$2M slated for Acushnet Avenue upgrade

By Dan McDonald
NEW BEDFORD — An Acushnet Avenue streetscaping project is on track to receive $2 million in funding.
The funding is embedded is a supplemental bill filed by Gov. Deval Patrick. The bill consists of surplus funds from fiscal 2011.
The project calls for sidewalk improvements, traffic signal changes and a realignment of the roadway. It will improve pedestrian access and offer space for outside dining, said April Anderson Lamoureux, the state’s assistant secretary for economic development.
The improvements will happen on the part of the avenue that stretches between Coggeshall Street and Nash Road.
Assuming the language of the bill stays the same, the funding is tethered to a “use-it-or-lose” deadline of June 30, 2013, said Anderson Lamoureux.
The bill, said Anderson Lamoureux, is now in the hands of the Legislature.
“I’m hoping for swift action,” she said.
At the latest, Anderson Lamoureux said, work could start next spring.
It is one of 20 such “shovel-ready” projects, which total $35 million, funded through the supplemental bill.
dmcdonald@s-t.com
August 31, 2011 12:00 AM
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