About the Downtown Broadway Project
The City of Chelsea began construction for the Downtown Broadway Project in June 2024. The project will be broken down into two phases:
- Phase 1 of the project will improve utilities throughout the Broadway corridor from City Hall Ave to Williams St and a portion of Washington Ave from City Hall Ave to Bellingham Square.
- Phase 2 will beautify the corridor with a brand new roadway, sidewalks, and public open space, as well as install new traffic signals and pedestrian safety improvements.
These improvements represent the biggest beautification and utility reconstruction effort in Downtown Broadway in the last three decades with a total investment of over $20 million.
The project’s funding sources include the Chelsea City Council, MassWorks, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), and American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
Phase I – Utility Improvements
- Projected Start: June 2024
- Projected Completion: December 2025
Construction for Phase I is slated to start on June 10, 2024 and is projected to finish in late 2025. This phase of the project focuses on utility reconstruction that will result in water, sewer, drainage, and fiber optic improvements. The project will bring an estimate of 6,250 feet of new sanitary sewer and storm drains for sewer separation, 1,250 feet of upgraded water lines to improve our local water supply system and replace lead service pipes, and 3,000 feet of new conduit to expand the City’s fiber optic network. These reconstructive measures will protect the drinking water supply for all businesses and residents in the area, prevent flooding, reduce sewage flowing to the Mystic River, and minimize sewer backups.
Phase II – Surface Improvements
- Projected Start: Spring 2026
- Projected Completion: Winter 2027
Phase II is expected to begin in spring 2026 and finish in 2027. This phase of the project will be executed as a state Transportation Improvement Project through MassDOT and a local project by the Chelsea Department of Housing and Community Development and will address surface improvements. It advances the key goals of the 2018 Re-Imagining Broadway Plan, including the reconfiguration of Bellingham Square to allow left turns from Hawthorn Street to 5th Street, a permanent dedicated bus/bike lane on Broadway, and the renovation of City Hall Plaza.
New traffic reconfiguration at Hawthorn Street and 5th Street
Phase II also includes sidewalk and roadway reconstruction, bus stop improvements, traffic signal installation, and pedestrian safety measures focusing on improved access, safety, and mobility for everyone. The project will make Downtown Broadway greener by increasing green infrastructure and urban tree canopy and mitigate urban heat islands along the corridor.
Landscape Design at City Hall Plaza
The City, through its Department of Public Works, has hired Albanese D&S as then contractor and Dewberry Engineers to oversee Phase I of this work. Construction hours and additional information will be available at chelseama.gov/downtownbroadway or by calling Chelsea:311 (617-466-4209 from outside Chelsea).
