Powering Boston’s Residential Boom
Urgent Need is Driving Construction Across Greater Boston and Aldon Electric is Energizing the Boom from the Ground Up
It’s no secret. Demand for new housing is reshaping the landscape of the Greater Boston area. Developers are racing to meet the need, initiating construction of large-scale residential towers, ambitious mixed-use conversions, and transit-oriented apartment development hubs. Indeed, the residential boom is part of a national trend that shows no signs of slowing down.
Aldon Electric saw it coming years ago. Company co-founder Allen Mullaney explains: “I remember a lot of talk about it 15 or 20 years ago: ‘There’s going to be a residential boom, a residential boom, a residential boom.’ That’s all they were saying. Then the boom came.”
The company’s prescience has paid off. In its 40th year, the Weymouth-based firm is a key partner in the region’s residential expansion, with approximately 230 employees, a deep bench of skilled electricians, and a large and growing portfolio of multifamily projects.
“We’re constantly bidding builders,” Mullaney continues. “Quincy is just blowing up. And if you look at the outskirts of Boston—Wellesley, Brookline, Dorchester—there’s just a lot of building going on. Aldon probably has 1,500 units under construction as of today.”
Aldon’s residential docket reflects a bold evolution in housing construction. The company is helping create more than individual homes; they are delivering entire communities.
One of Aldon’s signature projects is The Abby in North Quincy, a major residential development located directly adjacent to the MBTA Red Line.
“It’s a beautiful building,” Mullaney said. “The amenities are amazing, and they back right up to the MBTA station.”
Built on a 6.77-acre MBTA-owned surface parking lot, the multi-phase project replaces a commuter parking area with a new residential and commercial destination featuring 610 apartment residences, 50,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, and 1,600 parking spaces.
The development represents the type of transit-oriented project that is reshaping Greater Boston’s approach to housing—creating public transit-accessible residential communities.
“If you look at these places strategically, public transportation is a big factor when they build these things. The residents literally come out of their unit, cut through the parking garage, and there’s the MBTA station right there,” Mullaney says, adding with customary frankness. “I mean, who wants to drive into Boston?”
With high-end residences, landscaped courtyards, covered parking, neighborhood retail, and restaurants at street level, The Abby represents the kind of mixed-use development driving the region’s residential growth. For Aldon, it is also a reflection of the company’s ability to deliver complex projects that combine scale, technology, and tight construction timelines.
“They start with a hole in the ground, and we get in there and start laying our underground conduits.” From there, Aldon delivers the critical systems that power the building, including electrical infrastructure, fire alarm, security, and telecommunications.
“The developer puts together a schedule; we adhere to the schedule. One thing a lot of the GCs say when we get on a job as electricians, we push the job.”
That pace is especially important in multifamily construction, where developers often seek to open completed sections of a building while work continues elsewhere.
“Half the developers want to open half the building, start renting them, and then finish the other half,” Mullaney said. “We’ll get all the systems up and running—the fire alarm, the elevators, all that good stuff—and they start renting right away.”
Meeting such demands requires experience, planning, and a workforce trained specifically for the challenges of multifamily development. Aldon deep talent roster fits the bill.
“Our guys are keyed in on residential,” Mullaney said. “I’ve got a great residential crew. I’ll put them up against anybody.”
A typical project may require dozens of electricians at peak construction, with manpower increasing and decreasing as phases of the building are completed. Aldon also uses prefabrication to improve efficiency and maintain quality control. The company operates a 10,000-square-foot facility where components can be prepared before arriving at the job site.
“We try to prefab most of the residential work in my shop,” Mullaney said. “Any power distribution that we can prefab, we’ll do.”
Mullaney credits Aldon’s ability to compete for major residential projects to its strong relationship with IBEW Local 103 and NECA Boston. The company joined the union more than two decades ago, a move Mullaney calls an important turning point in Aldon’s growth.
“We came in doing about $900,000 a year in business going into the union, and we’re up over $80 million now,” he said. “Working with the union, it’s a partnership. We work together, we get the job, and then we get the job done.”
That partnership provides Aldon with access to skilled electricians, training opportunities, and industry resources that help the company compete in an increasingly demanding market.
“There’s an abundance of knowledge that NECA and the union can give contractors as a tool to make us successful,” Mullaney said.
Looking ahead, Mullaney is confident that the demand for housing will continue. “I don’t see it stopping, just because the need is so great.” As the residential landscape of Greater Boston continues to grow, Aldon Electric is positioned to remain its most reliable power source. After 40 years on the scene, Aldon is shaping the region’s next chapter – a boon not only for contractors and industry professionals but for the generations of families who will call Boston home.