Eversource Begins Process for New Winn Street Substation as Burlington's Power Demand Maxes Out the Grid

Two of the three substations keeping the lights on in Burlington and Woburn are running near full capacity, and the third isn't far behind. Eversource told the Select Board this month it has a fix — and the company wants resident input as they finalize the details.

Representatives from Eversource presented its plan for what it's calling the Burlington to Woburn Supply Initiative at the Select Board's June 8 meeting: a new substation off Winn St., roughly 2.5 miles of new overhead transmission lines strung across three towns, and about 12 miles of new underground distribution cable. This is the most detailed look yet at a project Eversource has been developing with town staff since 2021, and the process is about to get underway in earnest.

Why now?

The three substations currently serving the Burlington-Woburn area — Middlesex Turnpike in Burlington, and the North and South Woburn stations — together serve about 75,000 customers. Two are already near 100% capacity, and the third sits at 85%. A mobile substation Eversource deployed in 2023 has helped stabilize the system, but the company says it's a stopgap, not a long-term solution for a region whose electricity demand will only grow.

Eversource's Peter Bowman, who works in community relations for the utility, told the board the company looked at alternatives before settling on a new substation — more solar, more energy efficiency programs, more battery storage. "The alternatives, either individually or as a combination, don't meet the capacity needs or the capacity growth," Bowman said.

The company also points to a broader trend: homes are expected to use two to three times more electricity in the coming years as more residents add electric vehicles and heat pumps. According to the Burlington to Woburn Supply Initiative website, "This project is part of [Eversource's] Electric Sector Modernization Plan (ESMP), a 10-year roadmap to modernize the electric grid and support Massachusetts’ climate goals."

The site

Eversource says it evaluated roughly 60 potential sites before narrowing the list to 11, then to two finalists — both company-owned parcels, both in Burlington — on Winn St. and Margaret St. The Winn St. location won out, Bowman said, largely on constructability and lower community impact. A site on Corporate Drive, floated earlier by previous town administrator Paul Sagarino, didn't make the final cut.

That left Select Board member Mike Espejo with a question: Why were all three finalist sites in Burlington, when Woburn — with a larger population — presumably uses more power? Bowman said the deciding factor was proximity to the "load pocket" between the two towns and access to the existing transmission corridors that converge near the Winn St. site.

The proposed station sits on a two-and-a-half-acre Eversource-owned parcel accessed off Winn St., between Winn and Locust streets, via an existing unpaved right-of-way. It would be fenced for security, with the company saying it will work with neighbors on fence color and screening to soften the look.

What's actually getting built

Beyond the substation itself, the project includes about 30 new overhead transmission structures — 75 to 125 feet tall — along the existing right-of-way stretching from Burlington through Wilmington to Woburn. Underground, about 12 miles of new distribution line would run through local streets, including Locust St., Bedford St., and Bedford Rd., to connect the new substation with, and strengthen, the existing distribution network.

Once the new substation comes online, all four stations in the area would operate around 75 to 80% capacity — giving the system room to absorb continued growth rather than lurching from crisis to crisis.

The timeline

After nearly five years of planning and collaborating with Burlington boards and departments, Eversource plans to file the project in the fourth quarter of 2026 under a new consolidated state permitting process. Bowman said the review is expected to take about 15 months, with construction potentially starting around 2028 and lasting about two years for the substation, plus additional time for transmission and distribution work.

Select Board member Joe Morandi flagged the obvious: The people sitting on the Select Board now, and possibly some members of town staff, won't all still be there when shovels go in the ground. Fellow board member Nick Priest agreed with the sentiment, emphasizing the Board's need to set the project up for collaboration and success rather than rubber-stamping it: "No matter who takes the baton going forward, we're all in it together," he said.

Members of the Eversource team, including Project Engagement Specialist Ian Kea, who is the primary point of contact for residents and town officials, agreed.

Even with most permitting routed through the state, the town still has its own approvals to grant along the way — a grant of location, an earth-moving permit, and stormwater and wetlands permits through the Conservation Commission, since the project involves removing more than two acres of vegetation and work near wetlands and priority habitat areas. Select Board member Sarah Cawley pressed on that piece specifically; David Halliwell, environmental siting consultant, said the project team has been holding monthly meetings with staff from the town's Planning Department since the project's early stages and has involved the Conservation Department.

Other questions raised by the board include how the project might reduce the outages residents already complain about (Eversource says distribution upgrades should shorten outage length and improve restoration), whether the new towers will be visible once trees lose their leaves (Priest suggested evergreen screening; Eversource says it will work with affected property owners "where feasible"), how installation of towers might impact neighborhoods (the project team said side streets aren't likely to be used for this work and it will likely be done through the water department's access road), and whether the substation generates ongoing noise (low-level transformer hum, currently being studied alongside background noise levels).

Community meeting scheduled for June 24

Eversource has scheduled its first public meeting on the project for June 24, from 6 to 8 p.m., with the presentation starting at 6:30. It's a hybrid meeting, open to both in-person and virtual attendance, with Spanish and Portuguese translation available. Details and the meeting link are available through Eversource's project website, or through the letter mailed to residents within roughly a quarter mile of the substation site and along the proposed distribution routes.

Board members pushed back on how quietly that notice has traveled so far. "We didn't know about this meeting and it's two weeks away," Espejo said. Eversource said it's relying on mailed notices, door drops, its project hotline, and outreach to local media.

Residents can also sign up for project email updates, call the company's project hotline, or attend planned sessions at the Burlington Public Library to talk with Eversource staff directly. As for rate impacts, Eversource recognized the sensitivity around rates and said the project's costs will be folded into its broader rate structure.

For a project that will take years and outlast multiple Select Board terms, June 24 is just the opening round. More public meetings — and more chances to weigh in — are expected as the project moves toward its state filing. Visit the Burlington to Woburn Supply Initiative website and sign up for the mailing list to stay in the know.