BETHEL -- A couple of steps have been taken in the long-range path toward a new police station in town. Request for proposals were due Thursday from engineering firms to conduct soil analysis on the site preliminarily chosen on Judd Road. In addition, the Public Sites and Facilities Commission has hired Jacunski Humes Architects to update a space study for the Police Department that was completed in 2008, when town officials first began to plans to upgrade the Plumtrees Road station.
"We're going along as we can," said Nancy Ryan, chairman of the Public Sites and Utilities Commission. "Any municipal project takes a while because there is a process to follow to satisfy the Town Charter and to ensure the public is kept informed and part of the process." CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Developer, BDDS discuss Depot Square in private
BRISTOL — Though the specifics remain secret, Renaissance Downtowns has submitted a draft financial plan for the first phase of its proposed Depot Square project.
Bristol Downtown Development Corp. officials discussed details behind closed doors Monday after a brief talk in open session about a 19-page public portion of the report. The report lays out Renaissance’s strategy for attracting retailers and renters for its proposed project. The Long Island-based developer, which is charged with revitalizing the former mall property, also discussed cost estimates for the initial phase in the public document, which put the costs of the first two buildings on Main Street at $38.7 million. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Costco's move to New Britain still a complex deal
NEW BRITAIN — Last January, officials from the O’Brien administration acknowledged that Costco was becoming “a complex deal.” Mayor Erin Stewart, two months into her job as mayor, agreed. Costco, a worldwide membership warehouse club, was expected to open a store in New Britain last June. However, after working with the state to obtain necessary permits, including for a gas station and to sell liquor, Stewart and others in her administration were hesitant to talk about an opening date. “I’m happy we came to an agreement with Tartaglia [over the access road],” Stewart said, referring to the real estate company that owns the Target Store property, and the road that leads to Route 9. Then there was the matter of the land-swap deal which restored lost holes to Stanley Golf Course. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Southington plant will turn local waste to energy
SOUTHINGTON — Mountains full of different colored mulch covered acres of land on the former landfill on DePaolo Drive Monday morning as trucks made their way in and out of the mulch-processing facility created by Supreme Forest Industries of Harwinton. If all goes according to plan, local supermarkets, hotels and other businesses could be utilizing a waste-to-energy service approved by the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission last week to occupy the area alongside the mulch operation by December. It would be operated by a company called Quantum Biopower, a division of Supreme Forest Industries. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Wallingford PZC approves plans for United Concrete subsidary
WALLINGFORD — The Planning and Zoning Commission approved plans for the creation of a new subsidiary of United Concrete Products Monday, called the Pile Division of United Concrete Products, which will be located at 59 and 65 North Plains Highway. The properties, both of which are owned by the parent company, will be merged to create the site for the subsidiary business, said the company’s president, Jonathan Gavin. “Piles” are long concrete pieces that are used in bridge construction and other construction projects. The pieces range from 65 to 90 feet in length and 16 inches to 2 feet in diameter, Gavin said. Gavin said United Concrete purchased the North Plains Highway parcels with the intent of creating the new business and entering the pile market, 90 percent of which is based in Virginia. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Speedway to repave track with help from state
With the help of an $800,000 loan that could be forgiven if job creation promises are kept, Thompson International Speedway that will repave its 1.7-mile track, build a new garage and upgrade its facilities, Gov. Dannel Malloy's office announced. The Thompson stock-car racing venue has pledged to retain its 48 employees and add 23 more by 2015. If it does, the principal of the 2-percent, 10-year loan will be forgiven, officials said. The speedway will do the work in phases this year and in 2015.
Consultant details riverfront plans for Middletown
MIDDLETOWN — A consultant's vision for the redevelopment of the riverfront includes an array of recreational and commercial activity in an effort to draw visitors regionally.
Projects for Public Spaces presented the results of its study to the Middletown Riverfront Redevelopment Committee Monday night, focusing on increasing public access and use of land along the Connecticut River. Officials said the city will start to figure out how to implement various aspects of the plan.
Meg Walker, a vice president at Projects for Public Spaces, said her firm recommends forming centers of activity along the riverfront to draw visitors. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
WETHERSFIELD -- Officials may have to seek more money from voters after bids for the $75 million reconstruction of Wethersfield High School came in about $5.5 million over budget.
Mayor Paul Montinieri said that a new referendum is the "least preferable" of the options the town is considering to bridge the deficit. Those options include requesting a waiver so the state can provide additional funds and cost-saving changes to the building's design and materials, he said.
"We're going to have to be creative and get some help form the state," he said. "Last resort, we go back to the voters. We're hoping to avoid that."
Mayor Paul Montinieri said that a new referendum is the "least preferable" of the options the town is considering to bridge the deficit. Those options include requesting a waiver so the state can provide additional funds and cost-saving changes to the building's design and materials, he said.
"We're going to have to be creative and get some help form the state," he said. "Last resort, we go back to the voters. We're hoping to avoid that."
Montinieri said he and town officials are meeting with the town's state legislators Tuesday to discuss the waiver, which would require the approval of the General Assembly and support of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
John Anderson knows how to take existing heavy construction equipment and leverage it to find new opportunities, even in a new and emerging marketplace. John Anderson Construction is headquartered in Warren, Pa., (pop. 9,623). It has grown to include four divisions: earthwork, concrete, pipeline and facilities. For the past 28 years, Anderson has worked in the construction industry. He started his own company in 1989 and over time, expanded his company's services from concrete work to include excavating, which led to becoming a site contractor, while still offering concrete services for civil projects. CLICK ON TITLE TO CONTINUE READING