New Haven Union Station could look very different. Here’s what’s planned
Two separate projects planned for New Haven Union Station
stir passengers to imagine a completely different experience entering the
station, making their way to the platforms and waiting for their train.
Past the station’s front doors will be a revamped atrium
that has a bar and café in the center and a winding staircase leading to
another bar on the mezzanine level. To fill the time before their train
arrives, riders will have more than a dozen different retail and dining options
to choose from within the station.
Then they’ll pass through an updated pedestrian tunnel as
they head to an extended platform covered by a new canopy system.
But it will take some years for all those plans to come to
fruition.
The interior
renovations as well as exterior repairs to the station and its parking
garage are expected to be completed by 2029. The overhaul
of the platforms is expected to start that year, and it is unclear how long
that construction work will take.
Meanwhile, there are also plans to build housing next to and
across from the station in the coming years and to make improvements at New
Haven’s other train
station on State Street.
Here’s what we know about the different projects.
Interior, exterior upgrades
This week, state and local officials touted plans to make
$15.7 million in interior improvements and $9.1 million in exterior repairs at
Union Station, which first opened in 1920 and serves almost 4 million
passengers annually today. Metro-North Railroad, Amtrak, Shore Line East and
Hartford Line trains stop at the station.
The plans for the interior include the two bars, new retail
and food service space, new flooring and ceiling tiles, expanded seating
options, LED lighting, renovated restrooms and hallways, additional family
restrooms, a new wellness room and upgraded utility connections.
The state is fully funding both the exterior repairs, which
are already underway, and the interior work. Some exterior work and the first
phase of interior work are expected to wrap up by the end of 2027. The second
phase of interior work is expected to be finished in the latter half of 2028,
and repairs to the parking garage should be done in 2029.
New platforms, canopies
The separate project involving the station’s platforms is
estimated to cost more than $400 million, with the federal government funding a
to-be-determined amount.
As part of the project, the current platforms will be
replaced by longer ones, and the existing canopies will be replaced by a system
that includes a central arched canopy, lower canopies on both ends and
skylights. One platform will be taken out of service for construction at a time
while the others continue to serve passengers.
The plans also include stair and elevator upgrades; rail,
power and utility improvements; as well as waterproofing and “interior
aesthetic improvements” to the pedestrian tunnel to the platforms, though some
people have cried
out against the potential aesthetic changes.
The project is still under design. Construction is expected
to begin in spring 2029, and the Connecticut Department of Transportation has
not yet provided an estimated completion date.
Around the station
In 2025, the state DOT selected
a developer to build a complex with hundreds of apartments plus retail
space and parking spaces where there is currently a parking lot next to Union
Station’s parking garage. As of last year, DOT was projecting that the project
would be completed in late 2031.
DOT also plans to transform a separate lot for rental cars
and buses into a multistory parking garage with a bus depot on the ground
level. The agency included the project in its most recent five-year
capital plan.
Across Union Avenue, there are plans to build
about 2,500 housing units and tens of thousands of square feet of
commercial space as part of a project called Union Square. The first phase of
the project will include more than 500 units.
What about the State Street Station?
DOT has two projects planned for the State Street Station
that will cost an estimated $113 million combined. They include replacing the
station’s island platform, replacing a vehicular bridge over the tracks with a
pedestrian bridge and upgrading elevators and stairs, among other changes.
Construction on the bridge is expected to begin in spring
2027 and finish in summer 2028, while construction on the station is expected
to start in spring 2029 and conclude in fall 2030.
Killingly continues review of two proposed warehouse projects
Sara Bedigian
Killingly — The town’s Planning and Zoning Commission heard presentations from both developers looking to build warehouses at Putnam Pike and Westcott Road Monday night, before continuing the monthslong discussion on the proposed facilities to Oct. 19.
Putnam Pike developer Killingly 1 LLC, proposing two warehouses of 178,750 square feet and 297,500 square feet at 90 Putnam Pike, said it would implement an 8-foot-high and 250-foot-long sound barrier fencing to prevent noise from traveling.
This follows two warehouse sound studies on the construction and facility operations.
Project Engineer Kevin Solli said most of the louder construction and rock crushing will be done toward the back of the property to reduce the sound.
Acoustical engineer Marc Wallace said the results indicated adherence to all construction noise guidance criteria and state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection regulations.
“Even though we have demonstrated compliance with your regulations and noise ordinance, we will take another look to see if there is anything further we can do,” Killingly 1 attorney John Knuff said. “Even in those instances if you might hear it from a greater distance, the mere fact you can hear something, doesn't mean it exceeds the sound requirements.”
Commission member Keith Thurlow said the sound study was insufficient.
“It is more than hearing something, you are talking about an industrial facility with back-up alarms...” Thurlow said. “We look at it at from the point of view of the public, safety, health and welfare. You are looking at it technically; we are looking at it socially.”
Commission member Brian Card suggested extending the sound wall to the other side of the property to help with the noise.
Noise has been a common topic of concern among residents, as many have spoken about living in Killingly for its quiet, rural environment and continued to do so Monday.
“I would rather have sound from 50 decibels from tree frogs than from trucks,” resident and Councilwoman Ulla Tiik-Barclay said.
“It is going to be hell for us from the day they start construction (to) the rest of our lives,” added resident Rebecca Rainville.
Another concern was the sound and safety of truck traffic, with the possibility of hundreds of trucks going in and out of the facility each day. Solli reviewed a traffic study and truck turning measures at the commission’s August meeting.
The development has been discussed for months by Planning and Zoning Commission since the initial application was received at the end of last year but then withdrawn. A new application was filed this spring, and the commission has held several nights of public hearings since then.
Solli said the site is “topographically challenged” because of the increased elevation but the developers have been addressing comments from Tighe & Bond, which the town hired to review the plans. Solli said 94 of the 101 consultant's comments have been addressed.
Andrew White of Tighe & Bond said Monday the outstanding comments are related to the stormwater management, groundwater volume reduction, and fire marshal regulations.
White said noise regulations were met but the commission’s concerns about the sound study were valid.
It has still not announced what companies will be coming into the facilities.
Amazon warehouse
After the Putnam Pike developments took up the larger portion of Monday’s meeting, the developer of a proposed 1.3 million-square-foot Amazon distribution center on Westcott Road presented a portion of its new application to the commission.
Adam Winstanley, founder of Winstanley Enterprises, explained Monday he has contracts to buy the 25 properties that make up the site and is working closely with developer Ryan Companies and Amazon on the project.
Winstanley said he chose Amazon as the client for the warehouse over two other Fortune 500 companies because he knew from previous experience the company is flexible.
“This is the best possible client I could have brought to this site,” he said.
Ryan Companies Project Engineer Tim Onderko said the size of the building has been reduced by 58,000 square feet in addition to an 87,000-square-foot reduction in an earlier revision.
The new application said the building will be 1.3 million square feet with 290 acres of the 555-acre site designated for permanent conservation and protected space.
Onderko said Ryan has also reduced the parking area by 230 spaces. He also reviewed stormwater management, soil erosion and sediment control plans.
Traffic engineer Mark Vertucci said the facility will see about 334 truck trips per day, which equates to roughly 14 to 20 trips per hour.
He presented the results of the traffic analysis study, which suggests the additions of a westbound left turn lane onto Gauthier Avenue and eastbound left turn lane at the site driveway.
Traffic signals have also been proposed to be constructed at Knox Avenue and new signage to be placed at the Westcott Road and Interstate 395 off-ramp.
Parker Davis from Amazon’s development policy team reviewed the project benefits; including $2.6 million annual tax revenue and at least 500 full-time jobs.
Ryan resubmitted its application in July after being denied by the town's Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission.
The Wetlands and Watercourses Commission will also continue hearing the application at its next meeting on Oct. 5.
Jack Lakowsky
Waterford — First Selectman Rob Brule is asking the state
Department of Transportation to give the town land so it can build a new road
that would connect the former Crystal Mall, soon to house thousands of Electric
Boat workers, to Parkway North.
Brule on Wednesday said the goal is to ease the traffic that
could congest the area when EB eventually moves some of its growing workforce
into the former mall.
Electric Boat plans to use the former retail hub, which it
acquired last year, for offices and training. It said this will open up more
space for submarine manufacturing at its main facility in Groton.
Brule said the state once planned to use the land to extend
Route 11, which never made it past Salem.
"The main piece of this idea (is to) give people
another entrance and exit to the mall," Brule said.
DOT spokesperson Eva Zymaris said this week the agency has
"received the request from the town, and an internal review is
underway."
"No decision has been made," Zymaris said, adding
the department will share its response when it completes its review.
Electric Boat on Wednesday said the company works closely
with state, regional and local partners "to support sustainable community
development."
The submarine maker, one of the region's top employers, said
it continues to work with the town to address the future impact of its activity
at the mall.
Brule in his letter to the state said a second entrance and
exit would make Route 85 "safer and more convenient for both Electric Boat
and travelers in this area."
Brule said DOT and other state agencies like the Department
of Economic Development would probably have to fund the project if it went
ahead.
"That would probably be the path," Brule said,
"I don't know for sure. But they would absolutely need the town to own the
road."
Brule in his letter also said the proposal provides an
alternate path to I-95 north and south and to Cross Road, a busy commercial
area.
Electric Boat has previously said it expects
"significant employee occupancy" of the former mall by the middle of
next year.
When EB's transformation of the property and building is
complete, it will occupy 542,000 square feet of space on 42 acres of land along
Route 85.
EB, which employs more than 24,000 workers in Groton, New London and North Kingstown, R.I., plans to move 4,000 to 5,000 current employees from Groton and new hires onto the property.
Andrew Larson
A plan to turn Norwich’s Dodd
Stadium into a year-round, multi-sport venue landed the largest award in
the latest round of state Community Investment Fund grants.
The Community Investment Fund 2030 Board on Tuesday
recommended $8.1 million for the stadium, part of $66.4 million approved for 27
projects in Round 9. The board voted without opposition.
The awards still need final approval. Gov. Ned Lamont will
determine the funding mechanism for each project and recommend them to the
state Bond Commission, according to Connecticut Sports Group.
The Norwich Community Development Corp. will administer the
grant and partner with Norwich Stadium Co., a Connecticut Sports Group
subsidiary that will operate the city-owned ballpark under a multi-year lease
starting in 2027.
Connecticut Sports Group owns CT United FC, the MLS Next Pro
team that signed on to play at Dodd after a plan for a Bridgeport stadium fell
through, HBJ
reported in May.
The ballpark, which opened in 1995, is home to the Norwich
Sea Unicorns summer collegiate baseball team, which will stay after the soccer
team arrives, according to the Norwich Bulletin.
The first phase of work will address drainage and field
improvements, roof repairs, electrical and plumbing upgrades, and ADA and code
compliance, according to Connecticut Sports Group. The project also includes a
new synthetic turf field and upgraded premium and back-of-house spaces.
Later phases are expected to add capacity for larger sports
events, concerts and festivals.
Round 9 drew 128 applications seeking $482 million, state
Department of Economic and Community Development Deputy Commissioner Matthew
Pugliese told the board in June. In Round 8, 118 eligible applications sought
about $438 million in Round 8, when the board approved
$62.9 million for 38 projects in March.
Ten of the Round 9 awards complete projects that were
partially funded in earlier rounds, and six fully fund new projects, Pugliese
told the board Tuesday.
Several projects that won awards in March received more
money. The conversion of East Hartford’s 111 Founders Plaza office tower into
apartments and the demolition of Stamford’s St. John Towers each received $3
million, on top of $6 million awards in Round 8. The University of New Haven received another $5 million for its
Center for Innovation and Applied Technology in West Haven, and Meriden
received $2.5 million for its One Stop Health and Human Services building,
after $2 million in March.
Hartford-based projects received about $13.9 million, led by
$4.3 million for Oak Hill’s 6,825-square-foot addition and renovation of its
behavioral health and clinical specialty facility at 33 Coventry St.
Junior Achievement of Southwest New England received $3.5
million to convert 26,000 square feet of vacant space at State House Square
into an experiential learning center, the first in New England. The center will
host
8,000 to 10,000 students a year at no cost.
The iQuilt Partnership won $3 million for permanent
Winterfest Hartford infrastructure in Bushnell Park, including a refrigerated
rink slab. The Mark Twain House & Museum received $2.8 million for HVAC
and roof work, and the Connecticut Historical Society received $250,000 for
exhibition planning.
Nearby, Ben Bronz Academy received $2.5 million to renovate
its new East Hartford campus, and Ädelbrook Behavioral and Developmental
Services received $1.5 million to expand its Manchester school.
CitySeed received $6 million for a food business incubator
in a former manufacturing building in New Haven. Norwalk’s three awards totaled
$2.85 million, including $1.1 million to replace the storm-damaged Keeler Brook
sewer pump station.
In Torrington, $900,000 will help convert a former mill at
245 East Elm St. into a grocery market, children’s recreation center and
banquet hall.
Applications for Round 10 open Oct. 26 and are due Dec. 4,
with board recommendations scheduled for March 9, 2027.