Build Downtown, Have More Festivals, Talk To The Landlords: Marlborough EDC Lays Out Priorities

MARLBOROUGH, MA—The Marlborough Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) has been working diligently to brand Marlborough as a destination and prioritize the development of its downtown area over the coming years.

Recently, the EDC released an extensive list of the organization’s long-term strategic goals, which were formulated during a brainstorming session with city leaders in May.

As explained in the release, for the first time MEDC executive director Meredith Harris shared the list with a record crowd of about 90 local business and community leaders, who had gathered for the organization’s 11th annual Founders Reception at the Special Olympics Massachusetts (SOMA) headquarters in Marlborough.

Harris outlined the MEDC’s ambitious goals for the downtown area, which include:

• Attracting modern amenities like brewpubs, wine bars, and coffee houses;
• Hosting more family-friendly events and festivals;
• Encouraging a variety of unique uses for existing buildings;
• Incentivizing façade improvements and beautification;
• Engaging and working closely with local landlords.

To improve Marlborough’s brand and make the city more attractive to visitors, potential residents, and people who work at local companies, the MEDC also hopes to put its future efforts toward:

• Promoting Marlborough’s redevelopment opportunities, including the Walker Building and the city’s airport;
• Revitalizing Marlborough’s French Hill area and Lincoln Street;
• Attracting trendy retail and restaurants for the city’s growing young population;
• Improving the city’s overall connectivity and walkability.
• Harris stressed that, while the MEDC will work to modernize and develop Marlborough as a great destination for visitors and a preferred location for residents to live, work and play, the goal is to ultimately preserve and build on the city’s heritage.

“We like to call our development approach ‘tradition meets innovation,’” Harris said in a statement. “We know that the Marlborough community is very proud of the city’s history, and we definitely want to maintain that. At the same time, Marlborough is evolving— more and more innovative and technologically-advanced companies are moving to the city and the number of young people who live and work here is quickly growing. So, we are looking for the best ways to make this city a one-stop-shop for this next generation, without compromising the things that make Marlborough this uniquely big-city place with a small-town feel.”

Read the whole outline, goals and accomplishments here.

Photo Credit: MEDC/Lora Markova