LexingtonNext

A Pathway Forward

Welcome to LexingtonNext

LexingtonNext is Lexington’s Comprehensive Plan Update!

 

What is a comprehensive plan? A comprehensive plan, also known as a master plan, land-use plan, or general plan, is a visionary document that helps guide a community when making land use decisions. A comprehensive plan must be adopted by the Planning Board as guided by Massachusetts General Law (MGL), Chapter 41, Section 81D. 

LexingtonNext.org is regularly updated and will serve as your go-to source for all LexingtonNext documents, announcements and upcoming events. 

LexingtonNext Guiding Principles

LexingtonNext covers the subjects outlined in MGL Chapter 41, Section 81D – however, the Town intends to incorporate the concepts identified as Guiding Principles to meet current trends. Below are the 7 Guiding Principles that will guide LexingtonNext from drafting through the implementation of the Plan

Accessible & Connected Community

  • Offers and encourages a variety of safe, accessible, and sustainable mobility options
  • Plans, designs, and maintains effective transportation networks
  • Supports strong regional multimodal connections
  • Provides open access to information, encourages innovation, enhances communication, and promotes community engagement 

Livable Community

  • Promotes and sustains a safe, clean, and attractive place to live, work, and play
  • Facilitates housing options to accommodate a diverse community
  • Provides safe and well-maintained public infrastructure, and provides adequate and appropriate regulation of public/private development resources
  • Encourages sustainable development supported by reliable and affordable town services
  • Supports and enhances neighborhood livability for all members of the community 

Healthy & Socially Responsible Community

  • Cultivates a wide-range of recreational, cultural, educational, and social opportunities
  • Supports the physical and mental well-being of its community members and actively partners with others to improve the welfare of those in need
  • Fosters inclusion and embraces diversity
  • Enhances multi-generational community enrichment and community engagement 

Vital & Resilient Economy

  • Supports an environment for creativity and innovation
  • Promotes a qualified and diverse workforce that meets employers’ needs and supports broad-based economic diversity
  • Fosters regional and public – private collaboration with institutions that contribute to the Town’s economic sustainability
  • Invests in infrastructure and amenities that attract, sustain, and retain diverse businesses

Harmony with Nature

    • Supports and sustains natural resource and energy conservation 
    • Promotes and regulates an ecologically balanced community 

Good Governance

  • Models stewardship and sustainability of the town’s financial, human, information, and physical assets
  • Supports strategic decision-making with timely, reliable, and accurate data and analysis
  • Enhances and facilitates transparency, accuracy, efficiency, and quality customer service in all business
  • Supports, develops, and enhances relationships between the town and community/regional partners
  • Provides assurance of regulatory and policy compliance

Commitment to Equity

  • Provides support to all community members so they may participate, prosper, and reach their full potential

Lexington, Massachusetts - People and Places

Lexington, a historic community, located approximately 5 miles north of Boston, is known for its

  • historic village centers (East Lexington and Lexington Center),
  • attractive neighborhoods that are comprised of diverse architectural styles (ranging from colonial structures and Victorian mansions, in addition to contemporary architecture),
  • vast amounts of preserved open space and numerous trail systems,
  • reuse of the former Boston-Lexington railroad line, and
  • proximity to Boston and major transportation routes. 

Lexington is a community of firsts:

  • first shots fired on April 19, 1775, of the American Revolutionary War;
  • one of the first communities in the country to have a Planning Board (1918);
  • regulation of land use through zoning since 1924;
  • Massachusetts Ave (East Lexington) being the first hard surface road built by the Commonwealth, etc.  

Town Stats

SETTLED
Population
Land area (sqmi)
HOUSEHOLDS
  • Over 30 biotech and pharmaceutical companies create over 3,300 jobs in Lexington, which has become a hub for many of the East Coast area’s best innovators.
  • East Lexington comprises a diverse mix of over 50 businesses, including restaurants, retail, farming, and other commercial enterprises.
  • The average asking price per square foot is roughly $36 in this region versus $86 per square foot in Boston and Cambridge.
  • Solar energy systems installed on Lexington’s residential, commercial, and municipal properties produce about 18.6 million kWh per year or about 4% of all the electricity used in Lexington. This is enough to power 2,000 average Lexington homes.
  • Since 2003, approx. $33,100,000 in Lexington Community Preservation Act funds have been appropriated for historic preservation.
  • As of 2018, approximately 75.1% of Lexington’s housing units are single-family, detached homes.
  • Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI) units in Lexington are at a high of 1,339 units counted in 2016, which decreased to 1,334 in 2020. From 1997 to 2016, the number of affordable units increased by 113 %
  • Approx. 88.8 % of Lexington residents work outside the community, and 11.2% of Lexington residents work within the community.

Quick Facts - Did you know a comprehensive plan ...

  • Guides decision maker's future work plans
  • Guides the future physical development of a community
  • Helps communities receive funding opportunities
  • Provides a framework to empower local officials in decision-making efforts
  • Identifies strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and constraints of a community
  • Creates a profile of a community relative to population, housing, economic base, community facilities, etc.
  • Establishes recommendations for local and regional planning efforts