Central Square and Harvard Square have been under reconstruction for years now. It seems possible that a four-year student in our city could have lived here without experiencing these places not under construction?
Could we reasonably expect a quarterly update from the City Manager with the following information: what was the original budget and schedule for each of these projects; what is the budget and schedule today? As anyone who has been involved in any sort of major construction knows, an extension of schedule almost certainly entails an increase in budget. Not only are we, the public, being seriously inconvenienced by this continuing disruption; we, the taxpayers, are paying for it.
Hubert Murray, Cambridge resident
A stronger
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Cities need repair and development. There is nothing secret about it. These are complex overhauls of century-old infrastructure in crowded squares. Delays come from that reality, not from hiding information. More info os always nice. But micromanaging from people will only cause more delays.
There’s updates covering through the week of Feb 16 about construction on Carl Barron plaza in Central Square: https://www.cambridgema.gov/Departments/publicworks/cityprojects/2022/riverstreetreconstructionproject You can click “sign up” on the contact tab to get the monthly updates to your email. It took me a couple of minutes with Google to find this page. There’s no secrets here.
There’s a similar page for Harvard Square, although it seems to be light on detail recently: https://www.cambridgema.gov/Departments/publicworks/cityprojects/2021/harvardsquarekioskandplaza
The true cost of Cambridge construction projects has always been veiled in secrecy. The writer has justifiably called for accountability at a time when basic human needs are going unmet because of “budget constraints”.
I am well aware of the construction “updates” provided by the city. What seems to be missing are budget projections, cost overrun explanations and final costs which are inclusive of all city department expenditures. Are there clear budget explanations of various alternative plans which have not been adopted? What are the “social engineering” aspects and goals of the Central Square redevelopment plan which come at a cost to the Cambridge community? The Cambridge community does pay a cost in dollars as well as in human capital, and that cost is veiled in secrecy as Mr. Murray rightly points out.
Lack of transparency by multiple city departments only adds to the confusion & questions regarding so many city projects. Long term residents can cite multiple (at times failed) construction projects concerning Carl Barron Plaza and surrounding streets. When has there NOT been construction at Green & River St ??