Pvolve first named Wellesley as a likely home for a Massachusetts studio in a fall 2024 press release. Nearly two years later, its space at 251 Washington Street is still aiming for a winter opening. On the same stretch of Washington Street, a library that has been open since 1928 closed for four months and reopened on October 6. Three days later, a restaurant that has stood across from Clock Tower Park since the 1930s held its grand reopening.
Wellesley Hills got its fall refresh from its oldest buildings, which restored their rooms instead of replacing them. Both reopenings came from people who kept what was already there and fixed it up. One of those projects also extends how late the corner can stay open.
A library that has been rescued twice
The Wellesley Hills Branch Library at 210 Washington Street has served as a library continuously since March 20, 1928. It's a Georgian Revival building listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it is now within two years of its 100th anniversary.
The building has needed rescuing before. The Swellesley Report's account of the reopening recalls that budget cuts closed the branch in 2005. Private donations reopened it in 2008. Community money was there from the start, too. Isaac Sprague, whose name is on Sprague Elementary School and Sprague Clocktower Park, donated the land. The Wellesley Hills Women's Club furnished the Children's Room, and taxpayers put in $50,000.
Donors paid for this year's refresh as well. Nancy Lee provided seed money and major backing, and a permanent plaque now recognizes her alongside a grandfather clock she gave the branch. Keith Higgins, the Wellesley Free Library Foundation and other private donors also contributed.
The work brought back original details and added new pieces chosen to match them. Interior designer Richard Eustice of Atlantic House, Ltd. had the plaster friezes, painted pink at some point over the decades, returned to their original white. The 1928 reading tables stayed. The new carpet uses Arts and Crafts colors, and under it are the library's original 16-by-16 cork floor tiles from 1928. The new ceiling fixtures were hand-cast in bronze and alabaster by a Milwaukee firm that specializes in period lighting. Eustice told The Swellesley Report why the building mattered to him:
"You just don't see architectural details like this in your normal daily life anymore. Libraries are one of the few places this kind of detail still exists."
The Children's Room has new hardwood floors and a storybook mural across one wall. It was painted by Jason Sawtelle of BlackBeak Studios, who also painted the 2018 murals at the Fells Branch. A large braided rug for story time is still to come, and so are chairs for the round tables in the Reading Room. Library Director Jamie Jurgensen said the goal was "a more welcoming environment for study and reading while preserving the building's history."
The Hills Branch is open Tuesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It's closed Sunday and Monday.
Maugus kept the stools and got rid of the red carpet
Maugus Cafe at 300 Washington Street took the same approach. Its own history dates the restaurant to 1937. In fall 2025, The Swellesley Report reported that Kostas Saranteas, his wife Anna and their son Stratis were taking over as a family business.
Reviewing the summer soft opening, The Swellesley Report wrote that Saranteas had "simply polished up the old joint" instead of starting over. The red carpet is gone. The counter stools and booths are still there, and the back room still seats large groups. New additions include a counter with stools looking out on Washington Street and umbrella-shaded tables outside.
The menu works the same way. The classic breakfast and lunch items are still there, with more Mediterranean dishes added. A Spanakopita Style Omelette is one of six omelettes. Lunch includes a Souvlaki Bowl and a Greek Village Salad alongside burgers and buffalo chicken wraps. Coffee now comes from Atomic Coffee Roasters, made on a new espresso machine.
The owners held off on a full celebration until school was back in session. The grand reopening on Friday, October 9, showed off the redesigned dining room and new furniture.
Maugus could soon stay open until 10 p.m.
The biggest change at Maugus is its hours. Through the soft-opening months, it was open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. The week of the grand reopening, the Select Board approved amendments to its common victualler and all-alcohol licenses. Those allow it to stay open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week.
The approval doesn't mean the doors stay open that late yet. The restaurant says dinner service on select days and some special events after 5 p.m. are planned for the coming months. Once dinner starts, a spot known for breakfast and lunch for close to ninety years would be open five hours later. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, it would be open for two hours after the library across the street closes at 8 p.m.
Pumpkins for the rest of October, then the Halloween Stroll
The third longtime tradition on the block is outdoors. Wellesley Hills Congregational Church at 207 Washington Street is running its Pumpkin Patch for the 23rd year. It's open from October 9 through 31, every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., which leaves nearly three weeks as of today.
The patch's last day is also Halloween. The free Halloween Stroll is on Saturday, October 31, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., starting at Clock Tower Park at 291 Washington Street. The Town lists it as a Wellesley Hills Merchants event run with the Recreation Department. It's for children up to age 8, who trick-or-treat at Hills businesses and play games in the park. The Swellesley Report's Halloween roundup places the start across from Green's Hardware and promises music in the park. It also reminds families to bring their own trick-or-treat bags.
All of these sit on one stretch of Washington Street. Here's that stretch by address, as of mid-October 2026:
| Address | What's there | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 207 Washington St. | Wellesley Hills Congregational Church Pumpkin Patch | Open daily through Oct. 31 |
| 210 Washington St. | Wellesley Hills Branch Library | Reopened Oct. 6 |
| 251 Washington St. | Pvolve, in the Marathon Sports block | Aiming for a winter opening |
| 278 Washington St. | Middlesex Savings Bank | Planned move, no date announced |
| 291 Washington St. | Clock Tower Park | Halloween Stroll, Oct. 31, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. |
| 300 Washington St. | Maugus Cafe | Grand reopening Oct. 9; approved to stay open until 10 p.m. |
| 332 Washington St., Suite 10 | Gaya Beauty & Spa | Open as of June 2026 |
| 390 Washington St. at Forest St. | Middlesex Savings Bank's future location | Move announced, no date set |
The newer businesses are still on their way
Every address with a confirmed date this month belongs to something that has been here for decades. The newer arrivals are further out.
Pvolve has dozens of locations, mostly in the United States, and Wellesley will be its first in Massachusetts. Its studio offers low-impact, resistance-based workouts that combine strength, mobility and stability training. Middlesex Savings Bank plans to move west from 278 Washington Street to 390 Washington Street at Forest Street. When The Swellesley Report covered the move on July 1, no date had been set. Gaya Beauty & Spa is the one newcomer already open. It opened at 332 Washington Street in time for The Swellesley Report to cover it on June 11.
When Pvolve opens this winter at 251 Washington Street, it will sit between a reading room at 210 that still has its 1928 tables and a counter at 300 where the old stools are still in use. The library is due to turn 100 in March 2028.
Details like these matters when someone is weighing a move within Wellesley or describing a home here to buyers. If you'd like to talk about the Hills or anywhere else in town, Teri Adler would be glad to share what she knows. Let's Connect.
