The week of October 13, the sidewalk crews will be on Mount Auburn Street between Richards Road and Stearns Road. They will pull up the old concrete, grade the base and set granite curb. A second crew will pour new sidewalk between School Street and Richards Road and at the School Street intersection. Drainage goes in farther along, between Amherst Road and Walnut Street. No work is scheduled for Monday, October 12, because of the holiday.
In early June, the same kind of work was at the front doors of Coolidge Square. Four months later, the sidewalk crews are working several blocks down the corridor toward Watertown Square. If you live in East Watertown, your block may look calmer this month. It is not done. The project brings crews back to each block several times, so the weekly update on mountauburnstreet.com is a better guide to your week than any long-range timeline.
Where the Sidewalk Crews Have Been Since June
Watertown News reported that sidewalk work started June 3 on the block between Arlington Street and Bigelow Avenue. That block includes Artemis Yoga, the former Olespana location and CVS. Crews removed the curb, tore out the old sidewalk, filled and framed the base, and poured new concrete on June 12. From there the work moved down the corridor. The weekly project updates list each stop.
| Week | Where crews were scheduled | Type of work |
|---|---|---|
| June 3–12 | Arlington St. to Bigelow Ave. | Curb and sidewalk removal through the June 12 concrete pour |
| Week of June 15 | Bigelow Ave. to Elton Ave., south side | Sidewalk work |
| July 20–24 | Melendy Ave. to Dexter Ave.; Adams St. to School St. | Westbound sidewalk concrete; curb and sidewalk removal and reset |
| Aug. 5–7 | Amherst Rd. to School St. | Full-depth road reconstruction |
| Sept. 21–25 | Templeton Pkwy. to Lloyd Rd. and Irma Ave. | Removal, grading, pours, granite curb |
| Oct. 5–9 | School St. to Richards Rd.; Lloyd Rd. to Upland Rd. | Removal and curb; pours; tree trenches from Amherst Rd. to Walnut St. |
| Oct. 13–16 | Richards Rd. to Stearns Rd.; School St. to Richards Rd. | Removal, grading, curb; pours; drainage from Amherst Rd. to Walnut St. |
These are planned schedules. The updates say where crews expect to be in a given week, not that a block is finished. A single block also took longer than early estimates suggested. Erin Rathe, the City's Senior Planner for Economic Development, told Watertown News that a November 2025 briefing had left her expecting "two, three days maximum" for each block's sidewalks. On the block outside Artemis Yoga, nine days passed between curb removal on June 3 and the concrete pour on June 12, and the curb still had to go back in after the pour.
Why a Poured Sidewalk Doesn't Mean the Block Is Finished
The schedule moves around because of how the project was designed. At a November 2025 meeting with businesses, Kristopher Surette of Tighe & Bond, the project's designer, said the work would take four to five construction seasons. Construction started in 2024, and the finish was expected in 2028. He also explained how the crews move through the corridor:
"We're not in front of your business for five years, we're in front of your business multiple times within that five years. So we're doing utilities, and then you'll see a crew come back and do the roadway reconstruction. Our crew will come back and do sidewalks, and then our crew will come back and do any of the site furnishings."
That 2028 date is an estimate from late 2025. The project's own FAQ says only that the work as a whole should take four years. Liz Padula of Artemis Yoga described the change in pace this way in June: "(In prior years) they redid something with the utilities, but now it's go time. This is no longer prep stuff." Utilities came first, and the sidewalks came this year. Site furnishings like seating and plantings belong to a later pass, so the Coolidge Square blocks with new concrete are still waiting on at least one more visit.
What Last Winter Looked Like
Cold weather is the next schedule change. In November 2025, Tony Barrile, vice president of Newport Construction, said paving would wrap up for the season within days. "There'll be no more sidewalks, because the temperatures and the weather won't allow it," he said. "The only thing going on for the rest of the winter is continuing towards Watertown Square with the pipe work." He said sidewalk work would pick up again in April, starting at Greg's Restaurant, then finishing that side of the road and moving on to Arlington Street.
That was last season's plan, and it doesn't confirm what will happen this winter. The October updates still list sidewalk pours. Last year, the visible work stopped in winter while the work underground kept going.
Getting Through the Work Zone This Fall
The project posts access rules with each weekly update. The current update says:
- Sidewalks: Pedestrians are sent to the opposite side of the street during active work. Temporary walkways stay open once that work is done.
- Businesses: People going to a shop inside the work area are directed to rear entrances where they exist, or are walked through by police details. Construction pauses until pedestrians are in the safe zone.
- Traffic: Expect lane shifts and possible lane closures. One travel lane in each direction stays open on Mount Auburn Street.
- Parking: Street parking in the active area is restricted. Crews post closure signs starting at 7 a.m. and take them down by 5 p.m.
Evening parking in the work zone is not covered by those daytime restrictions, so the hours matter if you are picking up dinner on Mount Auburn Street.
Bus riders have seen stops move with the work. In August, the project moved MBTA Route 71 stops at Amherst Road and Boylston Street starting August 15. The Adams Avenue stop moved to Richards Road during the week of August 17, then returned to its usual spot when the work was done. Side streets get detours during the heavier work. For the August 5–7 road reconstruction, access to Boylston Street went through Chauncey Street and access to Stearns Road went through Amherst Road. The City's Economic Development team also made a "Getting Around Coolidge Square" graphic for drivers, cyclists, bus riders and walkers. It is posted on the project homepage.
What Coolidge Square Has Gotten in the Meantime
The City added two public art pieces to Coolidge Square, chosen through its "Open for Business" project. Watertown News reported that they will stay up for the next two years while the Mt. Auburn Street Project is under construction. The project was meant to bring foot traffic to the district during construction.
"Transitional," by MASARY Studios, is on the side wall of Coolidge Hardware, on Kimball Road at the corner of Mt. Auburn Street. It is made from sheet aluminum and the white and yellow reflective tags used on roads, and it changes as you view it from different angles. MASARY Studios also produced the Solstice light show at Mount Auburn Cemetery.
"Dazzling the Pines," by Elaine Buckholtz, hangs in a group of trees next to the basketball court at Sullivan Playground. In daylight, the silver balls between the branches are easy to miss. At night, lights shine on them. Now that it gets dark earlier, the lit version is visible on an evening walk.
The restaurant row also got one more option this year. Boxfish, a 21-seat seafood restaurant at 613 Mount Auburn Street, opened in January 2026, according to the Boston Globe. It belongs to Manita Bunnagitkarn, who also owns Cha Yen Thai Cookery across the street. Boxfish is in the storefront where she first opened Cha Yen more than a decade ago. After Cha Yen moved across Mt. Auburn Street, the space sat empty for a year, and her customers told her the area was missing a good seafood restaurant. Boxfish was also on the Bigelow-to-Elton block scheduled for sidewalk work in mid-June, along with Sevan Bakery, Stella Pizza, Victoria Spa, Vasquez Barber Shop and Exotic Nails & Spa. Rathe has said reminders that come straight from businesses, like the posts from Artemis Yoga and Donohue's Bar & Grill, help customers see that they can still get there.
What the Finished Street Is Supposed to Look Like
The final pass is the part people will notice day to day. The project runs from the Cambridge line to the area near Starbucks. For most of that length, the road will go from two travel lanes in each direction to one, with turn lanes at key intersections. Dedicated bike lanes will cover 95 percent of the project area, and street parking will stay. Rathe has described corners in Coolidge Square with large granite walls embossed with "Coolidge Square." The walls will double as seating, surrounded by landscaping and new street trees. Padula expects the narrower road to help: "It will encourage more walkability, more visits. It will be good in the end."
So far, the October updates list tree trenches between Amherst Road and Walnut Street, but no planted trees or finished seating walls. For now, crews are setting granite curb between Richards Road and Stearns Road, and the weekly update for October 13 through 16 is posted on mountauburnstreet.com.
Long road projects like this one can affect the value of a house on the street, and the timing matters too. Anne's background in construction finance means she reads project schedules the way contractors do. If you are wondering how the Mount Auburn Street work might affect your timing in East Watertown, Anne M. Kennedy can give you a clear, realistic read on that. Get Your Free Home Valuation.
