June 17, 2014

CT Construction Digest June 17, 2014

Mill River Collaborative gets $3M in Sandy Funds

STAMFORD -- The Mill River Collaborative received the lion's share of Connecticut's nearly $8 million in federal Superstorm Sandy grants to build another stretch of greenway from Main Street to Richmond Hill and Greenwich avenues and decrease downtown flood risks.  The collaborative received about $3.8 million from the U.S. Department of the Interior's Hurricane Sandy Resilience Grant Program. The program, administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Service, awarded nearly $103 million in grants to projects in 11 states to help fortify coastal areas against storms like Sandy in October 2012. The collaborative pledged $6.8 million in matching funds to secure the federal funding.  Milton Puryear, executive director of the Mill River Collaborative, said the work will involve excavating an additional 40-foot strip of land on the east side of the southern stretch of the Rippowam River, known as the Mill River Corridor, raising the 100-year-flood stage for properties on Clinton and Greenwich avenues and protecting them when the river overruns its banks. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE

North Stonington push for $40.5M school plan

North Stonington - Town officials made a final pitch Monday for a long discussed, and now whittled down, multimillion-dollar school improvement project in anticipation of next week's referendum vote. Voters will be asked on June 23 to vote on a $40.5 million project that revamps the elementary, middle and high school, adding space, bringing buildings up to code and addressing security, technology, environmental problems such as PCBs in window caulk, structural cracks in the walls and generally outdated facilities. Finance board Chairman Dan Spring, among other proponents, said he viewed the project as long overdue and designed to address issues that have built up through years of minimal budget gains. Spring said the time is ripe considering the town's excellent bond rating, historic low interest rates and generous reimbursement being offered by the state. "If not now, when?" Spring asked. Residents will be voting on a project that was reduced in size from the $47.5 million project rejected by voters at a referendum in May. The project has a guaranteed state reimbursement rate of $14.65 million, making the town's share about $25.8 million or as low as $22.4 million if the town can secure waivers for certain elements of the project. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE

Plainville road work to make schools safer

PLAINVILLE — The town middle school and Toffolon Elementary, near each other on busy Northwest Drive, should be safer places for pedestrains because of a $457,305 project this summer to slow traffic near both schools. The work — 100 percent financed by a federal Safe Routes To School grant — will add speed tables to the road, raise and improve sidewalks and add a center median between the driveways of both schools, town engineer John Bossi said Monday.
"The purpose is to slow traffic and make it safer for people to walk," he said. "Speed tables [large, flat-topped speed bumps] will slow vehicles, while the center median will cause motorists to slow down when entering the driveways of the schools." Work will begin about June 23 and is slated to be done by Aug. 15, a few weeks before students return to school from summer vacation. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE

Wallingford residents question new train station

WALLINGFORD >> Although the New Haven to Springfield, Massachusetts, commuter rail plan is just 2½ years away from going into service, town residents still are troubled with where the state Department of Transportation plans to put the new station. Construction of the new station is schedule to begin in September. But the sentiment of the majority of the three-dozen residents who attended an informational meeting at the Wallingford Public Library Monday night is that the location of the station causes more problems than it solves. The new station will be located off Parker Street, north of the current Amtrak station. Resident reiterated comments they have made to state DOT officials in the past: The location is too far from the center of town to promote meaningful economic development and will create a traffic nightmare at the nearby busy intersection of Parker Street and Route 5. “It’s going to be a disaster for residents and for the people who operate the trains,” said Lucille Casagrande, a local real estate agent. “It’s not going to have the economic impact the town wants and for the people who operate the trains, it’s not going to produce the ridership you’re looking for. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE

North Haven residents vote on middle school plan

From 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, residents can vote on a proposal for a “hybrid, like-new” middle school, the town’s second referendum in a month. Residents last month headed to the polls and passed an $88.8 million budget 1020-286.  Voting will take place at the Recreation Center on 7 Linsley St. Renovations would include construction of a new classroom wing while maintaining other school facilities. hanges to the school include a two-story academic wing, a 450-seat auditorium, 350-seat gymnasium, cafeteria, library and parking lot, according to town documents. Anita Anderson, chairwoman of the Board of Education, said if the plan passes many will see its benefits.
“A renovated middle school will not only help the teaching and learning environment for our teachers and students, but will be a great benefit for the town,” Anderson said.  CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE