DANBURY -- Executives with Winters Brothers are undertaking a multimillion-dollar construction project at the White Street transfer facility that they hope will improve both revenue streams from recycling efforts and the facility's own environmental footprint.
Ryan Bingham, director of government affairs for the trash hauler, said erecting a new building to process construction and demolition debris was long overdue and will allow all of the operations, including the removal of recyclable materials, to be conducted indoors.
The project is part of a nearly $5 million plan, he said, to improve recycling operations within the company that also included the construction of a new single-source sorting facility that was completed last year on Oliver Terrace in Shelton.
Bingham said the goal of the project is to improve the efficiency of the transfer station, provide additional revenue and clean up the site.
"Previously, the construction material was dropped outside," Bingham said. "By moving all the operation indoors, it reduces the amount of dust that's created and any potential for water-quality issues."
The new facility, he said, will also include new sorting equipment that will allow the company to remove additional materials from the debris including wood, plastics and other elements that can be recycled.
Bingham noted that commodity prices for paper and cardboard, traditionally higher-value materials for recycling, have been near historic lows, at least for the past decade.
"Of course, we are hoping to increase our revenue from recycling, but we also want to do the right thing and clean up the site," Bingham said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Newtown residents criticize plans for community center
NEWTOWN -- If town leaders learned anything from Tuesday's spirited discussion about the proposed community center being built with a $15 million gift from General Electric, it's that there needs to be more spirited discussion about it.
"I would like to have at least three more meetings about it because there was a lot of interest and a lot of good questions and a lot of good information exchanged," First Selectman Pat Llodra said Thursday.
Critics said the concept for the first phase of the project is too focused on meeting needs of seniors, to the exclusion of the rest of the town.
"The town is painting this community center picture, but the plans are to build a senior center first," said Kevin Fitzgerald, a former member of the town's Legislative Council. "I think that is where some of the resentment is coming from."
The town is proposing construction of a 35,000-square-foot building on a 5-acre site next to the Newtown Youth Academy on the town-owned Fairfield Hills campus.
The new building would include a senior center, a two-pool aquatic center and space for parties, classes and exhibitions.
Future phases of the project include the possibility of buying the youth academy building to house recreation programs.
For now, the town is focusing on gaining voter approval on April 28 to accept the GE gift and complete the first phase of the project.
Fairfield-based GE surprised Newtown one year after the 2012 Sandy Hook shootings by donating $15 million for a community center where all ages could interact.
GE donated $10 million toward design and construction and $5 million toward operating costs. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Construction worker fatality shot
Police have released a photo 33-year-old Gregory Weathers Jr., who was arrested in Thursday morning’s fatal shooting of 30-year-old Jose Araujo, of Milford.
Weathers, of Saunders Avenue, is facing murder and gun charges, police said. No motive has been established, and police said there’s no indication the suspect and victim knew each other. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Essex Place getting affordable housing funds
HARTFORD >> Fourteen affordable housing projects across the state, including Essex Place in Essex, will share investments of more than $60 million to build and rehabilitate 851 affordable apartments and 246 market-rate units, officials said Thursday. The funding was announced in a release by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Department of Housing Commissioner and Connecticut Housing Finance Authority Board Chairman Evonne M. Klein. “We have done more in affordable housing over the past several years than Connecticut has in decades – and this is yet another step in that direction,” Malloy said in a release. “As we make smart investments today for a brighter Connecticut tomorrow, affordable housing is an integral part. These units will help hundreds of families, support municipalities, attract talented workers, contribute to our economic growth, and create the communities that will be more competitive in today’s business climate. It’s progress for Connecticut.” The projects competed successfully in either the sixth round of the state’s Competitive Housing Assistance for Multifamily Properties initiative or the federal 9 percent LIHTC round. Investments include more than $60 million in state capital funding, a projected $84.6 million in federal 4 percent and 9 percent LIHTC credit equity, and $19.4 million in permanent CHFA tax exempt bond financing. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Contractor stops construction at Masonicare at Mystic project site
Mystic — Work has ceased on the $32 million Masonicare at Mystic assisted living project on Clara Drive after the project’s construction management firm said it was not being paid and left the site.
Last week, Klewin Construction of Mystic filed a suit against Senior Living By Masonicare LLC and Bessolo Design Group in New London Superior Court, saying it is owed more than $458,000.
The suit states that the contract between Klewin and Masonicare calls for Masonicare to make monthly payments to Klewin for work it completed.
Klewin stated it performed the work in strict compliance with the contract and plans for the project despite interference and “improper acts” by Masonicare and Bessolo. It stated it also did work, outside the scope of the contract, upon the direction and approval of Bessolo.
Klewin alleges that Masonicare failed to make payments for work it did in January and February and it ceased work on March 12.
Klewin further alleges that Masonicare “conspired” with Bessolo to “manufacture groundless reasons” to resubmit applications for payment in an effort to stall the payments. It also alleges that Masonicare and Bessolo failed to provide proper plans in a timely manner, which affected the progress of the work and forced Klewin to incur greater costs. The suit also charges that Masonicare has breached its contract with Klewin.
Klewin has now placed a mechanic’s lien on the property. A judge has slated a hearing on Masonicare’s request to discharge the lien on April 6. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Norwich Ponemah Mill project receives $14M state funding
Norwich – The Ponemah Mill renovation project will receive more than $14 million in funding from three different sources to complete financing for the $25 million first phase of the Ponemah Mill renovation project.
The Ponemah Mill renovation was one of 14 housing projects with nearly 1,100 proposed housing units statewide to receive some $60 million in state assistance announced Thursday by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.
The Lofts at Ponemah Mill, owned by Ponemah Riverbank LLC, a subsidiary of New Jersey-based Onekey LLC, will receive up to $4.97 million from the state Department of Housing, another $8.25 million in tax-exempt bond funding from Connecticut Housing Finance Authority and $1 million in Low Income Housing Tax Credit proceeds to rehabilitate the largest building in the historic Ponemah Mill complex.
The funding will cover the first phase to create 116 new units of mixed-income family housing, including 41 affordable units targeted to families with 50 to 80 percent of area median income. The remaining units will be at market rates.
The funding comes one month after the Norwich City Council agreed to rework the property tax abatement schedule for the stalled project, allowing property taxes on the full value of the project to be phased in over 15 years with the developers paying full taxes on existing values and growing portions of the new construction value over that period.
The city tax abatement schedule was seen as critical to winning state officials’ approval for the state Competitive Housing Assistance for Multifamily Program (CHAMP), administered through the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
DOT chief pitches 30-year transportation plan
HARTFORD — A long-term overhaul of the state's transportation network would cut air pollution and save time for commuters, but perhaps more importantly would help shore up Connecticut's economy, Transportation Commissioner James Redeker told lawmakers Thursday.
In drawing up a 30-year, $100 billion proposal this winter, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the transportation department were focused on attracting new development and retaining current businesses, Redeker said.
"I was responding to what I'm hearing from the business community: 'Fix the congestion or we're leaving,'" Redeker told the General Assembly's transportation bonding subcommittee.
The DOT and Malloy will be looking for the subcommittee's support to finance part of the plan's five-year ramp-up, the first stage toward a massive rebuilding and expansion of highways, bridges and transit systems.
At current funding levels, the state would normally put up $3.8 billion for transportation work over the next five years, and the federal government would add $3.4 billion. To pay for design and engineering of major highway construction and new transit improvements, the DOT wants to spend an additional $2.8 billion in that time.
Malloy is on the verge of appointing a panel to recommend a mix of ways for Connecticut to pay for the five-year ramp-up and the following 25 years of construction.
Any option is virtually guaranteed to require long-term borrowing. Republicans in the General Assembly earlier offered a far more modest 30-year plan, but even that relied heavily on new bonding to cover the costs. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Construction costs yet to rise in 2015
Construction costs fell again March, according to IHS and the Procurement Executives Group . The headline current Information Handling Services (IHS) PEG Engineering and Construction Cost Index (ECCI) registered 44.7 in March, a slight uptick from February’s record low, but still considerably below a neutral reading. The headline index has not indicated rising costs since December 2014.
“The rout in crude oil markets is clearly having a chilling effect on capital expenditure plans,” said Mark Eisinger, senior economist at IHS. “That said, survey respondents remain optimistic that projects are simply being delayed and not canceled.”
The current materials/equipment index registered 43.0 in March, a slight improvement from February’s 39.6 reading, but still consistent with the overall narrative of softer prices. Nine of twelve individual components registered falling prices in March, led by copper-based wire and cable, carbon steel pipe, alloy steel pipe, and fabricated structural steel.
Copper-based wire and cable has now shown falling prices for five of the past six months. “Non-ferrous metals markets continue to be weighed down by the specter of slowing consumption growth in key emerging markets and dampened investor interest due to the pending normalization of US monetary policy,” said Frank Hoffman, senior economist at IHS.
Ready-mix concrete was the outlier in the March survey as the only underlying component showing higher month on month prices. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE