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The mission of Nobscot Neighbors is to promote, preserve, and advocate for Nobscot, a village within Framingham, Massachusetts, and improve its quality of life for residents, businesses, institutions, and visitors. |
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The mission of Nobscot Neighbors is to promote, preserve, and advocate for Nobscot, a village within Framingham, Massachusetts, and improve its quality of life for residents, businesses, institutions, and visitors. |
...In the heart of northwest Framingham. The center of the community is Nobscot village, the area's commercial district at the intersection of Edgell Road and Water Street/Edmands Road. But Nobscot is so much more. From the serene farms to the west of the village to the imposing height of Nobscot Hill to the north, and the verdant pathways of the renowned Garden in The Woods to the east, Nobscot is a place of natural beauty as well as the home of numerous residents, businesses, and other institutions. Take a look around our web site and see everything Nobscot has to offer!
Nobscot Neighbors is a group of people, since our founding in 2008, united in our common interest in improving and promoting the Nobscot area of Framingham. We are residents, property owners, parents, business owners, and elected officials. In short, we are your Nobscot Neighbors!
To stay informed about upcoming meetings and events, and participate in Nobscot Neighbors discussions, we're on Facebook. Join the Facebook group to receive invitations to events and keep up on news about Nobscot.
The 21st century transformation of Nobscot village
In the past decade or so, Nobscot village has been undergoing its biggest transformation in more than half a century.
In 2011, a TD Bank branch was built on the northwest corner of Edgell Road and Edmands Road, after the former Mobil gas station was torn down.
Then in 2016 came the momentous opening of the new Christa McAuliffe branch library on Water Street, which replaced the former branch library on Nicholas Road in Saxonville.
In July 2019, the city council unanimously voted to adapt new (B-4) zoning for Nobscot village. This change was also recommended by both the planning board and the city council's subcommittee on planning and zoning and paved the way for the next phase of the village's redevelopment. This was after over a decade of advocacy and collaboration between Nobscot Neighbors members, city officials and staff, and the owner of the Nobscot Shopping Center.
The historic (circa 1885) and long-vacant Nobscot Union Chapel was purchased from the city of Framingham by a private developer. It was moved a few hundred feet south on Edgell Road in April 2020 and placed on a new foundation next to Gianni's Pizza on the lot formerly occupied by the old Texaco station, which was torn down several years before. After extensive reservations that preserved its historic character, it is now home to Lush Beauty Lounge. The building is now on the National Register of Historic Places.
The movement of the chapel facilitated the redesign of the Edgell Road/Edmands Road/Water Street intersection. New concrete sidewalks with red brick borders and granite curbing and Victorian-style streetlights were installed on the streets leading away from the intersection.
A new CVS store was built in 2021 on the corner of Water Street and Edgell Road in the chapel's former location. The Nobscot Office Building was also purchased by the same developer who bought the chapel, and torn down as part of this project.
The former Nobscot Shopping Center was torn down in June 2022. In April 2023 the ground was broken for Nobscot Village, a three-story mixed-use development. It will have 158 apartments as well as approximately 10,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor facing Water Street. It is anticipated to be completed by early 2025.
In May 2023 the former Gulf gas station and convenience store (including a Dunkin coffee shop) on the southwest corner of Edgell Road and Edmands Road was torn down. A new gas station and convenience store was built and opened by Nouria Energy in March 2024.
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In other good news for the village, in September 2023 the city purchased the right-of-way for the long-abandoned CSX railroad line that goes through Nobscot. For more than 20 years, this has been planned to be the southernmost section of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail, which begins in Lowell and runs south for 25 miles. Since then, some funding has been obtained for the design and construction of the trail in Framingham, which will end at Route 9. Survey work on the trail corridor was done in April 2024. No construction start or completion date has been announced yet.
There is also a controversial development proposal in Nobscot that would require a zoning change, which many residents oppose. You can learn more about it from the group Future of Nobscot.
Here is the city of Framingham website page about Nobscot village development: Nobscot Village | City of Framingham, MA Official Website (framinghamma.gov)
The Eaton family homesteads provide a glimpse of the architecture of early 19th century Nobscot.
What is that tiny building between the Hemenway school and Heritage at Framingham on Water Street? Read about the history of the Nobscot Post Office/Library/Train Station.
Read about how Nobscot became the home of the first fox hunting club in New England, and the third in the United States, the Millwood Hunt Club.
Learn about the Nobscot Spring bottled spring water company, which tapped its product at the base of Nobscot Hill.
