Westwood project gets $55m boost
State says upgrades also will benefit area
Governor Deval Patrick’s administration will spend up to $55 million on public works improvements to jump-start construction of Westwood Station, located at the heavily traveled intersection of Interstates 93 and 95 and one of the region’s largest and most controversial private developments.
The funding will finance a new exit off I-95 as well as a local road into the development site, both of which are intended to improve access and placate neighbors worried about nearby streets being flooded with cars.
“Not only will these improvements set the stage for the Westwood development, they are also important transportation upgrades for that region,’’ said Gregory Bialecki, state secretary of Housing and Economic Development.
Bialecki and state Transportation Secretary Jeffrey Mullan detailed the state’s commitment in a letter they sent Tuesday to Westwood Station developer Cabot, Cabot & Forbes, which plans to build more than 3 million square feet of stores, offices, and homes near the Westwood-Canton line.
The funding is part of a broader strategy by the Patrick administration to use state money to spur construction of private developments that will create jobs for Massachusetts residents. The work is particularly vital for the hard-hit construction industry, which has an unemployment rate of nearly 20 percent.
Westwood Station is among several large developments that have struggled to get going during the economic downturn. The state’s letter indicates that funding for the transportation upgrades is conditioned on the developer starting construction on at least a portion of the project this year.
Cabot, Cabot & Forbes could not be reached for immediate comment, but this week an executive at the firm told the Globe he is confident the company will begin work in the coming months.
The Patrick administration’s financial commitment follows a decision by the state’s highest court this week to reject a legal challenge to the project from the town of Canton, which said the development would fill its streets with 55,000 cars every day, while sending all the tax proceeds from the development to the town of Westwood.
In its letter, the administration urged Cabot to continue working with Canton officials to come up with additional traffic improvements to prevent cars from backing up on the town’s streets. Officials from the town of Canton could not be reached.
State Representative William C. Galvin, whose district includes Canton, said it appears town officials and developers are close to reaching an agreement. “As long as those issues are resolved, I support this project moving forward,’’ he said.
