Wellesley, Massachusetts

Wellesley /ËˆwÉ›lzliË/ is an affluent town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of Greater Boston. The population was 27,982 at the time of the 2010 census. It has one of the highest median household and family incomes in Massachusetts. It is best known as the home of Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of Massachusetts Bay Community College. Olin College, an engineering school, has a campus that spans from Needham, Massachusetts into Wellesley and is adjacent to Wellesley's Babson College.

History

Wellesley was settled in the 1630s as part of Dedham, Massachusetts. It was subsequently a part of Needham, Massachusetts called West Needham, Massachusetts. On October 23, 1880, West Needham residents voted to secede from Needham, and the town of Wellesley was later christened by the Massachusetts legislature on April 6, 1881. The town was named after the estate of local benefactor Horatio Hollis Hunnewell.

Wellesley's population grew by over 80 percent during the 1920s.

Historic district

The town designated Cottage Street and its nearby alleys as the historic district in its zoning plan. Most houses in this district were built around the 1860s and qualify as protected buildings certified by the town's historic commission.

Geography

Wellesley is located in eastern Massachusetts. It is bordered on the east by Newton, on the north by Weston, on the south by Needham and Dover and on the west by Natick. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 10.49 square miles (27.2Â km²), of which, 10.18 square miles (26.4Â km²) is land and 0.32 square miles (0.83Â km²) is water.

Neighborhoods

Recent construction

The town's historic 19th century inn was demolished to make way for condominiums and mixed-use development in 2006. The Wellesley Country Club clubhouse, which is the building where the town was founded, was demolished in 2008, and a new clubhouse was built. The town's pre-World War II high school building was torn down & replaced, with a brand new high school finished in 2012. and the entire 1960s-style Linden Street strip-mall has been replaced by "Linden Square" â€" a shopping district that includes a flagship Roche Bros. supermarket, restaurants, cafes, clothing stores, along with a mixture of national chains and local shops.

Demographics

The Census Bureau has also defined the town as a census-designated place with an area exactly equivalent to the town.

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,613 people, 8,594 households, and 6,540 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,614.1 people per square mile (1,009.4/kmÂ²). There were 8,861 housing units at an average density of 870.4 per square mile (336.1/kmÂ²). According to a 2007 Census Bureau estimate, the racial makeup of the town was 84.6% White, 10.0% Asian, 2.2% Black, 0.01% Native American, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.4% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.4% of the population.

There were 8,594 households out of which 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.2% were married couples living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.9% were non-families. 20.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 13.9% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 77.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 71.1 males.

The median income for a household was $159,167, and the median income for a family was $186,518. The per capita income in the town was $72,046. About 2.4% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.

According to Boston Magazine's yearly "Best Places To Live", Wellesley ranks first in the United States in percentage of adults who hold at least one college degree. Over 66% of the households have at least one individual holding an advanced degree beyond a Bachelor's Degree. In 2009, Wellesley ranked #2 in "America's Most Educated Small Towns" according to Forbes.com.

Government

The town government has been run by town meeting since the town's founding.

Since Proposition 2Â½ limited property tax increases to 2.5% per year in 1980, the town has had to ask residents for a number of overrides to maintain funding for certain programs. Although the main 2005 override passed, a simultaneous supplemental override to preserve certain specific programs and services failed by 17 votes. The 2006 override passed with a large majority. Wellesley also receives funding from the state government. Local roads have been repaved several times in the 1990s and 2000s.

Wellesley opened its new Free Library building in 2003, which is part of the Minuteman Library Network. Due to the structure of budget override votes and perhaps the size of the new main branch of the library, the two branch librariesâ€"one in Wellesley Hills, which was purpose-built to be a branch library in the 1920s, another in Wellesley Fellsâ€"closed in the summer of 2006. The branch libraries reopened in September 2008.

Services

Wellesley residents receive all major services from their local town government, with the exception of residential trash pick-up.

Municipal light plant

Wellesley is serviced by the Wellesley Municipal Light Plant (WMLLP). It is one of only a handful of municipal light plants in the state of the place; Massachusetts.

Recycling and disposal

Residents of Wellesley cart their own refuse to Wellesley's Recycling and Disposal Facility (RDF), a town-operated multi-use waste recycling site, where items are sorted by type, recyclability and potential reuse. Old books and magazines are available for town residents to take, which have their own shelving section.

The RDF also has a "Take it or Leave it" area where residents leave items they no longer want but that are in good repair. In 2004, the Town had to discontinue the "Take it or Leave it" because of funding cutbacks. However, within six months town residents reinstated it by means of a volunteer system. The section reopened with volunteers on duty at all times to organize the goods and ensure that only usable items were left there.

Education

The town is known for possessing the second greatest concentration of residents with advanced degrees in the country. The public education services of the town are very well regarded, especially Wellesley High School; in 2007 it was ranked 70th best public high school in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, earning a Gold Medal. The following year, the high school's accreditation was placed on warning status by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges Commission on Public Secondary Schools.

Wellesley's public school system is nationally well regarded. In 2008, Wellesley High School was ranked 70th best public high school in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report, and on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test the district regularly scores higher than the state average. The school system also contains a middle school and seven elementary schools (Bates, Upham, Schofield, Fiske, Hardy, Hunnewell, and Sprague.) The current members of the Wellesley Public Schools committee are KC Kato, Wendy Paul, Patti Quigley, Diane Campbell, and Tere Ramos.

The town contains a private elementary school, Tenacre Country Day School, and a preparatory school for girls, Dana Hall School.

Wellesley also contains the main campus of 3 colleges, Wellesley College (attended by Hillary Clinton), a women's liberal arts college, Massachusetts Bay Community College, a two-year public college, and Babson College, a business college. According to Forbes.com, Wellesley College is the 6th best college in the country. According to U.S. News & World Report, Babson College is the number one college in the country for entrepreneurship, receiving this distinction for the past fourteen years. In addition, The Financial Times ranked Babson College as the 5th best U.S. college for providing custom executive education programs. Part of main campus of Olin College, a private engineering school, is located in Wellesley, although its main entrance is located in Needham.

Transportation

Wellesley has had rail service to Boston since 1833. These days rail service is provided through Wellesley's participation in the MBTA, which offers a total of 17 weekday Commuter Rail trains inbound towards Boston & outbound towards Framingham & Worcester. Wellesley's stations are (east to west) Wellesley Farms, Wellesley Hills, and Wellesley Square. The Wellesley Farms station is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. MWRTA bus service also runs along Walnut Street, Cedar Street, and Route 9.

The highways Interstate 95 in Massachusetts/Massachusetts Route 128, Massachusetts Route 9, Massachusetts route 16 and Massachusetts route 135 run through Wellesley.

For elders and people with disabilities there is a specific MBTA-based service, The Ride, which offers free or low-cost door-to-door service by appointment.

From nearby Riverside MBTA Station in Newton, commuter express buses run to downtown Boston, Newton Corner and Central Square, Waltham. This is also a station for Greyhound Lines and Peter Pan Bus Lines with frequent service to Boston, New York City, and other destinations.

Wellesley's Council on Aging contracts out a daily low-cost minibus service offering elderly access to several local medical facilities and the Woodland MBTA station. Further afield is the Springwell Senior Medical Escort Program / Busy Bee Transportation Service for rides to medical & non-medical services in the area. There is also a monthly minibus to the Natick Mall.

For Amtrak service the nearest stations are west in Framingham, east in Boston at Back Bay and South Station, and south in Route 128 Station in Westwood.

Those affiliated with Wellesley College can take advantage of their bus services to Cambridge & Needham. Wellesley College & Babson College also both offer discounted Zipcar service.

The nearest international airport is Boston Logan Airport at 18 miles from Wellesley.

Economy

Wellesley is home to the headquarters of many local, national and global businesses including, but not limited to, BCC Research, Benchmark Senior Living, Blank Label Apparel, Eagle Investment Systems, EPG Incorporated, GrandBanks Capital, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Livingston and Haynes PC, Roche Bros., and Sun Life Financial U.S.

Top employers

According to Wellesley's 2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Culture

Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend

Each year the weekend before Memorial Day, The Town of Wellesley sponsors the annual Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend which includes the annual Veterans' Parade and Fireworks. The fireworks display is one of the most elaborate and spectacular shows that is done by local or town government in the United States. It is put on by Atlas Fireworks of Jaffrey, New Hampshire who also put on the Jaffrey Festival of Fireworks. On Sunday, May 18, 2008, The Beach Boys performed in a concert on the Wellesley High School athletic fields in front of an estimated 10,000 town residents and fans. The funds for the performance, an estimated 250 thousand dollars, were made as a gift by an anonymous donor and lifelong fan of the band.

The Wellesley Symphony Orchestra

The Wellesley Symphony Orchestra presents classical, pops, and family concerts at Mass Bay Community College at its Wellesley Campus.

Religious institutions

The town of Wellesley is home to several religious institutions. There is one temple, Temple Beth Elohim, and several churches: Wellesley Congregational Church, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, St. Paul's Catholic Church, Christ Church United Methodist, Wellesley Hills Congregational Church (also known as The Hills Church), First Church of Christ-Scientist, St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, The Metrowest Baptist Church, Elmwood Chapel, and Unitarian Universalist Society of Wellesley Hills.

Horticulture

The Wellesley College campus includes greenhouses and the H. H. Hunnewell Arboretum. This is not to be confused with the neighboring private H. H. Hunnewell estate. The Elm Bank Horticulture Center is home to the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. Although the entrance is in Wellesley, access is over a small private bridge over the Charles River, so Elm Bank is therefore in the neighboring town of Dover.

Notable people

Danny Ainge, executive director of basketball operations and general manager of the Boston Celtics
Emily Greene Balch, professor, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, 1946
Roger Nash Baldwin, co-founder of American Civil Liberties Union
Katharine Lee Bates, author of America the Beautiful
Gamaliel Bradford, poet, biographer
Dee Brown, former basketball player for the Boston Celtics
R. Nicholas Burns, former US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, U.S. Ambassador to NATO (2001â€"2005) and to Greece (1997â€"2001) and State Department Spokesman (1995â€"1997)
Karl E. Case, developer of the Case-Shiller index
Dan Chiasson, poet and New Yorker critic
Greg Comella, former professional football player with the NY Giants, Titans, Texans and Buccaneers]]
Edward Crowley, former President of Polar Beverages, and Jill Fraser Crowley, President of Virgil's Root Beer and CEO of e-commerce fashion company Jill Milan.
Jane Curtin, comedian, original cast member of Saturday Night Live
Richard Darman, economist, former head of the Office of Management and Budget
Dennis Eckersley, former pitcher for the Oakland A's
Steven Ellis, former pitcher for the Chicago Cubs
Carl Everett, former center fielder for the Boston Red Sox
Nicole Freedman (born 1972), Olympic cyclist
Nate Freiman (born 1986), first baseman for the Oakland Athletics
Wendell Arthur Garrity Jr., U.S. District Court judge
Curt Gowdy, sports commentator
Michael S. Greco, President of American, Massachusetts & New England Bar Associations
Ariulf "Eric" Hampe, German scientist who engineered first rocket to the moon.
Ed Harding, news anchor for WCVB Channel 5
H. H. Hunnewell (1810-1902), railroad financier and horticulturist
Andrea Jung, CEO of Avon Products
Phil Laak, professional poker player, winner of 2004 World Poker Tour
Xihong Lin, Harvard Medical Department Professor
Mindy Kaling, Comedienne, Actress
Gregory Mankiw, Harvard Economics Professor
Daisuke Matsuzaka, pitcher for the Boston Red Sox
Fred McLafferty, professor, analytical chemist, author, inventor, leading developer of mass spectrometry
Ossian Everett Mills, founder of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia fraternity
Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America
Bill Mueller, former third baseman for the Boston Red Sox
Joseph E. Murray, surgeon, winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine, 1990
Vladimir Nabokov, Russian-American author
Joe Nash, retired NFL player for the Seattle Seahawks
David George Ouellet, Medal of Honor recipient (Posthumously)
Sylvia Plath, poet and author, The Bell Jar
Richard Preston and Douglas Preston, best-selling authors
Aneesh Raman, former presidential speechwriter at the White House and CNN Middle East Correspondent
James St. Clair, defense lawyer for Richard Nixon during Watergate
Jack Sanford, former MLB pitcher, 1957 MLB Rookie of the Year Award recipient
Billy Squier, rock musician
Biz Stone, Twitter co-founder, entrepreneur graduated from Wellesley High School spoke at Wellesley's Babson College commencement in 2011
Steven Tyler, rock musician, lived in Wellesley during the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Rasheed Wallace, retired professional basketball player
Greg Yaitanes, actor, film director, writer
Eddie Yost, baseball player and coach.
Arthur Batcheller, U.S Radio Inspecter

Wellesley, Massachusetts

Friday, June 26, 2015