The Worcester Now | Next Citywide Plan explored topics such as land use, housing, transportation and mobility, economic opportunity, natural and cultural resources, open space and recreation, and services and facilities.

Over the last decade, the City of Worcester has conducted many topic-specific plans such as the Green Worcester Plan (2021), the Becoming Worcester Cultural Plan (2019), the Worcester Public Schools Strategic Plan (2018), and the Greater Worcester Community Health Improvement Plan (2016), among others. 

The Now | Next plan expanded upon and aligned with these previous planning efforts, weaving them together with new analysis and community input to create an integrated framework plan that sets the city up to conduct further studies that go into more detail on specific topics or focus on smaller areas. 

These topic-specific working groups each met two to three times throughout the planning process to advise on aspects of the plan that related to their area of expertise. The work of each working group naturally informed other topics as well (for example, discussions from the Transportation & Mobility group may additionally relate to land use, economic development, public health or other topics). All working groups approached their respective topics with a lens of equity and resilience. 

Working group members were topic area experts able to advise and support the consultant team on more technical aspects of the plan analysis and recommendation development. More specifically the planning team counted on working group members to:

• Advise on key issues that the plan should address
• Assist with coordination and alignment with existing policies as well as ongoing or future projects and initiatives
• Provide constructive feedback on draft recommendations

Working Group meetings were held as videoconferences on Zoom and were open to the public to attend and comment during the designated public comment period. In the spirit of transparency, the meetings were recorded and posted along with presentation slides on the Now | Next website after each Working Group meeting here.

The Advisory Committee served as a sounding board for the planning team to test and gain feedback on the comprehensive plan content, and expand public outreach throughout the Worcester Now | Next planning process. This selected group of advisors were a key resource for the planning team, but did not have a role in voting on outcomes.

Advisory Committee meetings were not be open to the public and were not recorded for public viewing. In the spirit of transparency, the presentation slides and summary notes were uploaded to the Now | Next website after each Advisory Committee meeting here. 

The City selected Utile, an urban planning and design firm based in Boston with a presence in Providence, to lead development of Worcester Now | Next. Utile’s team additionally included HR&A & Advisors for economic development, Nelson\Nygaard for transportation planning, Brown, Richardson + Rowe for open space and recreation strategy, and Rivera Consulting for equity and engagement strategy. Guillermo Creamer, Jr also served as the local Community Organizer from April of 2022 through March of 2023.

Worcester Now | Next was led by the City’s Planning & Regulatory Services Division, and the Worcester Planning Board reviewed progress and provided guidance at major milestones.

Collectively, the City, consultant team, and community members provided a wealth of experience, technical expertise, and local knowledge to guide development of the Worcester Now | Next plan. You can get in touch with the Planning Team via email at planning@worcester-ma.gov.