Southborough for All was founded in 2024 with one goal: Build a better Southborough and fight for our future as a diverse, welcoming community. Leadership Team
- James Nichols-Worley
- Ellen Marya
- Steph Horan
A Letter from James Nichols-Worley
Dear Neighbor, What makes Southborough, Massachusetts, great? Well, we have some of the happiest people in the world, the healthiest people in America, and the best schools in Massachusetts. It's not just that the Commuter Rail can get you to Downtown Boston in an hour, or the gorgeous scenery up and down Cordaville road. No, what truly makes our town great is our neighbors, the ones we cheer with at our soccer games, who we run into at the coffee shop, who we chat about politics with at the transfer station, and who we pass walking down the street. It's for all these reasons that I support a growing Southborough, a community that's forward-looking as much as it protects what makes us great. In America, in Massachusetts, and indeed in Southborough, we have a housing shortage crisis. We have too few homes where people can and want to live. Beyond the damage this does to our economy and our environment, the housing shortage crisis has made Massachusetts one of the 10 states with the highest rates of homelessness in America. Change is never easy, but too often, the feat of changes leads us to immediately say "No," instead of "Yes, and..." Southborough has grown every year for the past 100 years, and I don't see any reason to stop now. We should welcome the opportunity to welcome new neighbors, as we always have! Southborough is a Commuter Rail community. Recognizing the housing shortage crisis in Massachusetts, then-Governor Charlie Baker and the state Legislature passed An Act Establishing Partnerships for Growth (sometimes referred to as the "MBTA Communities Law"), which included a push for towns serviced by the MBTA Commuter Rail to legalize and allow multi-family housing near transit. We'll have the opportunity to vote on the Planning Board's proposal at the Special All Town Meeting September 30. If southborough doesn't comply by the end of the year, we will lose access to some state funding and face legal action from the Attorney General. But this plan is right for Southborough. This is not a mandate to destroy; it's not even a mandate to build. The vision of Southborough for All is a plan to make new things possible: to build more and different kinds of homes in town, including two- and three-family homes, and small town homes. The proposed locations have a least-harm approach, both in their impact on the town, their neighborhoods, and the pre-existing buildings. To be sure, this is not the end of the journey. This is hopefully the first step in building a Southborough for All, for our senior citizens and longtime residents who wants to stay in town, to young families who want to raise their children here, and to future generations who will thank us for our hard work today. Do not hesitate to reach out with any questions.
Best, James Nichols-Worley 94 Main Street, southborough jamesnicholsworley@gmail.com