Hydro power project at Meriden's Hanover Pond moving forward
MERIDEN — The hydropower project proposed for the Hanover Pond dam could be the first of its kind in the country. Municipal, state and federal agencies are reviewing plans for the initiative, which could present cost savings and bring a green technology to Meriden. New England Hydropower Co., based in Massachusetts, would install equipment at the dam that would generate 750,000 kilowatts of electricity annually and save the city close to $20,000 a year in power costs and property taxes over a 20-year period, according to Stephen Montemurro, chairman of the city’s Energy Task Force.“For a piece of property that is doing nothing right now, this is a great opportunity for us,” said Montemurro, who is also the city’s management and information systems director. The Planning Commission unanimously supported the use of the property next to the dam, which is city-owned, at Wednesday night’s meeting. The project would need approval from numerous agencies, including the Inland Wetland and Watercourse Commission, Planning Commission, the Army Corps of Engineers, the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and fishery groups. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
CT healthcare construction most active in New England
Ongoing and upcoming hospital and medical office building construction projects this year have a total construction value of $1.76 billion, the Maryland-based healthcare construction data provider said. That's ahead of Massachusetts' $1.15 billion worth of ongoing and upcoming projects, as well as Maine's $337 million and New Hampshire's $124 million, Revista said.
Leading the way in Connecticut is the $450 million replacement of Stamford Hospital, which broke ground last year. Next up is UConn Health Center's patient tower and $203 million outpatient pavilion, and John Dempsey Hospital's $163 million expansion — all in Farmington.
Revista, tracks the construction and renovation of hospitals and medical office buildings generally worth $5 million or more, according to Partner Mike Hargrave.
I-84 Viaduct Job: A maze of complexity
Early estimates suggest that replacing the I-84 viaduct through Hartford could cost $3 billion to $5 billion — and covering that bill would be just one piece of a monumentally complex job.
Constructing a new highway at ground level would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to transform the capital city, urban planners say. The public is invited June 17 to a state transportation department forum where engineers will talk about options for replacing the half-century-old viaduct and discuss the job's unique challenges. Neighborhood groups are eager to get rid of the noisy, rumbling overpass that cuts the city in half. But rebuilding it at ground level or lower is no mere paving job: It would require orchestrating relocation of Amtrak's rail line and the new busway, while merging new exit and entrance ramps into downtown's already jam-packed street grid. All of that would have to be woven as seamlessly as possible into the iQuilt network of pedestrian walkways and plazas, and without harming downtown businesses, historic Bushnell Park or the "Complete Streets" initiative of sidewalks and bike paths, the DOT says. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Site plans for $20M Southington recycling plant up for review on Tuesday
SOUTHINGTON — A site plan for a proposed $20 million recycling plant will be reviewed Tuesday by the planning and zoning commission, which two weeks ago approved a special permit to allow the use of a 37-acre parcel off Spring Street. "The site plan is the next step in our application process with the town," Amy Kessler, executive vice president and head of legal and regulatory affairs for Turning Earth LLC, Pennsylvania organic recycling company that proposed the $20 million facility. Its partner in the plan is Covanta, a trash-to-energy waste management company.
The site plan will give designs and details of the proposed plant. It will process about 50,000 tons of food-waste to turn into biogas to use for heating and energy and compost about 25,000 tons of yard waste to turn into high-grade soil supplements. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Neglected bridge makes deferred maintenance a losing bet
The faltering rail bridge in Norwalk poses a political and transportation crisis for Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, whose only immediate salvation is winning an intense, multi-state competition for federal transit funds that could expedite the bridge's long-delayed replacement.
Connecticut is now competing with a dozen states and even Metro-North's parent, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, for a share of a $3 billion Federal Transit Administration fund created by Congress in the 2012 Hurricane Sandy relief bill. To replace the bridge, the state is seeking $349 million, more than 10 percent of the entire fund. If the application fails, there is no other ready funding source for a project estimated to cost $465 million in state and federal funding. By making replacement of an 118-year-old bridge a second-term funding priority, Malloy took a gamble won by other governors, but not him. Twice in recent weeks, the mechanical swing bridge opened for marine traffic and failed to close, interrupting Metro-North and Amtrak service for hours at a time. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE