More than one year after the project was supposed to conclude, the Morton Street state highway project has finally wrapped up. The work, small by state standards on a $2.5 million budget, was meant to address pedestrian safety issues like sidewalks, crosswalks, new curbing, and other amenities.

Though it started on time in 2020, the project, which runs along Morton Street from Blue Hill Avenue to Harvard Street, lingered month after month in 2021 and 2022 and the worksite was often left in shambles.

State Rep. Russell Holmes said the project had its beginning in 2011 when the group New England United for Justice rallied on Morton Street calling for upgrades and a road safety audit. When construction kicked off two years ago, he thought a community-led upgrade would soon blossom, but that didn’t turn out to be the case.

“I was initially told this this would be completed on July 4, 2021 – more than one year ago,” he said. “Then we were told it was going to be 2022, and then it was going to be July 4, 2022, and into September, it was still lingering.”

A Massachusetts Department of Transportation spokesperson said the delays were due to three main issues, including the state contractor encountering unforeseen underground obstructions. That slowed down electrical and drainage installation because of an unmarked conduit, duct banks, and rock ledge.

Another delay came when they discovered underground railroad tracks on Blue Hill Avenue, and that necessitated remediation for asbestos. Finally, the milling and paving contractor’s schedule changed several times.

City Councillor Brian Worrell, who represents Dorchester and Mattapan, agreed with Holmes that the project took too long.

“When improving walkability and increasing access to transportation, our state agencies should be operating with urgency in our neighborhood given the fact that we have one of the highest car-traffic regions and highest transit ridership,” he said.

“Increasing walkability is a quality-of-life issue and has dragged on for too long in our community. I look forward to seeing this project completed and continuing the discussion to improve urgency for future projects in District 4.”

Said Holmes: “It was a project small in scale, but large because it sits in the largest Black community in the state,” he said. “It just didn’t have the project management and other resources allocated to it.”

Mattapan Notebook
•Join the Greater Mattapan Neighborhood Council (GMNC) for the 2022 inaugural yard sale at the Mildred Avenue Community School on Oct. 15 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event will be in the school parking lot and will be hosted by GMNC staff and members. If you’re trying to downsize, get rid of clutter, learn more about the neighborhood, or grab some bargains, make sure to attend. Those wishing to register as sellers should contact Matt Skelly at mwskelly@gmail.com.

•The GMNC Public Services Committee continues to talk about getting the Slow Streets program in at the Itasca Street area, a major cut-through for those looking to avoid Mattapan Square. Residents are trying to position themselves high on the list for the program when it starts back up again.

•The GMNC asked backers of the cannabis proposal at 1379 Blue Hill Ave., Underground Legacy, located across from the Mattapan Branch Library, to go back and shore up support letters, mostly for the Mattapan Neighborhood Health Center and the Library. There are also concerns from the community about the entrance and exit plans for the dispensary.

•Another dispensary called The POT on River Street adjacent to Mattapan Square received approval from the GMNC Zoning Committee, with a recommendation to look at the turning radius into their parking lot behind the store. The full GMNC voted to go forward as recommended.