Merrimac Select Board Shares Update on Mill Street Bridge Replacement

MERRIMAC – The Town of Merrimac Select Board shares that the Mill Street bridge replacement project has been fully funded through grants and that the project is set to move forward this fall. 

In November 2019, the Mill Street culvert over Cobblers Brook failed, resulting in a total road closure. The road provided primary access to the Town’s Wastewater Treatment Plant, a town Department of Public Works site utilized for winter snow operations and the Merrimac Electric Light Department Garage and Substation. 

Since the closure, the town has worked diligently to secure funding to replace the culvert with a new bridge about 100 feet north of the existing stream crossing, allowing the stream channel to return to its natural passage. 

The Select Board is pleased to share that, thanks to grant funding, the project will proceed this year.

In June 2025, the town received $500,000 in funding through Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s (MassDOT) Municipal Small Bridge Program, which provides financial support to cities and towns for small bridge replacement, preservation, and rehabilitation projects. Through that same grant program, the town received an additional $3 million in funding for Fiscal Year 2026.

In addition, the town received a $1 million grant from the state Executive Office of Economic Development through Community One Stop for Growth, a MassWorks Program that acts as the main vehicle for public economic development investment in the Commonwealth. The programs within the One Stop include critical funding that spurs housing and economic development by investing in public infrastructure, preparing sites and cleaning up brownfields to prepare them for development, and supporting vibrant downtowns.

“I want to thank the Healey-Driscoll administration for investing in Merrimac, a town that exemplifies how to manage both its smart housing growth and its rural heritage. These multi-million dollar grants are making crucial infrastructure investments more affordable for the town’s residents,” said state Rep. Dawne Shand. 

With the funding secured, the town has begun the process of preparing bid documents, and hopes to begin the project in the fall. 

“The town of Merrimac appreciates the awarding of three grants totaling $4.5 million to restructure the Mill Street Bridge over Cobblers Brook. We are most grateful to the MassDOT and look forward to completing this project. It will provide access to a number of municipal facilities in our town for the betterment of Merrimac and its citizens,” said Select Board Chair Janet Bruno. “Thank you to the state and our employees who spent so much time preparing the paperwork for submission: Robert Sinibaldi, Alyssa Sexton and Denise McClure, for their efforts.”