MORE INFORMATION Spot Pond Facility Site Map Larger Image Map: Medical Center Parking During Construction PDF - Posted 05/18/12 Map: MWRA Spot Pond Truck Route PDF - Posted 05/18/12 Covered Drinking Water Storage Main Page Water Supply and Demand Page

	UPDATE June 12, 2012 --
	The excavation work for the tank began yesterday.

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UPDATE June 5, 2012 -- Trucking is expected to begin on Monday, June 11, 2012. Site preparation continues.

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UPDATE May 18, 2012 -- MWRA’s contractor, Walsh Construction Company, is currently completing extensive site preparation measures and plans to begin work in late May or early June.

The project will require considerable excavation of land material and will therefore require a steady, regulated flow of trucks to remove the material over a period of 6-8 months during the hours of 7:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Once the excavation is complete, truck traffic will be less extensive, but appropriate public safety measures will remain in place.

MWRA and Walsh Construction have been working closely with the Massachusetts State Police and the Department of Conservation and Recreation to develop an efficient and reliable traffic management plan to ensure the safety of the drivers and pedestrians using the adjacent roads and streets. The plan will include extensive signage to notify travelers and calm traffic in order to augment and reinforce the strategic deployment of State Police.

Please see the Medical Center During Construction map (PDF) and MWRA Spot Pond Truck Route map (PDF) to help guide your travel in and around the area as this important facility is constructed. Please note that the north entrance to the Medical Office Building campus on Woodland Road will be open for use by CONSTRUCTION VEHICLES ONLY throughout the construction period.

We appreciate your patience as we continue our work to provide you with safe and dependable drinking water of the highest quality.

Project updates will be posted here or call our project hotline at (617) 788-1170.

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About This Project

In October 2011, MWRA awarded a contract for the construction of a 20 million-gallon water storage facility and pump station on the site of the former Boston Regional Medical Center.

The underground, concrete tanks will provide water storage for MWRA’s Low Service area, which includes Charlestown, Chelsea, Malden, Medford, Everett and Somerville. The pump station will provide system redundancy for 21 communities currently served by the Gillis Pump Station, including Stoneham, Wakefield, Woburn and Winchester.

The design calls for upland meadows to be planted on top of the buried tanks providing additional open space and public access adjacent to the Fells Reservation.

Location
 
Originally, 17 potential sites in the vicinity of Spot Pond were evaluated for environmental, construction, infrastructure, and cost considerations. The Boston Regional Medical Center site was ultimately chosen as it does not impact the open space adjacent to Spot Pond, it can accommodate the addition of the proposed pump station and has lower construction costs. MWRA purchased the 7-acre site from the Guetierrez Company.

Schedule
 
The $49.3 million design/build contract was awarded to Walsh Construction Company. Excavation of the site will begin in early April 2012. Final design will continue for a few months while excavation is underway. Construction of foundations will begin in late summer 2012. Final completion is scheduled for fall 2014.
 
The Role of Covered Storage

Covered distribution storage is needed within a water system to balance flows during the daily use cycle and to store a reserve supply of treated water to handle unusual or emergency situations such as fires, water main breaks, maintenance activities or other system failures.

MWRA's service area ranges from the hills of central Massachusetts to near sea-level communities on the East Coast. Covered water storage tanks are located at key elevation points, helping to maintain appropriate pressure levels across the system.

Department of Environmental Protection safe drinking water regulations require that distribution storage facilities be covered to protect the quality of treated drinking water. 

MWRA has recently constructed a new network of tanks to protect and store treated drinking water in compliance with the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act. The tanks replace a 100-year old system of open reservoirs. Many of the original, open reservoirs – like Spot Pond - are still maintained for emergency use.

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Updated December 17, 2012

Posted March 16, 2012