How many times can the same stretch of Novato Boulevard be torn open? Anyone who has driven between Diablo Avenue and Grant Avenue since spring 2025 has already sat through one round, the PG&E crews putting wires underground. A second round is now on the calendar. The city's construction hub says the new work is tentatively scheduled to begin in November 2026 and finish in mid-2028.
The new sidewalks and bike lanes are the visible part. Much of the money goes into sewer and water pipe that will be out of sight once the asphalt is back, and that pipe work is the reason the City of Novato, North Marin Water District and Novato Sanitary District put everything into one contract, so that this stretch gets opened one more time instead of three.
The first dig is still wrapping up
The orange cones arriving this month go up on a street where PG&E's crews haven't finished. The city's Novato Boulevard project page says PG&E has substantially completed its major gas and electrical underground work on the corridor. Electrical service cutovers, removal of overhead electrical equipment and telecommunications work will continue into 2027.
So for at least part of next year, two separate crews will be working the same street. The city says it and its partners will coordinate with PG&E and other utilities to limit overlapping work and traffic disruption "to the extent feasible."
The PG&E phase gave the neighborhood a preview. In October 2025, Patch reported that undergrounding had closed Novato Boulevard between 7th Street and Diablo Avenue on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with drivers detoured onto Center Road or Grant Avenue. That work was then expected to run through March 2026. That closure belonged to PG&E's work, not to the project starting now. It still shows which side streets get the overflow when this corridor tightens up.
What goes under the street, and who pays for it
The city's project page records that the construction contract went to Team Ghilotti, Inc. on September 22, 2026, as the lowest responsive, responsible bidder of eight. According to the Marin Independent Journal, the contract is about $16.8 million, and the full project comes to about $23.9 million once staff time and contingencies are included.
The city puts its own share of the construction contract at about $8 million. That figure includes its estimated portion of shared costs such as traffic control. Roughly half the contract, then, covers the two utility districts' work.
| Partner | What it's building | Funding reported |
|---|---|---|
| City of Novato | Continuous sidewalks on both sides, Class II bike lanes on both sides, a new center lane, roadway widening, updated crosswalks, traffic signals and street lighting, drainage with clean-water treatment, drought-tolerant and fire-wise landscaping | About $8.49 million in Measure AA funds |
| Novato Sanitary District | A new parallel trunk sewer with manholes, collector sewer and replacement laterals | About $4.7 million |
| North Marin Water District | About 5,800 feet of water distribution pipe, plus replacement of lines running from nearby houses | About $2.7 million |
The city's bid notice describes all three portions as locally funded, with no state or federal money. In the Marin IJ report, Public Works Director Chris Benigni said the agency figures could still shift once actual bids are compared with estimates, and any updated numbers would come back as a budget amendment.
The order of the work follows from that split. Sewer laterals and water service lines run from homes under the curb and into the roadbed. If the sidewalks and bike lanes went in first and the pipes came later, the new surface would have to be cut open again. The city says combining the work into one project "is intended to improve efficiency, shorten the overall construction duration, and minimize repeated disruptions to the community."
Why it took 25 years, and why it's three lanes instead of five
According to the Marin IJ, planning started in 2001. The design changed shape along the way. The city's project history shows a workshop on a five-lane layout on June 11, 2009. Two public workshops on a three-lane option followed on April 18 and 21, 2018, and the City Council chose the three-lane alternative on June 12, 2018. At the time, the city said the narrower design would cost less and have fewer environmental impacts than five lanes, and gave a preliminary estimate of $10 million to $15 million.
Funding had been the obstacle. A February 2015 Metropolitan Transportation Commission plan for Novato listed widening Novato Boulevard from Diablo to Grant at $20 million total, with $0 in committed funds. Eleven years later, the road portion is paid for with Measure AA money, and the two utility districts are covering their own share of a larger project.
At the council meeting the Marin IJ covered, Benigni said, "There are a lot of things that have happened throughout the last 25 years that have pushed the project — much outside of the control of the city — but we're finally at a momentous stage where we are ready to go to construction." City Manager Amy Cunningham called it "a massive project for the community."
The next two years, by date
The city has been clear that construction will be disruptive. Benigni told the council, as reported by the Marin IJ:
"It's going to be another 24 months of dirt, dust, noise, and I realize that the community has dealt with a lot as PG&E and the private utilities have been doing their undergrounding work for years now. But we've learned and watched and intend to communicate with the neighborhood better, have better traffic control, be less disruptive, and give well in advance notice when there's going to be major disruptions to the traffic."
The published milestones so far:
- Spring 2025: PG&E's undergrounding work on the corridor begins.
- September 22, 2026: Contract awarded to Team Ghilotti.
- November 2026: Tentative start of the city, sewer and water work.
- Into 2027: PG&E cutovers, overhead equipment removal and telecom work continue alongside.
- Mid-2028: Anticipated completion. The hub describes it as a 400-day project and says the day count may change as work progresses.
Closure details will be posted on the Novato Boulevard construction hub, run with the city's construction management consultant, Ghirardelli Associates. The hub has a project status map that the team says it will update as construction moves along, plus sections covering business and residential access, parking restrictions, construction noise, pedestrian access, lane closures, dust control and utility shutoffs. Questions go to 415-763-7635 or [email protected], weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Questions about the PG&E work still go to PG&E Outreach Specialist John Baston at 707-867-9466. You can sign up for email updates from the city's project page.
Where the boulevard meets December
The project ends at Grant Avenue, the main route into Old Town, and the first weeks of construction fall during Old Town's busiest stretch of the year. The Downtown Novato Business Association has the Community Tree Lighting Festival on Saturday, December 5, from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Old Town streets close to cars for performances, vendors, food and drink and children's crafts, and Santa arrives on a firetruck. The association also lists a Bouncy Ball New Year event on December 31.
The city's events calendar fills out the rest of the month at the Margaret Todd Senior Center, 1560 Hill Road:
- Holiday Crafts Faire: Friday, December 4, 6 to 9 p.m., and Saturday, December 5, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free, with more than 50 artisans, entertainment and food.
- Family photos with Santa: Saturday, December 5, 10 a.m. to noon, $5 per family. Registration opened November 2 and time slots are limited.
- Gingerbread Build: Saturday, December 12, with sessions at 9:30 and 11 a.m. and a sensory-friendly session at 1 p.m. Registration opened November 3.
Saturday, December 5, has the crafts faire, the Santa photos and the tree lighting all on the same day. Checking the hub's status map that morning will show which part of Novato Boulevard has crews working before you head toward Grant Avenue.
If you live along Novato Boulevard and are trying to time a move, a remodel or a sale around the next two years of construction, we're glad to talk through it with you, starting with how your stretch of the street is affected. Marks Realty Group is here when you're ready. Book an Appointment.
