East Lyme voters OK $4.4M to fix Niantic Boardwalk
East Lyme - Plans to rebuild the damaged Niantic Bay Boardwalk will move forward following a vote of approval at a town meeting Wednesday. Many residents applauded after a majority voted in favor of allocating up to $4,442,779 for the redesigned boardwalk. So many attendees filled the meeting room at Town Hall that some watched the meeting by television outside the room.
The approximately half-mile long boardwalk will feature heavy-gauge steel pilings and rock revetment topped with concrete, according to the presentation. Construction is slated for spring through December. With Amtrak's already rebuilt portion included, there will be a 1.1 mile concrete walkway stretching between Hole-in-the-Wall Beach and the new beach by the Niantic River Bridge, said First Selectman Paul Formica. Formica also said the boardwalk, averaging about 60,000 to 80,000 trips per year, would contribute to the town's economic development.
The funding approved Wednesday comes from legal and insurance settlements as well as Federal Emergency Management Agency funds. A $500,000 Small Town Economic Assistance Program grant, previously approved by residents, will also go toward project costs. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Another $3M possible for Norwich Hospital
NORWICH — With $5 million from the State Bond Commission already in hand, Preston officials may get access to another $3 million in state money to help pay for continued cleanup at the former Norwich Hospital property. “I will push that at an opportune time. Let’s spend the $5 million and demonstrate the (Preston Redevelopment Agency) can spend every single dime wisely,” state Rep. Tim Bowles, D-Preston, said Wednesday. Bowles said the $3 million in potential funds would come from a State Bond Commission application he submitted late last year. Meanwhile, demolition of the 250,000-square-foot Robert H. Kettle Treatment Center and nearby 106,186-square-foot Russell Occupational Therapy Building is slated to begin some time next month. First Selectman Robert Congdon and Jim Bell, a member of the 10-person agency, appeared before the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments Wednesday to provide an update on remediation efforts at the sprawling 393-acre site off Route 12. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
New Haven Plan Commission OK's more residential housing downtown
NEW HAVEN >> A total of 66 apartments should be coming online soon in the city to add to the growing residental nature of downtown, while also adding an larger element of housing on lower Whalley Avenue. A little-noticed garage on Crown and High streets downtown was approved by the City Plan Commission Wednesday for conversion to 24 apartments. The owner, Robert Smith, has proposed adding two levels to the structure at 280 Crown St., where 12 of the studio and one-bedroom apartments will be located. The building, which was described as being in tough shape and losing part of its facade, is located in the heart of a downtown section that has seen a growth in restaurants in recent years. The current structure is three stories and was built in the 1920s.
The ground level will continue to house a commercial entity. Smith said he hopes to have the project finished by spring 2015. Attorney James Segaloff said this is Smith’s first project in New Haven, but he is interested in taking on more in the near future. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Council approves solar project with UI
BRIDGEPORT -- It didn't go as smoothly as he'd expected, but following a winter-long debate, Mayor Bill Finch on Tuesday finally got his 9,000 solar panels.
"Great," a beaming Finch said afterward, when asked how he felt. The City Council, in a 15-5 vote, approved a deal to lease the top of the shuttered landfill at Seaside Park to United Illuminating for the solar field. It is estimated that the 20-year agreement will net the city $7 million in rent and tax payments -- something proponents say is great, for currently unused public property.
Critics worried about the aesthetics and, arguing that the landfill is passive parkland that should be preserved, not industrialized, have been trying to kill the deal since the lease was first forwarded to the council in January. "No mayor has been more committed to parks than I have," Finch told the council and audience. One panel opponent -- Councilman Rick Torres, R-130, the council's sole Republican -- walked away with a concession prize Tuesday. The full council agreed to ask city attorneys to incorporate some modest tweaks to the lease, including making UI responsible for addressing all public safety concerns and security measures. Also any security equipment must be approved by the city and can't include barbed wire, night-time lighting or fencing higher than 6 feet.
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