Virtual Meeting to Offer Project Overview and Collect Neighborhood Feedback 

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, Ward 4 Councilor Jesse Clingan, and city staff invite you to join a virtual community meeting to learn about flood relief and water quality improvement efforts planned for Winter Hill, Ten Hills, and the surrounding neighborhood. 

The meeting will take place Wednesday, April 24, at 6:00 p.m. via Zoom. Visit the project website at somervillema.gov/mysticoutfall to learn more and attend the meeting. For those unable to attend, a recording of the presentation will be available on the project website, as well as on City YouTube and the city’s GovTV channels. 

At this meeting, city staff will introduce the project and share initial conceptual designs. Following the presentation, residents will have the opportunity to ask questions about the project and provide feedback. 

The City of Somerville is making substantial systemwide investments to modernize its sewer and stormwater infrastructure. As part of this effort, the city will be rehabilitating the existing utilities in Winter Hill, Ten Hills, and the neighborhood west of Foss Park. To support stormwater management in this area and beyond, the city is also installing new drainage infrastructure and constructing a new stormwater outfall pipe that will discharge to the Mystic River. This project will reduce flood risk in the surrounding area and help maintain the water quality of local rivers. 

In addition to the underground utility improvements, this project will also include street safety improvements and green infrastructure (drainage features designed to mimic natural processes such as irrigated planting areas, bioretention basins with select soils and plants that catch and filter stormwater, new trees, etc.) throughout the neighborhood. 

This project is one of a series of actions the city is undertaking to reduce water pollution, address flooding, and modernize Somerville’s infrastructure. Preliminary designs are expected to be complete by Fall 2024. Final design is anticipated to be complete during 2025. All schedules are preliminary and subject to change. Construction will follow.