City of Norwalk, unions host job fair
The City of Norwalk is hosting a construction trade job fair, to include plumbing and electrician work, on Wednesday, September 14 from 3 to 6 p.m.
The event will be held at the South Norwalk Community Center at 98 S. Main St., and is limited to potential applicants age 18 or over. For additional information, visit www.norwalkct.org or call Norwalk City Hall at 203-854-7703.
“This is a good opportunity to enter a well-paying career in the trades and earn while you learn,” said Mayor Harry Rilling in a written statement. “The Connecticut Department of Labor has identified these trades as growing occupations. In addition, upcoming construction projects in Norwalk will be creating more local jobs.”
On September 20, the Connecticut Department of Labor holds a “Heroes 4 Hire South” job fair for veterans from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Bridgeport, with details online at www.ctdol.state.ct.us.m
Make natural gas a (shorter) bridge to the future
By speeding the demise of coal, which is far dirtier, cheap natural gas has done as much to reduce carbon emissions as any government regulation. But the returns are already diminishing: Natural gas also emits carbon dioxide, and this year for the first time the amount will exceed that of coal in the U.S.
The most efficient way to reduce these emissions — from natural gas or any other fossil fuel — is through a carbon tax. By setting a price per ton of carbon emitted that’s equal to its social cost, the government can use the market to respond to climate change and reduce emissions through a mix of new technology and changes in consumer and producer behavior. The government can then use the revenue from a carbon tax to fund cuts in other taxes.
Unfortunately, the political obstacles to a carbon tax are daunting. In the meantime, the federal and state governments should adjust their approach to address carbon emissions from natural gas specifically.
About a third of natural gas used in the U.S. goes toward generating electricity. President Barack Obama’s proposed regulations of the power sector, now on hold by the Supreme Court, would allow states to choose how best to reduce their emissions. Instead of simply approving the construction of new natural-gas plants, states should focus on energy efficiency and renewable power.
They can also go further, adopting or increasing what’s known as renewable portfolio standards, which set the minimum amount of power that utilities must get from wind, solar or other renewable sources. Better still are clean portfolio standards, which include nuclear power.
Much of the remaining two-thirds of natural gas is used to power household appliances and in manufacturing. Here, incremental progress is possible — by encouraging better insulation and the use of more efficient appliances, for example, or funding research and development of cleaner industrial technology. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
New Haven Board of Zoning Appeals approves Yale’s Schwarzman Center
NEW HAVEN >> Yale University’s proposed $100 million Schwarzman Center to be located at the Yale Commons and the building containing Woolsey Hall got a good report at the Board of Zoning Appeals Tuesday. The staff recommended that the university be granted the variances needed for the renovation, which will convert the facility to a campus-wide performance arts center and a hub for student life at the corner of College and Grove streets.
BZA Chairman Ben Trachten called it a “fantastic plan” that includes interior renovations and elimination of the “moat” that now is located along Grove Street. It is an area that is part of the food service function of the Commons, where 1,000 lunches are served daily.The proposed addition will be two stories above grade and one story below grade. It was described as a 5,400-square-foot functional add-on to the existing dining facility that will enclose building services in the below-grade area. The new space will also contain some eight student meeting and study rooms in a second above-grade story also facing Grove Street.
It next goes to the City Plan Commission for site plan approval and a recommendation back to the BZA. The renovation of this space is being underwritten with a $150 million gift from alumnus Stephen Schwarzman, chief executive and co-founder of the Blackstone Group.The addition will allow the 1901 building, which was built pre-zoning, to become code compliant with food service rules. The biggest hurdle for the university in recent months was getting approval of its overall campuswide parking plan and then specific approval that the center will not trigger an amendment to that plan.The Board of Alders, after discussions that began last December and left the university feeling unfairly targeted, finally were approved at the beginning of the month, covering both the parking issue and the Schwarzman Center. City Plan approval of a biology building on Whitney Avenue, at a cost of $70 million, which will take the place of the Gibbs Lab, is expected at that commission’s meeting next week, after already having been reviewed in spring. Lauren Zucker, associate vice president at Yale, said the addition at the Commons is essentially what the original architectural designer had hoped to do more than 100 years ago. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Concrete coalition upset with Malloy response to crumbling foundations
Dozens of homeowners with crumbling concrete foundations will rally outside the Executive Residence on Saturday to express dismay over what they say is a lack of leadership by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy regarding the problem. Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling Basements President Timothy Heim said he expects about 75 people to attend the 8:30 a.m. rally.
“Since the beginning, Governor Malloy has ignored this catastrophic problem here in eastern Connecticut,” Heim said, adding that Malloy has been invited to two of the coalition’s meetings and Heim didn’t receive a response from Malloy’s office.
Heim said that if he had the chance to speak with Malloy face-to-face, he would tell the governor that victims desperately need his help.
“He took an obligation when he was voted into office, and he has yet to get involved with this,” Heim said, adding that he believes Malloy is more focused on advancing his political career in Washington, D.C., than serving the residents of Connecticut.
Malloy’s office refused multiple attempts to seek comment.
According to a Capitol Region Council of Governments report unveiled last week, there could be more than 19,000 homes in as many as 24 towns with failing foundations, although the study admitted that is a worst-case scenario. The number of those affected is likely much less.
“If he chooses not to get involved in a problem that could affect potentially 19,000 homes in eastern Connecticut, then he should resign his position as governor of Connecticut,” Heim said. “He’s not serving the people. He’s not doing what the citizens of Connecticut are paying him to do.”
Heim also places blame on the General Assembly for not meeting enough with victims and not finding a funding source to assist with the required replacement of foundations.
“That’s the only option right now,” Heim said. “We’re the middle class. We did everything right. We paid our bills. We go to work everyday. We pay for all the services provided in Connecticut, and when the middle class needs help, our elected officials aren’t there to help us.”
Cost estimates for replacing a foundation average between $100,000 and $200,000, with some exceeding that amount, based on the size of the home, CRCOG Special Project Manager Pauline Yoder has said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE