Acknowledging the development boom and traffic woes enveloping Dorchester’s coast, Gov. Baker has signed into law the creation of a special commission to study the regional corridor formed by Morrissey Boulevard.

The panel is set to study what’s necessary for the region to meet its needs on transportation, climate resiliency and infrastructure. It has a deadline to file a report by June 1 next year, though state lawmakers sometimes push back dates if commissions get behind.

The Morrissey group will include Dorchester lawmakers and City Hall officials, or their designees, as well as the governor’s secretaries of transportation, energy and environmental affairs, public safety, and the commissioner of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation.
The commission’s ambit also includes the rotary known as Kosciuszko Circle, or K Circle.

“I’ve wanted to do something — about both K Circle and Morrissey Boulevard, and it bleeds a little bit into the conversation about Day (Boulevard in South Boston) as well, and a bunch of other things — for eight years, okay?” Baker, who took office in 2015, told the Reporter.

State Sen. Nick Collins, who represents Dorchester and South Boston, also pushed for the commission’s inclusion in the $11.3 billion transportation infrastructure bill.

Baker said that despite his having a close relationship with then-Mayor Marty Walsh, who frequently took Morrissey to get to City Hall, “It was just hard to get all the various players – and there are a lot of them – on the same page. You add to that all of the development that’s going on along Morrissey Boulevard, which is going to be a very different place five or ten years from now.”

Developers have pitched plans for sites along the roadway at a dizzying pace and eye-popping numbers. One project, just steps from the JFK/UMass MBTA Station, is looking to take up to 6.5 million square feet under 20 buildings on 36 acres of land. The massive mixed-use project, called “Dorchester Bay City,” seeks to create office and lab space, in addition to residences.

The former home of the Boston Globe at 135 Morrissey Boulevard has been converted into space for life science companies and the fitness apparel maker Nobull. Additional plans call for a new life science building in the space between the rehabbed front building and I-93.

Additionally, work has already begun on one of two projects adjacent to Boston Bowl in the Neponset section of the parkway – 780 Morrissey, which, on completion, will have 219 units in an apartment complex with 136 parking spaces. Next door is 800 Morrissey, which would add 240 housing units into that space, pending city approval for the development.

“There’s just a lot going on down there and I think the only way to get to the point where people can come up with something everybody can agree to and get going is to basically create a framework where everybody has a seat at the table and a timeframe in which they need to figure this out,” Baker said in the interview.

He also referenced environmental issues. Morrissey Boulevard regularly floods, even on sunny days, wreaking havoc on a major coastal roadway, saying, “The only way to make that happen is going to be to have people fill the seats and do the work and figure it out.”

The commission’s creation comes as Baker approaches the end of his term. He opted against running for reelection, and his successor will be sworn in January.

Asked whether a change in gubernatorial administrations will trip up the commission, Baker said, “I’m not worried about that. I think whether it’s us or whoever comes after us can certainly represent what I would describe as the interest of the commonwealth. This project needs to happen.”

The transportation infrastructure bill is partly funded by $3.5 billion in discretionary federal grant funds, including money from the federal infrastructure law signed by President Biden last year.

Congressman Stephen Lynch recently told the Reporter that some of the federal money from Biden’s infrastructure bill could be used to fix the Morrissey Boulevard area.

The overall bill signed by Baker also includes $2 million for repairs to Fields Corner MBTA Station; $2 million for an elevated median on Gallivan Boulevard between Neponset Circle and Adams Street; $1 million for a study of a potential sound barrier to quiet noise from Red Line tracks between Savin Hill MBTA Station and McConnell Park; $750,000 for lighting, noise reduction, and safety improvements to the parking lot adjacent to JFK/UMass Station and under the Southeast Expressway; and $250,000 for improvements to the tide gates on Morrissey Boulevard at Patten’s Cove.

Under the bill, the embattled MBTA will receive $400 million to help deal with safety issues as the public transit agency faces federal scrutiny.

Baker also sought changes to the bill by returning some language to the Legislature for action, though it’s unclear if lawmakers will act on the measures this year.

Lawmakers had proposed spurring the MBTA’s commuter rail system to focus on electrification on several lines, including the Fairmount Line, rather than diesel locomotives. But Baker’s proposed amendment argued that the T should implement “battery electric locomotive” service.

“I support this planning to make the commuter rail system more productive, equitable, and decarbonized,” Baker wrote in his amendment letter. “I am proposing changes to ensure the plans incorporate the most up to date technology.”

Material from the State House News Service was used in this report.