January 31, 2024 / By mobanmarket
FRAMINGHAM, MA — Gathered in Framingham on Monday night were major players in city and state politics, business and beyond for the annual State of the City address.
Framingham Mayor Charlie Sisitsky delivered the address, his third, and spoke to the city’s successes in the past year while also detailing some potential challenges in the year to come.
He referred to 2023 as a “year of achievements and change”, emphasizing that “the state of our city is strong.”
Here are a few of the items Sisitsky touched on during the Monday speech:
Fireworks
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Sisistky touted the return of fireworks to the city. In 2023, he said more than 10,000 people gathered around Farm Pond to take in the festivities.
Welcome news for those who enjoyed the event, it will return in 2024 on June 28, Sisitsky confirmed.
Bethany Road Elementary and Early Childhood Center
The city purchased land on Bethany Road as a site for a new elementary and early childhood center in 2023.
After the purchase, the city received an invite from the Massachusetts School Building Authority to participate in a funding program. Seeing representatives from the authority soon after, Sisitsky said they indicated “how excited they were to partner with Framingham to build a new school.”
A school building committee was recently established and will begin work soon.
The new school would serve roughly 650 students from surrounding neighborhoods, many of them able to walk to school, he said.
Framingham Rail Trails
Following up on the CSX purchase agreement in 2022, the city closed on the sale of the right of way for the trail. Now that the city owns the right of way, Sisitsky said it allows officials to design a new rail trail that will run between the Sudbury town line and Rt. 9.
Framingham is eligible for $7 million in state funding for the construction of the trail, he added.
Progress is also being made on the design and permitting of the Chris Walsh Memorial Trail , Sisitsky said.
Phase one designs are nearly done, and the city is working with CSX, the MBTA and MetroWest Regional Transit Authority to “ensure the design for phase two can move ahead.”
This trail connects the Farm Pond and Dudley Road areas of Framingham to downtown. A boat launch and rental facility will eventually be built at Farm Pond to complement other sections of the trail, Sisitsky said.
Mary Dennison Park
Framingham reached an agreement on the scope of work with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for the cleanup of the contamination of Mary Dennison Park.
Avery Dennison, formerly Dennison Manufacturing Company, has signed an agreement to pay for 82 percent of the cost of the cleanup, Sisitsky said.
Bids have been opened for the cleanup and construction of a new playground there, and the mayor’s administration will meet with the City Council regarding the finances for the project in the coming weeks, he said.
Farmers Market
In what has been a two-year revamp of the local farmers market, Sisitsky noted that 2023 was a record year. The market, at times, had over 90 vendors and attendance was up 74 percent in 2023.
Attendees purchased almost $400,000 worth of local products, he said.
188 Concord Street
The property at 188 Concord Street is being outfitted for a new facility that will house the Health Department, Public Health Clinic and a joint dispatch center for the Framingham fire and police departments.
Once the work is completed, Sisitsky said his administration will continue to seek deals with other communities in the area hoping to turn the dispatch center into a regional dispatch center.
The move would enable the city to apply for “significant” grants that would allow them to upgrade the dispatch infrastructure, he said.
Geothermal Project
Sisitsky said the Eversource geothermal project has “become a role model” and “may establish a new paradigm for public utilities across the country.”
The project will power nearly 50 buildings, including the Concord Street fire station.
Asylum Seeker Response
Sisitsky described the situation in August when the city was informed they would receive a busload of asylum seekers.
“They arrived with nothing more than the clothes on their backs,” Sisitsky said. “There was a language barrier as most spoke Creole, Portuguese or Spanish, and no provisions were in place for food or necessities.”
He noted that many local agencies and the community mobilized to help these families.
“This was yet another example that it truly takes a village,” he said.
The full address can be viewed here at the link here.
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