The Town of Billerica, Massachusetts is riding a wave of momentum thanks to the approach to municipal development it has taken to strengthen its local economy and elevate the quality of life enjoyed by its residents.
In Billerica, the focus is simple: set goals, invest thoughtfully and deliver results. It is a simple equation that continues to take the community to the next level. And when it comes to doing business, the process is open, streamlined, and welcoming to those who can see themselves calling the idyllic New England town home. With a rich history and an even brighter future, Billerica is doing its part to bring more opportunities, services, and amenities to the town of over 42,000.
Actionable leadership, smart investments
Growth in Billerica has been the result of promises kept, and one of the most significant promises was the new high school, which has been a beacon of development thanks to the town’s ability to ideate, execute, and deliver on projects in accordance with its Master Plan.
The $176 million Billerica Memorial High School was completed in 2019 and has since established a reputation for both its academic performance and design excellence, receiving several awards including the AIA 2022 Architecture Award and IIDA New England’s 2020 Best in Show and Education Award.
“The project came in on time and on budget, which has given some faith to the community and allowed for more future investment in the community with such a successful major project. That was managed well and executed well, which has allowed us to do numerous other projects since then,” says Building Commissioner Mark LaLumiere.
Among those projects is a new fire station in South Billerica with another to follow in North Billerica. Currently in the design development stage, construction is slated for the spring and will see an additional $11 million invested in the community. The town has also redeveloped the site of the former Vining School building into a new 23,000-square-foot Recreation Center; is in the process of constructing a new 70,000-square-foot Department of Public Works facility, which will centralize all of its services on one campus; and has upgraded its Town Hall.
Town Hall upgrades included new windows and roofing, a state-of-the-art HVAC system, and updated technology to facilitate virtual and hybrid meetings and provide a better home for leadership and residents to convene. The work preserves a building that was built in 1905 and represents the town’s history to this day.
A community in development
Projects like these exemplify the town’s development approach, which is forward-thinking, actionable, and in accordance with the Master Plan, which will soon be reevaluated in the wake of completed projects and promises delivered.
“The Planning Board and Master Planning Steering Committee are just starting to get back together now to update it because they’ve accomplished so much. It’s time to review what’s been done and start the process of setting the direction for the next years to come,” explains Interim Town Manager Christopher Dillon.
A significant part of the Master Plan entailed a greater focus on mixed-use developments, which have become a major success story for the rebranded Shops at Billerica, a mixed-use development that is breathing new life into the local mall with a combination of updated retail and residential offerings, including a 200-unit residential complex. Another mixed-use development, Concord Shores, is underway, offering 20 apartments overlooking the Concord River with restaurant, brewery, and other retail space on the ground level.
“That’s something that came out of the Master Plan,” LaLumiere says. “The town has also revised and applied an overlay district of more mixed-use along the Boston Road to try and spur some better and higher uses and community activities.” Better and higher uses in this case are transit-oriented, mixed-use neighborhoods that balance residential, commercial, and retail amenities and services.
“One of the things that came out of the Master Plan is the mixed-use approach: live, work, play [in one place],” LaLumiere shares. “Prior to these two projects that are currently under construction, there were no areas like that, so the challenge was getting it implemented, getting projects permitted, and getting them started. And now, the biggest challenge is getting them finished and operational.”
Likewise, streetscape improvements along the town’s main corridor, Boston Road, also known as State Route 3A, are another part of the Master Plan that will create a cohesive approach to development that doesn’t compromise the quality of life enjoyed by residents, but rather, elevates it.
Route 3A, a local business road, runs parallel to the larger state highway, Route 3. “Along Route 3, which is the main highway in our town, we have many industrial parks,” explains Katherine Malgieri, Director of Planning and Community Development. “That’s where we see vacancies caused by the recent pandemic, such as the large offices or employment centers. I know Billerica isn’t alone in trying to repurpose these sites to meet the new economic needs, and what many of our sites have done is get shovel-ready and pre-permitted for new advanced manufacturing businesses, which are integral to the Massachusetts economy. And we are looking at what else we can do to help fill those vacancies as well.”
While hundreds of thousands of square feet have been filled in the town’s industrial parks, there is still room to grow; the challenge then becomes finding the right match, as the market demands are currently for smaller leasable spaces than when the large buildings were first designed. Biotech, for instance, was experiencing a boom in Billerica and across Massachusetts for the last several years, but demand has shifted and the newer technologies require far smaller footprints than traditional manufacturers. This bodes well as these industries take occupancy in spaces that were left in the work-from-home exodus initiated by the pandemic.
“We’re part of this region between Boston and Worcester, south of Manchester, New Hampshire, where there is a lot of advanced technology,” Malgieri says. “It was life sciences for a while, and now there are emerging technologies in robotics, AI, energy, and advanced materials, and there’s so much research and development that goes with that.”
Luckily, the nearby University of Massachusetts (UMass) at Lowell, a leading national research university, Middlesex Community College, and Shawsheen Valley Technical High School supply quality talent to support the town’s diverse knowledge economy. “We’re really right in the center of this triangle of those three big cities, so we’re perfectly located for those or any of the supporting industries and businesses that help those larger techs as well,” says Malgieri.
She explains that Billerica receives support from organizations like the Middlesex 3 Coalition, Northern Middlesex Council of Governments, a regional planning agency, and the Greater Lowell Chamber of Commerce, all of which work together to advance the collective interests of the region.
A plan forward
With a Master Plan and Site Plan Review in the pipeline, Billerica is showing no signs of slowing its development pace, which seems comfortable and manageable in a way that balances the need for development and the quality of life residents enjoy. From efforts to update housing stock to establishing the infrastructure necessary to support and elevate the community, there is room to grow and the willingness and knowhow to do so.
“We’ve also adopted zoning where, in transit-oriented locations, we are now allowing for the possibility of more housing developments,” Malgieri shares. “And additional zoning is under review this fall which will incentivize and attract more businesses to our town.”
LaLumiere tells us that, “The town has also made a huge investment in community recreation, adding and redoing baseball fields and adding lights so you can play at night. We’ve rehabbed and added all new park equipment to Kohlrausch Park, which needed some love. And we’re starting another project at the Dixon School, which was an old school that was turned into a community park, which will house our Farmers Market, which is number one in the state.”
Looking ahead, there will certainly be even more engagement, collaboration, and momentum to come—all moving the Town of Billerica forward as city leadership does its part to take advantage of opportunities that present themselves in accordance with the future vision of this lively and dynamic community.
