October 31, 2024 Update
The Town of Arlington has been awarded a $4 million grant from the MassWorks Infrastructure Program to help fund the construction of the Mass Ave & Appleton St Safety and Accessibility Project. This is the highest grant amount awarded by the MassWorks program this year, with only four other communities in receipt of the same amount of funding. Receiving this grant was made possible by the Town's compliance with the MBTA Communities Act.

“We’re thrilled to receive this grant award to improve safety in the Mass Ave/Appleton Street area for all modes of travel,” said Arlington Town Manager, Jim Feeney. “I’d like to thank the Department of Planning and Community Development for securing this grant. This project has been in the works for a few years, so it is great to be in a position where we can begin to move forward with improvements. Although the award does not cover the full project cost, we are considering different strategies for implementation.”

The $4 million grant from MassWorks is a significant step forward for the project. However, it is important to note that it only covers about half of the total project cost, which is currently estimated at about $8 million. The Town has met with its engineering consultant, Stantec, to strategize how to reduce the total project cost and consider phasing options. The Town intends to apply for the remainder of the necessary funding from the MassWorks program through its FY26 grant round. The Town currently does not have the capacity in this fiscal year’s budget to fund the full project cost, so this additional funding is vital towards completing the overall project. Under this tentative plan, the Town would start construction of the first phase in Summer 2025, and the second phase as early as 2026. The Town will provide more information on the project timeline once more information about funding schedule and final pricing becomes available prior to the 2025 construction season.  

May 15th, 2024 Update:

Final Design Released for Mass Ave / Appleton Safety and Accessibility Project
Town will now request funding through the MassWorks Infrastructure Grant Program to construct the project.
After several years of open houses, neighborhood listening sessions, design review committee meetings, and other stakeholder engagement, the Town has released the final design for the Mass Ave / Appleton Safety and Accessibility Project. 

The final design integrates community feedback received following the release of the preliminary design on January 10th, 2024. There are various plan sets available for the public to view, including construction, curb ties, grading, drainage and utility, lighting, traffic signs and pavement markings, traffic signals, landscaping, and other technical details.  

The Town will now use the final design to submit an application for construction funding through the MassWorks Infrastructure Grant Program in June. Notification of awards will be sent out in Fall 2024. If awarded, the earliest any construction would take place is Spring 2025. The Town will provide updates on any construction schedule well in advance and will engage with abutters to address their specific questions and concerns about potential construction impacts. 

January 10th, 2024 Update: 

The Select Board endorsed the project’s conceptual design in October 2023. Since then, the project team has engaged further with residents and businesses to advance the project to a preliminary design.

The preliminary design has various plan sets, including construction, drainage and utilities, traffic signs and pavement markings, traffic signals, landscaping, and other technical details.

The Town of Arlington solicited input on the conceptual design through regularly scheduled meetings of the Transportation Advisory Committee and the Bicycle Advisory Committee. The Town’s consultant, Stantec, has prepared responses to comments on the conceptual design, all of which are consistent with the preliminary design plans.

If you would like to share feedback and/or questions on the preliminary design plans, you may do so through the online form by February 11^th. The Town will use this feedback to advance the project to shovel ready designs and apply for MassWorks construction funding in Summer 2024. Notifications will be sent out in Fall 2024. If awarded, the earliest that any construction would take place is in Spring 2025.

• View the preliminary design plans
• View the Response to Conceptual Design Comments
• Share feedback and questions via the online form by February 11^th

October 5th, 2023 Update: The Select Board voted to approve the updated Mass Ave / Appleton Street Safety and Accessibility Project’s concept design presented at their meeting on September 27, 2023.

The project team will now advance into formal engineering design to create shovel ready construction plans. Landscaping designs are being concurrently developed to incorporate new trees, rain gardens, benches, bicycle racks, an extended Foot of the Rocks Plaza, and other features into the corridor. This work will continue into the winter and further outreach will take place in December or January.

The Town will then use the shovel ready designs to apply for MassWorks construction funding in Summer 2024. Notifications will be sent out in Fall 2024. If awarded, the earliest that any construction would happen would take place in Spring 2025.

September 19th, 2023 Update: The project team has updated the Mass Ave / Appleton concept design based on comments received from residents, businesses, and local stakeholders. These include:

• Added eleven (11) parking spaces.
• Incorporated the driveway to the adjacent residential development (Mirak property) and other businesses into the new Mass Ave / Forest St / Burton St traffic signal.
• Reopened Appleton Place to one-way traffic.
• Moved the crosswalk and curb extension at Quinn Road to the east side of the intersection.
• Incorporated the driveway design of the approved hospitality project at the corner of Clark Street and Mass Ave.

The Department of Planning & Community Development will present the updated concept design for a vote at the Select Board’s September 27^th meeting. If approved, the Town will work with the project consultant, Stantec, to create ‘shovel-ready’ plans and an application for construction funding from MassWorks to submit in Spring 2024.

To learn more about the September 19^th updated design:

• View the updated concept plan.
• View presentation slides summarizing proposed improvements and project background.
• Review a summary of the design updates and responses to comments.
• Review a summary of the comments received after the March 15, 2023 public meeting.
• Review a summary of the trade-off between additional parking and the left-turn lane onto Forest Street. 

June 8th, 2023 Project Update: The project team has decided to hold on submitting a MassWorks application for construction funding until 2024 in order to take a deeper look at parking and circulation patterns of an adjacent 40B project (Mirak property). Read the May 18, 2023 memo to the Select Board from DPCD Director.

Prior Public Meetings

March 15, 2023

On Wednesday, March 15, 2023, the Town hosted a third public open house for the Mass Ave/Appleton Safety & Accessibility Corridor Project. This third meeting was the culmination of multiple rounds of public engagement, input, and goal setting sessions to determine the final concepts for improvements for Massachusetts Avenue between Quinn Road and Richardson Avenue. Attendees learned about the public process and input that led to the final concept designs, and how these designs advance the community-informed goals of safety for all, integrating the corridor with local amenities, supporting activity and growth, and encouraging resiliency through design. Residents were able to provide comments through an online feedback form after the meeting. 

• Watch a recording of the presentation.
• View the concept plan of proposed improvements.
• View the presentation slides.

October 18, 2022

On October 18, 2022, the Town hosted the second public open house for the Mass Ave/Appleton Safety & Accessibility Corridor Project. After a brief presentation, meeting attendees reviewed concept designs and alternatives for the corridor and roadway intersections.

• Watch a re-recording of the open house presentation.
• View the presentation slides which describe the various elements of the recommended concept design.
• View the Mass Ave/Appleton Corridor concept design.

Gathering feedback and input from all users of the Project Corridor is important to the design team. As this was the second in-person public open house since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and not everyone could join us on October 18, we offered an online comment form to gather public feedback. Click here to view a larger version of this image.

June 23, 2022

The first open house for this project was held on June 23, 2022. Meeting materials have been uploaded for those who may have missed this meeting:

• Mass Ave/Appleton Street Safety & Accessibility Corridor Project Open House Presentation Slides.
• Boards with Project Schedule, Project Data, and Draft Project Goals from the Open House.