Past Hometown Projects @ City Lab

”Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has”.

Margaret Mead, The Utne Reader, 1992

The "Hometown Projects" began in 2003. City Lab provides Urban Technologies to facilitate the collection of urban data and will incubate town Urban Information Systems in its servers before migrating them to final providers, through the development of LOUIS, the Local Online Urban Information System. City Knowledge principles pervade most of the hometown projects so that a cumulative accrual of urban information can emerge over time to make WPI’s contribution to these towns more and more tangible as time passes.

Town of Spencer

The first project in Spencer (2005) consisted of a thorough inventory of the Downtown District and aimed at a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application to promote its revitalization. The next project (2006) focused on the town’s roadways, with the goal of helping the Utilities and Facilities department in their maintenance, while also providing a firm basis for the estimation of the current value of all road infrastructure with respect to the GASB-34 accounting standards. The current project (2007) will be focused on land-use and planning issues.

Town of Paxton

The first project in Paxton (2005) evaluated the pros and cons of the creation of a local Historic District in the village center.

Town of West Boylston

The first project in West Boylston (2005) focused on the assets of the local Water District in the context of the district’s compliance with the GASB-34 accounting requirements. The follow-up project (2006) looked at individual hookups to the water system, as well as at issues of maintenance for pump stations and hydrants.

Town of Boxborough

The first project in Boxborough (2005) focused on the roads and related assets also in the context of the town’s compliance with the GASB-34 accounting requirements.

Town of Shrewsbury

The first project in Shrewsbury (2005-06) focused on the management of the town’s cemetery. The next project (2006) focused on the maintenance and management of the town’s parks and athletic fields.

Town of Boylston

The first project in Boylston is going to focus on the management of the Boylston Water District. The current project (2007) will similarly deal with the Boylston Electric Company.

Town of Grafton

There are two ongoing projects in Grafton.

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