The Rich Are Coming, The Rich Are Coming

A developer is planning new project for the city that would include $500,000 homes. This has us more excited than most development news in the last six months.

Why? Someone thinks people with money will move to Fitchburg. Perhaps things are slowly swinging in Fitchburg's direction.

It probably isn't a secret that most people in the Boston don't know much about Fitchburg, and what they do know isn't very good. It's considered another worn out mill town somewhere out near Worcester, and is just insignificant enough that is get less attention than Brockton, New Bedford and other struggling areas.

But, as the Boston home market continues to be crazy ($450,000 for a three-bedroom ranch isn't that much better than $500,000 is it?), people are still looking for options. Fitchburg is becoming a palatable option.

There may have been a time when Fitchburg was wiped off a developer's radar screen by a simple decision that no one would want to live here. But that's changing. Route 2 and the commuter rail are considered assets, and the region's growth in general makes it more appealing.

We can't afford a $502,000 home, and wouldn't even know what to do with five bedrooms and 3,300 square feet. But other people can, and if those people want to move Fitchburg, it's a fairly pricey sign that the city is moving in the right direction.