STAMFORD — The city was right to order a South End excavating company to stop using its crushing machine on construction debris, an appeals court has ruled.
The decision by the Stamford-Norwalk District Superior Court marks a major victory in the city’s multiyear battle with A. Vitti Construction, which stores and processes excavating refuse on its property straddling Rugby Street and Elmcroft Road.
Judge Edward R. Karazin Jr. ruled that the company, which operates as Ten Rugby Street at the site, must comply with zoning rules, which bar rock crushing in city limits. No fines were imposed.
High school expansion will displace athletics for two years
DANBURY — As a general contractor completes plans for Danbury High School’s $50 million expansion this summer, the complications of disrupting 1,000 student-athletes are becoming apparent.
The temporary loss of grass fields, tennis courts and other athletic facilities behind the high school where construction is planned could cost $275,000 in relocation and rental expenses, according to an internal report.
And that doesn’t count the $140,000 expense of staging two graduations off-campus, or the cost of losing the use of the football stadium during construction, which is expected to take two years.
“Everybody knows there is going to be an impact when construction begins — we get that,” says longtime Danbury High School Athletic Director Chip Salvestrini. “But we are counting on the use of that stadium. We have 100 boys on the (varsity) football team — what am I going to do, put them on three buses?” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Bridgeport job fair draws dozens
BRIDGEPORT— At 27, Jameson Terry hopes to transform nine years of working dead-end jobs into one offering a lifelong career.
Jermaine Smith, 36, who was carrying around a folder of environmental remediation certificates, hopes to parlay them into training as a heavy equipment operator.
And 20-year-old Jeremy Marshall just wants to get his hands “dirty” on a job that offers training, benefits and a career.
The three were among dozens of area residents looking for work in the building trades during a job fair organized by state Sen. Edwin Gomes at the downtown Burroughs-Sadin library Wednesday.
“I’m just trying to do what I can to get people jobs,” said Gomes. “All these trades offer apprenticeship programs where you learn while you earn. I got representatives from several different trades to inform people what they have to an offer.”
During the program, Gomes took the opportunity to try a virtual reality spray-painting program at the Painters and Allied Trades and the Finishing Contractors’ Association table.
“They showed me where I missed a couple of spots,” laughed Gomes, who represents the city’s East Side and parts of Stratford. “My brother, who lives in New Jersey, makes big money painting bridges.”
Alika McFarland, 35, a native New York who heard about the event from a friend, spent several minutes talking to Michael Komaromi, the painting union’s director of training, about career offerings.
“I’ve painted, but never went to school for it,” said McFarland. “I’m going to apply for the classes in October...People always need painters. What’s good is you could take that certificate anywhere.” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Brooks Street in Meriden permanently closed for new train station
MERIDEN — As part of work on a new train station, Brooks Street has been closed.
The state Department of Transportation anticipated closing the road this month to accommodate a temporary platforms while crews work on the existing platforms. On Wednesday, the road was closed to traffic, causing confusion for some motorists.
In February, the City Council voted to abandon a portion of the street, between State Street and the Amtrak right-of-way, about halfway up the street and just past the railroad tracks. Eventually, the space will be combined with the 88 State St. parcel and converted into rail passenger parking. Officials have said the city will maintain access to businesses on the western half of Brooks Street.
“We’ll still preserve public access to properties on Brooks Street on the other side of the railroad tracks,” City Councilor David Lowell, who chairs the Economic Development, Housing, and Zoning subcommittee of the council, said last month. “From a flow of traffic and public use standpoint, it’s not going to have much of an effect — you’ll still be able to go down to Camp (Street) to cross over (to Colony Street). Plus eventually, the whole downtown flow is going to be modified.”
The Meriden station, as well as stations in Wallingford and Berlin, comprise just one section of work being done across Southern New England to upgrade 62 miles of track between New Haven and Springfield, known as the Hartford Line.
The ultimate goal of this $650 million project — for which the state of Connecticut, Amtrak and Federal Rail Administration have partnered — is to offer more frequent train stops and entice commuters to use rail travel more consistently. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
PLAINVILLE — Highway motorists can expect plenty of traffic cones and flashing lights over the next 18 months as five bridges in Plainville and New Britain are rehabilitated, beginning this week.
The bridges are along Interstate 84, both westbound and eastbound, as well as Routes 72 and 372, according to a statement from the state Department of Transportation.
“The overall scope of rehabilitation for these bridges consists of patching of the deck, applying a new bituminous overlay, repairing the steel superstructure members, and patching the substructure as necessary,” the DOT stated.
Work on the bridges is set to begin Friday and be completed in late October 2017. Manafort Brothers Inc. of Plainville will spearhead the project.
“This is very similar to what we did on the Northwest Drive Bridge that we worked on last summer,” Plainville Town Manager Robert E. Lee said. “While the bridges may not look like they’re in bad shape, they need to do this kind of maintenance so that it doesn’t get to the point where you have to rebuild the whole bridge.
“I’m glad to see the state is being proactive and taking care of something before they get really bad.”
Lane closures can be expected throughout the project. Most closures will occur between the hours of 6 p.m. and 6 a.m., with some variation based on location and days of the week. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
By Jesse Buchanan Record-Journal staff
Eversource Energy will use helicopters over the course of the next week to inspect power lines in a host of towns and cities including Meriden, Southington, Wallingford and Cheshire.
The inspections, which started this week, are intended to check for foliage encroaching on power lines.
“The helicopter inspections of our transmission lines are a crucial and effective part of our commitment to reducing the frequency and duration of power outages,” Steve Driscoll, Eversource Energy vice president of operation services, wrote in a statement released Wednesday.
The helicopters are blue and silver with the tail number N1431W and blue and white with the tail number N411DD.
Last year, the company used helicopters to replace power lines. Using helicopters instead of bucket trucks saves time and reduces impact to the environmentally sensitive area, according to company officials. Using trucks would mean building access roads, which would take months and disturb the environment.
The inspections this year are expected to continue until April 8.
MERIDEN — Demolition of three Broad Street buildings to make way for a CVS Pharmacy will begin soon.
Assistant City Planner Tom Skoglund said Tuesday that demolition could start this week or early next week. Demolition preparations, including chain-link fencing around the site and a tarp over a section of one building, has already been done.
A 14,000-square-foot CVS store will span the three parcels at 167, 153, and 143 Broad St. on the southeast corner of Broad and Ann streets. The site will also have a 68-space parking lot.
The plan received all local approvals at the end of July, and was sent to the state Department of Transportation for approval, since Broad Street is a state highway: Route 5.
DOT spokesman Judd Everhart said Tuesday that the department received the latest plans from the development consultant Monday, in response to earlier comments from the DOT about the traffic signal at the intersection of Broad Street, Ann Street and Gale Avenue.
“The proposed revision to the signal, which is owned and maintained by Meriden, is minor, and the review is expected to be complete shortly,” Everhart said.
The revision won’t affect traffic crossing from Ann Street to Gale Avenue, an “offset” intersection.
“The geometry between Ann Street and Gale Avenue will remain as it currently exists and the operation of the existing traffic signal will remain unchanged,” Everhart said.
Developers had already pledged to add a left-turn lane on Ann Street, to be built and funded by them on land they donated from the parcel at 167 Broad St. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Under State Project 120-92, the transportation department is proposing to widen Route 85 between Skyline Drive and Burnett's Country Gardens and install rumble strips along the center line to reduce congestion and the risk of crashes.
Scott Bushee, principal engineer and project manager with the Department of Transportation, said during the presentation that the $1.2 million project is slated to begin in June 2017 and end by November 2017, though some of the utility work could start as early as April 2017.
Eighty percent of the project would be funded through federal money, and the remaining 20 percent would come from the state.
Bushee said congestion and rear-end collisions are common in front of Burnett's Country Gardens as people traveling southbound attempt to turn left into the parking lot.
The curve toward Skyline Drive also has been the scene of 13 accidents in five years, with one fatality, Bushee said.
He said First Selectman Kevin Lyden specifically reached out to DOT to improve this section of Route 85.
"It's an important safety improvement," Lyden said, "and I think all the emergency responders in this town will say they've been out there at different times and seen deaths or serious injuries."
Project engineer Byong Kim presented the proposed improvements, which included widening the 0.6-mile stretch and installing rumble strips in the center line, to a nearly full room at Town Hall. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Bristol Hospital On Course With Depot Square Plan
BRISTOL — Bristol Hospital is on track to start building a medical office complex downtown next year, and the city plans to hire a consultant to coordinate development of the rest of the Depot Square site.
The schedule for the hospital's project looked in jeopardy in late winter because of uncertainty about how that state would solve its budget crisis. But with the General Assembly's budget agreement on Tuesday, the hospital is now expected to receive the nearly $5 million in overdue Medicaid reimbursements that it was at risk of losing.
"They're going forward full speed. The hospital has had this on their fast track since they began," said Mayor Ken Cockayne, whose best hope for advancing the long-stalled Depot Square development hinges on the hospital's plan for a four-story lab and medical office center on one corner of the property. "We're on track," hospital President Kurt Barwis said Wednesday evening. "We've got a deadline to reach a purchase agreement [for the land] on May 28."
The hospital is doing extensive architectural and engineering work, and plans to seek a developer to build the center. The developer would finance the project and get extensive long-term leases from the hospital to locate specialists' offices, laboratories and other facilities in the building. Those offices are spread throughout the region in assorted leased spaces. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
UConn To Spend $10 Million To Fix Gampel Ceiling
TORRS — UConn is embarking on a $10 million plan to fix the frayed and crumbling fabric hanging from the ceiling inside Gampel Pavilion that should extend the life of the facility for 10 to 15 years.
The interior ceiling is not only unsightly, but it leaks, according to Laura Cruickshank, UConn's chief architect and master planner.
"I actually saw a leak during a basketball game," Cruickshank said. "It was kind of to the side so most people weren't observing it, but I saw it."
Cruickshank added that the problem is going to get worse if it's not fixed now. She said the roof has "long since needed to be fixed … These games are televised nationally."She added: "It's going to look a heck of a lot cleaner and you won't see all those dripping pieces of fabric."
The UConn Board of Trustees approved the repair plan for the pavilion, which was constructed in 1990, at its Wednesday meeting. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
UConn Hartford Campus Will Include Public Library
HARTFORD — The University of Connecticut's vision for creating an urban neighborhood campus around its new downtown location is taking shape with Wednesday's approval of a $4 million plan to renovate and lease space at the Hartford Public Library on Main Street.
The center of the new, $140 million campus will be at the former Hartford Times building on Prospect Street, where construction is well underway. The library will provide space for classrooms, a library collection and study areas. Last year, UConn paid $4 million for the building at 38 Prospect St. for classrooms and offices.
And UConn is negotiating an agreement with the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art for the use of its auditorium, with an agreement expected later this spring.
"We envisioned from the beginning that the downtown campus would be integrated with neighboring properties to get students and employees out into the community," Stephanie Reitz, a UConn spokeswoman, said, after the plan's approval. "This is an important first step in the process.'When UConn moves its regional campus in West Hartford to downtown Hartford in the fall of 2017, it expects to welcome 2,300 students and 300 faculty. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Malloy hears from homeowners with crumbling basements
Enfield – The good news Wednesday night was that at least a dozen of the people waiting to question Gov. Dannel P. Malloy had minimal interest in Connecticut’s intractable budget problems. The bad news: They came to talk about their crumbling basements.
Not everyone made it to the microphone in the gymnasium of Asnuntuck Community College, but Malloy told them he was aware of the problem that has left thousands of homes unmarketable with deteriorating foundations blamed on defective concrete.
“It’s a complicated issue,” Malloy told Walter Zalewa of Willington, a member of the Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling Basements.
The Department of Consumer Protection and the Insurance Department are investigating the source of the problem, as well as the position of insurers that they are not obligated to cover structural defects.
“There’s no help for these people,” Bob Tofolowsky of Stafford told Malloy. “What about the people right now? What do we do?” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Housing pieces arrive on site
WATERBURY — A Pennsylvania contractor hired to build a $550,000 apartment building for the Waterbury Housing Authority began delivering pieces Wednesday, belying misgivings voiced earlier by a highly placed official. "We are just going to do the job, get it done and everyone will be happy," said Bud Miller, president of the Arcon Group. "And people who move in here will have a very nice apartment." In early March, Waterbury Housing Authority Board Chairman James Lawlor announced Arcon was behind schedule and he'd contacted the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development with concerns about losing $350,000 already paid out. The announcement came shortly after the authority put its executive director, Robert Cappelletti, on paid leave.
Soon after, a housing authority employee visited the Pennsylvania factory where Arcon builds pieces of structures to be delivered and assembled on distant building sites. On March 23, Waterbury Housing Authority Director of Development Joe McNiel told the agency board during a meeting that construction was proceeding in step with payments.
Arcon builds modular pieces of buildings, which are then shipped by truck and assembled quickly on building sites. Lawlor, reached Wednesday, said he couldn't speak to his confidence in the project. He said he was out of state and hadn't had an update from authority staff. Lawlor could not describe the concerns that resulted in Cappelletti being placed on paid leave.
The matter is being investigated by a New Haven attorney, he said.
In Cappelleti's absence, the authority is being led by Maureen Voghel. Lawlor said Voghel — sister of state Sen. Joan V. Hartley, D-15th District — served as one of two assistant directors before taking the helm as interim director. A telephone message left with the housing authority was not returned Wednesday. Lawlor said he cannot elaborate on the concerns about Cappelleti's leadership. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE