NEWTOWN -- The winter Olympics may not have inspired the idea, but two local hockey coaches pitching the prospect of a community ice arena on the Fairfield Hills campus were encouraged with the enthusiastic response they received last night. The Fairfield Hills Authority received last-minute notice that members of the Newtown Ice Arena committee wanted to present their proposal to build what they anticipate as a $10 million facility to accommodate youth and adult ice hockey, figure skating, speed skating, wheelchair sled hockey and a curling rink. It would build the arena where Norwalk Hall now stands. First Selectman Pat Llodra and the Parks and Recreation Commission were presented the proposal in October 2011 and Newtown Youth Academy founder Peter D'Amico and Claris Construction were consulted over the course of the past year. In January, the committee met with land-use officials, and last week members met with three Northeast arena consultants about the feasibility of building on the Fairfield Hills campus location. All seemed to favor the idea, the committee members said. "Frankly, it's awesome," Thomas Connors, authority chairman, said about the proposal for a nonrofit-run complex of about 85,000 square feet, able to accommodate all types of year-round recreational ice sports. "We would love to see it happen. I'm a horrific skater, but I'd like to curl -- to be the broom guy," he added. Connors and other authority members listened to Paul Esposito, Newtown High School hockey coach, and fellow youth hockey coach and adult player Kris Kenny highlight their ideas and proposal . CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
Sewer vote slated in Newtown on Wednesday
The special town meeting to allow taxpayers to vote on a proposal to build and install sewers to promote economic development on the last large undecommercial properties in the Hawleyville district is scheduled for Wednesday night at 7 p.m.
The $2.8 million project will allow for the design and construction of the project and will be part of a long-term bonding package. Benefit assessments will be charged to the eventual users who hook into the system.
For more information about the project, visit Town Hall where all the documents are on file.
Roche eyes another shot at 31st
The $2.8 million project will allow for the design and construction of the project and will be part of a long-term bonding package. Benefit assessments will be charged to the eventual users who hook into the system.
For more information about the project, visit Town Hall where all the documents are on file.
Roche eyes another shot at 31st
BRISTOL — Two years after nearly unseating a state senator, Dave Roche is ready to run for office again.“Here we go again,” said Roche, 52, longtime business manager for the sheet metal workers union and president of the Connecticut Building Trades and Construction Council. He is also the executive secretary of the Connecticut AFL-CIO. This time around, though, the Bristol Democrat will be vying for an open seat in the 31st District. Two-term state Sen. Jason Welch, a Bristol Republican, is stepping down this year so he can devote more attention to his legal career and his family. Welch won the office in 2010 by defeating Tom Colapietro, a Bristol Democrat who held the seat for 18 years. One Republican has formally entered the race to succeed Welch so far. Bristol City Councilor Henri Martin filed paperwork with the state several weeks ago. He said he’ll make a public announcement soon. Roche said he’s remained involved in politics since his unsuccessful run in 2012 and is sure “it’s going be a different outcome” come Election Day. “I’m going to get out there and win this thing,” he said. He said he wants “to get in there and try to make the changes” that can stop the shrinking of the middle class. “We’ve got to make sure we start turning this thing around,” Roche told the Democratic Town Committee Monday. CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
NCDC report: Hotel development would be big boost for city
NORWICH — A fully renovated 113-room Hampton Inn built along Norwich's southern gateway would significantly modernize the city's hotel inventory and boost the value of surrounding properties by taking away a blighted structure, a newly issued development plan says. Last week, Norwich Community Development Corp. released a 143-page report detailing the overall impacts the proposed $13 million hotel at 154 Salem Turnpike could have on the region's economy. The analysis was requested in January by aldermen as they grapple with the possibility of relinquishing $2.8 million worth of property taxes over the next 20 years to close a funding gap in North Carolina-based Winston Hospitality's construction plan. With the tax incremental financing, or TIF, plan in place, Norwich would receive $1.09 million in tax revenue over the 20-year cycle, compared to the $3.83 million it would get should the hotel be built only using private investment. CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
Manchester School Repair List Totals $34.7M
MANCHESTER — The cost of needed repairs and improvements to school buildings totals about $34.7 million, according to a report presented to the school board Monday night.
The list of repairs prepared by Facilities Manager Richard Ziegler was divided into first, second and third priorities. The most pressing jobs will cost about $19.7 million; items on the second and third tiers total about $15 million. But the list is likely to change as the school board considers a districtwide plan that could result in the "like new" renovation and expansion of two elementary schools and the closing of one or two other schools. The board is scheduled to make a final decision on the plan by April 7. Many of the top priority items are recommended school security improvements, which Ziegler said total about $5 million. Items include surveillance cameras, door and hardware modifications and exterior lighting upgrades. At Illing Middle School alone, door and hardware modifications will cost $340,000, Ziegler said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
Storrs Center Ready For Next Phaze
STORRS — Buoyed by their successes so far, the developers of the Storrs Center at the University of Connecticut will begin construction this summer on the next major phase of the $120 million project, adding 200 apartments, a daycare center and more storefront space.
And marketing will begin this spring on the last phase of townhomes and condominiums, with construction possible next year. "We're running to the finish now," Howard Kaufman, managing member of the Tuxedo Park, N.Y.-based LeylandAlliance, the project's master developer, said Monday. "We're going to finish this."
NCDC report: Hotel development would be big boost for city
NORWICH — A fully renovated 113-room Hampton Inn built along Norwich's southern gateway would significantly modernize the city's hotel inventory and boost the value of surrounding properties by taking away a blighted structure, a newly issued development plan says. Last week, Norwich Community Development Corp. released a 143-page report detailing the overall impacts the proposed $13 million hotel at 154 Salem Turnpike could have on the region's economy. The analysis was requested in January by aldermen as they grapple with the possibility of relinquishing $2.8 million worth of property taxes over the next 20 years to close a funding gap in North Carolina-based Winston Hospitality's construction plan. With the tax incremental financing, or TIF, plan in place, Norwich would receive $1.09 million in tax revenue over the 20-year cycle, compared to the $3.83 million it would get should the hotel be built only using private investment. CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
Manchester School Repair List Totals $34.7M
MANCHESTER — The cost of needed repairs and improvements to school buildings totals about $34.7 million, according to a report presented to the school board Monday night.
The list of repairs prepared by Facilities Manager Richard Ziegler was divided into first, second and third priorities. The most pressing jobs will cost about $19.7 million; items on the second and third tiers total about $15 million. But the list is likely to change as the school board considers a districtwide plan that could result in the "like new" renovation and expansion of two elementary schools and the closing of one or two other schools. The board is scheduled to make a final decision on the plan by April 7. Many of the top priority items are recommended school security improvements, which Ziegler said total about $5 million. Items include surveillance cameras, door and hardware modifications and exterior lighting upgrades. At Illing Middle School alone, door and hardware modifications will cost $340,000, Ziegler said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
Storrs Center Ready For Next Phaze
STORRS — Buoyed by their successes so far, the developers of the Storrs Center at the University of Connecticut will begin construction this summer on the next major phase of the $120 million project, adding 200 apartments, a daycare center and more storefront space.
And marketing will begin this spring on the last phase of townhomes and condominiums, with construction possible next year. "We're running to the finish now," Howard Kaufman, managing member of the Tuxedo Park, N.Y.-based LeylandAlliance, the project's master developer, said Monday. "We're going to finish this."
Similar plans dating to as early as the 1950s and '60s collapsed in the face of recession, lack of financing or construction restraints. CLICK TITLE TO CONTIUNUE READING
WINSTED -- The Holabird Avenue bridge is closed, but its condition is not as bad as it looks.
Town Manager Dale L. Martin said Monday he ordered the pothole-riddled bridge closed late Sunday afternoon because of the number of complaints he was hearing about it. He said he was receiving emails and reading comments on Facebook that people feared the bridge would collapse.
Martin reiterated what engineers and the state Department of Transportation have been saying for months -- the surface is ugly and tough to drive on, but the structure beneath it remains in decent shape. "You're not going to drive 40 mph over it," Martin said. Martin said the pavement all over town has taken a beating this winter. The bridge surface was not good before winter started, but now some of the potholes are so deep the rebar is showing. He said it is still too cold to patch the potholes. That will have to wait until spring. Instead, engineers are expected to inspect the bridge today to see if there are some quick, low-cost temporary alternatives the town can implement, like placing large slabs of steel over the deck so the bridge can be reopened. Meanwhile, the long-term plan to reconstruct the bridge in either 2015 or 2016 is still in the works. State officials announced a month ago the state will cover the entire estimated $3.7 million cost to rebuild the bridge. That announcement came just a month after the State Bond Commission approved $2.4 million for the project. The town was expected to pay for the rest, but because of the town's financial difficulties, lawmakers such as Rep. Jay M. Case, R- Winsted; Sen. Clark J. Chapin, R-New Milford; and Rep. David A. Scribner, R-Brookfield, persuaded state transportation officials to cover the remaining costs. The project has been delayed for at least 10 years because of inadequate funding. The bridge was built in 1955 over the Still River. Nearly 3,000 vehicles travel over it daily, according to the DOT. It is close to Northwest Connecticut Community College, one of the fire department's four companies, the Whiting Mills artists studios, the American Mural Project and many homes. The $3.7 million will be covered by a combination of state and federal money. The town is still responsible for the minimal design costs and specifications. The town set aside $110,000 in 2012-13 for the design.
DOT Project Manager Scott A. Roberts has said the project will need permits from a number of local, state and federal regulatory agencies, which may hinder the 2015 construction target.
Town Manager Dale L. Martin said Monday he ordered the pothole-riddled bridge closed late Sunday afternoon because of the number of complaints he was hearing about it. He said he was receiving emails and reading comments on Facebook that people feared the bridge would collapse.
Martin reiterated what engineers and the state Department of Transportation have been saying for months -- the surface is ugly and tough to drive on, but the structure beneath it remains in decent shape. "You're not going to drive 40 mph over it," Martin said. Martin said the pavement all over town has taken a beating this winter. The bridge surface was not good before winter started, but now some of the potholes are so deep the rebar is showing. He said it is still too cold to patch the potholes. That will have to wait until spring. Instead, engineers are expected to inspect the bridge today to see if there are some quick, low-cost temporary alternatives the town can implement, like placing large slabs of steel over the deck so the bridge can be reopened. Meanwhile, the long-term plan to reconstruct the bridge in either 2015 or 2016 is still in the works. State officials announced a month ago the state will cover the entire estimated $3.7 million cost to rebuild the bridge. That announcement came just a month after the State Bond Commission approved $2.4 million for the project. The town was expected to pay for the rest, but because of the town's financial difficulties, lawmakers such as Rep. Jay M. Case, R- Winsted; Sen. Clark J. Chapin, R-New Milford; and Rep. David A. Scribner, R-Brookfield, persuaded state transportation officials to cover the remaining costs. The project has been delayed for at least 10 years because of inadequate funding. The bridge was built in 1955 over the Still River. Nearly 3,000 vehicles travel over it daily, according to the DOT. It is close to Northwest Connecticut Community College, one of the fire department's four companies, the Whiting Mills artists studios, the American Mural Project and many homes. The $3.7 million will be covered by a combination of state and federal money. The town is still responsible for the minimal design costs and specifications. The town set aside $110,000 in 2012-13 for the design.
DOT Project Manager Scott A. Roberts has said the project will need permits from a number of local, state and federal regulatory agencies, which may hinder the 2015 construction target.