What is the "Arc of Innovation"?
The "Arc of Innovation" is the thirty-two communities in the 495/MetroWest region, stretching along I-495 from Route 2 in the north to Route 1 in the south, that have a collective payroll of $15.6 Billion, second only to Boston's. As the home to most of Massachusetts' largest and fastest growing companies, the region is at the forefront of the state's innovation economy. Thus, with the curve of I-495 serving as a regional spine, it seems only fitting to refer to the region as "Arc of Innovation".
Challenges in the Arc of Innovation Region
The region's growth and success have come quickly; from 1990 to 2000 the I-495 corridor experienced the greatest change in population growth in Greater Boston, and a 69% gain in employment. This rapid commercial, industrial, and residential development has caused strain on the region's existing infrastructure integral to sustainable development and the quality of life. These constraints, including transportation, water resources, housing and workforce development issues, will dictate the future of the 'Arc of Innovation region, and have an immeasurable impact on the continued economic success of the region, Greater Boston, and the entire Commonwealth.
Despite the Arc of Innovation's importance to the Commonwealth's economy and the need to address the common constraints facing these municipalities, government agencies' jurisdictional boundaries fracture the region into a dizzying array of overlapping fiefdoms without a coherent focus. Directly abutting municipalities are in different counties, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, Regional Planning Agencies, Regional Transit Authorities, Congressional Districts, Watersheds, and regional offices for state agencies such as the Massachusetts Highway Department and Regional Employment Boards, as well as a myriad of other government districts designations.
Founding the 495/MetroWest Corridor Partnership
These collective constraints limiting the region's future, along with the fractured governmental jurisdictions, led regional employers, municipal officials, legislators, chambers of commerce, educators, and environmentalists to conclude that a collective response was necessary by founding the 495/MetroWest Corridor Partnership. As a non-profit regional advocacy organization, it is charged with addressing regional needs through public/private collaboration, by enhancing the economic vitality and quality of life while sustaining natural resources in the 'Arc of Innovation' region. While a new entity uniquely utilizing the strengths of both the public and private sectors, the Partnership was built on the efforts of the I-495 Technology corridor Initiative, the economic development program MetroWest Momentum, and the affiliated chambers of Commerce of Corridor Nine, Marlborough Regional, MetroWest, and United Area (recently joined by the Milford Area Chamber of Commerce).
The collaborative spirit that led to the establishment of the Partnership still underpins the organization's activities, with Co-Chairs representing the public and private sectors, and a Board of Directors split between the public and private sectors, consisting of regional employers, select board members, legislators, municipal officials, chambers of commerce, educators, real estate professionals, planning agencies, and environmentalists. This operating structure guides the Partnership's committee structure as well, with each program committee chaired by public sector and private sector Co-Chairs. By doing so, Partnership initiatives fully utilize the region's strengths, emphasize the collective importance of addressing these constraints, and demonstrate the importance of regional collaboration, while maximizing the effectiveness of advocacy.
