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Renting an Apartment in Framingham
What You Should Know
Framingham is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts,
United States. As of the 2000 census, the population was 66,910, making it the
most populous town in New England. The 2005 population estimate is 65,598. There
have been several proposals to change the town's charter to make Framingham a
city, but none have succeeded.
Geography
The Town of Framingham is a community located in eastern Massachusetts, 20 miles
west of Boston, mid-way between Boston and Worcester. At nearly 67,000
inhabitants, Framingham is the largest town in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
and the hub of the Metrowest region. It is bordered by Southborough and
Marlborough on the west; Sherborn and Ashland on the south; Natick on the east;
Wayland on the northeast; and Sudbury on the north. Framingham is 197 miles from
New York City.
The town of Framingham is divided by Route 9, which passes east-to-west through
the middle of the town. South Framingham includes Downtown Framingham (the town
government seat), and the villages of Coburnville, Lokerville and Salem End
Road. North Framingham includes the villages of Nobscot, Pinefield, Ridgefield
and Saxonville plus Framingham Center (the physical center of town, featuring
the town commons).
Housing
Framingham is one of the few towns in Massachusetts that has met its legal
requirement of 10% for Chapter 40B Affordable housing which mostly targets
people with income levels in the 70% of median income. In addition to its 40B
Affordable component, Framingham has a large percentage of rental units which
target people in the 30% of median income bracket. Framingham has a much larger
percentage of renter households than any of the surrounding towns. Statewide,
the median income of renter households is 47% of the median for homeowners, and
in Middlesex County it is slightly more than 50%. In Framingham, the median
renter income of $33,626 is 45% of the median homeowner income of $75,040.
Housing in South Framingham is mainly single family houses on small lots (under
half an acre), multi-family homes or apartments. Additionally much of the town's
affordable housing is located south of Route 9. However there a large number of
large, single family homes around Salem End Road on the West Side South
Framingham. This region is often overlooked as being in South Framingham because
the area is physically separated from most of the South Side due to a series of
reservoirs and the Sudbury River.[ Also, there are many large Victorian houses
located along the shores of Learned and Gleason Ponds, and along Concord St. and
Union Ave. near Downtown Framingham. Additionally, the West Side of South
Framingham along Route 9 has several large tracts of multi story apartment
buildings that comprise a major part of the town's apartment stock.
North Framingham was originally mostly farmland and gave way to large tracts of
single family housing on large lots (over half an acre) after World War II. The
village of Saxonville on the east side is an old mill area that consists of many
Victorian homes, and is undergoing a large expansion of over six hundred new
homes on a former gravel pit. The village of Nobscot on the western side has
many homes that are valued above mean housing prices for the region. While there
are several small apartment complexes on the North Side, most have been
converted to condominiums. In the 1950s and 1960s, the villages of Nobscot,
Pinefield and Saxonville all had a large number of slab and raised ranch-style
houses constructed by the Campanelli Company. These homes are classic
cookie-cutter style homes that feature the same general shape and floor plan;
while there are six or seven styles of the houses, the large majority of which
are referred to Campanelli "L" ranches because their floor plan resembles the
letter "L". At the time of construction, these homes were considered by many to
be the epitome of the American dream of homeownership; today they are viewed as
more modest homes.
Today, most of Framingham land has been developed with the exception of some
parcels in the northwest quadrant. In this part of town there are more people
with wells and septic systems, combined with a large amount of ledge, which
prevents most of the unbuilt land from being developed.
Transportation
Framingham is located approximately halfway between Worcester, the commercial
center of Central Massachusetts, and Boston, New England's leading port and
metropolitan area. Rail and highway facilities connect these major centers and
other communities in the Greater Boston Metropolitan Area.
Mass-transit
Rail
* Direct rail service to Boston, New York, and all other points on the Amtrak
network is available through Framingham.
* MBTA commuter rail service is available to South Station and Back Bay Station,
Boston via the MBTA Framingham-Worcester Commuter Rail Line which connects South
Station in Boston and Union Station in Worcester. Travel time to BBS is 42-45
minutes. Originally called the Framingham Commuter Rail Line, it was the end of
the line until rail traffic was expanded to Worcester in 1996. The line also
serves the communities of Newton, Wellesley, Natick, Ashland, Southborough,
Westborough and Grafton.
* CSX provides freight rail service and operates an auto transloading facility
in Framingham.
Bus
* Express Bus provides service to Boston and Logan Airport.
* Peter Pan Bus Lines provides service to Worcester and Boston.
* Big W Transportation provides service to Milford and Hopkinton.
* The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), provides THE RIDE, a
paratransit service for the elderly and disabled.
* The MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA) operates local bus service
called the LiFT (Local inter-Framingham Transit) which provides service to other
local routes connecting the various regions of town and fixed route public bus
lines servicing multiple communities in the MetroWest region, including the
towns of Ashland, Holliston, Milford, Hopkinton, Natick and Marlborough. The
MWRTA also services the communities of Ashland, Framingham, Holliston,
Hopkinton, Natick (the Natick Neighborhood Bus), Wayland and Weston. Sudbury,
Sherborn and Milford may also join.
Air
Boston's Logan International Airport is easily accessible from Framingham.
MassPort provides public transportation to all airport terminals from Framingham
via Logan Express bus service seven days per week. The bus terminal and paid
parking facility are located on the Shoppers' World Mall property, off the
Massachusetts Turnpike Exit 13, between Route 9 and Route 30, at the
intersections of East Road and the Burr Street connector.
Golden Triangle
The Golden Triangle was originally a three square mile district on the eastern
side of Framingham, bordered by Worcester Rd. (Route 9), Cochituate Rd. (Route
30), and Speen Street in Natick. In 1993, the area began to expand beyond the
borders of the triangle with construction of a BJ's Wholesale Club and Super
Stop & Shop just north of Route 30. It now includes the original area plus parts
of Old Connecticut Path., Concord St. (Route 126) and Speen St. north of Route
30. Because of the size and complexity of this area, Framingham and Natick
cooperatively operate it a single distinct district with similar zoning. The
area is one of the largest shopping districts in New England.
This area was formed with the construction of Shoppers World in 1951. Shoppers'
World was a large open air shopping mall, the second in the US and the first
east of the Mississippi River. This mall drew many other retail construction
projects to the area, including Marshalls (1961, rebuilt as Bed, Bath and Beyond
1997), Caldor (1966, Rebuilt as Wal*Mart in 2002), Bradlees (1960s, rebuilt as
Kohls in 2002), the Route 30 Mall (1970), the Framingham Mall (1978, rebuilt
2000) and Lowes (formally the Verizon Building, 2006). Complementary
developments in Natick include the Natick Mall (1966, rebuilt in 1991, expanded
2007 & renamed Natick Collection), Sherwood Plaza (1960), Cloverleaf Marketplace
(1978) and the Home Depot. In 1994, Shoppers' World was demolished and replaced
with a strip mall. There also seven hotels and two car dealerships, Framingham
Nissan/Jeep and Herb Connolly Chevrolet, located within the Triangle.
In addition to retail properties, there are large office developments located in
the area including several companies headquartered in the triangle; the world
headquarters of TJX is located at the junction of Route 30 and Speen St, as is
the main office of IDG and IDC. Breyers, Leggat McCall, the American Heart
Association and the American Cancer Society all have facilities in the area.
Boston Scientific headquarters is housed in Natick, in the old Carling Brewery
building and former Prime parkway complex. BJ's Wholesale Club's headquarters is
located behind Sherwood Plaza on route 9, on the south side of the triangle. In
all there are over a dozen large office complexes located in and along the
borders of the Triangle.
Downtown and South Framingham
The downtown area is located between the "Y"-shaped traffic circle formed by the
intersection of Concord St. and Union Ave., called Memorial Square, to the north
and its mirror intersection at the junction of Irving St. and Hollis St. on the
south end. The area is bisected by Waverly St. (Route 135) and the MBTA Commuter
Rail tracks. The anchoring structure of Downtown is the town hall, The Memorial
Building.
South Framingham became the commercial center of the town with the advent of the
railroad in the 1880s. It eventually came to house Dennison Manufacturing and
the former General Motors Framingham Assembly plant, but the area under went a
financial downturn after the closure of these facilities during the late 1980s.
An influx of Hispanic and Brazilian immigrants helped to revitalize the district
starting in the early 2000s. Along with Brazilian and Spanish oriented retail
shops, there are restaurants, legal and financial services, the town offices and
library, an art museum, police headquarters, and the local branch of the Social
Security Administration. Several Asian and Indian stores and restaurants add to
the rich ethnic flavor of the area, and many small businesses, restaurants and
automotive-oriented shops line Waverly St. from Natick in east to Winter St. in
the west.
In 2006, the Fitts Market & Hemenway buildings façades underwent a restoration
project; these newly renovated structures were awarded a 2006 Massachusetts
Historical Commission Preservation Award in the Restoration and Rehabilitation
Category. In addition, several retail and housing projects involving the Arcade
Building and the former Dennison Building Complex are in the planning stages or
under construction.
West Framingham
The business section on the West Side of Framingham runs primarily along Route
9, starting at Temple St.; it is dominated by two large office/industrial parks:
the Framingham Industrial Park on the north side of Route 9 and the Framingham
Technology Park on the south side, both on the Ashland/Southborogh border. Bose
and Staples both have their world headquarters in these parks; in addition,
Genzyme, Capital One, Computer Associates, ITT Tech and the local paper, the
Metrowest Daily News, all have major facilities located there. three of
Framingham's seven major auto dealerships are also located in West Framingham:
Ford, Toyota/Scion
The large tracts of multi-story apartment and condominium complexes line both
sides of Route 9 from Temple St. to the industrial parks. These buildings
represent the majority of Framingham's multi-family dwellings, and along with
the business complexes, helped create a large network support services on the
West Side: Framingham's second Super Stop & Shop supermarket, dozens of
restaurants and pubs, Sheraton and Marriott hotels and a large day-care facility
all are in the two mile section of Route 9 from Temple St. to Ashland.
Villages and Route 9
Framingham Center is the physical and historic center of town. Formed at the
junctions of Worcester Rd. (Route 9), Pleasant St. (Route 30), High St., Main
St. and Edgell Rd. the dominating presence is Framingham State College. The
large, but compact school is home to several thousand students, about one third
of which live on campus. In the late 1960s, MassHighway replaced the grade
crossing with a beetleback, destroying the south half of the old Center retail
district. The remaining half houses several small stores, restaurants, realtors
and legal offices. The old Boston and Worcester Street Railway depot, on the
east side of the Center, was converted in to a strip mall in the early 1980s and
houses the Center Postal Station (01704) and several small stores. The Center is
rounded out by One and Two Edgell Rd. (two small retail/office buildings), the
historic Village Hall, the Framingham Historical Society and Museum, several
banks, a Brazilian restaurant, the American Medical Response paramedic station
and McCarthy Office Building.
The village of Nobscot, located at the intersection of Water St., Edmands Rd and
Edgell Rd., and the Pinefield/Saxonville villages, located where Concord St.,
Water St., and Central St. intersect,are home to several small office buildings,
strip malls and gas stations. Saxonville is the home of the former Roxbury
Carpet Company buildings, now an industrial park.
In addition, the section of Route 9 from the Route 126 overpass to the Main St./Edgell
Rd. beetleback in Framingham Center is heavily developed. Two car dealerships,
Herb Connolly Acura and Framingham Nissan, several strip malls of varying sizes,
many small apartment complexes, several small office complexes and other small
shops and restaurants make Route 9 the main commercial thoroughfare in
Framingham.
Finally, there are several other small retail areas and facilities spread
through out the town, e.g. near Mt Wayte Ave and Franklin St.; the intersection
of Concord St. and Hartford St.; and along School St., near Hamilton St.
Points of interest
Framingham features dozens of athletic fields and civic facilities spread
throughout the town in schools and public parks. Many of the recreational
facilities were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the New
Deal.
Parks
* Bowditch Field located on Union Avenue midway between Downtown and Framingham
Center is the main athletic facility for the town. It houses a large
multi-purpose football stadium that includes permanent bleachers on both sides
of the field. Additionally there is a baseball field, tennis courts, a track and
field practice area, and the headquarters of the town Parks Department.
Bowditch, along with Butterworth and Winch Parks, were all built during the
Great Depression of the 1930s as WPA projects.
* Butterworth Park is located at the corner of Grant St and Arthur St. The park
occupies a square block near downtown. The park has includes a baseball stadium
that includes permanent bleachers on one side of the field, a basketball court
and a tennis court. There is street parking available on three sides.
* Winch Park is the sister park to Butterworth and is located in Saxonville
adjacent to the Framingham High School. It includes a baseball stadium that
includes permanent bleachers on one side of the field, a basketball court,
tennis courts and two large practice fields used for football, soccer and
lacrosse. There are two additional multi-use fields located on the other side of
the high school's gymnasium building.
* Callahan State Park is a large state park run by the DCR located in North
Framingham in the northwest corner of town.
* Cochituate State Park on Lake Cochituate has a small section in Framingham
where Saxonville Beach is located on the north western shore of the lake.
* Danforth Park located on Danforth Street, not far from the Wayland town line.
The small park has playground with a half basketball court and a small
baseball/kickball field.
* Framingham Common is located in Framingham Center in front of the old Town
Hall along Edgell Rd and Vernon St. It features the town Christmas Tree and an
outdoor stage used for concerts and other fair weather events. It is a favorite
of the students of Framingham State College, and the site of their annual
graduation ceremonies.
* Cushing Park on the South Side is a passive recreational area. The Framingham
Peace and 9/11 Memorials are located within the park across the street from Farm
Pond, along with the Cushing Chapel. After WWII ended, this land used to be the
Cushing Veterans Hospital.
Conservation land
* Framingham has about 400 acres of land that has been placed into public
conservation.
o The Wittenborg Woods was donated to the town in 1999 by Harriet Wittenborg.
The properties were originally purchased from Henry Ford in the 1940s. Henry
Ford owned all of the land around the Wayside Inn in nearby Sudbury, and Harriet
(and her husband) were required to interview with Mr. Ford to determine if they
would be good stewards of the land.
o The Morency Woods is a parcel of land that is physically located in Natick, MA
on the Framingham border, but which is owned by the town of Framingham. This
forested land was used as a sewer bed up until the mid 1940's and was placed
into conservation in 2001.
* The Sudbury Valley Trustees has approximately 200 acres of land in North
Framingham and along the Sudbury River in a private conservation trust.
Recreation
* Garden in the Woods, operated by the New England Wildflower Society, is a
botanical garden that features the largest landscaped collection of native
wildflowers in New England. It is located in Nobscot, off of Hemenway Road.
* Framingham Country Club, located along Salem End Road on the South Side, is a
private club that features an 18-hole course with 6,580 yards of golf from the
longest tees for a par of 72.
* Millwood Farms Golf Course off Millwood Street is a public 14-hole, par 53
golf course. Originally a 9-hole course, it was expanded to 14 holes in the late
1970s. Attempts to purchase land for a full 18-hole were unsuccessful.
* Nobscot Mountain Reservation is a private facility owned by the Knox Trail
Council of the Boy Scouts of America and is open to the public during most of
the year.
* The town has several public beaches including Saxonville beach on Lake
Cochituate, Washakum Beach on Lake Washakum, and the beach at Learned Pond.
* The former Cushing hospital grounds serve as walking, biking, rollerblading
and picnic areas.
* Farm Pond, located in South Framingham, once used to host Fourth of July
Fireworks, now serves as a picnic area.
* Edward F. Loring Skating Arena, located near Farm Pond at the corner of
Fountain and Dudley Roads, is a municipal skating arena for area groups on a
rental basis and public skating and stick time is available September through
April.