Sure, and I was about to write a post about how the immediate, sudden large costs you cite aren't totally real ("but you don't need to instantly build a new school, my 4th grade was in a temporary addition because our school was too small...").

But really, the issue here is mentality. If you wish to always point at reasons you can't build and bring in more residents (schools, roads, police, fire), then what you're saying is <<you want NO GROWTH>>.

Nothing you cite would be different if growth were lower density. Ok, maybe you have super low density growth so everyone can be on septic. But then you have more roads, you still need police and fire, you will still need schools, and now you need more buses.

Or maybe you want growth to be *slower*. But that doesn't really change your argument either. Still would need more X and Y and Z which would cost more $$.

So what you're saying is you can't imagine a world in which your area could grow, while effectively managing that growth. You want ZERO GROWTH despite all the demand.

The flip side to all of this would be: Envision a future of growth. Use that demand and channel it into effective growth in your community. Figure out where you want that growth and what you'd like it to look like. Be creative!

Advertise! "Small Town, MA: Come enjoy the good life". Or "Small Town, MA: A natural retirement community". Attract who you want to attract. "Shuttle bus to the commuter train!"

Go back to the state. "We'll zone for 2x the housing units you want, but we need help with a new school, could you help us with grants/funds?"

I just can't take the zero sum mindset anymore. I applaud what CA is doing in this space, and if the communities won't get on board, then communities in MA will probably lose their ability to control zoning as well (see builders remedy).

Yeah … go after the two family owner-occupant. Nail that fat cat to the wall.

lol

I lived in Durham for a spell and you're right, the traffic there is crazy. At least here we don't have terrible ideas like left lane merges into the fast lane of highways.

> the subreddit rallied, rebounded and is hopefully now in a better place.

PEACE ONLY UNDER LIBERTY!

> It does not seem like Reddit itself has a functional mechanism for making sure that their generic subreddits like r/massachusetts have sensible leadership.

Does anything?

Fair enough. I'll upvote for what looks to be an unpopular opinion. But you're just indicating what the vibe of various areas are and is an accurate take. Just goes to show that even though a small state, we're still varied enough to have our regional preferences.

I do like the beaches down on the South Shore / Buzzards Bay for sure.

I was hoping to find a reference to Shoppers World in this thread! That was a place that was actually enjoyable to shop in. And they had the live reindeer in the middle at Christmas time.

The major problem—one of the major problems, for there are several—one of the many major problems with governing people is that of whom you get to do it; or rather of who manages to get people to let them do it to them. To summarize: it is a well-known fact that those people who must want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it. To summarize the summary: anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.

Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #2)

Franklin and Medway area very nice....but OP won't find anything at all at the $250K mark

Every day out there somewhere there is a selfish person being told by a therapist that it's okay for them to be a bit more selfish. It's not a matter of mental health as much as just outright lack of personal reflection, values, or any other humbling experience. Everyone by default would act the way he did unless they've had some experience in their life teaching them otherwise. It's entitlement.

Very true. Thought if I were out that way, I'd venture a couple towns over to Wilbraham, which has a bit less touristy vibe. Monson is nice to drive through from a nature standpoint, and Peaked Mtn is a nice hike.

I hate the crowds so we go a bit early and usually dont have a problem.

They did this to the shoppers world mall in Framingham years ago. They took that nice open air mall and just ruined it.

Zillow only considers the basics, you need to adjust the prices yourself for things like the house being burned the fuck down. The algorithm is counting things like bedrooms and bathrooms, with no idea that they have all been reduced to char.

That is, if you can park

Go back in time about twenty years and peep the old fall river playground that shit was so cool

Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster... for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.

Yeah western MA is a bit too far for our needs. Nice area though my dad's family live in Springfield and Hamptons.

How do you do this? Looking for advice

>Have you been to Legacy Place in Dedham? It's crazy busy year round

Yeah that's why I try to avoid going, traffic-wise that area is a mess most of the time.

I'm out of the loop. Was this because of the recent mod shit

It would be an FCC violation to overwhelm it with EM radiation. He's overwhelming it with the protocol itself.

Probably still illegal if he's in the US, but not regulated by the FCC.

Still tempted to do this to my asshole neighbors.

People avoid malls because they were all built an hour drive from the houses and then traffic has only been getting worse and worse. The point of places like assembly is that they're meant to weave into the urban fabric (bit of a cliche phrase at this point I know) and replicate what makes more natural places possible while turning it up to eleven even to the point it's almost like a charicature of it's own idea. But also keep mind assembly is still an unfinished project

Saw them shoveling a dump truck full of snow for this in the morning. It created quite the traffic back up in Cambridge street.