Special to the Record
District 5 City Councilor Lisa Santagate was recently selected to represent Chelsea as a member of the Champions Institute, a program launched by Transportation for Massachusetts (T4MA) in partnership with Smart Growth America that helps elected officials become effective Champions for Complete Streets, downtown revitalization, and other local initiatives.
Santagate’s membership gives the opportunity to learn from national and local experts on topics ranging from Equity in Transportation, Community Engagement, Complete Streets Implementation and Funding. Since joining, Santagate has been meeting with T4MA staff one-on-one to educate the organization on Chelsea’s challenges and in return receives tools and resources to support Santagate’s goals of making the streets in Chelsea safer for all.
Through this process, Santagate has identified the intersection of Broadway, Shurtleff Street, and Marlborough Street as an area in need of concern, and has flagged the area for intervention and potential redesign.
“There have been a large number of traffic accidents involving pedestrians at this intersection; improving pedestrian safety at this location is one of my main goals,” said Santagate. “I’m excited to walk away from this institute with the tools to make this intersection safer for all and look forward to working with the City to initiate positive changes. I’m also interested in making the streets and sidewalks safer and more accessible for residents and visitors who have mobility issues.”
Santagate has been collaborating with the City of Chelsea Housing and Community Development, Department of Public Works, Police Department, and Fire Department to evaluate the area.