VA garage site has early a.m. work

(Gazette Photo by Rebeca Oliveira) A crane prepares to hoist a section of concrete at the garage construction site on Nov. 29.

S. HUNTINGTON—New work, some of it in the early morning, is under way at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center garage construction site at 150 S. Huntington Ave., where noise previously has been an issue for neighbors.

A large crane was moved to the site on Nov. 26 and delivery of large sections of pre-cast concrete, some of which must happen in the 5-7 a.m. hour, will run through Dec. 21, the VA said in a statement emailed to the Gazette.

“We regret any inconvenience this may cause to the surrounding neighborhoods,” said VA spokesperson Diane Keefe.

The VA is constructing a five-story, 500-space parking garage on the former site of a surface parking lot to offer free parking to patients. The garage is currently expected to be open by early next summer, with major construction completed by Jan. 15, weather permitting, Keefe said.

As the Gazette previously reported, weekend and early-morning construction noise has been an issue for neighbors. Such work would be illegal under City of Boston code, but those rules do not apply to the VA, which is a federal facility. The VA previously said that such work was unavoidable due to hospital operations.

Deliveries of the pre-cast components of the garage can only happen during the hours of 5-7 a.m. and 9 a.m.-2 p.m. due to restrictions on oversize loads on the delivery route, which includes the Massachusetts Turnpike, the VA’s statement said.

No road closures are planned in connection with the deliveries, Keefe said. The VA said that the construction contractor, Williams Building Company, is coordinating the deliveries with the City of Boston.

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