A section of the Neponset River Greenway next to Boston Bowl will remain temporarily closed this summer as state crews work on a new pump station aimed at reducing recurring flooding along Morrissey Boulevard.
The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) said the closure, which began in mid-April, is part of the agency’s $3.8 million Morrissey Boulevard Resilient Stormwater Pump Station Project. The work zone is behind 818 Morrissey, where the new underground station will connect to an existing stormwater outfall into the Neponset River.
The project is intended to address a long-running flooding problem on Morrissey, where heavy rain combined with high tides or storm surgse can shut the outfall tide gate, preventing stormwater from draining into the river. When that happens, water can back up onto the boulevard and nearby properties, creating hazardous driving conditions.
DCR says the permanent pump station will allow stormwater to keep moving out during those high-tide events, significantly reducing localized flooding.
Greenway users are being routed around the impacted section while construction continues. DCR said the temporary closure is needed to allow stormwater bypass pumping and safe access for construction crews, even though the station itself is being built outside the trail footprint.
The detour impacts the newest “missing link” section of the Neponset Greenway that opened to the public in July 2025. State and local officials held a formal ribbon-cutting on April 29, celebrating the 0.9-mile extension from Tenean Beach to Morrissey Boulevard.
The work is part of a broader set of resiliency and transportation investments planned or underway in the area, including the Morrissey Boulevard and Kosciuszko Circle redesign, the Neponset River Greenway extension, the JFK/UMass Station access plan, and Climate Ready Boston initiatives.
DCR expects the project to be substantially complete in September, which would allow the affected Greenway path to reopen. Full project completion is expected in spring 2027.
The agency said it completed earlier work within the bike path footprint during construction of the Greenway to limit future disruptions, but the current phase required additional design work and property easements before the pump station design could be finalized.
