UPDATE: In an update just after noon on Tuesday, New Bedford City Councilor Brian Gomes confirmed that demolition scheduled for this afternoon has been cancelled until further notice.

NEW BEDFORD — Two New Bedford roads will be briefly closed tomorrow afternoon as workers demolish the former Eversource/Sprague power plant — including the well-known "cigarette" smoke stack — on the waterfront.

The temporary closure of parts of Rt. 18 and MacArthur Drive will start at 2 p.m. and go until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, according to the mayor's office.

Demolition work will be undertaken as part of the New Bedford Foss Marine Terminal project announced in 2021.

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The Foss Marine Terminal project will see most of the site turned into a marine industrial facility for offshore wind, but also includes a few acres for seafood offloading and other commercial space.

Four acres closest to the downtown area have also been sold to the city to turn into a mixed-use commercial district for restaurants, shops, and offices.

Construction on the project began this year, with work on the terminal slated to finish in March 2023.

Tuesday afternoon's road closures will affect MacArthur Drive and Rt. 18/JFK Boulevard between Walnut Street and Griffin Court.

New Bedford Acushnet Ave Fire 12-2-2022

Sixteen people were displaced as New Bedford firefighters battled a blaze in an apartment over a florist shop on Acushnet Avenue on the afternoon of December 2.

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