Federal grant jumpstarts long-delayed Old State House stabilization in Boston
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A project to stabilize the Old State House and its plaza — where steel beams have rusted and face an increasing risk of collapse — finally received federal funding after years of starts and stops.
Why it matters: The 313-year-old building and plaza's ability to bear a heavy load, like a truck rolling by the fire lane, is compromised, according to the civic group that oversees it.
- The structural flaws will pose a danger to pedestrians in downtown Boston if left unaddressed.
State of play: Revolutionary Spaces, which oversees the Old State House, secured a federal grant to stabilize the beams, which support the plaza and the west side of the building, after previous efforts to fix the problem fell through.
- Nat Sheidley, president and CEO of Revolutionary Spaces, credited U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey with securing the $286,000 in funding through the appropriations bill passed in January.
Flashback: The structural problems stem from the State Street station's construction underneath the Old State House in 1903, when load-bearing steel beams were installed on top of the mechanical room.
- The beams, which support the plaza and the building, weren't properly waterproofed and began to rust over the next century.
- When a slab of concrete fell from the room's ceiling in 2013, Revolutionary Spaces asked the firm SGH to review the building conditions.
- SGH found the beams were severely rusted due to water infiltration, Sheidley said, citing an engineering report from the firm.
What they're saying: "We determined that we could not be confident that it could support the load of a vehicle passing over it at that time," Sheidley told Axios.
- He declined to share the report, saying it was an internal document.
- SGH did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Zoom in: The organization brought in crews to shore up the beams at the time, but that was only a temporary fix.
- Efforts to undertake a long-term stabilization project have dragged on for years, partly due to the skyrocketing prices of construction materials during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The new funding enables the organization to secure new contracts to proceed with the project, Sheidley said.
What's next: Crews could break ground on the project as early as this fall and finish by the end of the year, barring any delays, Sheidley said.
- That will pave the way for a more complex undertaking Sheidley plans to propose: Making the Old State House wheelchair accessible.