WASHINGTON — U.S. builders boosted spending on construction projects by a modest amount in October, helped by big gains in spending on home construction and the biggest increase in government projects in 10 months.
Construction spending rose 0.5 percent in October following no change in September, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.
Home construction increased 1.6 percent, helping offset a 2.1 percent drop in spending on nonresidential projects. Outlays for construction of offices, hotels and shopping centers all declined. Spending on government projects jumped 2.8 percent, the biggest increase since last December, as federal and state and local spending all rose.
Financial markets have rallied since the election of Donald Trump, reflecting in part enthusiasm over his vows to increase spending on projects to repair and replace the country's aging infrastructure.
Despite the advance in government projects, spending in the category is still down 0.6 percent from a year ago. Public projects have been squeezed for a number of years as governments at all levels have struggled to deal with falling revenues following the 2007-2009 recession, the worst downturn in seven decades.
Trump's plans for increased infrastructure are expected to be revealed when he sends his first budget to Congress early next year. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Work at 24 Colony in Meriden nearly complete as interest in units increases
MERIDEN — Nearly three-quarters of the 63 new apartments at 24 Colony St. are leased, the parking garage is near completion, and tenants are being considered for commercial space on the first floor.
Many residential tenants will begin moving in later this month, said Rick Ross, a vice president with Westmount Development Group. Westmount has partnered with the Meriden Housing Authority on the new building and will manage the finished project.
“It’s been going quite well,” Ross said.
Eddie Siebert, director of real estate services and special programs for the housing authority, said final inspections are in progress. The garage has been cleaned, the streetscape and sidewalks are finished, trees are planted and the lampposts are operational. Nearby Church Street has reopened. Most of the interest in living in the $22 million building came from area residents , Ross said. The building is 90 percent subsidized, or “affordable,” and 10 percent market rate, the highest ratio of subsidized housing for all the projects in the downtown area.
Collectively, the MHA received more than 6,000 applications for housing for hundreds of units in various stages of development downtown. The market-rate rent is $1,136 per month for a one-bedroom unit, and it’s more than $1,200 for a two-bedroom. Managers expect to have 24 units for Section 8 tenants, or those relocated from the Mills Memorial Apartments, an MHA property that will be demolished. The bulk of the units are affordable, or for those earning less than 50 percent of the median family income or less than 60 percent of the median family income, depending on the unit. Those tenants earning more than 60 percent of the median family income will pay market rate. The median family income in the New Haven-Meriden area is $83,700, according to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The 11,000 square feet of retail space on the first floor generated interest from several restaurateurs, a gym and a medical office, MHA Executive Director Robert Cappelletti told housing authority board members this week. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
MERIDEN — A massive screw is scheduled to be hoisted via crane into the Hanover Pond dam on Dec. 19 as work to convert the dam into a hydroelectric generator continues.
The project, the first of its kind in the state, utilizes technology attributed to the ancient Greek scientist Archimedes and is expected to save the city $20,000 a year in power costs and property taxes.
Hanover Pond was drawn down six feet in September for construction at the dam. Water at the top of the dam will be sent through the Archimedes screw, causing it to spin and generate about 900,000 kilowatts of electricity annually.
The screw has been in storage in New London since late October.
New Haven Hydropower Co. spokesman Chris Conover said the Dec. 19 date is subject to change.
“The real issue here is you have a ton of moving parts, not the least of which is the weather,” he said. “In general, I would say we’re still on schedule.” Meriden IT Director Steve Montemurro said he is pleased with how the project has progressed.
“The important thing is that it sets the stage for other municipalities to do the same thing and incorporate green technology into their environments and cities where they are capable of doing it,” Montemurro said. “I think this is going to open the door for a lot of other towns to implement the same type of technology.”
The project is expected to be completed by the end of January.
The Historic Preservation Council will discuss the Reid & Hughes Building at its 9:30 a.m. meeting Wednesday at 1 Constitution Plaza, second floor.
Todd Levine, architectural historian for the state Historic Preservation Office, sent a letter Thursday to city officials informing them of the meeting and requesting written answers to eight questions, including a chronology of “how and why the property proposed for demolition fell into disrepair/disuse or obsolescence.” Other questions ask for engineering reports on the structural condition, estimates for demolition and proposed renovation plans.
The City Council voted 5-2 in October to bond up to $800,000 to demolish the building.
The Norwich Heritage Trust presented the state agency with about 500 signatures on petitions and letters in support of a proposed $6 million renovation plan by the Women's Institute for Housing and Economic Development, trust President Dale Plummer said. Plummer said the online petition is continuing on its Facebook Page.
New London developer Bill Morse also has offered to invest $200,000 into the stabilization of the building to allow time for the Women's Institute to obtain financing for its proposal.
Hartford, Centerplan Agree To Mediation In Ballpark Dispute
The former developer of Dunkin' Donuts Park and the city of Hartford may come together to resolve their dispute as work at the $71 million, publicly financed stadium has resumed under a different firm.
The city and Centerplan Construction Co. entered into a stipulated agreement to engage in mediation over a lawsuit stemming from Centerplan's termination in June.
Centerplan sued the city, claiming it was wrongfully terminated after it failed to meet a May 15 deadline to have the ballpark ready for the Hartford Yard Goats to prepare for a May 31 home opener that never came to pass.
In the agreement, which was filed Thursday but has not been approved by a judge, the parties agree to mediate the dispute. Once approved, Centerplan has agreed to amend its complaint and withdraw several parts of it, according to documents obtained by The Courant.
Centerplan is agreeing to drop its claim to return to the job and prohibit the city from seeking an alternate contractor to complete the 6,000-seat minor league baseball stadium.
Arch Insurance, which guaranteed completion of the ballpark, finalized a takeover agreement with the city in October and hired Whiting-Turner to finish the park in time for opening day, scheduled for April 13.
Centerplan, according to the documents, also agreed that it would never seek to revive the claims in the original lawsuit, but reserved its right to sue for monetary damages.
The developers have maintained that they were unable to complete the $71 million, publicly financed stadium because the city added more than 100 change orders in the weeks and months leading up to the deadline for handing the facility over to the Hartford Yard Goats. The team played its entire season on the road, with its closest "home" games being played at Thomas Dodd Stadium in Norwich. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Newington Interviewing Architects For Town Hall Renovation
Town staff this week are interviewing architects for the town hall renovation in hopes of moving forward on the project.
The interviews, being conducted in executive session by the project committee, began Tuesday night and were to continue Wednesday night. Architects were required to submit requests for proposals by Oct. 28. The town stipulated that all plans for the town hall renovation must cost $25 million or less to fit the project's budget.
Town Manager Tanya Lane said Monday that the interviews were the next step in what could be a transforming project.
"What we want to do is create a community center," she said. "My vision is to really work on the town hall renovation ... I'd like to see a more viable and energetic community center."
The town hall has been in need of an update for some time. The town has been considering a renovation or the construction of a completely new building since 2009.The current facility is a 1950s structure that was once the town's high school. The building now houses the town's central government offices, the Mortensen Community Center, and the school central offices.
A report from the Hamden-based DTC engineering consulting firm said the building is well maintained but is in serious need of modernization and upgrades, including improved handicap access, energy efficiency, and new heating and plumbing systems.
The engineering firm also said as much as 40 percent of the building's interior space is unusable due to wide hallways and oversize stairwells that are remnants of its past as a high school. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
New Torrington courthouse expected to open in April
TORRINGTON >> The Litchfield Judicial Courthouse is now projected to open in April 2017, according to state officials, after staff from across the region move into the building now under construction on Field Street in Torrington.
Shifting from regional courthouses into the new space is a significant task, said Tom Siconolfi, executive director of administrative services for the Connecticut Judicial branch. Among other requirements, staff will need to become accustomed to the new workplace and the technology within the building, he said Thursday. “It’s no small undertaking,” said Siconolfi. “We need to get it right.”Mayor Elinor Carbone said in June that the courthouse was expected to open in January, at which time Rhonda Hebert, program manager of communications with the Connecticut Judicial Branch, said an exact opening date had not been set, but it was expected to be occupied after the first of the year. Once the courthouse officially opens, Siconolfi said, it will be fully operational — the existing Judicial District Courthouse in Litchfield, Bantam Superior Court, a Family Services Office in Litchfield and the Juvenile Court in Torrington are expected to take up residence in the 183,000-plus square-foot building. Other courthouses — Siconolfi noted courts in Stamford, New Britain and Waterbury specifically — provided the entirety of services expected there when they opened. It is important for the courthouse to be functioning correctly once it opens for business, Siconolfi said, to accommodate those that need to come to the court and prevent complications stemming from entering a new location. He also noted that the state expects to occupy the new courthouse for decades to come. “What matters is getting it right,” said Siconolfi. After construction is completed, he said, there will likely be regular activity in the space before it opens, as informational technology, communications, and operations staff go through the building.
“There will be a hubbub of activity,” said Siconolfi. Siconolfi directed comment on a timeline for the completion of construction on the Field Street building to the Department of Administrative Services. Staff there did not return a message seeking comment by press time Thursday. Construction on the $81 million courthouse project began in December 2015. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
ARTBA 2017 Forecast: Modest Growth in Transportation Construction Market
Dr. Alison Premo Black will release her full forecast on Friday, Dec. 2, during a 60-minute webinar for analysts, investors, transportation construction market executives, public officials and the news media.
In 2017, the market is expected to reach $247.8 billion, up from $244.5 billion in 2016, according to Black. This includes public and private investment for highways, bridges, public transit, rail, ports and waterways, airport runways and terminals, as well as private investment for roads, streets, driveways and parking lots in residential and commercial developments and support work by state departments of transportation (DOTs) and local governments for highway and bridge planning and design work, routine maintenance and right of way purchases.
Black notes that although the December 2015 enactment of the federal “Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act” law provided stability for public highway investment, the increases that will be realized in the federal program funding levels are modest, just above anticipated growth in inflation and project costs.
Many state DOTs did not obligate their federal funds in time for many projects to get started during the 2016 construction season, she says. Nearly half of the FAST Act funds for FY 2016 —46 percent—were obligated in the last quarter of the federal fiscal year, between July and September 2016. Twenty percent of the federal funds available to the states were not obligated until September 2016.
Another factor impacting the ARTBA forecast, Black says, is that Congress is expected in December to pass a “continuing resolution” that would hold all FY 2017 federal discretionary spending—including the transportation programs—at the current level until March 31, 2017.
Under this approach, the $900 million increase in highway investment authorized by the FAST Act and included in the House and Senate FY 2017 transportation funding bills would be delayed at least until next spring. Similarly, the $510 million to $670 million public transportation funding increases in the House and Senate transportation measures would also be delayed. The existing funding levels for these and other programs would continue.
Other ARTBA forecast highlights by mode:
Public & Private Highway, Street & Related Construction
• After two years of real growth, the value of public highway, street and related work by state DOTs and local governments fell nearly 2 percent in 2016 and is expected to decline another 1 percent in 2017.
• Recent increases in state gas taxes and user fees, as well as a number of local funding initiatives approved on the Nov. 8, 2016, ballot, should help support some local markets over the next few years. Voters in 24 states approved 267 ballot measures in 2016, which will support $207 billion in highway, bridge, port and transit spending over the next 40 years.
• Public-private partnerships will continue to be important to state and local markets that have revenue streams to support these projects, according to ARTBA. Five major projects came to financial close in 2016, totaling over $3.3 billion in investment. The projects were in Arizona, Washington, Georgia, Texas and Virginia.
• Based on historical data, the private highway, bridge, parking lot and driveway markets will increase from $58.9 billion in 2016 to $62.5 billion in 2017, and will continue to grow over the next five years as overall construction activity increases in those sectors. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE