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Council hears Allen Street reconstruction plan, right-of-way offers and funding details; public hearing continued to Sept. 2
Summary
Town engineers and a consultant described an $8.5 million Allen Street reconstruction project funded by federal and state grants and MassDOT; the project requires temporary and permanent easements on 17 properties and the council continued the public hearing to Sept. 2 for a final vote on right-of-way takings and a $213,800 easement appropriation.
Town engineering staff and a consultant briefed the council on the Allen Street reconstruction project between Shaw Street and Quincy Avenue, the right‑of‑way process and an associated funding package. John Thompson, Assistant Director of Public Works and Town Engineer, told the council that the project design and construction will be administered by MassDOT because federal funds are involved and noted the need for documented rights on private property before construction starts.
Kevin Dandrea, a principal with TEC, summarized the scope and schedule and said the project "is essentially an $8,500,000 project" that has a federal earmark of $3,150,000 and a $2,500,000 MassWorks grant; he said roughly $5,300,000 will come through MassDOT’s Transportation Improvement Program. The presenters said the town needs to acquire primarily easements (temporary five‑year easements and a set of permanent easements) across 17 parcels—16 private properties and one town parcel—to enable construction; staff described 23 temporary and 12 permanent easements in preliminary plans and said compensation offers ranged from about $200 up to $108,200 per affected property, with a total easement compensation sum of $213,800 identified for the private owners.
Councilors pressed staff on outreach and accessibility: Vice President Maglio and others asked how many property owners had engaged and whether notices were provided in other languages; Kevin Dandrea said that certified mailings and an earlier design public hearing had been conducted, and that the appraisals and offer letters went out July 28 and certified mailings between June 30 and July 9. He acknowledged that the standard MassDOT template mailings were not translated into other languages to date. The council voted to continue the public hearing to the Sept. 2 meeting so staff can finalize documentation required by MassDOT and federal-aid rules and allow additional outreach ahead of a vote on the order of taking and appropriation.
What happens next: staff will coordinate additional outreach and compile required documentation for the Sept. 2 vote; the council is expected to consider the appropriation for $213,800 to fund easement acquisitions at that meeting.
