Above: An abandoned building at Westborough State Hospital (photo by Tim Pierce)
This isn’t Southborough, but I thought some of you might be interested in this story.
Last year the state closed Westborough State Hospital, which sits on 123 acres on Lyman Street straddling Westborough and Northborough. Now the two towns are trying to figure out what to do with the property.
TheDailyNorthborough.com reports many of the buildings on the site are on the National Historic Register and must be preserved as part of any redevelopment plan.
On Tuesday night the Westborough State Hospital Planning Commission will hold a public hearing to discuss reuse scenarios and hear feedback from residents. One plan under consideration includes a mixed-use development of more than 500 homes along with retail and commercial space, as well as an assisted living facility.
Tuesday’s public hearing takes place at the Forbes Municipal Building, Suite 23 (45 West Main Street, Westborough) starting at 7:00 pm. More information can be found on the Westborough town website.
Updated (5/3/15 1:36): Editor’s Note – The photo was originally simply credited as from Wikipedia.
I read about this in yesterday’s MWDN. Because some of the property sits in Northborough, I’m curious WRT the # of units in Northborough; since that would then conceivably impact Algonquin enrollment in the longer term.
hmmmmm…i don’t know, maybe renovate and reopen it as a glorious mental health facility and service the people of the community who desperately need mental health services; but what we need is more development to add to the chaos and confusion which in turns churns into the system more people who need psych services that are not available.
*cue in me banging my head against the wall*
I am a Westborough resident but if you are curious about the hospital plan take a look at the large file:
http://edc.town.westborough.ma.us/Documents/WSH_ConceptsCOMMISSION_MEETING_Feb16_2011.pdf
This is the current plan with information on what they are doing. What will become obvious as you look at the plan is the Commonwealth wants to pack the site with housing units. Right now about half of the site is open, and includes at least one trailhead to access trails that connect Westborough and Northborough with a planned connection to the Southborough Reservoir Trail. No effort by the commission protects any of the wonderful open space at the hospital.
The other downside of the current plan is the large number of housing units (500+ in one proposal) means traffic, with only two exits one leading to Route 9 at Lyman Street one of the worst intersections in our area, and the other leads to Bartlett Street where people will either turn to past Algonquin or head east into Marlboorough and potentially Southborough.
It is a beautiful site, and should be redeveloped, but the commonwealth is more concerned with making a good profit on the land, than making a good plan for all the communities.
What gorgeous building! I love the fact that it is connected to, and part of, Open Space! It would be wonderful to maintain it in a way that would also be an “open” setting.
Great job by the state to build 2 DYS lockups on the site. The one, for males, is right next to the historical buildning that is pictured above. The other for females is across the site ($8 mill). They house some of the most dangerious juveniles in the state and have fenced in exercise yards with razor wire on top.
For those who may be interested, here are some recaps of the public hearing last night:
Residents wary of new housing at Westborough State Hospital site (Metrowest Daily News)
Residents weigh in on proposed re-development of Westborough State Hospital property (TheDailyNorthborough.com)
Residents Scoff at Hospital Land Plan (Patch.com)