Hartford city officials conducted interviews Thursday with the three groups vying to develop Downtown North into a retail-residential-commercial development that includes a minor league baseball stadium. Mayor Pedro E. Segarra said the analysis of the development bids will continue for the next few weeks. The city will then make a recommendation to the City Council around the first week of September. The city also released more details about the development proposals.
Boston-based CV Properties LLC is proposing a $217 million development with Gilbane Inc., Kage Growth Strategies, and HFF Inc. Their development proposal includes:
- 6,000 fixed-seat stadium
- Hooker Brewery located directly across the street from stadium entrance
- Live/work space
- Supermarket with covered parking
- 6,000 fixed-seat stadium
- Elevated Little League park
- Hooker Brewery
- Letters of intent from two prominent supermarket operators
Infinity Music Hall & Bistro: Anchor to Front Street
HARTFORD — Hundreds of guests streamed through the doors of Infinity Music Hall & Bistro for its grand opening Thursday, with every expectation that the music venue will provide a major boost to the city's nightlife. But whether that happens will depend on the many people who weren't there — the ticket buyers. "We hope the public does its part and attends these great shows," said Dan Hincks, Infinity Hall's founder. A lot is riding on the success of Front Street's largest venue. Infinity Hall is seen as the anchor of the entertainment district. The city views the music hall as key to attracting more visitors to downtown, especially at night. Taxpayers are hoping that a state investment of more than $1 million will pay off. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, speaking at the grand opening, said he believes that Infinity Hall will live up to all the anticipation, which has been building during 17 months of construction. Hincks and Infinity have a proven track record at their first venue in Norfolk, Malloy said. "We've seen it succeed in Norfolk though some of the toughest economic times," Malloy said. Infinity opened in 2008, "only to be followed in Connecticut shortly after that by the Great Recession. But to not only survive that, but to increase its footprint here, is remarkable." CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Developer revises plans for New Haven Olive Street project
NEW HAVEN >> A developer with city ties revised his plans for a major Olive Street development that extends back to Union Street, opening up more community space and making it less dense as the neighbors had asked. Noel Petra and John Greenspan pitched their vision at the Downtown/Wooster Management Team meeting Tuesday as they start the approval process to construct between 275 and 285 apartments ranging from studios and two-bedroom units, which would appeal to graduate students, to three-bedroom units for families. Petra, whose grandfather founded Petra Construction, said they want a mix of renters and will be putting upscale materials into the project to appeal to baby-boomers who want to move back to the city into quality housing. The proposal, which would be adjacent to the apartments being constructed by Spinnaker Residential on the Comcast site at the corner of Olive and Chapel streets, will bring almost 500 apartments to Wooster Square within a few blocks of the nearby Shore Line East train station. When they are constructed it would means thousands of new people in the area, Petra said, to use businesses and to encourage more to locate in the area of Union Street, which is now a no-man’s land between downtown on one side and Wooster Square on the other. Petra’s wish is to convince owners of businesses and land along Fair Street, now a dead end off Union Street, to sell him the land so Fair Street can continue through to Olive Street. Petra envisions it as a well-lighted, one-way street leading off Olive Street back downtown to keep more people from cutting through Wooster Street to get onto Interstate 95. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Naugatuck welding firm ordered to stop working on New Haven project
A Naugatuck welding company was one of two contractors to receive stop-work orders Thursday from the state Department of Labor at a construction site in New Haven. Steel Vision Welding Contractors, of 36 Beebe St. in Naugatuck, and Integrated Construction Services, or ICS, of Bay Shore, N.Y., were each issued the orders for failing to have Connecticut workers' compensation insurance coverage for renovation work at 205 Church St. in New Haven, according to Nancy Steffens, spokeswoman for the Labor Department. "You have to have Connecticut insurance in order to work in Connecticut," Steffens said. She said Steel Vision also received its stop work order because "it appears that (they are) also making cash payments to workers." She said the company must prove to the state they are paying workers "the correct amount" and are withholding the proper deductions for workers' compensation, and state and federal income taxes. Steel Vision did not respond to a request for comment. ICS officials were not available for comment Thursday.
It was not known how many workers Steel Vision and ICS employed at the construction site, part of an office building that is being converted to residential apartments. Last month, a different contractor, Regional Wall Systems of Florida, received a stop-work order for subcontractors that were also paying workers in cash and the lack of payroll records. The order was lifted about a week later, Steffens confirmed. The New England Regional Council of Carpenters, which has protested the treatment of workers by subcontractors at the site, issued a news release stating that the lack of proper insurance could affect not only the workers, but taxpayers as well. "Lack of worker's compensation insurance means that these contractors are reaching into the pockets of the public — if a worker gets hurt and falls, then the taxpayer is on the line for the bill," Tim Sullivan, organizer with the union, said in the news release. He added that, because this is the second time stop-work orders have been issued on the project, it shows a "pattern of behavior." The union said the construction site is owned by Cooper Church LLC, a subdivision of First Service Residential New York, and that Klewin Construction is named as a construction manager. The union also said workers "fled" the scene when Labor Department agents arrived. Steffens said that does happen. "It is not unusual for the employees to initially leave the work site because they are uncertain at first what is going on, and their first instinct is to leave," she said. "When they find out we (are) from CTDOL, they are typically very good about answering questions." Steffens added that agents usually have a Spanish-speaking inspector with them to ask questions if there is a language barrier. The companies can resume work on the site once they offer the state proof that they have state workers' compensation insurance and can show payroll records, Steffens said.