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Welcome Statement:
Incorporated in 1713, the Town of Medway is a residential community of approximately 13,000 located on the western edge of Norfolk County and bordered by the towns of Holliston, Millis, Milford, Bellingham and Franklin. State highway Route 109 runs the length of Medway from east to west and Route 495 is close by in the neighboring communities of Bellingham and Milford. Rail transit to Boston is available nearby in Franklin and Norfolk.
The median sales price of a single family home in Medway was $339,000 in 2008. Approximately 75% of the tax levy is attributable to residential, undeveloped residential, and open space classes, while 12% is attributable to commercial, industrial, and personal classes. Thirteen percent is tax exempt. Developed commercial and industrial zoned lands occupy 214 acres or 3.2% of land in Medway. Most of the commercially zoned land is located at the center of town along Route 109. Industrial zones are located on the edges of Town on both the east and west sides. In 2008, Medway placed fifth out of 351 communities in the Massachusetts High Technology Council annual rankings of all towns' tech-readiness.
Medway’s annual budget is about $45 million with over half of that amount supporting our public school system. There are three elementary schools, Burke-Memorial and McGovern, one Middle School, and one High School, with a total enrollment of just over 2,600. The High School is a state of the art facility constructed in 2005. The Middle School is undergoing a $23 million repair and renovation that will be completed in 2013. Please visit the School’s webpage at www.medwayschools.org for more information.
The town has implemented several initiatives to facilitate business investment in our community including increasing the availability of industrial/commercial land for development, an expedited permitting process, and the creating of a development handbook and reference guide for prospective businesses and developers. The Town recently completed a sewer extension project in West Medway which will allow for further development of the industrial park on Trotter Drive. Medway is a Green Community and has received grant funding to implement Green Communities initiatives, some of which are underway. Our town-wide Energy Committee supports Medway’s efforts to become more sustainable through clean energy technologies and practices.
Medway adopted the Community Preservation Act in 2001. This local option statute authorizes a municipality which votes to accept it to impose a real estate tax surcharge to raise money for three purposes related to community preservation: open space, historic preservation and affordable housing. Through these funds the town has acquired the historic Thayer House at 2B Oak Street, which is slated for renovation to make it available for self-sustaining community use, a fourteen acre parcel of land on Winthrop Street, a portion of which is being leased to a community farm, and a seven acre parcel on Adams Street. Funds have also been allocated to the Town’s Affordable Housing Trust, which has hired a Community Housing Coordinator to further affordable housing initiatives in Town.
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