Boston mayor shutting down construction sites across city

BOSTON — Construction sites Boston have been ordered to shut down in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Mayor Marty Walsh has called for all regular construction activity in the city to halt beginning on Tuesday.

This order could affect tens of thousands of workers in the middle of a construction boom here in Boston.

Busy construction sites in every corner of the city now at a standstill.

Walsh set a second deadline of next Monday for workers at each of these sites to complete securing measures, and then only emergency work approved by the city will be permitted.

“For the workers on the job site and to prevent spreading the virus we want to make sure those workers as safe,” Walsh said.

At the core of Boston’s bustling economy, the city’s long running construction boom has been a visible constant in the city’s growth.

But just like everything else around us, it too is is not invincible to the coronavirus pandemic.

A Monday that began with many large construction sites across Boston, fully up and running, ended with another eery reminder of a life now on hold.

As projects in every corner of the city came to a screeching halt, frozen for at least two weeks and possible longer.

“We have to kind of put things to a halt for two weeks to slow down something we don’t know a lot about... it’s something we have to do and just rally,” said Ona Boczkowski of Boston.

Like many others currently sorting through uncertainty Charlene Robinson is trying to stay optimistic.

“We have to feed our kids, pay our bills. I have to pay a car note, car insurance,” said Robinson.

But seeing a construction shutdown in Boston is another reminder of the magnitude of the hard-hitting economic impact, leaving her to wonder what another few weeks will bring.

“One thing I’m worried about is not the virus but the reaction people are having to the situation,” Robinson said. “I’ve watched one too many Sci-fi movies and I’ve seen one too many things happen where it goes to chaos.”

To make sure, there’s order at all of these construction sites across the city the mayor is reminding employers to secure all materials, properly lock up all of these sites and to potentially think about keeping security on site.

Again, sites have to be secured by next Monday, and after that only skeleton crews will be allowed at each of these projects to make sure things are safe.

And the only work allowed after that will have to be approved by Boston Inspectional Services.