STAMFORD -- U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., looked up at the rusty, crumbling concrete that makes up the base of the Interstate-95 bridge over the Metro-North tracks near North State Street.
"This bridge is rated one of the top 10 most structurally deficient bridges in the state of Connecticut," he said, citing data from a 2014 National Bridge Inventory, released by the Federal Highway Administration earlier this year.
He noted the span, which bears about 140,000 cars a day, is one of seven Fairfield County bridges in the top 10.
"You don't even need to hear the statistics. If you look up, you see corrosion, you see rust, you see crumbling concrete that puts at risk the thousands of people that pass over this bridge every single day," he said.
The congressman, Mayor David Martin and members of the construction industry made a trip to the bridge Monday morning in an effort to highlight the need for a federal transportation bill.
Several weeks ago, Congress passed an extension on transportation funding that runs through the end of July. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
US construction jumped 2.2% in April
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. construction spending climbed in April to the highest level in more than six years, fueled by healthy gains in housing, government spending and non-residential construction.
Construction spending advanced 2.2 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1 trillion, the highest level since November 2008, the Commerce Department said Monday. Spending had risen a more modest 0.5 percent in March.
The gain included a 0.6 percent rise in residential construction and a 3.1 percent jump in non-residential activity such as office buildings, hotels and shopping centers. Government projects increased 3.3 percent, reflecting the biggest jump in spending on state and local projects in three years.
Economists are looking for construction to provide solid support to the economy this year.
The April advance was the biggest one-month gain in three years and left construction activity more than 4 percent above where it was a year ago.
The construction industry has struggled to come back from the Great Recession, which hit builders hard. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
The over $40 billion, two-year state budget earmarks $2.8 billion for transportation over the next five years, including $1.8 billion in improvements to Metro-North's New Haven Line, and branch lines in New Canaan, Danbury and Waterbury.
"The bottom line is clear," Malloy said. "This budget makes historic investments in transportation. We need to tackle the issue like never before, because for too long, we weren't transforming our infrastructure at all."
A new rail line will be completed between New Haven and Springfield, Mass, with a stop in Hartford, and the so-called "mix master," the intersection of Interstate 84 and Route 8 in Waterbury, will be retooled and a similar traffic snarl in Hartford will be improved.
Overall, the agreement provides $613 million for highway improvements, $281 million for bridges, $101 million for bicycle and pedestrian trails and $43 million to expand bus service.
And, for the first time, the budget dedicates a half percent of the state's 6.35 percent sales tax to transportation needs.
The investment comes as the Northeast Corridor Infrastructure and Operations Advisory Commission's first-ever capital plan highlights the need to spend billions to replace century-old, deteriorating rail bridges in Greenwich, Westport, Norwalk and Milford. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
City Council rejects Renaissance
BRISTOL – City councilors unanimously rejected the financing plan Monday offered by Renaissance Downtowns for the first phase of its proposed Depot Square project.
“Obviously we’re disappointed, but we’re still optimistic,” Don Monti, the head of the Long Island-based developer.
He said he hopes the city and Renaissance will continue to work together in a public-private partnership that’s done well for five years already.
In public at least, Renaissance didn’t present any new information that might sway the council to toss aside the recommendation from the Bristol Downtown Development Corp. to reject the Long Island developer’s financing plan for the Depot Square project’s first phase.
Jennifer Arasimowicz, chairwoman of the BDDC, said her nonprofit “never reached the merits” of the Renaissance proposal because it failed to provide key information about investors or to present required construction contracts.
Monti said his firm “will try to fill in the blanks” in the days ahead as it continues to try to work with the city to keep the project moving ahead.
She said the council’s decision doesn’t change the status of Renaissance as the city’s preferred developer for the 15-acre site purchased by the city a decade ago. It retains its exclusive development rights through June 30 and perhaps beyond.
The BDDC, created in 2007 to oversee the mall site’s revitalization, unanimously urged the council to reject Renaissance’s plan for a four-story structure on Main Street unless it came up with more information.
Ryan Porter, the project manager for Renaissance, said his company remains excited about its prospects in Bristol.
He said the $23.7 million plan for the first building – with 100 rental units and six commercial spaces – “makes sense” and should be pursued. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE