Arlington

The town of Arlington is located in Middlesex County, about 6 miles north west of Boston with a current population of 44,500. With a total land area of 5.18 square miles, its high density makes it the 9th highest in the Commonwealth with over 8600 people per square mile.

Arlington, originally settled in 1635 as the village of Menotomy, a Native American Algonquin settlement, identifies strongly with its rich history. Among its other claims to fame, the town is the birthplace of Samuel Wilson in 1766, more commonly known as Uncle Sam. In 1867 the town was renamed Arlington to honor those Civil War casualties buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

 

 
Land area: 5.18 square miles
Population: 44,500
Population Density: 8,600 people per square mile - 9th highest in the Commonwealth
Awards: Citizen Planner of the Year (2001); Merit Award for Parks and Recreation for the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway (1994)
Town: Seven districts

Despite its declining population, the city has many qualities, made possible through planning, worth emulating. Some of the town's major traits include its participatory planning practices, pro-active planning approaches, and its dedication to historic preservation.

Arlington was the first town in Massachusetts to create a joint planning and community development board, and the town currently employs three professional planners. This cooperative board, now called the Arlington Redevelopment Board, centralizes comprehensive planning and community development, making it easier for the public to participate in planning.

According to town officials, a well-informed citizenry and public input is a high priority for their community. A clear example of the towns commitment to keep Arlington's citizens up to date with town plans is the official town website which includes minutes, agendas, by-laws, committee meeting dates, and non-profits operating in the town. A partnership with citizens and town officials called Vision 2020 was created as an official committee of the town in 1992, and aims to "create, implement, monitor and review open methods for town-wide public participation" (Town of Arlington). Over 5,000 Arlington residents have participated in the committee since its inception. This committee is highly successful and in December 2001, The American Planning Association's New England Chapter honored Vision 2020 when it gave Jane Howard, a member of the Vision 2020 standing committee, its Citizen Planner Of The Year Award

Pro-active planning has been an important element in Arlington's planning. Between 1993 and 1996, the planning board directed prepared for the need to address new development pressures by creating the award winning Arlington Business Study. The Massachusetts Chapter of the American Planning Association awarded the Outstanding Comprehensive Planning Project to this study in 1996. Arlington residents adopted 25 zoning bylaw amendments to ensure implementation of the plan.

Recognizing its strong historical identity, Arlington has established seven historic districts, including 303 properties. The Arlington Historical Commission works with property owners, developers, and town and state agencies in the on-going effort to preserve and protect Arlington's historic assets while also recognizing the need to maintain Arlington as a growing and thriving community.

In addition to these general practices, Arlington has many innovative and award-winning programs and projects including the following: The Merit Award for Parks and Recreation for the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway, awarded by the Boston Society of Landscape Architects in 1994. The Mill Brook project is also worth noting. It's a project run through the Conservation Commission, working to bring wildlife back to a four-acre site near the town center. This project has already been cited as a model for wetlands management. Finally a valuable program in the town is its Dollars for Scholars program. The first of its kind in the nation, it's a project to help fund post-secondary education for its residents, and is supported by a voluntary contribution from residents through the municipal tax bill and local utility bills.

These projects have been made possible through Arlington's innovative planning practices, making it our top choice among communities with declining populations.

 



Copyright © 2000 University of Massachusetts, Amherst. 
Created in 2002 by Alexandra Proshina. Maintained by the Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning. Last  modified on 28th November, 2002
This is an official page of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Campus