MAPC To Hold Public Meeting on Orange Line Development, Nov. 29

Interested in learning more about planned development and community change along the Orange Line Corridor? 

Join the Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations (MACDC) and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) for a public briefing on Thursday, Nov. 29 from 9-10:30 a.m. at the McLeod Suite of Northeastern University’s Curry Student Center, located at 346 Huntington Ave. in Boston. 

The meeting will bring together municipal, nonprofit, and for-profit leaders to strategize about how information from the report can be used to advance planning and community development along the “Corridor,” which covers the stretch of Orange Line from Boston/Charlestown through Somerville and Medford into Malden and Melrose at Oak Grove. 

Feedback gathered at this upcoming meeting will inform next steps that aim to create more housing, employment, educational, cultural, recreational, and transit opportunities for the people who live and work near this critical transit line. 

“The Orange Line connects diverse communities across the Greater Boston, region and this report demonstrates its potential for sparking both regional and neighborhood economic growth,” said Joe Kriesberg, Executive Director of MACDC. “We are eager to work with partners in government and the private sector to capitalize on the opportunities documented in this report and accelerate their implementation.” 

The report is compiled with the participation of Boston, Malden, Medford, Melrose, and Somerville as well as numerous community development corporations and private developers along the corridor. 

“The Orange Line Corridor is ripe for investment and coordinated planning,” said Jennifer Erickson, Regional Planner for MAPC. “This first-ever compilation of corridor characteristics and planned development activity will help municipalities, public and private developers, and community groups to advocate for corridor investments and plan for transit-oriented development.” 

Using data on population and household characteristics, land use, and planned development activity, it projects the impact of planned development on people, jobs, infrastructure, and other characteristics in the Corridor and outlines opportunities for investment and coordinated planning. 

This meeting is free and open to the public. 

Northeastern University’s Curry Student Center is an accessible building, meeting all ADA standards. Access is available at both main entrances on the East (near Mugar) and West (Library Quad) sides of the building. 

To request accommodations such as language interpretation, assistive listening devices or meeting materials in alternate formats, contact Pam Bender at MACDC at pamelab@macdc.org or 617-426-0303 ext. 25, or Jennifer Erickson at MAPC at jerickson@mapc.org or 617-451-2770 x2078. 

Visit mapc.org/orange-line-corridor for more on the project.