In October 2025, a crew from BTT Marine Construction worked its way along the Peter J. Matthews Memorial Boardwalk and drilled in about 200 new screws. The new ones were coated and longer. Chemical preservatives in the pressure-treated timbers under the deck had eaten away the threads of the old fasteners, and boards had started to loosen and lift.
The city knew the screws were a patch. A year later, the full repair has started. The City of Newburyport awarded the rehabilitation contract to Atlantic Coast Tug and Marine, and the crew was scheduled to start mobilizing on October 23 to put up construction fencing. The finished boardwalk will be three kinds of surface fitted together on purpose, at the same height it sits today. The work is timed to start after the boats leave and finish before they come back.
The structure underneath mostly held up
The boardwalk went in during the late 1970s and was extended and re-decked in 2002. In 2025 the city brought in GEI Consultants, a marine engineering firm. GEI pulled up deck boards in about half a dozen spots to look at the timber stringers and the concrete and steel foundations below. About 90% of those supports were in satisfactory shape. The decking was in much worse condition, with splintering, rot and loose fasteners, and GEI estimated about 60% of the boardwalk needs new deck boards.
That gap between the frame and the surface shaped the whole project. The trip hazards people have stepped around for years were on top, not underneath. The city describes the plan as a partial reconstruction that reuses material still in good condition.
The temporary fixes showed the same thing. In November 2025, the city's contractor found that some spans were too long for pressure-treated southern yellow pine. For those spans, it brought in 3x8 oak hardwood boards. Whatever went down had to suit the span it sat on.
Green, yellow and red
At the Community Preservation Committee's January 29, 2026 meeting, city planner Geordie Vining walked members through a map of GEI's recommendation. The meeting notes describe three colors:
| Zone on the map | What's there now | What happens this winter |
|---|---|---|
| Green | Tropical hardwood still in good shape | Left in place, with spot repairs |
| Yellow | Sections in need of new boards | Filled with timber salvaged from the rebuilt areas |
| Red | Decking that failed | Replaced with new composite decking |
Nobody knows exactly why the green sections held up when so much of the original decking didn't. GEI recommended leaving them alone because that saves a lot of money. The yellow zones take that idea a step further. Hardwood pulled from the red areas doesn't go to a dumpster if it can be reused somewhere else on the boardwalk.
So next summer, people walking from the western end toward the Harbormaster's end on the east will be crossing older wood, reused wood and new composite in turn.
Why composite, and where the city had already tested it
The November 2025 public meeting notice laid out the options being weighed: tropical hardwood, composite plastic lumber and pressure-treated pine. Each was judged on cost, durability, appearance, track record, availability and ecological impact. GEI's recommendation came down to a short line on the city's January presentation slide: "partial reconstruction; new composite decking."
According to the CPC meeting notes, a mixed committee looked for products with long service life, a lot of recycled content, no splintering or rot, and little maintenance. The better products also come with UV protection and built-in traction.
The local example was already in the water. The floats along the waterfront have composite decking about 20 years old, and the same notes say it has weathered well in that marine setting. The new red zones use a material that has already spent two decades in this harbor's salt, sun and ice.
Same height, by choice
The boardwalk is being rebuilt at its current elevation. Vining told the CPC that it was built to handle being underwater now and then. He said a future generation may need to rebuild it and possibly raise it. Raising it now would be a major job, and keeping the current level holds down the cost.
A schedule set by the boats
This work can only happen in one window each year. The city's project page says construction has to fall in the fall and winter off-season so it doesn't disrupt the boating season or the warm-weather crowds on the boardwalk. Vining's January timeline for the CPC tied each step to that calendar:
- Design and permitting through the spring
- Bidding in early summer
- Notice to proceed in early fall
- Mobilizing in mid-October, once the floats come out
- Demolition, salvage and construction over a roughly six-month off-season
- Punch list and finishing touches in May, as boating season begins
The October 22 update shows the plan running on time. The Yankee Clipper Harbor Tours floats on the western end had been removed, and Atlantic Coast Tug and Marine was set to mobilize the next day to fence two laydown and staging areas, one east and one west of the embayment, plus the first work zone at the western end of the boardwalk.
The city expects the crew to stay on that western section through November. After that, the crew and its fencing move to the next section, working from west to east. Much of the boardwalk stays open to the public while it moves. The goal is to finish by summer 2027.
The city also explained why it couldn't wait. In January it said funding, permits and plans all had to come together that spring so the project could go out to bid in the summer and get a contractor on site in the fall. Vining told the CPC the reason for asking for a fast vote was to avoid pushing the project back a full year.
How the money came together
Most of the funding comes from the state. On January 8, 2026, the Commonwealth's Seaport Economic Council approved a $1,492,500 grant for the project, which Governor Healey's office announced among its 2026 awards. The grant required a local match of 20% or more.
The CPC notes break that match into three pieces:
- $75,000 in earlier Community Preservation Act funding, already approved and spent
- $50,000 approved by the Newburyport Waterfront Trust
- $285,000 requested from the CPC
The CPC voted unanimously on January 29 to recommend the $285,000. On March 2, according to the City Council minutes, the council approved that appropriation and accepted the state grant, 11 votes in favor of each. The Daily News put the overall budget at a little over $1.8 million, including contingency. When CPC Chair Mike Dissette asked whether the estimates would hold, Vining said he believed they were good but that the budget included contingencies because prices keep rising.
Santa still docks at the boardwalk on November 29
The first big crowd of the construction season comes on Sunday, November 29, for the Newburyport Rotary Club's Santa Parade and Tree Lighting. According to Newburyport.com, Santa and Mrs. Claus arrive on a boat from the Merrimack River Coast Guard Station. They head up the river toward Michael's Harborside so people can see them on the water, then dock at the boardwalk and lead a procession to Market Square.
The times depend on the tide, so plan to arrive early:
- Around 3:30 p.m.: the Coast Guard boat leaves
- Around 3:45 to 4 p.m.: the parade starts
- Around 4:15 to 4:30 p.m.: the tree is lit
In Market Square, the Mayor hands Santa the key to the city, which is kept at The Brass Lyon. The Newburyport and Triton High School bands and choruses lead the caroling, and the Greater Newburyport Chamber of Commerce provides the tree. The city posts work-zone changes on its boardwalk project page, and Geordie Vining in the Planning Office is the listed contact at (978) 465-4400 ext. 6.
In December, holiday events move up from the waterfront into downtown. The Chamber's events calendar lists Yuletide Invitation Nights on December 4, 11 and 18 from 6 to 9 p.m., and Santa's Workshop at Brown Square on Saturdays and Sundays from December 5 through 20, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Thinking about a house that has some of the same problems? Plenty of older homes around here have solid framing under worn floors or porches. Our team at Flow Realty brings general contracting experience to these questions, and we're glad to help you sort out what's worth keeping, what to salvage and what to replace before you buy or list. Contact us when you'd like to talk it through.
