Businesses in Coolidge Square will face some disruptions from the construction taking place over the spring, summer, and fall of 2026. Sidewalks will be ripped up and replaced as part of the Mt. Auburn Street Project.
Officials from the City, designers, and the contractor met with business owners and representatives Thursday at Donohue’s Bar & Grill to hear about what they can expect during this phase of the project.
Sidewalk work will begin on the far east end of town starting at the end of March, and then move to Arlington Street in late April, before doing one side of Mt. Auburn St, including Coolidge Square, from May to July, and the other side from July to September. The final phase from School Street to Chauncey Street will be done in the fall.
Construction Phases & Timeline
Phase 1: Mt. Auburn Street (School Lane to Belmont Street) March 30 t0 April 24, 2026
Phase 2: Arlington Street & Grove Street April 27 to May 8, 2026
Phase 3: Mt. Auburn Street – South Side (Arlington Street to School Street) May 11 to July 10, 2026
Phase 4: Mt. Auburn Street – North Side (School Street to Arlington Street) July 13 to Sept. 4, 2026
Phase 5: Mt. Auburn Street (School Street to Chauncey Street) Sept. 8 to Oct. 31, 2026
The contractor, Newport Construction, will be coordinating with each business to try to find a day and time that is least disruptive to have the concrete poured in front of their locations.
“What are your worst days? What are your best days? We’re trying to make accommodations, because a lot of your doorways don’t allow room to build a temporary bridge or anything,” said Tony Barrile, vice president of Newport Construction. “So what we were trying to find out is, is there any better time? Like, if we left your doorway and we did it at like 4 o’clock in the morning, or we did it at 6 o’clock at night? So we have to find out for each individual, because I think the bakery might be open at 2, 3 in the morning, or something, where other stores don’t open till 9.”
The sidewalk process will take several days to complete, Barrile said, starting with stripping the sidewalk, then compacting the ground underneath, the area will be graded, and finally concrete will be poured.
The stripping and compacting will take place the same day, and will cause some disruption.
“As we’re stripping the concrete out, now we have to grade it and compact it so at some point during the day they can walk on it, but there’ll be two things happening the same day,” Barrile said. “But there’s no question about it, no matter what I can’t make it any prettier than it is. It’s a problem, right?”
A couple of days after the stripping, crews will install new curbs, and then a few days later the concrete will be poured.
“They’re gonna do three or four loads (of concrete) a day,” Barrile said. “So that’s about 500 feet, at the most.”
With the pours being scheduled when it is least disruptive to businesses, there could be some patchwork pouring, said Kristopher Surette, from Tighe & Bond, designers of the project.
“There may be instances where they’ll pour a bunch of sidewalk and they’ll skip a panel or two in front of your business, in front of your door, or in front of an access door, or they might put in temporary asphalt,” Surette said. “So, if you see that don’t be concerned. It’s just more of how they’re phasing the work and phasing the pores.”
One detail that the contractors need to figure out is whether any businesses have basements that extend under the sidewalk, Surette said. The rooms are remnants of the time when businesses used coal and the rooms used to store coal.
“Does anyone know if they have any basements underneath the sidewalk? Because we need to know that,” Surette said. “I’m talking like a room, like if we walk in and the sidewalk is above.”
Business owners wanted to know when they would be notified about the sidewalk work in front of their properties. City Engineer Tyler Glode said the City will reach out as soon as the schedule is set, and there will be final coordination two weeks before the work takes place.
“As soon as we have an idea of concrete work, which is what we’re kicking around right now,” Glode said. “As soon as we have that lockdown that we know we’re ripping up sidewalk in your location, you’re going to be notified immediately.”
Notices about the construction will be handed out to each business, and will also be posted on the project website.
Businesses also wanted a contact in case they needed to reach someone urgently. Tyler Cote, the City Community Engagement Specialist, said during business hours they can contact the City’s 311 Service Center by calling 311, or calling or texting 617-458-8311.
Some said that things happen at night, early in the morning, or on weekends, and wondered who to call. Cote said the City would work on a system for those instances.
For more information about the Mt. Auburn Street Project, including plans and updates, go to mountauburnstreet.com.