The decision to halt construction projects was controversial nationwide. Boston and other cities in Massachusetts, including Cambridge, had been among a handful of U.S. cities to officially stop all construction. At the same time, some areas around the country were under orders that ban nonessential services, causing some construction leaders to wonder whether their work is considered essential or not. For many, this seemed contradictory.
In Las Vegas, the Allegiant Stadium construction site was open for business, even though Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak had issued a 30-day statewide closure of all nonessential businesses. Contractors were on the job in New York City and Northern California, too, even though those areas were among some of the hardest hit by the virus. Even a shelter-in-place order announced for six San Francisco Bay area counties allowed all housing projects to continue — market rate, affordable and mixed-use — while commercial construction projects were temporarily shut down. The 400 workers at Gilbane’s Foxconn project jobsite in Wisconsin and Dallas-Forth Worth area contractors stayed on schedule with projects in process but most new jobs had been paused for the time being due to economic uncertainty.
Home renovations and remodeling have continued around Massachusetts through the course of the pandemic. Contractors have covered themselves in personal protective equipment, or PPE, such as gloves, masks, and glasses, and clean their workspaces and tools frequently.
Boston is now allowing some construction projects in the city to resume by June 1. Patrick Brophy, the city’s chief of operations, wrote that Boston will take an “incremental approach” to broadening which “essential” construction projects are allowed to continue during the coronavirus pandemic.
The move will restart some of the construction that has been booming in the city — the sounds and sights of rising steel that have gone largely quiet since Mayor Marty Walsh instituted a moratorium on all nonessential construction work on March 17. The order came even as state regulations allowed for construction to continue on — particularly housing developments needed to meet regional demand — as long as workers followed social distancing and safety protocols.
Brophy, in his letter, highlighted that the city released new protocols as of April 27, requiring all construction sites to submit a COVID-19 safety plan and a signed affidavit. “Now that the COVID-19 Safety Policy for Construction has been implemented, and current construction is in compliance with the new mandate[s], the city will incrementally expand its categories of allowed construction to further align with the broader categories of construction defined as essential by the state,” he wrote.
According to Brophy, essential construction projects that are permitted and meet the requirements will be allowed to resume work if the work is for hospitals, residential buildings of up to three units, and public schools; is for roads and utilities; and if it is outdoors or in the open air, such as roofing, steel erection, and the construction of foundations.
On May 26, “the City of Boston will allow all essential construction projects to re-commence construction activities in adherence to their safety plans,” Brophy wrote. “This incremental approach will provide the time necessary to allow complex, large-scale development an opportunity to educate their workforce, safely remobilize and implement their site-specific Safety Plan,” he added. Even as more construction sites ready to reopen, Walsh says contractors should be respectful of their workers’ worries over safety.
The Mayor told the Associated Subcontractors of Massachusetts that he understands why workers would hesitate to return to their routines, particularly individuals over the age of 60, those who have elderly parents, and those who have pre-existing conditions, according to the Journal. Employers shouldn’t retaliate against those who don’t want to immediately return to work amidst the pandemic, he said.
Meanwhile, at sites where construction resumes, the Department of Public Works and Inspectional Services Department will inspect and monitor projects for compliance with safety plans, according to Brophy. Violators run the risk of having their work suspended or terminated, and their city permit revoked.
Walsh has also announced a partnership with Tufts Medical Center to provide coronavirus testing for the construction industry at the Tufts COVID-19 Screening Clinic at the Josiah Quincy Elementary School in Chinatown. “You do not have to be a union contractor to do this. It’s for everyone,” Walsh told the ASM. “At this point, every construction worker is the same.”
