The new auditorium at Greenwich High School is ready for its curtain-raising.
The MISA performing-arts center, with a seating capacity of 1,325, received Thursday its temporary certificate of occupancy, allowing for the start of shows in the venue.
For the past two weeks, students have taken classes on stage and in support rooms, but the seating area was not open.
“The Building Committee is pleased to reach this milestone and be able to turn over to the Board of Education a quality performing arts center that fulfills the educational specifications,” Jackie Welsh, vice chairman of the MISA building committee, said in a statement. “This project represents the dedication of the members of this Committee, Perkins+Will, the architectural firm, and Turner Construction Company, the construction manager.”
A ribbon-cutting ceremony and student concert will be held 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the auditorium. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Malloy: N.Y., N.J. “eating our lunch”
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy told Stamford business leaders on Thursday that his multibillion dollar transportation plan, coupled with a more “welcoming” approach to businesses, will help Fairfield County restore its luster as a haven for corporate jobs as New York and New Jersey compete more effectively than in past years.
“Because for a long time we didn’t invest in housing (and transportation) ... we will not win those battles to get our fair share of that excess development that will take place in New York City,” Malloy, who served 14 years as mayor of Stamford before becoming Connecticut’s governor in 2011, said at the annual meeting of the Stamford Chamber of Commerce. “Right now, I think northern New Jersey is eating our lunch. Right now, I think Westchester is a far stronger competitor than it was when I was mayor ... with respect to the potential for economic development.”
While Stamford benefited from a string of corporate relocations during Malloy’s tenure as mayor and that of his successor Michael Pavia, since current Mayor David Martin took office in 2014 those deals have been few and far between. On Thursday, Malloy’s office issued a press release announcing the relocation of MC Credit Partners from Manhattan to the Harbor Point district under development by Building and Land Technology, bringing between 20 and 25 staff in a deal that was first reported last week by the Stamford Advocate.
Malloy said he spent Wednesday touring major housing and office developments in New York City, and drew a distinction between the swiftness with which leaders in Brooklyn and Manhattan expedite development projects that promise new jobs—a goal he said he worked to achieve himself while mayor of Stamford—and the view he said corporations currently have of Connecticut as being unresponsive. Malloy is in a last-ditch effort to hang onto the headquarters of General Electric, which is said to be considering moving to New York, Georgia and other locations. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Small Allocation Marks A Slow Start For State Office Building Renovation
HARTFORD — The state is wading more slowly than planned into designing a $254 million makeover of the venerable state office building on Capitol Avenue.
The State Bond Commission Tuesday approved just $2 million for further study on a massive makeover of the 1931 building at 165 Capitol Ave., the first large building constructed in Hartford specifically for state office workers.
In August, the Department of Administrative Services, which is overseeing the project, indicated it would seek $22 million for the design and planning. But the full price tag of the project, reported in The Courant, surprised many lawmakers and others — leading to a discussion of possible alternatives.
"We are making absolutely sure we are satisfied with the scope of the work before we commit ourselves," said Ben Barnes, the state's chief budget official, said. "It's a very expensive project, the kind that can make your heart go pitter-pat."The $2 million is part of $24 million already approved, but not allocated, by the state legislature to get the project going. The balance — at this point, $230 million — would still need to be approved by the General Assembly. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Tribes' Search For Hartford-Area Casino Site: Broad Statements, Few Details
he Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes launched their search for a Hartford-area casino site Thursday with broad statements about quality and long-term commitment but no hints about whether the chosen site will be East Hartford, Enfield or somewhere in between.
"Obviously, the two tribes want what any buyer would want," Barbara Pearce, president of Pearce Real Estate in Branford, said at a news conference in Hartford. "They want the easiest possible site to develop in the shortest amount of time with the fewest costs, and the most other benefits, such as visibility, proximity to large populations, anything that would make the site desirable to anybody."
Pearce, hired to direct the gathering and evaulation of proposals, was flanked by Kevin Brown, chairman of the Mohegan Tribal Council, and Rodney Butler, chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Council at the news conference in the lobby of the State Office Building on Capitol Avenue. The tribes delivered a copy of the request for proposals Thursday to the state Department of Consumer Protection, which regulates gambling.
Proposals are due Nov. 6, and the tribes say they will pick a location by Dec. 15.The tribes are in a rush to build a mid-size casino in the capital region to compete against a larger, $800 million development under construction by MGM in Springfield. The MGM project is scheduled to open in the fall of 2018, and, with support from the state legislature, the tribes hope to beat that date by a year or more. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Point/Counter Point: Do Millennials Need Special Handling at the Work Site?
Love ‘em; hate ‘em…makes no difference. Millennials are here to stay. They are the generation born between 1980ish and 2000ish and are the workforce of tomorrow being hired today. The Millennial generation will compose the majority of the construction workforce by 2018, according to the U.S. Census.
While the economy rebounds and the projects come in, Baby Boomers are leaving and Millennials are there to take their place. But the struggle is there. Millennials require a new style of recruitment, management and retention.
Here are five characteristics of Millennials that, with some adjustment of an owner or manager’s thinking, can be exploited to the best advantage:
1. Technology is Central -- They grew up differently. They are truly the new-technology generation where technological innovation occurs so quickly it is expected to be a part of normal life for Millennials. For fun, hand a Millennial a yellow-pages telephone book and ask them to look up the number for the closest Wallmart store. It will take less than 10 seconds before they’re reaching for their smart phone and saying “this is stupid, I can go online and have the number in about five seconds.” Contractors can take advantage of that ease with technology to help their companies advance. Millennials are more likely to feel comfortable with project management software to GPS machine control to texting-based employee time tracking to BIM modeling to social media such as Facebook and Twitter. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE