Councilor Fred Capone this week signaled his support and enthusiasm for the sale of the Boston Market Terminal in his ward, saying that solving the culvert issue will be a major step in solving flooding issues throughout the ward.
“It’s great to hear, but when you see it, it is real,” he said. “We will do our share and Chelsea is looking to do their share as well…I’m excited to hear of a property owner coming in that wants to fix the culvert, that is great. Between us all, it’s a multi-faceted approach. If we can get that addressed, we can also finally address the secondary flooding that has been attributed to the culvert.”
Capone said he isn’t worried about the new investment and use of the property, which The Davis Companies has said would be a distribution center potentially for food, but likely for last-mile distribution of products as well.
“There was a lot of discussion about the investment and distribution,” he said. “That’s consistent with the historical use. If that’s the plan, that would likely mean very little change to the area. If they are putting distribution in and will also address the culvert, then that’s a good thing…If they decide to do something else, it would have a much different impact.”
He said he looks forward to working with the developer and the City to address the culvert and the secondary flooding too. He also said he’ll be keeping an eye on this development and many other.
One of his key concerns at the moment is making sure that development doesn’t overtake the City’s infrastructure – meaning schools, roads, sewers and drainage.
“As a rule, we need to keep an eye on all development and it come back to being cognizant of the pace of construction and whether our infrastructure can keep up with it,” he said. “That’s not an anti-growth statement. I think growth is necessary, but it has to be controlled growth.”