pandemic, I think it is going to be a great year in the city!
Nobscot Plaza Project
It is good that the Nobscot intersection project is complete and the stage is set for the plaza project, which should begin in the new few weeks. Thankfully, the developer, Peter Spellios, seems responsible and committed to a high-quality project that should include a few stores that we can all enjoy.
For detailed information on the updated plaza design, check out the Planning Board’s meeting materials:
https://webapps.framinghamma.gov/WebLink/Browse.aspx?id=1709483&dbid=0&repo=Framingham
By the way, if you didn’t get to see the historic chapel move down Edgell Road in Spring 2020, here is a brief video for you to check out:
Nobscot Rezoning (a different ball of wax)
I have heard that there is some confusion about the upcoming and long-awaited project in Nobscot Plaza and the totally separate and unrelated proposal to rezone a big area in the opposite corner of the Edmands/Edgell/Water intersection so I just wanted to clarify for everyone.
A) The construction of the Plaza redevelopment will begin next month after decades of decline and many years of discussion and debate about the future of the Plaza. The project that has been extensively vetted will be a mix of apartments and retail along Water Street – and consistent with Nobscot Village zoning that was developed in order to spur appropriate redevelopment in a manner that provides a balance of retail and residential and respects existing neighborhoods. It will be located in the 5-acre parcel that is currently the empty Plaza.
While we all had visions of the Plaza in various dream scenarios including a park and a supermarket etc., I think most of us are happy to see something being done there that will be reasonable in size and provide some local retail options we are missing. So far, the developer Peter Spellios has been very responsive to concerns and I expect that to continue.
B) The other thing is a totally unrelated proposal by developers to change the zoning of the area bound by Edmands, Edgell, and Livoli (about 25 acres) from residential to mixed-use allowing apartment and commercial construction in areas that are currently residential, wooded, and the parcel on Edmands that was clear cut for a school for children with autism before legal battles side-tracked that project. I have heard from neighbors their uniform opposition to this scheme and a public meeting a couple of weeks ago confirmed this broad opposition.
The developers worked to create a citizen petition to force the City Council to consider the rezoning but then when there was extensive negative feedback, they withdrew their plan. So there is no doubt in anyone’s mind, I will not support any rezoning proposal for Nobscot.
I have no doubt that they will be back with another angle. Let’s demand of our elected leaders that they make this commitment: I will not support any further rezoning of Nobscot that will allow more apartment buildings.
Bruce Freeman Rail Trail
Mayor Sisitsky has successfully completed the purchase of the rail line that will become Framingham’s portion of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail! This will connect with the Sudbury portion near Rt. 20 and go to Rt. 30 – and hopefully eventually all the way through Framingham.
The challenge now is to design a rail trail that will respect the residential abutters and create a real transportation option. I would love to see e-bike sharing on the trail. What ideas do you have for the trail?
State of the City Highlights
In addition to good fiscal news, Mayor Sisitsky shared some other positive updates: the creation of a new regional dispatch center in our police department that will bring funding to Framingham and help enable us to build a new parking garage next to the Memorial Building, fireworks over Farm Pond this July 4th, continued progress on the Mary Dennison Park remediation and reconstruction, the likely state purchase of the Danforth Building for a new Courthouse.
Budget Season
We are approaching budget season with our first look at incoming revenue occurring in the next meeting of the Council. The good news is that our CFO has done a skillful job managing our finances and we have a sound footing. We are also expecting an additional boost in state support on top of the increases over the past decade or so. It definitely helps that we have an all-star state delegation led by Senate President Karen Spilka.
In addition, Mayor Sisitsky reported in his state of the city address that our Water and Sewer Enterprise funds are balanced once again – with no increase in rates expected this year, which is great news!
Things to look for in the budget
It is just important to look at how we are spending our taxpayers’ funds and not just the bottom line amount. We need to invest in our neighborhoods and in our businesses to keep our city vibrant and we need to prioritize sustainability and protecting our environment, supporting high-quality schools, promoting equity among all our residents, and maintaining direct high-quality services to residents.
Events Past and Future
- I had an opportunity to sit down with Framingham’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion office Jesse Edwards to talk about his plans to nudge our city forward in terms of including all residents in our city government.
- Thank you to Ron Chick for leading me and a couple of our parks commissioners on a tour of the Mary Getchell Trail, a hidden gem in Framingham that may soon become more accessible with CPA funds.
- Had a great visit with residents who stopped by during my office hours at Cafe Fresh Bagel. Check out this video about my favorite bagel shop and the owner Wagdy Fandy done by Framingham State Students.
Upcoming:
March 7 at 7 pm: City Council
March 13 from 5-8 pm: Taste of Metrowest at the Sheraton
March 19 at 2 pm: Polar Plunge at Exhibit A Brewing – I will be taking the leap to raise money for Special Olympics. Read more here.
Thanks for reading my newsletter! As always, feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns.
–Adam
asteiner@framinghamma.gov
508-207-3508 (c)