Robert Landino’s dad’s gang helped tear down New Haven. Now it’s the son’s turn to reshape his hometown’s landscape. Landino (pictured at left), who runs Centerplan Development Company, is behind two $50 million building projects in town right now, neither of which is receiving public subsidies:
• His $50 million “College & Crown” project has broken ground and will fill the block of College Street across from Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School. Its five-story buildings will house 160 luxury studio and one- and two-bedroom rental apartments as well as 20,000 square feet of street-level retail. A Stamford Wrecking crew the other day finished demolishing (pictured above) the one-story College Plaza storefronts that occupied a corner of the block surrounded by surface parking lots.
• His $50 million plan for building on a 5.39-acre surface lot on Legion Avenue is currently the subject of public hearings and approvals. (Click here for the latest meeting; another takes place Thursday night at 7 p.m. in City Hall’s Board of Alders chambers.) The block-long lot would house a new headquarters for the not-for-profit Continuum of Care mental-health agency, a pharmacy, a medical office building or hotel, and a parking garage.
The latter project is the first part of a broader effort by the city to bring new life to 16.2 fallow acres along Route 34/Legion Avenue. The idea is to fix a mistake from a half-century ago, when government razed a neighborhood there during the bulldozer-happy “slum clearance” days of urban renewal. In the name of eradicating poverty, New Haven spent more money per capita than any other American city tearing down buildings and demolishing neighborhoods. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
City's Keney, Goodwin links to get facelift
The first of Hartford's two public golf courses will reopen this spring with a new operator, and both courses will soon undergo extensive facelifts, the city says. Mayor Pedro E. Segarra said Wednesday the city signed a contract Feb. 24 with the Connecticut chapter of the Professional Golf Association (CT PGA) to operate and maintenance of the Goodwin Park Golf Course in the city's South End.
Meantime, Hartford nonprofit The Knox Parks Foundation will play a major role in Goodwin's restoration, including hiring workers, the city said. "Delivering the services Hartford residents expect and deserve is critical to us becoming one of America's Best Capital Cities," Segarra said in a statement. "Restoring these golf courses is a step in that direction and I'm pleased to be working with experts like the CT PGA to make sure best practices are followed every step of the way." CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Outlets shops coming to Rentschler airstrip
A Michigan development company said it has entered into an agreement to build a 350,000-square-foot retail development at East Hartford's Rentschler Field.
Horizon Group Properties said The Outlet Shoppes at Rentschler Field will open in the summer of 2016 and will feature well-known brands and designer outlets. The center will be built at Rentschler's former airstrip. The center will have covered walkways, landscaped courtyards, and leave room for a future 50,000-square-foot expansion, Horizon said. The shops are projected to generate more than $130 million in sales annually, and $1.2 million in property taxes. Rentschler is home to UConn's football stadium and outdoor retailer Cabela's, which opened in 2007. Officials have hoped the store would be a catalyst for further development. State and local officials were in talks early last year with an Arizona developer looking to build a retail center with a pricetag of several hundred million dollars, but those efforts apparently didn't pan out.
United Rentals snaps up pump provider in $780M deal
United Rentals, the world's largest rental equipment provider headquartered in Stamford, has agreed to pay $780 million to acquire National Pump, a privately-owned business that is the second-largest specialty pump rental company in North America. The deal, which will include cash and $15 million in restricted stock, will enable United Rentals to move into pump rentals, a high-margin business which primarily serves the oil, gas and petrochemical industries but is also used in commercial and utilities construction. National Pump, a Beaumont, Texas-based firm consisting of four companies with about 300 employees in the U.S. and Canada, had revenue of $211 million over the last 12 months ending in February. United Rentals said the acquisition of National Pump is part of its strategy to expand its specialty businesses. "The company has the right scale to have an impact on our business and be a platform for growth," said Michael Kneeland, president and CEO of United Rentals, during an investor conference call Monday. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Southington hopes to entice Lincoln College to expand with new sewer line
SOUTHINGTON — Voters will decide on a $2.6 million sewer expansion plan in November for the northwest corner of town that officials hope will encourage Lincoln College of New England to expand. There’s no sewer service in that part of town and the college uses a septic system for its waste. The sewer line expansion would also bring service to some of the planned homes in a subdivision on Welch Road. Town Council Chairman Michael Riccio said he and other town officials are planning a visit to New Jersey to talk with Lincoln College executives about expansion. Lincoln College is a for-profit campus owned by Lincoln Educational Services Group which owns nearly 50 campuses in 17 states. Lincoln College did not return a call for comment on Wednesday.
The college came to the town more than a decade ago with expansion plans, Riccio said, but wasn’t able to build more dorms without sewer hookup. “That’s always been the hold-up for them,” he said. “Once the sewers go in, we’ll be ready for them to expand.” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Stewart said the city's financial advisers have warned that New Britain is saddled with a multimillion-dollar deficit and is far too close to its credit limit, potentially risking a state takeover of its finances unless it slashes borrowing, such as selling bonds that must be repaid over time.
She put together a package to reduce or cancel about $25 million worth of bonding, and the council was on track Wednesday to approve most of it. Some of the package represents actual spending cuts: Construction and renovation projects that the city won't do and thus won't need to borrow money for.
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OXFORD -- The state Department of Transportation said Tuesday that work will begin next week on the reconstruction of Christian Street from Towner and Robinson lanes in town. The project will start March 11, and it consists of grade changes, widening, new drainage systems and safety improvements, according to a news release from DOT. Guerrera Construction Co., of 154 Christian St., was awarded the project at a cost of about $1.6 million, the release states. The project is scheduled to be completed by Nov. 26, it says. During the project, traffic can be restricted to alternating one lane between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., the release states. Traffic can be halted for up to 10 minutes between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on all non-holiday days, it states. DOT advises drivers to maintain a safe speed when traveling in this area.
It's a first for America and it's located in New Jersey — Diggerland USA, a construction themed amusement park that will soon open for business in the Garden State. Located behind project owner Sahara Sam's Oasis, an indoor and outdoor water park on Route 73 in Camden County's West Berlin, Diggerland USA will operate independently from its neighbor. However, there will be incentives to encourage guest traffic between the two facilities. The Diggerland adventure park will feature a mix of 90 percent JCB and 10 percent Terex equipment, providing visitors with supervised opportunities to ride, drive and operate full-sized big iron such as skid steer loaders, tractors, backhoes, small excavators and mini-dumpers.“The Diggerland concept is native to the UK where JCB has its headquarters, and all of the equipment is modified for use as rides, on a course, or made stationary by design for operation in designated excavation areas,” said Chris Peters, director of marketing and PR of Sahara Sam's Oasis and Diggerland USA. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING