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City increases curb‑ramp investments amid capital plan rebalancing and two rescinded grants
Summary
Officials told the council the ramp program will rise to about $42 million in FY27 to meet accessibility obligations and consent‑decree requirements; the capital plan was restructured and two major grants (including a $20M Roxbury grant) were rescinded, prompting calls for project transparency.
At the May 4 Ways & Means hearing, Streets Cabinet staff said curb ramp reconstruction is a major capital priority for FY27. The panel said the city has invested more than $70 million in ramp work over the past five years and expects the ramp program cost to increase "to $42 million," which staff said would represent nearly 30% of the cabinet's FY27 capital budget.
Officials cited both the city’s consent decree obligations and accessibility goals as reasons for the increase. Staff described a dedicated engineering contract to handle complex ramp designs and said the capital plan was rebalanced because of fiscal constraints: 27 projects were removed from the plan, some completed, some merged into annual programs, and some tabled.
During the presentation staff also reported that two capital grants had already been rescinded: a roughly $20 million grant for a Roxbury resilient corridor project and a $2 million Mattapan pilot. Councilors and community advocates pressed for a project dashboard and clearer timelines so that residents can see which projects have been deferred, which remain funded, and what the schedule will be for ramp and resurfacing work.
Panelists said they will launch an updated capital project dashboard to provide project‑level updates and will follow up with the committee with details on which projects were removed, merged or deferred.
