Somerville's Homans Building Coming Down; Lion Will Live On

SOMERVILLE, MA — Demolition of the remaining parts of the Homans building in Somerville will take place April 6 and 7, the city announced Friday. Teardown of the 90-year-old building began this month for Green Line Extension construction.

Work will take place during daytime hours. A water mist will be used to control the dust, city officials said..

During work hours, Medford Street between School and Walnut Streets will be closed to vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Southbound traffic will be detoured via School Street and Highland Avenue.

Northbound traffic will be detoured onto Walnut Street, to Broadway and then to School Street. Abutter access will be managed onsite by the construction supervisor during the street closure. MBTA bus route 80 will also service a slightly modified route in the area. The MBTA will post additional information on www.mbta.com and at affected bus stops.

Built in 1929, the building originally served as a distribution facility for Chicago-based company Monarch Finer Foods. The concrete lion face on the façade, Monarch's trademark, was removed last fall and will be reincorporated into the Gilman Square neighborhood.

To stay informed about City construction, you can sign up to receive a weekly email at www.somervillema.gov/construction. You can also enroll in the City’s alert system at www.somervillema.gov/alerts to be notified prior to major detours or disruptive construction in your neighborhood.