ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — While one company has shelved plans for a natural gas pipeline from New York into New England, another project following a similar route is hoping to proceed.
The 124-mile Constitution Pipeline from Pennsylvania's shale gas fields to eastern New York is supported by firm customer commitments and was approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2014, Constitution spokesman Christopher Stockton said Thursday. Construction was scheduled to begin this summer but has been delayed pending action on a water quality permit that has been before the Department of Environmental Conservation for nearly a year.
On Wednesday, Houston-based Kinder Morgan Inc. cited low gas prices and a lack of contracts with gas distribution companies as it announced it was mothballing its Northeast Energy Direct project. That project was still under review by FERC and was planned to go online in 2018.
Constitution Pipeline Company, a partnership formed by Cabot Oil & Gas, Williams Partners and Piedmont Natural Gas Company, plans to begin construction in the fall and go online in the second half of 2017.
Both pipelines faced opposition from environmental groups and landowners along their routes, while local pipeline supporters cite construction jobs, tax revenues and access to cheap natural gas.
Pipeline opponents held a rally at the state Capitol on April 5 to urge Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo to deny the water quality permit. Under federal Clean Water Act rules, the DEC has until next Tuesday to act on the permit, which is intended to protect streams, wetlands and other water resources from damage. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Contractors began working last week on replacing the Plumtrees Road bridge, which is plagued by heavy traffic during rush hour and is frequently the site of accidents.
The bridge, built in 1975, crosses East Swamp Brook between Walnut Hill Road and Whittlesey Drive, near the school complex.
The plan is to replace the bridge, reconfigure the intersections and replace the traffic lights at the two corners with a single signal, and then to add a sidewalk along Plumtrees.
The state Department of Transportation is managing the $2.44 million project, which will be paid for mostly with federal funds. The contractor is Monroe-based Nagy Brothers Construction.Materials stockpiled in Meriden, Wallingford reflect commuter rail project’s scope
MERIDEN — The 21,000 concrete railroad ties stockpiled in the Amtrak rail yard on State Street make it easier to grasp the scope of construction along the CTrail Hartford Line corridor.
The $639 million project is updating the rail corridor to include double tracking and facilitate more frequent commuter trains between New Haven, Hartford and Springfield. The corridor crosses through many cities and towns, including Wallingford, Berlin and North Haven, as well as Meriden.
The concrete ties being stored at the rail yard in Meriden will be used to build a second track in the central Connecticut area, said John Bernick, assistant rail administrator for the state Department of Transportation.
New wood ties on the existing track were installed in 2010, Bernick said.
“So those are in good shape and have a lot of life left in them,” he said.
Concrete ties are a less expensive alternative to the wooden ties and have a longer life, according to Bernick.
People traveling the area have also likely noticed another stockpile of material along Route 5 in Wallingford. Large piles of gravel and other material are stored on the property. The area is used to process material that was excavated out of the existing railroad bed where the second track will be installed, Bernick said.
“The material consists of the old ballast (stone material that supports the ties) and finer material that has accumulated over the years,” he said. While the finer sand can’t be reused, the stone can. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
GLASTONBURY — The town is getting closer to starting construction on a $1.5 million roundabout at the intersection of Hebron Avenue and New London Turnpike and wants to make sure all concerns about the project are addressed.
An informational hearing will be held Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Riverfront Community Center. Town Manager Richard J. Johnson said the goal of the meeting is to reach out to business and property owners near the roundabout as well as residents who will use it.
"Our intent is to establish an open line of communication," Johnson said, adding there will be another meeting before construction starts in June.
Daniel A. Pennington, director of physical services/town engineer, said final design work on the 110-foot-wide roundabout will be completed by the end of May. The plan is expected to ease traffic congestion and reduce the accident rate along the stretch of Hebron Avenue from the Route 2 off-ramp west into the town center. Another $1.2 million roundabout will be constructed farther east along Hebron Avenue at the intersection with House Street in 2017. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUEGroundbreaking set for medical center
WATERTOWN — After years of delays, partners Vincent Giannetto and John McHugh are ready to break ground on a 25,000-square-foot medical and professional complex.
The Planning and Zoning Commission approved a site plan for the Echo Lake Commons project a year ago. Before that, the project was held up in court for two years when neighbor Nick Perugini appealed the commission's 2010 decision to create a medical and general business zone along Buckingham Street from Route 262 to Calendar Road. The court upheld the commission's approval in 2012, but by then the developers had lost verbal commitments from medical groups to fill 30,000-square-feet of the planned 50,000-square-foot space, Giannetto said.
Now the partners are close to commitments on 8,000-square-feet of space, but are hoping to fill the remaining space with other types of medical practices, professional offices and a restaurant. "Once we break ground now people can see it and we can market it that way," said Brian Godin of Godin Property Brokers, which is representing the partners to lease the building. "Financially, it's easier if you have tenants in place when you break ground." Godin said he hopes to lease out suites ranging from 1,250-square-feet to 12,500-square-feet in the two level building. McHugh, a podiatrist, plans to move his practice from Depot Square to a 3,500-square-foot space within the building. McHugh sees 40 to 50 patients a day and has three other doctors working for him in an undersized space, Giannetto said. A financial group has committed to take some of the space and the partners are in talks with a radiology group, Giannetto said. "There's very little medical here for our population," Giannetto said.
If the first phase of the project is successful, the partners plan to build a 50,000-square-foot facility at the top of the hill. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE