Progress on the $5 million Broadway business district redesign is underway, with the City Council set to make final decisions about specific elements next month, which is welcome news for Chelsea residents.
Should City Manager Tom Ambrosino’s track record of vision and innovation in Revere extend to Chelsea, the redesigned Broadway and Bellingham Square could become vibrant commercial hubs.
One significant issue looms over the project: “The New Broadway” The question centers on whether the six-block stretch from Williams Street to City Hall Avenue should remain a one-way street, as it has been for decades, or convert to two-way traffic.
At a Tuesday evening public meeting at City Hall, the Chelsea Traffic Commission gathered input from residents regarding the potential conversion of Broadway to two-way traffic. Before the full Council votes on the complete redesign package, the Commission will vote on this matter at its upcoming session.
Alexander Train, assistant director of the planning and development department, presented a comprehensive overview of the reimagined Broadway initiative, which will comprehensively overhaul the district’s intersections, sidewalks, bicycle paths, tree pits, and overall aesthetic.
“We’ve completed the planning and development portion of the process and we’re now approaching the Traffic Commission to vote and adopt and enact the plan,” Train stated. “Their vote will be relayed to City Council, who has the authority to approve or reject their decision.”
Supporting the two-way Broadway proposal, Police Chief Brian Kyes argued it would enhance traffic circulation.
“If a person double parks his vehicle, we have a reason to tow the vehicle ASAP,” Kyes explained. “We want to keep the traffic flowing.”
Kyes expressed satisfaction about the planned traffic lights at Broadway and Third Street. “Broadway and Third is probably one of the most dangerous intersections in the entire state,” he noted.
During his drive from the police station to the meeting, “the backup when I got to Hawthorne Street was incredible, because everybody is making the loop (around Broadway). I think the final [redesign] project makes a lot of sense. I drive down Broadway, Revere all the time and I very, very rarely see double parking there.” Councillor-at-Large Damlili Vidot raised concerns about maintaining Broadway’s cleanliness, including removing weeds from metal grates. She contested the assertion that two-way traffic would reduce double parking or improve pedestrian safety, and questioned potential Tobin Bridge backups and their impact on two-way Broadway traffic.
Vidot expressed dissatisfaction with the redesign project’s rapid timeline.
“I urge everyone to just take several steps back and let’s figure out a way to engage more people,” Vidot stated. “The way that this process has gone, having a meeting in the middle of summer when the City Council isn’t even meeting – in a hot room where everyone is aggravated and we had to wait 10 minutes to even start the meeting, all of it is just not right.”
Ambrosino, an advocate for two-way Broadway, contended that traffic configuration should not dominate the redesign discussion.
“That’s only a small part of the reimaging Broadway,” Ambrosino remarked. “Many of the improvements [to Bellingham Square, Fay Square, City Hall Avenue, traffic signals at dangerous intersections] are happening regardless of which of these two configurations between Williams and Fifth Streets is chosen. Even the one-way configuration is a major improvement over the two-lane speedway that currently exists on Broadway. The two-way configuration is still safer, calmer, and slower for bicylists and pedestrians.”
According to Ambrosino, the two-way configuration will be “transformative.”
“It will make a difference to the feel and the look of that downtown. It makes it vibrant. It makes it aesthetically pleasing. This will be better for pedestrians, for traffic, and for businesses.”
Allen Cut Rite owner Rick Gordon identified parking as the downtown district’s primary concern. “I personally prefer a one-way plan for the flow of traffic. The street is much narrower than other communities and I don’t think two-way makes a business more visible.”
Gordon acknowledged the Chelsea Police’s work in reducing vehicle speeds and enforcing double-parking prohibitions on Broadway, an issue several meeting attendees had highlighted.
Councillor-at-Large Roy Avellaneda, whose family operates Tito’s Bakery, inquired whether the City Council would vote on the full redesign package or individual components including the traffic configuration and placement of new bus stops and traffic lights.
After more than two hours of debate, the one-way versus two-way Broadway question remains contentious, with attention turning to the Traffic Commission’s upcoming vote.