STAMFORD — A major transportation project to replace an aging railroad bridge and reconstruct a congested highway exit ramp near the downtown train station could get stalled as a portion of the funding has been put in jeopardy.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy diverted $50 million in promised sales tax revenue from transportation projects last week that could affect funding for the second phase of the Atlantic Street reconstruction and Metro-North railroad bridge replacement plan.
The first phase of the state-funded project, which began in April, is expected to be completed by June 2018. The project includes the reconfiguration of the Interstate 95 northbound off-ramp at Atlantic Street and construction of a bypass corridor for existing private utility facilities.
A timeline for the second phase, which includes construction of a wider Atlantic Street Metro-North railroad bridge, has not yet been announced. The state Department of Transportation said this week the second phase will be a separate construction contract with its own work timeframe.
The project was presented to the public at an informational meeting Thursday night. For the latest information from the meeting, go to stamfordadvocate.com CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Groton and Norwich to receive loans for water projects
The state Department of Public Health announced Thursday that $40 million in low-interest loans to protect the state’s public drinking water by financing local projects aimed at improving water treatment plants and other facilities was approved by the State Bond Commission on May 27.
Among projects that will receive funding are a Groton Utilities water treatment upgrade project and upgrades to Norwich Public Utilities’ water treatment plant and distribution system.
The package approved by the Bond Commission will make it possible for the state’s Drinking Water Fund to provide low-interest loans to local and regional public water systems for drinking water improvement projects, the health department said in a news release.
Under this program, loans are repaid at approximately half the market interest rate over 20 years.
Groton will receive an additional $8 million, for a total funding of $42 million, for a major upgrade of its surface water treatment plant.
Groton will make significant improvements to its plant to improve water quality, modernize treatment technologies and upgrade aged facilities.
The plant originally was constructed in 1938, and improvements to the facility are crucial for long-term infrastructure sustainability, the health department said.
Norwich Public Utilities will receive $13.5 million for water treatment plant filtration upgrades, finished water transmission main improvements, and construction of a new water storage tank to improve water quality, the health department said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Route 99 Bridge In Rocky Hill To Be Closed For A Week While Its Replaced
ROCKY HILL – A $1.2 million project to replace the Hog Brook bridge on Route 99 (Main Street) will require closing the roadway for a week in August, but not until after the Travelers Championship at the TPC River Highlands, state transportation officials said.
Preliminary work began May 9, resulting in lane closings, and some traffic delays, but the roadway has remained open. That will change in mid-August, when the section Route 99 at the bridge, between Stepney Circle and Hillside Avenue, will be closed and new, prefabricated culverts put into place.
"The closure will take place the week after the TPC. Our primary concern is obviously not to interfere with the tournament, and at the same time, have it take place prior to schools
opening,'' Department of Transportation spokesman Kevin J. Nursick said.
The Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands runs Aug. 1-7. While the roadway is closed, the contractor, Schultz Construction, will be working at the site 24 hours a day for seven days. The completion deadline for the project is Sept. 12.
Prior to the closing, DOT will notify public safety officials and alert the public. Traffic will be diverted to Elm Street (Route 160), Cromwell Avenue (Route 3) and West Street then back to Route 99. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUELane Closures, Heavy Traffic Ahead in Bridgeport, Waterbury
With highway construction season fully underway, motorists going through Waterbury or Bridgeport can expect more than the usual number of delays in the next couple of weeks, the state transportation department advises.
From Friday night into Saturday morning, some lanes of Route 8 in Bridgeport will be closed intermittently to accommodate two bridge replacement jobs.
The entire work zone will have temporary traffic patterns with state troopers on hand for the following two weeks.
In Waterbury, traffic on I-84 will be detoured during the overnight hours for about two weeks. In both locations, the DOT advises drivers to exercise extra caution.
The Bridgeport work is a major step in the $35 million replacement of Route 8 bridges over Capitol Avenue and Lindley Street. Traffic headed to or from I-95 will be affected.
Starting at 7 p.m. Friday, DOT workers will close some lanes northbound and southbound while they put down new temporary lane markers. By Saturday morning, the southbound stretch of highway will be closed altogether and should remain shut down for two weeks, the DOT said.
During that time, northbound traffic between exits 3 and 5 will be restricted to three lanes. The two remaining lanes on that side of the highway will be used temporarily for southbound traffic.
Crews from Manafort Brothers plan to demolish the two southbound bridges in those two weeks, and assemble prebuilt replacements. Some exits and on-ramps will be closed temporarily; detour signs will be put in place to guide motorists to the nearest alternates, the DOT said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Stadium fiasco threatens novel renewal idea
The controversial delays and added costs at Hartford’s new minor league baseball stadium not only put the 2016 Hartford Yard Goats baseball season on life support, it threatens what could be the city’s boldest renewal effort since the Front Street (nee Adriaen’s Landing) project that began in the 1990s.
Dunkin’ Donuts Park is supposed to be the first phase of a broader project to redevelop land just north of I-84 in downtown Hartford, an area called Downtown North or DoNo. Alas, the project developer, DoNo Hartford LLC, an affiliate of Centerplan Companies, ran up a $10.4 million cost overrun and missed two deadlines this year to complete the stadium. After an email Friday indicated the stadium was still two months or more from meeting city building codes, the umpire gave DoNo Hartford the thumb – Mayor Luke Bronin terminated the contract with the developer on Monday.
This follows a vote by the quasi-public Hartford Stadium Authority two weeks ago to pull the performance bond on the project, that is, bring in the insurance company that guaranteed the project's completion to finish the job. Whether that will happen, or whether the project will be tied up in court, remains to be seen. What hangs in the balance is the part of the project many considered its most important. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
City Engineer Ed Fabbri said Wednesday that the road will be closed to traffic for approximately one week, and that a detour will be set up to guide motorists around the construction work during the period.According to a release sent out by the city, this effort is expected to begin in mid-June. Once the drainage work is completed, the section of road between Guerdat Road and the northern boundry of Sunny Brook State Park will subsequently be paved in July or August, according to the department. The City Council awarded a $591,140 contract for “pavement preservation” on Newfield Road to Bridgeport-based Waters Construction Co., Inc. on Wednesday, part of a special telephonic meeting of the City Council, which was scheduled after the original Monday meeting was cancelled by a lack of quorum. The paving is being funded largely through a federal grant, according to Fabbri, and will take between one and two weeks. The road will not be closed to traffic during this period, but, according to city officials, travel through the area will be restricted to a single lane. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE