STURBRIDGE - It might not come as a surprise, but people move here for that small town charm.
Now, a recent local study backs that claim, which will help guide members of the Master Plan Steering Committee in their efforts to lay a roadmap for the future.
Want to voice your opinion? It’s not too late. Researchers will accept surveys until June 1. The study, conducted by the University of New Hampshire, was mailed to every household in town to survey 3,149 people. One member of each household was randomly selected to complete the survey.
Committee members encouraged residents to fill out the forms and mail them in. The committee expressed an interest in hearing from a broad cross-section of the community.
After June 1 the results will be tallied and available for viewing on the town’s website. A university representative assured results would be kept confidential and could not be released to town officials or others. Committee members also noted those who still held reservations could simply tear off their name and address from the return envelope or black out that information with a magic marker.
Tracy Fowler, a university research associate, presented the reports preliminary findings to committee members last week. She said about 900 residents responded so far and she is still receiving 15-20 responses a day.
Early results presented resident opinions on a range of issues.
“Some of the conclusions that I would make from this survey…Sturbridge residents seem to want more of the same,” Fowler said. “What I mean by that is they moved here for a small town, rural character and the things they would like in development, and open space and transportation all reflect that.”
Overall, she said the study showed a high rate of satisfaction with public safety services; a desire to use open space for passive use; residents favored the addition of theaters, health care services, small retail and museums, while opposing large shopping centers, offices and theme parks.
Those sentiments mirrored residents’ feelings on the possible development of land on Route 15, Fowler said.
Also favored, constructing sidewalks and installing dedicated bicycle routes.
Other findings saw residents rate traffic conditions at various town intersections, with the intersection of Route 20 and New Boston Road being ranked the most unsafe and congested, followed by Route 131 and Fiske Hill Road and Route 20 and Fiske Hill Road.

‘A sense of arrival’

First time visitors to town may not know what to expect before they arrive. Being greeted by concrete and a line up of fast food restaurants probably wasn’t an ideal expectation though.
In the second half of the meeting planner Bob Ballou offered advice on what committee members should consider to spruce up the town’s eastern “gateway” at the intersection of Routes 20 and 131. He spoke about the need to “create a sense of arrival” for tourists. His research will inform some of the Master Plan’s chapter on land use.
Currently, the area is mostly traffic islands and concrete. “We need to give it a village feel,” he said.
To achieve that he discussed bringing the area down to “pedestrian scale” through plantings, period lighting and other visual cues. Committeeman Bruce Smith raised the issue that because the road is a state highway, it might be hard to change the look of the area.
“It’s not without precedence,” Ballou said, noting Massachusetts’ highway officials have been more open to working with cities and towns in recent years. However, any changes would require much planning. The possibility of rejection is also there, Ballou said.
“It’s very difficult to take what is a major transportation corridor and make it walkable,” he said.