The first of the two phases of the major Broadway reconstruction project is scheduled to get underway early this spring.
The planning to improve downtown Broadway’s utilities and surfaces have been in the works for about a decade, and the utility work should get underway this spring.
The project will stretch from City Hall Avenue to Williams Street, and will also include a portion of Washington Avenue, from City Hall Avenue to Bellingham Square.
The utility work will include water, sewerage, drainage, and fiber optic improvements along the Broadway corridor. The total cost of that phase of the project is set at $14.2 million, with the great majority of the funding coming from ARPA funds, MassWorks, HUD, and MWRA sources. The City Council previously approved $1.45 million in city funds for the project.
The goals of the infrastructure portion of the project are to prevent flooding, reduce the amount of combined sewage flowing into the Mystic River resulting in the closure of Combined Sewer Outfall, minimizing sewer backups in a high-demand area, and providing a clean drinking water supply for all businesses and residents, according to City Manager Fidel Maltez.
There will also be the installation of new fiber optic conduit along
Broadway and a water main on Winnisimmet Street.
Design on the second phase of the project, the surface improvements, are expected to be completed by September of this year, with the construction work getting underway in 2025 and stretching through March of 2027. The majority of that project is being funded through MassDOT.
Currently,the City of Chelsea, MassDOT and the MBTA are working towards adding improvements along the Broadway Corridor, according to Maltez. Work includes the permanent addition of the Downtown Broadway Bus/Bike Lane Pilot, and the plan rethinks the traffic and circulation of the Downtown Chelsea area with the goals of improving access, safety, and mobility for everyone.
Other priorities for that phase of the project include making the Broadway-Washington Ave corridor greener and cooler by increasing green infrastructure and urban tree canopy, mitigating urban heat islands along the corridor, lowering the temperature in the area during hot days, increasing accessibility to multi-modal transportation, and reducing the number of car accidents.
Maltez said there is a contractor on board for the first phase of the Broadway project with work likely to start in May. Right now, he said the city is focused on getting out the word about how the work will impact local businesses and residents.
“We are being very mindful, because this summer is the last summer that the Sumner Tunnel closure is going to take place, last summer that had a huge impact in our community in general, not just downtown,” said Maltez. “We want to be mindful in how we handle the overall disruptions.”
In addition to a recent meeting at the Chamber of Commerce, Maltez said there will be additional meetings with businesses and residents before work gets underway.
“Our goal is to do work one block at a time and make sure that the contractor’s work area is contained,” said Maltez. “We will most likely be taking away one lane of travel at one given time. We’re definitely going to do our best to minimize the closures at any given time.”
Overall, Maltez said the downtown Broadway improvements are a generational investment in the city.
“The last time that downtown Broadway saw major investment to this tune was in the 1970s,” said Maltez. “In fact, in the middle of Broadway sits a 72-inch brick sewer that is over 100 years old.”
The new drainage, water, and sewerage infrastructure should last another 100 years once it is completed, he said.
Maltez said the city understands that construction is disruptive, but that he has been sharing with downtown businesses and residents that it is very necessary to address historic failures with regards to water and sewer and that it is also necessary to revitalize the community.
“Every dollar spent in infrastructure has generational benefits to our community,” said Maltez. “I made a personal commitment, and I shared this in the sessions in the downtown, I am going to work as hard as I can to make sure that … people know what is coming, I want to communicate as much as I can, and I want people to know that we care. We are going to be engaged and involved, construction does have an impact, but ultimately, it is for the betterment of our community.”