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Select Board hears expansive public support and technical debate over Washington Street complete-streets plan
Summary
Residents pressed the Select Board to back protected, sidewalk-level bike lanes and safety-focused redesign on Washington Street; town staff and consultants outlined a 1.1-mile reconstruction that seeks MassDOT TIP funding but warned the $30M price and timeline depend on meeting rigorous project-readiness milestones.
Residents and advocates pressed the Town of Brookline Select Board Tuesday to advance a Washington Street complete-streets redesign they said would make the arterial safer for children, older adults and everyday commuters.
At a public-comment block dominated by bicycling advocates, Emily Jacobson, vice president of Biking Brookline, said the corridor will "form a loop through town connecting many low stress streets" and stressed that recent design revisions have restored parking in high-demand stretches to respond to business community concerns. Max Hullman, a local teacher, recounted a traffic collision and told the board "protected bike Lanes would provide peace of mind for Riders and for their loved ones."
The Board then heard an hourlong technical briefing from the Department of Public Works and the project's consultants. Commissioner Aaron Gallentine described the project's goals as multimodal safety, ADA compliance and placemaking for the 1.1-mile corridor from Beacon Street to Station Street. Consultant Christopher Seret outlined the preferred cross-section: two vehicle travel lanes, one-sided parking where feasible, and a sidewalk-level separated bike lane placed adjacent to the tree belt. He emphasized constraints including a 60-foot right-of-way, underground utilities and the need to protect the street tree canopy.
Board and public questions centered on parking tradeoffs in Brookline Village, bus-stop relocation, curbside loading and deliveries, and how the project would treat the village’s narrow sidewalks. Project leaders repeatedly warned that federal and state TIP funding is contingent on "project readiness" — the local design and permitting steps MassDOT requires before construction funds are released. As Brian Kane, chair of the Transportation Board, noted: "This is not a bike project ... this is a Safety project," and he cautioned that while the project has been placed on the TIP, the town must meet design milestones to retain that slot.
Why it matters: The design affects commerce, school corridors and transit in central Brookline. The town is balancing business and parking needs with safety and multimodal goals; the outcome will shape the corridor's character for decades and determine eligibility for major state and federal dollars.
What’s next: DPW expects additional Design Review Committee meetings in the coming months, followed by Transportation Board and Select Board votes to finalize a local preferred design before submitting a 25% design package to MassDOT for TIP readiness review. The Select Board did not take a final vote on the design at Tuesday's meeting.
In reporting: Quotes and positions in this article derive from public comment and DPW/consultant presentations at the Select Board meeting. The town emphasized that funding is competitive and tied to MassDOT design standards; specific parking counts and segment-by-segment tradeoffs remain under discussion.
