By Adam Swift
The Chelsea Chamber of Commerce is hosting an informational meeting on the ongoing Downtown Broadway construction project on Tuesday, August 20 at its offices at 308 Broadway.
The event begins at 5 p.m., and is open to all local residents, as well as local business people, who want to know more about the project. City officials and the project contractor will be on hand to provide an update on the project, as well as to answer questions.
“We say thank you to residents, to abutters, to businesses for bearing with us,” said Maltez. “Construction is hard, construction causes traffic and really impacts our businesses and our visitors and residents. But it is something that is so critical for our community, we are making a once in a lifetime investment in downtown Broadway.”
The city is completely replacing all of the water lines and sewer lines, and it is going to be followed by a holistic reconstruction of the area of the city that hasn’t been done since the 1970s, Maltez said.
“We’re going to make safety improvements, we’re going to change the way traffic flows in Bellingham Square,” said Maltez. “I have no doubt that four or five years from now our residents and our community are going to be so appreciative of the investment. But this period is tough.”
The meeting at the Chamber next Tuesday will be an opportunity to hear from residents.
“We want to listen to the concerns, and we want to do the best as possible to mitigate any impacts,” said Maltez. “But really what we want to do is we want businesses and residents to know that while we know it is inconvenient, it is an investment that is sorely needed in our community.”