MAMA Seeks to Minimize Construction Issues on Chelsea

Your MAMA officers have been meeting with the developers of The Carter, the high-rise under construction on Chelsea Blvd., to minimize the inevitable challenges of living amidst this ongoing work for the next 29 months. The earthwork and completion of the concrete structure appear to have the most impact on the neighborhood, and should take about a year to complete.

In early November MAMA president Allen Ueckert and vice-president Doug Lawing met with Michael Goodwill, the developer, and Jon Cleveland, the construction supervisor, about the timeline for the project and how to interface with the developers if problems arise.

The construction schedule is summarized below. Neighbors are invited to call Jon Cleveland’s office to report issues with contractors, parking, noise, trash, etc.  That number is 832-916-3610.

Schedule Summary:

Overall Duration: Approximately 29 months (October 2014 to early 2017)

Earthwork: October 2014 – early 2015

Concrete Structure: November/ December 2014 – Winter 2015

Building Exterior Envelope: Spring 2015 – Summer 2016

Interiors: Summer 2015 – early 2017

Landscape/ Hardscape: Fall 2016

The following issues were raised in the most recent meeting:

  • Concrete pours will happen one  weekday per week for 11 months and take place over 5 hours, ideally at night to avoid Joy School traffic and guarantee availability of trucks.  The pours would begin a 2 a.m. and be complete at 7 a.m. The trucks will  enter from Main Street to avoid tree damage on Chelsea.  The developers will erect noise barriers to ensure the pours do not exceed the decibel level set by the City. To avoid damaging the trees in the esplanade, trucks will enter the site from  Main Street and not Montrose. The trucks will not be parked on Chelsea or surrounding neighborhood streets during the pour activity.
  • The developers have  contracted with Holland Lodge for worker parking and workers will not be allowed  to park around the site or neighborhood. The developers will monitor parking, but neighbors can call to report any  violations of the policy.
  • After construction, the esplanades will be restored with some modification to ensure that patrons of Chelsea Market will use a left turn from Chelsea into the parking lot.  The plan shows the restored esplanades approximately equal in to their original size.
  • The building will be fully  complete in early 2017, but exterior construction, which will have the  most impact on the neighborhood, should be  substantially complete in mid-2016.