BETHEL -- Town officials will go out to bid soon on a project that will realign Plumtrees Road at the corner of Whittlesey and Walnut Hill roads.This improvement has been in the planning and permitting stages for nearly a decade and a half. The goal is to begin construction in 2014.
The project will realign Whittlesey, Plumtrees and Walnut Hill into a standard four-way intersection, which will decrease the rush hour traffic backups caused by the current "dog leg" bridge configuration. Construction will probably last two years, but it is not expected to create major traffic problems because the majority of work will occur adjacent to the current roadway, without the need for major closures.
Demolition set to begin this week
NEWTOWN -- The Public Building and Site Commission will meet Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Reed Intermediate School.The agenda includes discussion of the progress of demolition and construction plans at Sandy Hook Elementary School, 12 Dickinson Drive. Demolition is currently scheduled to begin Friday.
Employees involved with Meriden school renovations receive awards
MERIDEN — The woman overseeing the $107.5 million renovation project at Maloney High School for construction manager Gilbane Inc. has been named the project manager of the year by a state organization.Karrie Kratz, a senior project manager, received the award Thursday night at an event held by the Associated General Contractors of Connecticut at the Aqua Turf Club in Southington. The runner-up to Kratz was Mark Gionfriddo, a project manager with Plainville-based Manafort, a firm working on the Maloney project.“It’s definitely a positive for the project and for the city,” Kratz said, Friday. “I was kind of floored that they selected me.”
IBEW seeks to organize at Millstone
Waterford — The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is seeking to unionize operators, mechanics and maintenance workers at the Millstone Power Station. John Fernandes, business manager with IBEW Local 457, headquartered in Berlin, said Monday that the organizing effort began this spring, prompted by worker dissatisfaction over benefit cuts and inequities in pay rates different workers receive for the same jobs. A previous effort by IBEW to organize about 10 years ago failed to win a majority during an worker election.IBEW, which also represents workers at Connecticut Light & Power, would like to unionize about 350 of the approximately 1,100 Millstone staff members employed by plant owner Dominion, the “working men and women” rather than the administrators, managers and engineers, Fernandes said. In a case pending with the National Labor Relations Board, Dominion has argued that if a union election is held, it should involve a larger group of employees.
New London's Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School to get a new roof
New London - The City Council approved a $6.2 million bond package Monday night to install a new roof and solar panels on Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School.No taxpayer money will be needed because the state will reimburse the city 78 percent of the costs, and cuts to electric bills will save thousands of dollars a year, according to a report by the Capital Region Education Council.
The report states that over the course of 20 years, the city will save around $2.4 million in electricity, which will offset the financing costs for the loan. After six years, the city will start saving thousands of dollars in reduced electric bills, The city has a contract with CREC to oversee the project.
The bonding package includes $3.5 million for the roof that covers the sprawling middle school complex and includes the Central Office. About $1.8 million will be spent on the solar panels, also called a solar photovoltaic system. Another $350,000 will go toward new energy efficiency lighting in the building. The project will include evaluating, planning, designing, constructing, repairing and modifying the roof.
Busway pushing bioscience development proposal
Visible signs of progress are popping up all over the $567 million CTfastrak rapid transit route, and cities along the thoroughfare are prepping their economic development plans in anticipation of the opening.CTfastrak, formerly the Hartford-New Britain Busway, is on schedule for an early 2015 finish date, and the route has bridge, paving, and station work well underway along the 9.4-mile path.
City and town planners are trying to figure out how they can leverage the new transit line to spur economic development.Newington, with two busway stops, is planning a bioscience facility and a transit-oriented complex, said Andrew Brecher, Newington economic development director.
Next to its Cedar Street station, Newington has acquired the four-acre, blighted National Welding site and obtained a $2 million state grant for the demolition of the building.
Newington is strongly considering a bioscience facility for the site to leverage the bioscience plans for UConn Health Center in Farmington, Brecher said."There has been a great deal of developer interest," said Brecher.
CT Science Center resolves $10M roof lawsuit
The Connecticut Science Center in downtown Hartford has quietly resolved a four-year, $10 million lawsuit with a New Haven architectural firm over the design and construction of the building, particularly the infamous magic carpet roof."We are happy to have that all resolved, and it allows us to move forward," said Matt Fleury, science center president and CEO.The science center sued Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects of New Haven in 2009, saying the final design plans submitted for the $165 million construction project were inadequate, which delayed the building's opening 18 months to June 2009.A key issue was the high-profile magic carpet roof — the building's signature contribution to the Hartford skyline — which was sagging significantly when first installed, forcing it to be removed so supports could be put in place. Other problems mentioned in the lawsuit included inadequate design of the wind girts, which hold the walls in place, necessitating a significant redesign and refabrication of the girts.
Hartford's second housing wave needs long-term plan
Downtown Hartford is currently in the second act of its state induced housing boom. The first time around it was led by Gov. John Rowland and the Capital City Economic Development Authority.
In this very different act, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy created the Capital Region Development Authority, and with millions of dollars in hand, CRDA has been investing in the necessary housing projects, while beginning to plan for the long term, something the Six Pillars project did not do.
This is the quiet before the construction storm, and a good time to start thinking about the long term.
Downtown housing is not a new idea, here or elsewhere. It is now a tried and true practice that has been shown to work regionally (New Haven) and nationally (Los Angeles).These success stories reveal that housing, when paired with city planning and development efforts such as iQuilt, will attract residents, retail and office uses. This is the game plan, but the plan has to get past the realities of Connecticut and its Capital City. As Mike Tyson once said, everyone has a plan until they take their first punch. Issues here include a need for leadership and good old-fashioned politics.
Dozens turn out in Windsor to support Amazon tax-breaks
WINDSOR — The sidewalk leading to council chambers of town hall was lined with union supporters Monday holding placards and banners supporting tax breaks for Amazon, which the demonstrators said would create jobs.The council chambers were also packed with nearly 100 union supporters and others in favor of offering a tax abatement package without conditions to Amazon, the giant online retailer that is interested in building a $50 million, 1.5 million-square-foot distribution facility on Day Hill Road.More than 24 speakers on both sides of the issue voiced their opinions, with a majority expressing the view that Amazon, which has committed to creating 380 full-time jobs with medical and dental benefits, be given a tax abatement and reduced building permit fees without being forced to hire a specific percentage of union workers.
Upgrades to Middletown Veterans park approved by committee
MIDDLETOWN — A renovated Veterans Memorial Park could include a dog park, an upgraded public pool, more picnic areas, a new playscape and two features honoring veterans.
The Veterans Memorial Park Renovation Committee on Wednesday approved a final draft of its recommendations for a park overhaul. The report is scheduled to be considered by the common council at its Nov. 4 meeting.The additions include a Connecticut Trees of Honor Memorial, in honor of the state's 64 soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. It also would include the Greater Middletown Military Museum, which has a collection of local military artifacts and literature.
New Haven submits development agreement for coliseum site
NEW HAVEN >> The city announced Monday it has submitted the development and land disposition agreement to redevelop the former Coliseum site to the Board of Aldermen for their consideration, according to a press release.“The agreement submitted to the Board of Alderman represents the culmination of over two years of work engaging city and state leaders and – more importantly – the residents of New Haven,” said Mayor John DeStefano, Jr. in a statement.
The development agreement was done in partnership with Live Work Learn Play, based in Montreal, who were selected as the preferred developer for the project in 2011.