STAMFORD — The Connecticut Department of Transportation will conduct a public information meeting Thursday concerning construction impacts associated with Phase 1 of the Atlantic Street Reconstruction and Metro-North Railroad Bridge replacement project.
In a statement Sunday, the department said Phase 1 of the project includes two major elements. First is the reconfiguration of the I-95 northbound Exit 8 off-ramp at Atlantic Street. This reconfiguration will require construction of a new bridge carrying the ramp over Atlantic Street and the installation of a new traffic signal where the off-ramp and South State Street merge. In addition, the intersection of South State Street and Canal Street will be widened to five lanes. A new traffic signal will also be installed at the South State Street and Canal Street intersection.
The second major element is construction of a bypass corridor for existing private utility facilities currently located beneath Atlantic Street and drainage upgrades and sanitary sewer relocation along South State Street. Phase 1 construction activities officially began in April 2016 and are anticipated to be complete in June 2018.
The public information meeting will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday in the sixth floor conference room at the Government Center
Out At Home: Hartford Throws Developer Off Ballpark Project; Work Stops
HARTFORD — The Hartford Stadium Authority is terminating its contract with the developers of Dunkin' Donuts Park, halting construction and casting doubt on whether the Yard Goats will play in the city's $63 million minor league ballpark this season.
In a news conference Monday, Mayor Luke Bronin said the move was touched off by an email Friday from the developers, DoNo Hartford LLC and Centerplan Cos., that estimated it would take 60 days or more before the stadium would meet city building codes.
"At that point, we simply lost confidence in DoNo and Centerplan's capacity to complete this project and their capacity to provide a schedule that is reliable and sound," Bronin said.
Middletown-based Centerplan also has not provided assurances that it has the financial resources to complete the 6,000-seat stadium without seeking more money from the city, Bronin said. Even with Monday's termination, it is still possible Centerplan could be brought back by Arch Insurance, under supervision, to finish the project, the mayor said.
"That's a decision for the surety to make," Bronin said. Arch Insurance is the project's surety, the company guaranteeing the stadium's completion.
Two weeks ago, Bronin announced his intention to pull the performance bond that guarantees the developer's contract will be fulfilled.
The city had hoped work could continue, but it was told by Arch Insurance that first the contract would have to be terminated. The company is expected to take a week or two to investigate the claim, according to I. Charles Mathews, the stadium authority's chairman.
A short time after Bronin made the announcement at city hall Monday, a half-mile away at the ballpark padlocks and chains were slapped on entrances to keep out the developer and workers. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
New Haven officials, residents oppose Union Station garage plan
NEW HAVEN >> City officials and residents spoke with one voice Monday and told the state that its plans for a second garage at Union Station are out of sync by half a century. Josh Erlanger, a resident of downtown who also owns property and a business there, said the garage that would provide 1,000 parking spaces does nothing for the actual residents of New Haven. He said it fails to provide a bus depot and skimps on biking facilities rather than doubling them.
Erlanger said it likely would be loved by suburban drivers who only want to get in and out of the city.
Win Davis, who heads the Town Green Special Service District, said the garage doesn’t take into consideration the Hill to Downtown Plan, which looks to increased retail, residences and a transit-oriented development in the area. He said it offers no improvements for pedestrians, and like every speaker, he said it has inadequate spaces and infrastructure for cyclists. “It’s like it is 1950,” Davis said, rather than 2016, and doesn’t look to a future when the emphasis will be on other methods of transit than single-occupancy vehicles. “It incorporates very little of our priorities,” Davis said, which the city has been sharing with the state for years and even worked jointly on those plans with the state Department of Transportation. He said it largely ignores the potential for development on Union Avenue. The proposal, which would cost between $40 million and $60 million, calls for constructing the garage on what is now a 260-space surface parking that accommodates only a portion of the overflow from the current garage on the site. The new facility would add about 740 spaces for a total of 1,884 for rail riders between the two garages. “This is a bad, bad piece of urban design,” said attorney Michael Pinto. “It ignores 10 years of negotiations with the state,” he said, and also the city’s Comprehensive Plan of Development, as well as its complete streets plan. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
New Haven alders approve city budget, including $45 million Strong School project
NEW HAVEN >> It came down to the school. With its lofty $45 million price tag, it was no surprise that several alders split from the majority of the board Monday to voice opposition to the construction of a new Strong School on the campus of Southern Connecticut State University. The project ultimately was approved 19-8 Monday One by one, nearly all of the alders who rose to comment on the project agreed that education is important and providing new learning opportunities for the city’s children is monumental. But those dissenting said their disapproval of the project — which will require the city to bond $10.7 million, with the remaining $34.3 million paid for the state — is based on concerns about the city’s long-term financial burden.
The passionate debate became so interpersonal at times that aldermanic President Tyisha Walker, D-23, had to remind at least three alders that they need to address her, not the board, when providing comment. The meeting lasted nearly four hours. While the Strong School amendment provided some dramatic interplay from the usually reserved board, the biggest vote of the night offered little fanfare. The board unanimously approved a $523.3 million citywide budget Monday that keeps real estate tax rates flat and lowers vehicle tax rate. Opposition against the Strong School project was led by Alder Al Paolillo Jr., D-17, who initiated the discussion when he said he would vote against the project due to overall impact on the city’s finances. He also took issue with the way the funding was presented to the board without what he said wasn’t enough of a vetting process. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE“This should have been submitted months ago,” Paolillo said. Finance Committee Chairwoman Alder Evette Hamilton, D-24, outlined all the changes the committee recommended from Harp’s plan, detailing each department line-by-line. She also spoke about what the recommended plan accomplished. The committee made the recommendation to approve the overall budget. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE