Westborough consultants ask residents to define town character for new wayfinding signs

Consultants from Beta Group and the town’s economic development office held a public input meeting where residents urged that Westborough’s new wayfinding signage and brand emphasize the town’s historic downtown, trail network and open space.

"We look at this as a community driven process to develop a master plan on way finding signage," Randy Collins, a landscape architect with Beta Group, said as he outlined a two-phase project that will produce a master plan followed by construction documents. The project, Collins said, will include an inventory of existing signage, design options and cost estimates to allow a phased, affordable rollout.

The meeting opened with a brief administrative update: the project was selected through an open RFQ and funded through the 2022 Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Fund, with funding available through June 30, 2026, according to the meeting introduction.

Collins described wayfinding signage as both a navigation system and an opportunity for branding. He said the team will recommend a hierarchy of signs (gateway, directional and destination), test readability and accessibility (including font, spacing and color contrast), and factor maintenance and phased costs into recommendations. "We want to make sure the signage system is not something that is burdening the community," Collins said.

At the public-comment portion, residents emphasized history and outdoor recreation. Chris Allen, who said he wrote the town’s history, recommended highlighting Westborough’s founding and historic architecture: "I believe that emphasizing the fact that we are a town that started in 1717 and we're very proud of our heritage," he said. Residents named Mill Pond, Lake Chauncey and the historical society among destinations to consider.

Don Berne, who said he created the local trail system, urged that the wayfinding plan incorporate the town’s "Charm Bracelet" loop and regional trail connections. Berne offered GIS data to help locate trails and asked that designs conform to state shared-use-path guidelines to improve grant eligibility. He said the Charm Bracelet loop "goes completely around the town in 28 and a half roughly 28 and a half miles." Berne also told the group the town has "over 15% protected" open space.

Other residents urged branding that favors Westborough’s open spaces over the Route 9 commercial corridor. "There really are two Westboroughs," Pete Allen said, distinguishing the Route 9 corridor from quieter residential and open-space areas and urging a brand that reflects trails and history rather than strip-retail aesthetics.

Speakers also discussed downtown aesthetics and retail. A downtown representative said the Design Review Board prefers a consistent, upscale palette—black, silver and gold—over white backgrounds and overly busy signage. Residents named enduring local destinations such as Yeoman’s ice cream stand and small restaurants and noted the town’s growing diversity of businesses as factors to weigh in designing signs and brand elements.

Beta Group said it will use the input gathered and online research to produce a set of branding and signage options to be shared at future public meetings. The consultants asked attendees to expect two more public input sessions: one to review branding options and another to review the final master plan and cost estimates.

No votes or formal decisions were taken at the meeting; the consultants will return with design options and cost estimates for community review.