Stamford boaters look to restore boatyard
STAMFORD -- As the city and developer Building and Land Technology wrangle in court over the city's most valuable piece of waterfront, a dogged group of activist boaters is loudly clamoring for the restoration of the property's original function: A working boatyard. The peninsula overlooking Long Island Sound, which once hosted slips for 251 boats and winter storage space for 400, has been in legal limbo for three years. The property used to be the epicenter of Stamford's maritime activity, but today only seagulls visit the fenced-off, largely barren landscape of churned-up dirt dotted with dumpsters and construction equipment. Save Our Boatyard, a group of local boaters that has battled the property's developer since it razed the site's former boatyard in 2011, is tired of waiting for what they believe is the boatyard's inevitable restoration. On Wednesday, the group presented, with help from a professional designer, its vision for the property's future. "This situation cannot drag on any longer," said Maureen Boylan, the group's leader. "It's going on three years without a boatyard. Now it's time to, quite bluntly, put up or shut up." On Wednesday, 60 people attended the presentation Boylan organized to showcase Save Our Boatyard's vision for the property. The group outlined a plan to restore the waterfront's working boatyard and marina, as well as add several other new amenities.
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Transitway construction to disrupt traffic
STAMFORD — Urban Transitway construction will disrupt traffic on Myrtle Avenue this week, Mayor David Martin’s office announced Friday. The $52 million project will build a four-lane roadway on Myrtle Ave. between Elm St. and East Main St., allowing for easier passage between the busy Stamford Transportation Center and U.S. Route 1 on the east side. The transitway’s second phase broke ground this summer. On Monday, construction workers will begin demolition on the former DeYulio’s Sausage Company headquarters at Elm Street and Myrtle Avenue. Demolition work is expected to end Friday. “On Monday and Tuesday, traffic flow on Myrtle Ave in the proximity of the property will be reduced to one lane in each direction,” the mayors office said in a news release. “There will be no change in the lane configuration on Elm Street. Stamford Police will be on site to direct traffic. Residents traveling in the area should expect delays.”
Club project set to be done by Labor Day
BRISTOL — With a Christmas tree on one end and an American flag on the other, a construction firm Friday lifted the last 44-foot steel beam into place on the main portion of the new Bristol Boys and Girls Club on West Street.
Despite the harsh winter, the $11 million project remains on pace for completion by Labor Day.
Standing in the dirt nearby, where a basketball court will be erected soon, longtime club supporter Wally Barnes looked around at the rising project.“It’s amazing,” said Barnes, whose grandmother, Lena Barnes, began the club nearly a century ago. She began the dream and Wally continued it,” said Michael Suchopar, the club’s director. The new Don Tinty Boys & Girls Club and Family Center will house a massive field house, a technology center, a teen room, an arts and culture center and much more. It will replace the club’s aging quarters on Laurel Street, which remains for sale. Suchopar said the club has raised all the money it needs for the building but is still working to come up with the money to pay for all the things required inside. He said he’d also like to have enough to start an endowment to cover long-term needs to keep the building in good shape. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING
Reviving the Colt building
The widow of Sam Colt rebuilt Hartford's iconic East Armory after a devastating fire in the 1860s with one thought in mind: Use the latest fire-proofing techniques to ensure the structure would never succumb to fire again. And live on it did. The firearms factory under the familiar blue onion dome became a hub of innovation and assembly-line production in the Industrial Revolution. Those glory days have long since faded, however, and for more than a decade, the East Armory has stood largely vacant, decaying. Now, Elizabeth Colt's vision for survival is entering the Information Age A renovation of the East Armory, built to resemble its burned out predecessor, has kicked into high gear. Its steel roof was replaced last summer, most likely for the first time in its 148-year history, and part of the second floor was converted to classroom space for the Capitol Region Education Council.
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Americans driving more (despite what you may have heard)
In virtually every recent congressional hearing and many media reports about federal transportation policy, the false claim that “Americans are driving less” emerges in some capacity. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) data show U.S. vehicle miles traveled (VMT) increased 0.3 percent in 2012 and 0.6 percent in 2013. The upward trend is anticipated to continue well into the future as the nation’s economy and population continues to grow. This factual disconnect confuses discussions about the relative viability of various means to stabilize the Highway Trust Fund and support future federal highway and public transportation investments. The reality is that American driving trends are driven largely by macro-economic forces, not agenda-seizing assertions about shifts in societal behavior. These are the facts: CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE READING