Connecticut Bond Commission expected to vote on nearly $189M in borrowing Tuesday
HARTFORD >> The state Bond Commission is poised to borrow $188.6 million Tuesday for a number of projects, including $1 million for improvements to the Connecticut Tennis Center in New Haven.
The $1 million is expected to be spent on construction of administrative offices and a media center and upgrades to the heating and cooling systems and other electrical equipment, according to the agenda. The state of Connecticut purchased the U.S. women’s tennis tournament, which is played every August at the center, in 2013 for $618,000. As far as tennis tournaments are concerned, Office of Policy and Management Secretary Ben Barnes has called the purchase price a “bargain in the world of owning tennis tournaments.”The Tennis Foundation of Connecticut also received a $1.2 million grant in January from the state Bond Commission to finance other renovations and improvements to the center. However, it’s not necessarily the Connecticut Tennis Center, the $2.5 million to replace the ice rink at the XL Center, or the $22 million in borrowing the state Bond Commission approved in May for the world’s largest hedge fund that has Republican lawmakers concerned. It’s the total amount of borrowing the state plans to do this calendar year. In March, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, chairman of the state Bond Commission, announced he was increasing the amount of borrowing the state planned to do this year from $2.5 billion to $2.7 billion.
Under Malloy, Connecticut’s borrowing has increased from $1.4 billion in 2011 to $1.8 billion in 2013, $1.96 billion in 2014, and $2.5 billion in 2015.If the state Bond Commission were to approve the $188.6 million in general obligation bonds Tuesday that would bring the total amount of borrowing the state has done in 2016 up to $2.1 billion. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Crews start drilling operations on Berlin rails
BERLIN-Crews are preparing to install new retaining walls along the Amtrak Right-of-Way in Berlin and Newington this month.
Drilling operations began in the early morning hours of Monday, July 11, and are expected to last 12 hours a day through next month. John Bernick assistant rail administrator for the state DOT, says the goal is to widen the embankment to make room for a second track.
It’s all part of the state-wide upgrade to the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield commuter line.
The tracks from North Haven, through Wallingford, and into the southern part of Meriden are being installed this summer. Berlin into northern Meriden will start next year.
As for the current operations on the rails in Berlin, the state DOT does not expect there to be any disruptions for residents in the area.
“The plan is not to interrupt roads for that wall construction,” said Bruce Adelstein, supervisor of engineering for the state DOT.
Adelstein says there may be weekend road closures in Wallingford as they work on crossings. For Berlin, however normal traffic is expected to continue.
Berlin is also undergoing construction for a new train station, along with Meriden and Wallingford.
The entire line is expected to be completed by January 2018.
Southeastern Connecticut is expected to receive millions of state dollars this week for employment training, improvements to community colleges and upgrades to transportation infrastructure. The State Bond Commission plans to vote Tuesday morning on the spending package in a special session in Hartford. The state's 12 community colleges, which include Three Rivers Community College in Norwich and Quinebaug Valley Community College in Danielson, stand to receive $6.7 million to finance new and replacement instruction, research and laboratory equipment, plus $7.7 million for renovation of academic facilities, safety upgrades and other grounds improvements.The funding request also includes millions for transportation initiatives in the region. The Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments is set to receive $2 million to finance projects under the Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program. Among the program's projects on the drawing board - approved and set to take place this year - are reconstruction of roads in Norwich, Franklin and Montville. "It's good news for our towns," Council of Governments Executive Director Jim Butler said. "This money is for use on major projects that will have regional impacts." In Norwich and part of Frankin, about 3,440 feet of roadway on Wisconsin Avenue, New Park Avenue and Winnenden Avenue will be rebuilt, at a total estimate of about $982,500. The project also includes improvements to curbs and drainage, as well as compliance with the federal Americans With Disabilities Act. Work in Montville includes reconstruction of about 1,400 feet of Old Colchester Road and 560 feet on Black Ash Road, along with re-aligning the intersection where the two roads meet into a better design. The work is estimated to cost $807,000. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Martin J. Kenny, a Glastonbury native who is a principal of Hartford residential landlord-developer Lexington Partners LLC, unveiled Monday the final design enhancements and improvements for The Tannery (formerly Flanagan's Landing).
The Tannery's existing three- and four-story buildings are on 32 acres on Flanagan's Drive, off New London Turnpike, near Glastonbury Center.
Construction on The Tannery began last fall. Pre-leasing of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units begins this fall, with initial occupancy set for this winter, Kenny said.
The town planning and zoning commission and town council still must review and approve the proposed architectural changes, Kenny said.
Boston's Barton Partners Architects Planners Inc. is The Tannery's designer.
The original, existing steel beam structure at the Tannery mill buildings' entrance has been saved and will be refurbished as a historic industrial element of the final project design, Kenny said. The beams extend from the main entrance to the west elevation of the new amenity building and is proposed to act as the support structure of the new development's entrance canopy and roof. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Torrington aims to be “active and proactive” regarding brownfield sites
TORRINGTON >> A series of recent brownfields grants will be used in conjunction with one another, Economic Development Director Erin Wilson said this week, to better provide for the future of the properties which dot the city, including the former Stone Container site.
Wilson discussed plans for the grant funding with the Economic Development Commission Tuesday at its most recent meeting.The state recently received $100,000 for the remediation of the Stone Container property, located at 100 Summer Street, and a $200,000 brownfields area-wide revitalization grant, which will be used in part to develop a strategy for the future consideration of brownfields in the city.The $100,000 will be used to conduct Phase 1 and Phase 2 environmental assessments on the property, which includes the former Hendey Machine Company building, after the project is put out to bid in the coming months, Wilson said. This will serve as an update to studies conducted in 2008 and 2009, Wilson said, which are out-of-date. We’re going to take it to that next level, which is really going to position that site for brownfield remediation,” said Wilson.The state Department of Transportation is planning to construct a transit facility on a portion of the former Stone Container property. The rest of the site, as previously discussed, could be used for mixed-use development. With the $200,000, the city has asked for bids to develop “a comprehensive brownfields redevelopment strategy that is supported by market analyses and developed through community outreach that will also create and implement specific redevelopment strategies for targeted sites.” The two initiatives will dovetail with one another, Wilson said.“The $100,000 is actually going to help inform specific focus-area studies on the Stone Container site. Once we have that information, it’s going to help with the BAR grant — help us further explain to the public-slash-developer what the issues and constraints are with the site,” said Wilson.A similar effort is underway along the riverfront, where a trail is planned, and at the former Nidec Building, Wilson said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Centerplan CEO Says He's Exploring Deal Tied To Atlantic City Casino
HARTFORD — The former developer of a stalled minor league baseball stadium in Hartford is working on a deal to be part of the resurgence of the shuttered Revel casino in Atlantic City.
Robert Landino, CEO of Centerplan Cos, said Monday that he has been working on a deal related to Revel for about a year but added that "the deal is not done." "We are working on a real estate development in keeping with the reopening of Revel," Landino said. "It's part of a much broader initiative in Atlantic City."Landino formed Revel Beach North LLC in the state of New Jersey in May, a state document shows. Landino said it would be several months before a formal announcement of their involvement is made, if ever. Landino's company and DoNo Hartford, LLC were the developers of Dunkin' Donuts Park, a publicly financed $63 million, 6,000-seat minor league baseball stadium just north of downtown. Both companies were terminated by the city in June following a second missed deadline for substantial completion.
Following their termination, Arch Insurance, the surety guaranteeing the completion of the ballpark, began an investigation to determine who is responsible for the delays.
The city claims the developers are at fault for the missed deadlines that will likely result in no Yard Goats baseball being played in Hartford this summer, while the developers point the finger at the city for what they say were more than 100 change orders in the final two months before the May 17 deadline for substantial completion of the stadium.
Earlier this month Landino proposed a settlement: he would cover the cost to finish the ballpark, which he said is nearly complete, and the city would drop its claim against the developers. The offer also required the city to use the remaining $4.3 million for the project before the developers would begin to pay. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Firefighters Practice Rescuing Victims From Construction Crane
The Columbus Dispatch is reporting that local firefighters are taking their rescue training to new heights.
Carl Ryan climbed rung-by-rung up the 210-foot crane, knowing the whole time that he would have to come back down.
And on the way down, he'd be dangling on a rope. At times upside down. After attaching someone else to his line.
The Jackson Township, Ohio firefighter paramedic said the only thing on his mind Sunday as he set one foot in front of the other was safety. That's why he and other members of the department have been training at the site of a $355 million expansion of Mount Carmel's Grove City campus.
Two cranes — one 210-footer and another that stretches to 247 feet — tower over the site, arms swinging with piles of rebar and other materials to build the foundation of a seven-story addition to the emergency department. The cranes should be there for another year, and the first patient will use the addition in late 2018.
Should a crane operator have a heart attack at the top, or a trespassing thrill-seeker get tangled in a line, Jackson Township fire would be called to action to rescue them.
“You need to prepare for any scenario,” said Aaron Schumm, Mount Carmel's EMS nursing coordinator. “At any time, an incident could happen.”
Jackson Township's department has about 30 people on staff who are certified to rappel on ropes, and about half of them are trained in different rescue techniques, said Bob Schneider, a firefighter paramedic who also is a member of a central Ohio strike team trained to rescue people stranded in high spaces.
The township has several high spots where they might have to use the training, including a water tower and cellular towers, he said. In the spring, the two cranes were added to the skyline.
“These skills and techniques are useful. They're not used every day,” he said. “The things we do less, we need to train on more.”
The rescue team ran through several scenarios Sunday, including one where they had to lower an incapacitated victim from the top in a basket. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE