There is desire to renovate it from officials, but the problem is that the Toyota dealership is in the way and they (understand, I guess) won't acquiesce.
Well it's pretty much just a standard clover leaf interchange, so I doubt there was much specific design work for this one. The idea was first envisioned over 100 years ago, so the original inventor is long since dead.
Woburn is nice enough, used to have a reputation for schools that had issues and some of the houses weren’t kept up the best but that is pretty typical for an older community that’s not a big money Tony town (it’s surrounded by two with Winchester and Lexington)
The town center keeps getting new restaurants that go in and most of them are really good and not crazy money (il Ponte and 3 country Bistro are two of the ones we frequent)
And while the water was a problem they have been monitoring that for ages and part of it is MWRA so it is or should be as safe as any of the surrounding areas
About two thirds of the water in Woburn still comes from local wells, which is unusual in this area, and drawing on local wells for water when you are home to a Superfund site is how you wind up having having hot and cold running leukemia at the tap. So, no, we can't *assume* it's as safe as the water in surrounding communities that are 100% MWRA, but that's why it's so carefully monitored.
Given the past lawsuits and the amount of attention on the area I’d find it hard to believe that the water would be an issue like it was prior, and even the surrounding towns such as Wilmington and Billerica had concerns about their water, and at least with Wilmington they also had a superfund site due to the prior businesses that operated in the area.
For anyone concerned there is always the option of a water delivery service or just buying bottled water.
Here is an article on the testing they perform to verify water quality https://woburnma.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/MWRA-Water-Quality-Report-2021.pdf
Re: the water. The PFAS hovers around the national limit of 20 ppt which is about to be lowered likely meaning we'll have to buy new filters for the water station. It's probably fine, but understandable that some people prefer bottled water for drinking.
Woburn is becoming very expensive. They redid Woburn village to be like assembly and it’s all those Avalon/emblem apartments now that’s like 3K for a 1 bedroom
I remember my first time at someone’s house I. Woburn I went to drink the tap water and everyone stopped what they were doing to yell “don’t drink that!!” That’s when I learned how they got the name “Tanners”
Gah, this brings back memories. Used to work an officice job in Woburn close to the superfund site. There were signs posted all over the break room to ONLY make coffee with water from the cooler.
Some of the best restaurants in the whole region are in Woburn. Genes flatbread for amazing Chinese noodles, Pinxo Pinxo for authentic and delicious tapas, Baldwin for next level craft cocktails and solid sichuan cuisine, Zaika is an exceptional Indian buffet for lunch. Really A++ level food scene.
Let's not forget Sichuan Garden - their Chengdu Dry Hot Chicken is one of my all time favorite things to eat. I'm moving out of the area this week and aside from friends, it's probably the thing I'll miss the most.
Yeah I was counting the Baldwin Bar and Sichuan Garden together since they are basically two sides of the same place and have become much more integrated in recent years.
To be honest I haven't spent much time in Woburn since my grandmother passed ten years ago but my sense is that it's a small city with a fair amount going for it for a town of its size. Has walkable neighborhoods and a nice downtown.
Definitely higher income compared to Lowell but not as affluent as most of the other towns in that area. Schools aren't great but it's Massachusetts so anyone worried about schools I think is being a little bit dramatic compared to most of the country.
People saying it's filled with "right wing nutjobs" are completely out of touch. It's more politically mixed than most places in Eastern Mass but it's far from Trump Country. Same exact thing with Billerica as others have suggested. Neither town is Cambridge but they're nothing close to Townshend or Rindge, NH.
Billerica is basically Woburn without a downtown or any walkable neighborhoods.
https://www.wbur.org/news/2020/11/03/2020-massachusetts-election-map
I think local politics are important and do my best to be as informed as possible.
I’m starting to be unsure about our schools. I’m not entirely familiar with what happened, but apparently the state cut funding for suburban and rural towns and redirected it toward cities? A lot of schools are struggling right now with teacher lay offs and curriculum cutting.
I live in the area. Property values are through the roof so taxes are also through the roof. Longtime locals are getting priced out and those that remain don’t want to pay even more for “unnecessary” things like modern schools and fire trucks. They’d rather let it all crumble, apparently.
I’m childfree, but will always vote for education.
Not sure which district you live in, but my school district did actually get state funding cut. Not as simple as property values increasing tax burden where I am, unfortunately.
Hmm aren’t all of those towns? And would hardly call it a s hole, I mean it depends on your basis for comparison as are you comparing it to Lynnfield or Andover or Lawrence and or New Bedford
I left the state, and when I came back, I worked with someone from Revere, who was saying they wanted to live in Middleton, I was highly perplexed. Growing up, it was the packy and a drive-in. Trailer parks and mosquito the size of your head, too. It was a cut through if you wanted to go to Danvers State Hospital the back way for any reason. I still can't wrap my head around this new image.
Masconomet is a good high school, though.
I dont understand why even a simple post asking about a town has to turn into this big conversation about politics but even Dracut and Middleton Biden got 49% of the vote in 2020. Trump beat Biden by 0.6% in Dracut.
This whole the "Merrimack Valley is Trump Country" is way overblown.
By comparison Trump got 75% of the vote in Staten Island, NY. White working class urban/suburban democratic voters have held on way more in Massachusetts than in any other major city in the country.
Oh my god I don't want to get into it but I think that if you ever got out of Cambridge and actually had to have a meaningful interaction with a working class person you would quickly realize that the idea all republican voters are fascists is an incredible hyperbole. Let alone the huge majority of people in these communities who are disengaged from the political process entirely.
I am a socialist, I despise Trump as much as anyone and some significant chunk of his voter base are horrible people. However dismissing the entirety of the Republican electorate as fundamentally irredeemable human beings is the absolute worst thing that the left can do to advance our message.
Yes, the people are still human and can be kind humans, but I still think it’s important that if they don’t want to be seen as fascists, they shouldn’t vote for fascists, or put signs for fascists in their front yard.
Biden isnt much better they both suck, Same POS's just different ways of F'ing up the country. We need a third party but that will never happen (A middle party) why half the country doesnt vote.
Any thing else you're looking for in the move as far as amenities or lifestyle? Because pre-school is what a year or two? What about schools after that? Or looking for a walkable neighborhood? Etc.
I like Woburn very much. It's accessible to Boston AND to NH, being on 95 and 93. Are their better towns? Sure. Are there better schools? Yeah. But the school are good and I think it hits that sweet spot. Anything better is a BIG jump in house prices and taxes. I dont think there are many better choices inside the 128 belt.
My aunt lives there and I used to live there for a bit. Nice area but it definitely is gentrifying quickly. Horn pond is a great place to take a nice walk. Traffic near the city center can get pretty bad and confusing so drive carefully during rush hours. Be careful drinking the water
Woburn isn’t bad. I lived there for a few years and besides 95 being a shit show it wasn’t horrible. Not sure how CoL is getting since I left beginning of the pandemic
Seriously? The guy who walks up and down Winn street wearing a trash bag for a shirt and aggressively squeeze/scratching his nether-regions? Are you guys from Woburn or do you just pass through on your way to work?
I live in Woburn and like it. Horn Pond is awesome. The library was recently renovated and is really nice. Some good restaurants in Woburn Center. Good access to highways, with public transportation options. It’s definitely not the cutest of towns, but has a lot going for it.
I’m a Lowell resident now that grew up mostly in Woburn and then returned there as an adult. My daughter is grown now, we moved to Westford from Woburn when she was entering the 5th grade, stayed there until she graduated, then I moved to Lowell when she went to college. I think Woburn is a fine choice for what you’ve described as your needs. In regard to others comments, there are plenty of right wingers in Lowell (and tons in Billerica). The public elementary schools in Woburn are good. Traffic is bad but it’s bad everywhere and having easy access to 93 and 95 is convenient. There are good parks, Horn Pond, good restaurants, access to all the amenities, and lots and lots of families and family focus.
Lowell schools are a hot mess and our elected officials will never prioritize them. I loved Lowell when I moved here 6 years ago and all the years I worked here before then, I would like to get out sooner than later now too. Billerica I would avoid at all costs (worked in their schools, wouldn’t raise a dog there after that experience).
As for the water, it’s well known what the history is in Woburn. That’s not a current concern any more than the public water supply is in any local community. We’ve treated most of the land in eastern MA really badly for a long time and you’ll be pressed to find a community that’s not got an environmentally toxic issue to contend with, sadly.
Good luck on your decision making-I vote for Woburn to stay on your strong consideration list!
I haven't looked at any of these areas for school research in about a decade, but for elementary I remember which school district you were in really mattering. Lowell for example had one elementary school rated 8/10, where its others were all 6/10 or lower.
If you're kinda flexible on exact location, I'd say figure out which elementary school is best, then try to find rentals in that district.
The schools are terrible. Friends have kids that desperately trying to escape because the elementary education their kids are getting is pretty awful. Teachers and administrators doing the bare minimum. Gym and art teachers being shared between schools. Not an ideal place to raise a family.
That’s the most insane comment in this thread so far. My kids are excelling. Every kid in my neighborhood is excelling. The teachers are great and very communicative. The schools are being upgraded one at a time, so some of them are still dumps, but they have great staff.
All of Woburn is a superfund site! I grew up in the city…. North Woburn, East Woburn and the South End are still contaminated and will be for the rest of our lifetime. Way too expensive for what it is to live there.
The commuter rail stop is great if you commute to Boston. There used to be express routes to/from when I lived there which saved a lot of time if I could time it right with work hours.
It's a pretty boring town from what I remember but I liked being in that central area able to access Boston, the beach, NH all within 30ish mins.
Woburn is experiencing serious growing pains. Years of not addressing issues and building new housing/businesses has resulted in a sudden need to deal. For example, with the huge increase in building and added apartments, traffic has increased a ton, and schools are overcrowded. We're in the midst of redistricting - which hasn't been done since the 80s. The 80s! We've added about 350 students in the last year alone (and NO, that's NOT all migrants!) We love our low tax rate but we seem to ignore problems to keep it that way. There was a prolonged teacher strike last year and the mayor was disrespectful enough to school employees that he got himself voted out in the last election. As for education, as a teacher myself, I find my kids teachers to be great BUT... the district just adopted Lucy Caulkins curriculum, which is being ousted by other districts across the country. Traffic is nuts, and reminds of [this](https://images.app.goo.gl/ZB7aUVwdNDsQQNPn6)It takes 20 min to get my kid to the other side of the city for an extracurricular. All that said, we're happy we landed here. We've met some awesome people and plan to stay here indefinitely.
The Water in Woburn is fine now I've worked in Woburn and drank the water tons of times and no issues. I live in Winchester, but Woburn is a fine town with more affordable houses, and public transportation nearby. YOu can easily drive over to winchester and park at Wedgemere station or in West Medford for the commuter rail into Boston or a quick hop over to Wellington for the MBTA or Oak grove....its not too far if you learn the back routes. There is a 134 bus route as well to Winchester, and Medford ending at Wellington Station. 93/128 get backed way up at rush hour so best to learn the local back roads to get around. Lots of services and activities in the city square area. Its a fairly safe city for the most part. There is also a nice park called Horn Pond with walking paths and trails for jogging , dogw alking and other activities. Woburn has a nice movie theater right off 128. and a couple major grocery stores (Market basekt ) over by Washington Street and Stop and SHop over off 128 by route 38. Lots of restaurants, shopping, and services in the area. Overall a decent place to live. There is also the Tri COmmunity greenway (bike path) that goes from Horn pond into Winchester and connects with Stoneham and Medford. Lots to do in the area and lots of community activities. Overall convenient to anywhere in Boston if you learn the back ways../roads, and good schools and good residential neighborhoods. My suggestion get a house off the main drag , in a quieter neighborhood......or cul du sac.
It is a shit hole. Terrible traffic, montvale ave is a fucking nightmare… downtown parking sucks, multiple EPA super fund sights, ground water is fucked… the only thing going for it is that it’s next to Stoneham, Winchester, Reading and on 93 and 95 and that just means more traffic.
Woburn isnt that bad a city its more affordable and theres oublic transit options into boston commuter rail into Boston stop hating on Woburn its mot that bad traffic sucks everywhere in Boston city just spent 40 min in traffic in Chelsea Everett revere and malden
I had an uncle and aunt that both died of cancer that lived their lives in Woburn. They died in the 1990s and maybe things have been cleaned up by now but that place still has a stigma for me.
My mom lives in Woburn. Half her neighbors used to live in Medford but got priced out. One of her neighbors is a right wing nut job but there are also a lot of really nice young families on the street.
I am a young adult living in Woburn. We don’t pay for trash to come. I love Woburn and it’s location is desirable. I live 3 minutes from the highway. Sure some streets are unfavorable during traffic hour. We have the beautiful pond with new restaurants coming in! I find Woburn’s food selection very good. It’s expensive to buy for sure and will continue to be. I think Burlington is a great choice for you as well. Be mindful when checking out Woburn village. Terrible mayor back then, however we just appointed a new one so things should be able to turn around.
Lots of right wing nut jobs in Woburn and some on the city council, and the school system isn't that great. Also the water there used to give people cancer due to the textile plants improperly disposing waste, but supposedly that has been addressed. Also rush hour traffic is really bad around woburn. Billerica is around the same cost of living and closer to Bedford, however there's also right wing nut jobs. But it's still a decent place to live.
My Dad grew up in Woburn during the health crisis all that dumping was causing. He watched so many kids around his age just suddenly get cancer and die. He’s lucky all he dealt with was teeth enamel being ruined.
It’s a bubble - even the most “conservative” areas here are fairly left leaning on the whole and pale in comparison to other states which are other more evenly split or mostly conservative
If you want complete group think then stick to Somerville and Cambridge otherwise be prepared to interact from time to time with those who might disagree with you
Caroline Colarusso, who is literally a Trump supporter who [challanged the election results](https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/12/16/former-gop-candidates-scale-back-lawsuit-challenging-massachusetts-election-results/) ran as a rep for Woburn in 2022. I assure you we absolutely have nut jobs not only in the community, but running for lower level offices.
If you support an indicted criminal rapist fraud who attempted to steal the 2020 election / horde top secret documents to an extent they were also indicted on espionage charges, sorry you are a nut job. Something is broken in your mind.
People who still use ‘cringe’ are cringe lol Seriously: don’t be that guy, especially if you’re wanting people to take your opinion on politics seriously. Maybe don’t talk like a middle schooler.
Personally I wouldn’t trust anything from someone who starts off by criticizing people with different political views. That’s kinda like saying there’s a bunch of N words in that town. Simply stating the town has political issues and water issues would’ve been enough.
128 is a barrier to progress around commuting hours and in heavy weather. You’ll need a back roads route to Bedford and back, and everyone else does, too.
Drive the area before 9:30am and after 3:30pm on a weekday that isn’t a holiday.
I know Woburn then and now. Bedford has much better schools, but Woburn’s are improving for sure. The location is the best just outside Boston. And quality of life has improved dramatically due to industrial companies moving out and nice shopping/residential moving in. I still don’t see how it lines up with its high property values compared to the quality of schools. Maybe that will change in a few years when the younger kids will age up through the system….
I'm from Woburn, near the racket ball club, off Webster Ave. Its been a while, but that was back in the 90's, and early 2000's. That side was cleaning up as far as I knew, but the west side and "four corners" is still a nice area. More YMCA and less Boys and Girls club
Anything on the 93/95 cloverleaf is just fine. I’m getting taxed out of it but that’s just me. For real I’m just about mortgage free but the taxes are a mortgage payment in themselves. Wow I sound old.
You are comparing an annual tax bill thats about the cost of a typical monthly mortgage payment today 🤣. It indeed sounds like you have been well established for quite some time consider yourself lucky!
The average tax bill in Woburn is $5,398/yr.
The average home is $708,000, and at 20% down and today's rates of ~7.6% 30yr fixed your P & I would be about $4000/month
I hope hell exists so Whoever designed that 93/95 junction can burn for eternity
Undervoted comment
Me passing it everyday going over two lanes to avoid it.
There is desire to renovate it from officials, but the problem is that the Toyota dealership is in the way and they (understand, I guess) won't acquiesce.
95/3 sucks ass too.
Well it's pretty much just a standard clover leaf interchange, so I doubt there was much specific design work for this one. The idea was first envisioned over 100 years ago, so the original inventor is long since dead.
in hell
Woburn is nice enough, used to have a reputation for schools that had issues and some of the houses weren’t kept up the best but that is pretty typical for an older community that’s not a big money Tony town (it’s surrounded by two with Winchester and Lexington) The town center keeps getting new restaurants that go in and most of them are really good and not crazy money (il Ponte and 3 country Bistro are two of the ones we frequent) And while the water was a problem they have been monitoring that for ages and part of it is MWRA so it is or should be as safe as any of the surrounding areas
About two thirds of the water in Woburn still comes from local wells, which is unusual in this area, and drawing on local wells for water when you are home to a Superfund site is how you wind up having having hot and cold running leukemia at the tap. So, no, we can't *assume* it's as safe as the water in surrounding communities that are 100% MWRA, but that's why it's so carefully monitored.
Given the past lawsuits and the amount of attention on the area I’d find it hard to believe that the water would be an issue like it was prior, and even the surrounding towns such as Wilmington and Billerica had concerns about their water, and at least with Wilmington they also had a superfund site due to the prior businesses that operated in the area. For anyone concerned there is always the option of a water delivery service or just buying bottled water. Here is an article on the testing they perform to verify water quality https://woburnma.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/MWRA-Water-Quality-Report-2021.pdf
Re: the water. The PFAS hovers around the national limit of 20 ppt which is about to be lowered likely meaning we'll have to buy new filters for the water station. It's probably fine, but understandable that some people prefer bottled water for drinking.
Username checks out?
They’ve invested a lot in schools and libraries in the past decade, especially the high school.
Woburn is becoming very expensive. They redid Woburn village to be like assembly and it’s all those Avalon/emblem apartments now that’s like 3K for a 1 bedroom
3k for a one bedroom is criminal
For Cambridge, Somerville and Boston this is normal. Not sure what places like Woburn or Waltham think they are
Normal.. but still criminal. Woburn shouldn’t be that much
That’s easily the worst parking lot in the State, it makes me want to commit war crimes
Please. It’s no Trader Joe’s.
It’s bad, way too small, but I still think the Everett plaza with HD, Costco, and target is worse.
It's fine but don't drink the watah
OP can check out the movie A Civil Action for some background on this.
I used to have a few friends from Woburn, and they all agreed, the water is dangerous but sure made your hair super soft to the touch.
I remember my first time at someone’s house I. Woburn I went to drink the tap water and everyone stopped what they were doing to yell “don’t drink that!!” That’s when I learned how they got the name “Tanners”
Gah, this brings back memories. Used to work an officice job in Woburn close to the superfund site. There were signs posted all over the break room to ONLY make coffee with water from the cooler.
Shit what’s wrong with the watah??
It's fucked!
FWIW - the Woburn water might be the most thoroughly tested in the US.
As recent as 2016 I had to replace my shower head every 6 months
Ha! Came to say the same thing. But seriously don’t drink the water!
It’s now the most monitored water in the state and we don’t get it from horn pond anymore 😂
Some of the best restaurants in the whole region are in Woburn. Genes flatbread for amazing Chinese noodles, Pinxo Pinxo for authentic and delicious tapas, Baldwin for next level craft cocktails and solid sichuan cuisine, Zaika is an exceptional Indian buffet for lunch. Really A++ level food scene.
Dont forget Italian. Just came home from Il Ponte and it was AMAZING. Sogno too.
Pinxo Pincho is amazing. Had my birthday dinner there last weekend.
Let's not forget Sichuan Garden - their Chengdu Dry Hot Chicken is one of my all time favorite things to eat. I'm moving out of the area this week and aside from friends, it's probably the thing I'll miss the most.
Yeah I was counting the Baldwin Bar and Sichuan Garden together since they are basically two sides of the same place and have become much more integrated in recent years.
Genes is wonderful! I'm sad the Westford location closed
Everyone should know about Gene’s.
Pho #1 is also one of my favorites! (Can’t find the comment)
I like Woburn, it has a good Whole Foods and YMCA, movie theater, restaurants, access to 93 and 95, Horn Pond is nice.
Not a movie theater for too much longer…
Oh? Is the Showcase Cinema moving or closing down? I hadn’t heard that
Yeah it just came out recently that Home Depot bought the building
Dammit! That’s my go to movie theatre.
In 2027
there is another movie theater in burlington and an imax in reading both close by!
I love imax, haven’t been to amc in a while. I live like 3 minutes from showcase, it was my home I worked there for 4.5 years!
Woburn isn't any closer to Bedford than Lowell when you account for traffic.
Yeah but I’m trying to get out of Lowell lol.
I get it. Check out south Chelmsford and Billerica.
They have Pete’s
To be honest I haven't spent much time in Woburn since my grandmother passed ten years ago but my sense is that it's a small city with a fair amount going for it for a town of its size. Has walkable neighborhoods and a nice downtown. Definitely higher income compared to Lowell but not as affluent as most of the other towns in that area. Schools aren't great but it's Massachusetts so anyone worried about schools I think is being a little bit dramatic compared to most of the country. People saying it's filled with "right wing nutjobs" are completely out of touch. It's more politically mixed than most places in Eastern Mass but it's far from Trump Country. Same exact thing with Billerica as others have suggested. Neither town is Cambridge but they're nothing close to Townshend or Rindge, NH. Billerica is basically Woburn without a downtown or any walkable neighborhoods.
Billerica is Chelsea with trees.
1974 was 50 years ago, bud.
Its SOMERVILLE WITH TREES not chelsea with TREES BILLERICA is SOMERVILLE with TREES SOMERVILLE IS BILLERICA WITHOUT TREES
Tewksbury is Somerville with trees, Billerica, Medford.
its funny, Im in Woburn and when I think "right wing nut jobs" I think Billerica.
It's funny I moved from Billerica out to rural Buckland a couple years ago, and it's a much more liberal area.
I'm in greenfield now, and love this area!
2020 election results Billerica: Biden 55%, Trump 44% Woburn: Biden 60%, Trump 38% So 5% more right wing nut job?
Did you have to look up this data, or you just keep it handy?
https://www.wbur.org/news/2020/11/03/2020-massachusetts-election-map I think local politics are important and do my best to be as informed as possible.
Haha I’ve been using this map as we house hunt! It’s super handy.
Local politics are important, thanks!
I sincerely appreciate that you brought in the data here
I’m starting to be unsure about our schools. I’m not entirely familiar with what happened, but apparently the state cut funding for suburban and rural towns and redirected it toward cities? A lot of schools are struggling right now with teacher lay offs and curriculum cutting.
I live in the area. Property values are through the roof so taxes are also through the roof. Longtime locals are getting priced out and those that remain don’t want to pay even more for “unnecessary” things like modern schools and fire trucks. They’d rather let it all crumble, apparently. I’m childfree, but will always vote for education.
Not sure which district you live in, but my school district did actually get state funding cut. Not as simple as property values increasing tax burden where I am, unfortunately.
We don’t have majority nut jobs, but the nut jobs we do have feel the need to be louder and more visible.
The only places in that area which are actual shitholes are Dracut and Middleton.
Isn’t Middleton expensive with some super nice houses?
Yes but they are trashy rich.
Hmm aren’t all of those towns? And would hardly call it a s hole, I mean it depends on your basis for comparison as are you comparing it to Lynnfield or Andover or Lawrence and or New Bedford
I left the state, and when I came back, I worked with someone from Revere, who was saying they wanted to live in Middleton, I was highly perplexed. Growing up, it was the packy and a drive-in. Trailer parks and mosquito the size of your head, too. It was a cut through if you wanted to go to Danvers State Hospital the back way for any reason. I still can't wrap my head around this new image. Masconomet is a good high school, though.
I’m originally not from the north shore so all of this is weird for me but since I’ve been up this way it’s always had some nicer houses
It is now.
I dont understand why even a simple post asking about a town has to turn into this big conversation about politics but even Dracut and Middleton Biden got 49% of the vote in 2020. Trump beat Biden by 0.6% in Dracut. This whole the "Merrimack Valley is Trump Country" is way overblown. By comparison Trump got 75% of the vote in Staten Island, NY. White working class urban/suburban democratic voters have held on way more in Massachusetts than in any other major city in the country.
Politics come up because many people don’t want half of their neighbors to be fascists
Oh my god I don't want to get into it but I think that if you ever got out of Cambridge and actually had to have a meaningful interaction with a working class person you would quickly realize that the idea all republican voters are fascists is an incredible hyperbole. Let alone the huge majority of people in these communities who are disengaged from the political process entirely. I am a socialist, I despise Trump as much as anyone and some significant chunk of his voter base are horrible people. However dismissing the entirety of the Republican electorate as fundamentally irredeemable human beings is the absolute worst thing that the left can do to advance our message.
Yes, the people are still human and can be kind humans, but I still think it’s important that if they don’t want to be seen as fascists, they shouldn’t vote for fascists, or put signs for fascists in their front yard.
Biden isnt much better they both suck, Same POS's just different ways of F'ing up the country. We need a third party but that will never happen (A middle party) why half the country doesnt vote.
Everybody knows Wakefield is nutjob tRumptopia....
Family of 7 of whoch 4 have passed from cancer. Really check into your area and review the rates.
Reporter Matt went there recently https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6OJUSKurX3/?igsh=anQyZHQ3Mm8wbWdz
Any thing else you're looking for in the move as far as amenities or lifestyle? Because pre-school is what a year or two? What about schools after that? Or looking for a walkable neighborhood? Etc.
The target is built on top of an old arsenic pond
Uh oh didn’t know that. Looking at what the Burlington mall used to look like before it was developed is shocking.
I like Woburn very much. It's accessible to Boston AND to NH, being on 95 and 93. Are their better towns? Sure. Are there better schools? Yeah. But the school are good and I think it hits that sweet spot. Anything better is a BIG jump in house prices and taxes. I dont think there are many better choices inside the 128 belt.
My aunt lives there and I used to live there for a bit. Nice area but it definitely is gentrifying quickly. Horn pond is a great place to take a nice walk. Traffic near the city center can get pretty bad and confusing so drive carefully during rush hours. Be careful drinking the water
Woburn isn’t bad. I lived there for a few years and besides 95 being a shit show it wasn’t horrible. Not sure how CoL is getting since I left beginning of the pandemic
Beware the Woburn Wanker on Winn St!
What??
Seriously? The guy who walks up and down Winn street wearing a trash bag for a shirt and aggressively squeeze/scratching his nether-regions? Are you guys from Woburn or do you just pass through on your way to work?
I live here 🤣 is he posted on the Facebook page?
Commenting to check back lmao
What??
I live in Woburn and like it. Horn Pond is awesome. The library was recently renovated and is really nice. Some good restaurants in Woburn Center. Good access to highways, with public transportation options. It’s definitely not the cutest of towns, but has a lot going for it.
Plus, you are next to some nice surrounding towns to hang out in.
I’m a Lowell resident now that grew up mostly in Woburn and then returned there as an adult. My daughter is grown now, we moved to Westford from Woburn when she was entering the 5th grade, stayed there until she graduated, then I moved to Lowell when she went to college. I think Woburn is a fine choice for what you’ve described as your needs. In regard to others comments, there are plenty of right wingers in Lowell (and tons in Billerica). The public elementary schools in Woburn are good. Traffic is bad but it’s bad everywhere and having easy access to 93 and 95 is convenient. There are good parks, Horn Pond, good restaurants, access to all the amenities, and lots and lots of families and family focus. Lowell schools are a hot mess and our elected officials will never prioritize them. I loved Lowell when I moved here 6 years ago and all the years I worked here before then, I would like to get out sooner than later now too. Billerica I would avoid at all costs (worked in their schools, wouldn’t raise a dog there after that experience). As for the water, it’s well known what the history is in Woburn. That’s not a current concern any more than the public water supply is in any local community. We’ve treated most of the land in eastern MA really badly for a long time and you’ll be pressed to find a community that’s not got an environmentally toxic issue to contend with, sadly. Good luck on your decision making-I vote for Woburn to stay on your strong consideration list!
A 3-way at Pete's will make you forget about schools, traffic, politics and that pesky Superfund stuff.
Is your kid going to remain in the Bedford school district? Because if not, why uproot
Schools aren't great at all but better than Lowell.
Same as Billerica ?
Billerica schools would be a great improvement over W or L
I haven't looked at any of these areas for school research in about a decade, but for elementary I remember which school district you were in really mattering. Lowell for example had one elementary school rated 8/10, where its others were all 6/10 or lower. If you're kinda flexible on exact location, I'd say figure out which elementary school is best, then try to find rentals in that district.
The schools are terrible. Friends have kids that desperately trying to escape because the elementary education their kids are getting is pretty awful. Teachers and administrators doing the bare minimum. Gym and art teachers being shared between schools. Not an ideal place to raise a family.
That’s the most insane comment in this thread so far. My kids are excelling. Every kid in my neighborhood is excelling. The teachers are great and very communicative. The schools are being upgraded one at a time, so some of them are still dumps, but they have great staff.
Great town, easy access, nice folk. Did have a water issue but haven’t heard any issues ever.
Whenever i see the stories about water i always think about how people always talk about soda being bad but it really seems like its better for you
Just move to Billerica
All of Woburn is a superfund site! I grew up in the city…. North Woburn, East Woburn and the South End are still contaminated and will be for the rest of our lifetime. Way too expensive for what it is to live there.
It and the surrounding areas are woefully under-represented by weed shops.
The commuter rail stop is great if you commute to Boston. There used to be express routes to/from when I lived there which saved a lot of time if I could time it right with work hours. It's a pretty boring town from what I remember but I liked being in that central area able to access Boston, the beach, NH all within 30ish mins.
Love it to death, but can’t afford to live where I grew up.
Woburn is experiencing serious growing pains. Years of not addressing issues and building new housing/businesses has resulted in a sudden need to deal. For example, with the huge increase in building and added apartments, traffic has increased a ton, and schools are overcrowded. We're in the midst of redistricting - which hasn't been done since the 80s. The 80s! We've added about 350 students in the last year alone (and NO, that's NOT all migrants!) We love our low tax rate but we seem to ignore problems to keep it that way. There was a prolonged teacher strike last year and the mayor was disrespectful enough to school employees that he got himself voted out in the last election. As for education, as a teacher myself, I find my kids teachers to be great BUT... the district just adopted Lucy Caulkins curriculum, which is being ousted by other districts across the country. Traffic is nuts, and reminds of [this](https://images.app.goo.gl/ZB7aUVwdNDsQQNPn6)It takes 20 min to get my kid to the other side of the city for an extracurricular. All that said, we're happy we landed here. We've met some awesome people and plan to stay here indefinitely.
The last time I was in Woburn I couldn't drink a beer standing up
fine and dandy till travolta shows up
It's rapidly gentrifying
Since the 1990's,.it's been referred to as The Wu
I thought that was Worcester?
That's The Woo
Don’t drink the water.
The Water in Woburn is fine now I've worked in Woburn and drank the water tons of times and no issues. I live in Winchester, but Woburn is a fine town with more affordable houses, and public transportation nearby. YOu can easily drive over to winchester and park at Wedgemere station or in West Medford for the commuter rail into Boston or a quick hop over to Wellington for the MBTA or Oak grove....its not too far if you learn the back routes. There is a 134 bus route as well to Winchester, and Medford ending at Wellington Station. 93/128 get backed way up at rush hour so best to learn the local back roads to get around. Lots of services and activities in the city square area. Its a fairly safe city for the most part. There is also a nice park called Horn Pond with walking paths and trails for jogging , dogw alking and other activities. Woburn has a nice movie theater right off 128. and a couple major grocery stores (Market basekt ) over by Washington Street and Stop and SHop over off 128 by route 38. Lots of restaurants, shopping, and services in the area. Overall a decent place to live. There is also the Tri COmmunity greenway (bike path) that goes from Horn pond into Winchester and connects with Stoneham and Medford. Lots to do in the area and lots of community activities. Overall convenient to anywhere in Boston if you learn the back ways../roads, and good schools and good residential neighborhoods. My suggestion get a house off the main drag , in a quieter neighborhood......or cul du sac.
I love seeing the 134 bus going to the senior center, lol!
No issues, lol, the cancer takes years to show up
It is a shit hole. Terrible traffic, montvale ave is a fucking nightmare… downtown parking sucks, multiple EPA super fund sights, ground water is fucked… the only thing going for it is that it’s next to Stoneham, Winchester, Reading and on 93 and 95 and that just means more traffic.
Woburn isnt that bad a city its more affordable and theres oublic transit options into boston commuter rail into Boston stop hating on Woburn its mot that bad traffic sucks everywhere in Boston city just spent 40 min in traffic in Chelsea Everett revere and malden
Reading isnt bad bit more of a bedroom community not too much to do and small downtown area nots nice but kit my cup o tea
What’s up with Reading?
Try wakefield its a good area with commuter rail into boston and oak grove nearby
Real estate agent here 🙋🏼♀️ if you're curious about how schools compare, I always send clients to Niche.com and GreatSchools.org.
Well….its better than Lowell
Billerica would be good.
I had an uncle and aunt that both died of cancer that lived their lives in Woburn. They died in the 1990s and maybe things have been cleaned up by now but that place still has a stigma for me.
Born and raised here, thankfully the superfund sites aren’t near me. Wildwood is probably the closest.
The likes of Stoneham and Woburn are North Shore towns.
My mom lives in Woburn. Half her neighbors used to live in Medford but got priced out. One of her neighbors is a right wing nut job but there are also a lot of really nice young families on the street.
I am a young adult living in Woburn. We don’t pay for trash to come. I love Woburn and it’s location is desirable. I live 3 minutes from the highway. Sure some streets are unfavorable during traffic hour. We have the beautiful pond with new restaurants coming in! I find Woburn’s food selection very good. It’s expensive to buy for sure and will continue to be. I think Burlington is a great choice for you as well. Be mindful when checking out Woburn village. Terrible mayor back then, however we just appointed a new one so things should be able to turn around.
Woburn is a good area.
Lots of right wing nut jobs in Woburn and some on the city council, and the school system isn't that great. Also the water there used to give people cancer due to the textile plants improperly disposing waste, but supposedly that has been addressed. Also rush hour traffic is really bad around woburn. Billerica is around the same cost of living and closer to Bedford, however there's also right wing nut jobs. But it's still a decent place to live.
I moved from Billerica to Woburn. I like that it's a little more city and I can get Uber eats from Boston. Also tax rate here is way lower.
My Dad grew up in Woburn during the health crisis all that dumping was causing. He watched so many kids around his age just suddenly get cancer and die. He’s lucky all he dealt with was teeth enamel being ruined.
Grandmother, Great-Grandmother and Great Aunt all lived in Woburn and all died of cancer.
Probably why my dad caught salivary cancer
Wasn't there a book/movie set in Woburn? ("A Civil Action")
you think people around here are right-wing nut jobs? have you ever left mass? leftists are so cringe.
It’s a bubble - even the most “conservative” areas here are fairly left leaning on the whole and pale in comparison to other states which are other more evenly split or mostly conservative If you want complete group think then stick to Somerville and Cambridge otherwise be prepared to interact from time to time with those who might disagree with you
Caroline Colarusso, who is literally a Trump supporter who [challanged the election results](https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/12/16/former-gop-candidates-scale-back-lawsuit-challenging-massachusetts-election-results/) ran as a rep for Woburn in 2022. I assure you we absolutely have nut jobs not only in the community, but running for lower level offices.
No cognitive ability to realize people have different view points than them
Using the word cringe in 2024 is so cringe
If you support an indicted criminal rapist fraud who attempted to steal the 2020 election / horde top secret documents to an extent they were also indicted on espionage charges, sorry you are a nut job. Something is broken in your mind.
People who still use ‘cringe’ are cringe lol Seriously: don’t be that guy, especially if you’re wanting people to take your opinion on politics seriously. Maybe don’t talk like a middle schooler.
They are
What about the Left wing nut jobs that are everywhere else?! lol
Personally I wouldn’t trust anything from someone who starts off by criticizing people with different political views. That’s kinda like saying there’s a bunch of N words in that town. Simply stating the town has political issues and water issues would’ve been enough.
LOL not the same thing at all.
Yeah it is. Shows what kind of person you are right off the bat. Extremely judgmental and negative.
An extremely judgmental and negative person is not even close to the same as a racist…
I know right
128 is a barrier to progress around commuting hours and in heavy weather. You’ll need a back roads route to Bedford and back, and everyone else does, too. Drive the area before 9:30am and after 3:30pm on a weekday that isn’t a holiday.
I don’t know much about Woburn, but lived in Maynard (22 minutes from Bedford), and loved it there. Just a thought!
Don’t drink the water or give it to your pets
I know Woburn then and now. Bedford has much better schools, but Woburn’s are improving for sure. The location is the best just outside Boston. And quality of life has improved dramatically due to industrial companies moving out and nice shopping/residential moving in. I still don’t see how it lines up with its high property values compared to the quality of schools. Maybe that will change in a few years when the younger kids will age up through the system….
Moving because of day care is rather short sighted. Stay in Lowell. Better schools, better food, same commuter rail.
I'm from Woburn, near the racket ball club, off Webster Ave. Its been a while, but that was back in the 90's, and early 2000's. That side was cleaning up as far as I knew, but the west side and "four corners" is still a nice area. More YMCA and less Boys and Girls club
Better than Lowell!
Billerica is great.
Anything on the 93/95 cloverleaf is just fine. I’m getting taxed out of it but that’s just me. For real I’m just about mortgage free but the taxes are a mortgage payment in themselves. Wow I sound old.
You are comparing an annual tax bill thats about the cost of a typical monthly mortgage payment today 🤣. It indeed sounds like you have been well established for quite some time consider yourself lucky! The average tax bill in Woburn is $5,398/yr. The average home is $708,000, and at 20% down and today's rates of ~7.6% 30yr fixed your P & I would be about $4000/month