STAMFORD — Wall-to-wall glass will greet people entering the lobby of the new police headquarters, with a community room off to the side in a building twice the size of the old station.
The design for the new Stamford Police Department — which will house nearly 300 officers in a 94,000-square-foot building with an 87,000-square-foot garage — was presented at its groundbreaking Tuesday.
Police Chief Jon Fontneau touted the community room, a new feature he hopes can be an inviting space for citizens to meet.
“I foresee great things happening in that room,” he said. “I see citizen police academies. I see little league registrations. I see safe headquartering during storms. It’s unimaginable what the next chief will do in that building.”
The groundbreaking marked the official start of construction on the $43 million station by O&G Industries, expected to be completed in two years. A new headquarters has been needed for years, since lead and asbestos was discovered in the existing 61-year-old building.
“Our current police headquarters has long outlived its usefulness. It’s a tired building with many issues that come with age,” Fontneau said. “When it was designed and built, the city was a bedroom community.” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE''
Norwich school board reverses deadlock vote, endorses renovation plan
Norwich — Following a lengthy and emotional public comment period, the Board of Education voted Thursday to reverse a January deadlock vote and endorsed a plan to consolidate into four renovated elementary schools, but not necessarily to restructure the buildings by grade level.
The board voted 7-2 to endorse a $144.5 million renovation plan that calls for complete renovations of four schools — Thomas Mahan, John M. Moriarty, John B. Stanton and Teachers Memorial schools — and retaining the recently renovated Kelly Middle School for grades seven and eight.
But school board Chairman Aaron “Al” Daniels said during discussion of the plan and after the meeting that the board did not necessarily have to agree with consultants' recommendation that the schools be restructured by grade level rather than geographical districts. Daniels said if parents overwhelmingly prefer traditional kindergarten through sixth-grade schools, the board could support that plan.
School officials plan to place the project on the November ballot for a referendum.
Based on current state reimbursement rates for school construction projects, the local cost to Norwich taxpayers would be $57.6 million.
The vote followed a 90-minute emotional public comment period and some internal board debate over whether revisiting the rejected proposal even was legal. Daniels said the board's attorney approved the agenda for the special meeting to reconsider the project. On Jan. 10, the board failed to endorse the project on a 4-4 vote.
Board members Angelo Yeitz and Margaret Becotte voted against the plan Thursday.
The board heard emotional comments from more than a dozen parents, teachers and city officials, some urging the board to accept the four-school renovation plan, most speaking against a proposed single campus school complex and some demanding that the board not close their neighborhood schools.
More than 50 people packed the Kelly Middle School conference room. Parents applauded loudly when others urged the board to keep the Samuel Huntington School and Uncas School, which are slated for closure in the consolidation plan. Parents argued that neighborhood schools brought in more parental participation and were better for students than moving from building to building every three years.
Parent Kari Howard strongly opposed the plan pushed by school board member Dennis Slopak for a single school campus, calling it a “mega-school” that would present logistical and safety concerns. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
East Lyme schools project going to referendum March 14
East Lyme — A proposal to renovate the town's elementary schools will go to a townwide referendum from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 14, at the East Lyme Community Center.
About 45 residents showed up to a town meeting Wednesday to officially set the hours of the March 14 referendum.
Townspeople at the referendum will consider whether or not to approve a $37.5 million bonding proposal to spruce up the three elementary schools with upgrades to air quality systems, Wi-Fi, security, handicap accessibility and new flooring, ceilings and doors, among other improvements.
The proposal also calls for specific improvements for each school, including a new roof for Flanders Elementary School; reconfigured bus and parent drop-off areas and the re-establishment of the second gym at Lillie B. Haynes Elementary School; and window, exterior masonry and gym improvements at Niantic Center School.
First Selectman Mark Nickerson said the $37.5 million price tag represents the most the project could be, but best estimates show that it would be closer to a $30 million project. The $37.5 million figure that will go to referendum includes contingency and incorporates extra funds just in case interest rates are higher, he said. The project is anticipated to receive about $5.5 million in state reimbursement.
"Many of the parents have to be thanked for where we are because this project could have been much more expensive than what we have now," he said.
He added that in the future he felt buildings, like Niantic Center, could be better maintained.
If the proposal is approved at referendum, construction is scheduled to begin in June 2018 and finish in autumn 2019. Planning for the project would take place during the 2017-18 school year.
UConn Trustees Approve $4.75 Million Design For 3 New Stadiums
UConn's board of trustees unanimously approved $4.75 million Wednesday to design three new state-of-the-art athletic stadiums with a price tag of $46 million.
The approval comes after the completion of the first phase of the project – a $120,000 feasibility study that showed the university can replace the existing baseball, softball and soccer stadiums within the $46 million budget and in the existing available space on campus.
Earlier this month, David Benedict, athletic director, told the Courant that the existing facilities needed to be replaced because they are old and antiquated, without bathrooms, locker rooms or permanent concession stands.
The university has hired Newman Architects from New Haven, teamed with the athletic consultants RDG Architects from Des Moines, Iowa to design the stadiums. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Three Proposed Bills In The Pipeline Look To Increase MDC Transparency
Three bills aimed at reining in the Metropolitan District are scheduled to go to a public hearing at the Legislative Office Building Friday.
The municipal water authority has been under fire since January 2016 when it came to light that it had agreed to supply Niagara Bottling, a private water bottling company planning to build a plant in Bloomfield, with up to 1.8 million gallons of water a day and offer it a discount for purchases of water or sewer use over 500,000 gallons.
The revelations sparked protests and the creation of Save Our Water CT, a grass-roots water advocacy group that has more than 3,000 members statewide. The group worked in the last legislative session to have controls placed on the MDC and other water companies selling public water. That legislation passed the Senate but died in the House. Supporters and the authors of the failed legislation vowed to return this year and they have. A bill proposed by Sen. Beth Bye and Rep. Derek Slap, West Hartford Democrats, seeks changes to general statutes that would require public water construction projects designed to move more than 150,000 gallons of water receive approval from two-thirds majority of member towns.
William DiBella, MDC chairman, said Wednesday that "water shouldn't be used to limit economic development" and called the proposed bill an "economic development nightmare."
Byesaid the bill would require project bidders to receive a town council vote from all member towns before moving forward and bonding a project. She said town councils "as a group are predisposed to like business" and want development in their town.
A bill proposed by Rep. David Baram, Slap and Bye seeks to require disclosure on land use, zoning or wetlands, or tax abatement applications be updated no more than five days before a hearing or action to approve. It also would require applicants to include the landowners name, relationship to the applicant, the applicants purpose for use, the name of the developer and contact information of the land owner, applicant and developer. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Hamden residents turn out in force against apartment complex on Rocky Top
HAMDEN >> Council Chambers at Memorial Town Hall overflowed Wednesday night when the Inland Wetlands Commission opened its public hearing on an application to construct almost 300 apartments on Rocky Top Road.
But after more than two hours, residents still hadn’t had the opportunity to speak on the application, as the commission heard from the developer on the plans to build the complex under the state’s affordable housing statutes. Rocky Top Road connects Shepard Avenue to Sherman Avenue. It’s a narrow, winding road that has proven so dangerous that the town has tried a number of measures to make it safer, even for a time making it one way. So residents living on and around the road were startled to hear about the plans for 288 new apartments on a 12-acre site near the intersection of Shepard Avenue — and what it would take to build them. They have banded together to fight the application and have created a website, www.saverockytop.com. Mountain View Estates LLC has applied to build the development after removing hundreds of thousands of yards of rock and fill, essentially taking off the tip of the mountain that sits next to Quinnipiac University’s York Hill campus. One of Mountain View’s consultants told the commission that the first phase of the project would involve blasting and removing 800,000 yards of rock and 110,000 yards of fill, which would take two to three years. That elicited a round of groans from the audience.Because of the complexity of the application, the commission agreed to require Mountain View to hire a professional environmental reviewer to assess the application. The applicant would be required to pay for the expert, which its representatives said they would “review” without agreeing to the stipulation. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Demolition of parts of West Haven High School likely this summer
WEST HAVEN >> Final design plans for the new West Haven High School project are likely to be done in September, but demolition of certain parts of the existing building is likely to begin this summer, the project’s new construction manager said this week.
But despite having been chosen months ago and having worked on the project since December — and reporting to the City Council on Monday night — construction manager Gilbane Building Co. still is not getting paid. In fact, it’s not yet officially contracted to do the work. That’s because the City Council has yet to approve Gilbane’s contract Gilbane took over for former construction manager Turner Construction late last year after the project, which the city had put on hold a few months earlier, was resurrected.
On Monday night, Council Finance Committee Chairwoman Tracy Morrissey opted to keep the proposed contract in committee in order to get answers to some questions she had, but told the council, “I have every intention of moving this out at the next meeting in two weeks.”That prompted Councilman David Forsyth, D-At Large, to ask Gilbane project executive Amar Shamas, “You’ve been on board since December. If this is not voted on tonight are you going to stop working?”Shamas responded, “We’re going to continue to support the project, as long as there’s an effort” on the city’s part to move it forward. Morrissey’s decision to hold the proposed contract approval in committee came over the advice of Corporation Counsel Vin Amendola.“There’s no urgency to vote on this tonight?” Morrissey asked at one point.Amendola responded that there in fact was urgency to approve it — and Shamas added that “we’ve been supporting the design team (financially) for a couple of months CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Malloy seeks pivotal opinion from AG on casino expansion
Attorney General George Jepsen, who derailed a fast-moving campaign for casino expansion in 2015 by raising questions never fully answered, has been asked by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy for a formal opinion on the ramifications of allowing Connecticut’s two federally recognized tribes to jointly develop a casino off tribal lands.
Malloy’s request comes as the General Assembly is returning to the issue it set aside two years ago by passing a bill that suggested support for casino expansion without granting approval: It authorized the tribes to seek a community willing to host a casino — something they could have done without legislation.
Nearly two years later, the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes, owners of the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casino resorts, are back seeking a law allowing them to jointly develop a casino on a site off I-91 in East Windsor to compete with the casino under construction in Springfield by MGM Resorts International.
Senate President Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven, and House Majority Leader Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, who are both attorneys, welcomed Malloy’s request and said the casino bill’s prospects could turn on whether Jepsen advises the project could withstand a legal challenge by MGM and a review by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.
“Now, we really need to know for sure,” Looney said.
“Without that opinion, it puts us all in a very bad spot,” Ritter said. “There’s lot at stake here.”
In a letter to Jepsen, the governor asked: CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Construction Spending Slips in January According to AGC
Construction spending slipped from December to January but increased modestly from a year ago, as private construction grew solidly but public infrastructure outlays tumbled, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said the January data indicates the need for new public investments in infrastructure along the lines of the trillion dollar proposal President Trump outlined during his Congressional address last night.
"These numbers suggest that demand for residential and private nonresidential structures remain strong but all levels of government are struggling to fund needed projects," said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. "It appears that homebuilding, office and power construction will continue to grow through 2017, while manufacturing, highway and other transportation construction are likely to hold down overall growth."
Construction spending in January totaled $1.180 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, Simonson said. He added that the January rate was down 1.0 percent from the month before but up 3.1 percent from the January 2016 level.
Private residential construction spending increased by 0.5 percent between December and January and rose 5.9 percent over the past 12 months. Spending on multifamily residential construction jumped 2.2 percent for the month and 9.0 percent year-over-year, while single-family spending climbed 1.1 percent for the month and 2.3 percent from a year earlier. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
William DiBella, MDC chairman, said Wednesday that "water shouldn't be used to limit economic development" and called the proposed bill an "economic development nightmare."
Byesaid the bill would require project bidders to receive a town council vote from all member towns before moving forward and bonding a project. She said town councils "as a group are predisposed to like business" and want development in their town.
A bill proposed by Rep. David Baram, Slap and Bye seeks to require disclosure on land use, zoning or wetlands, or tax abatement applications be updated no more than five days before a hearing or action to approve. It also would require applicants to include the landowners name, relationship to the applicant, the applicants purpose for use, the name of the developer and contact information of the land owner, applicant and developer. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Hamden residents turn out in force against apartment complex on Rocky Top
HAMDEN >> Council Chambers at Memorial Town Hall overflowed Wednesday night when the Inland Wetlands Commission opened its public hearing on an application to construct almost 300 apartments on Rocky Top Road.
But after more than two hours, residents still hadn’t had the opportunity to speak on the application, as the commission heard from the developer on the plans to build the complex under the state’s affordable housing statutes. Rocky Top Road connects Shepard Avenue to Sherman Avenue. It’s a narrow, winding road that has proven so dangerous that the town has tried a number of measures to make it safer, even for a time making it one way. So residents living on and around the road were startled to hear about the plans for 288 new apartments on a 12-acre site near the intersection of Shepard Avenue — and what it would take to build them. They have banded together to fight the application and have created a website, www.saverockytop.com. Mountain View Estates LLC has applied to build the development after removing hundreds of thousands of yards of rock and fill, essentially taking off the tip of the mountain that sits next to Quinnipiac University’s York Hill campus. One of Mountain View’s consultants told the commission that the first phase of the project would involve blasting and removing 800,000 yards of rock and 110,000 yards of fill, which would take two to three years. That elicited a round of groans from the audience.Because of the complexity of the application, the commission agreed to require Mountain View to hire a professional environmental reviewer to assess the application. The applicant would be required to pay for the expert, which its representatives said they would “review” without agreeing to the stipulation. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Demolition of parts of West Haven High School likely this summer
WEST HAVEN >> Final design plans for the new West Haven High School project are likely to be done in September, but demolition of certain parts of the existing building is likely to begin this summer, the project’s new construction manager said this week.
But despite having been chosen months ago and having worked on the project since December — and reporting to the City Council on Monday night — construction manager Gilbane Building Co. still is not getting paid. In fact, it’s not yet officially contracted to do the work. That’s because the City Council has yet to approve Gilbane’s contract Gilbane took over for former construction manager Turner Construction late last year after the project, which the city had put on hold a few months earlier, was resurrected.
On Monday night, Council Finance Committee Chairwoman Tracy Morrissey opted to keep the proposed contract in committee in order to get answers to some questions she had, but told the council, “I have every intention of moving this out at the next meeting in two weeks.”That prompted Councilman David Forsyth, D-At Large, to ask Gilbane project executive Amar Shamas, “You’ve been on board since December. If this is not voted on tonight are you going to stop working?”Shamas responded, “We’re going to continue to support the project, as long as there’s an effort” on the city’s part to move it forward. Morrissey’s decision to hold the proposed contract approval in committee came over the advice of Corporation Counsel Vin Amendola.“There’s no urgency to vote on this tonight?” Morrissey asked at one point.Amendola responded that there in fact was urgency to approve it — and Shamas added that “we’ve been supporting the design team (financially) for a couple of months CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Malloy seeks pivotal opinion from AG on casino expansion
Attorney General George Jepsen, who derailed a fast-moving campaign for casino expansion in 2015 by raising questions never fully answered, has been asked by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy for a formal opinion on the ramifications of allowing Connecticut’s two federally recognized tribes to jointly develop a casino off tribal lands.
Malloy’s request comes as the General Assembly is returning to the issue it set aside two years ago by passing a bill that suggested support for casino expansion without granting approval: It authorized the tribes to seek a community willing to host a casino — something they could have done without legislation.
Nearly two years later, the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes, owners of the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casino resorts, are back seeking a law allowing them to jointly develop a casino on a site off I-91 in East Windsor to compete with the casino under construction in Springfield by MGM Resorts International.
Senate President Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven, and House Majority Leader Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, who are both attorneys, welcomed Malloy’s request and said the casino bill’s prospects could turn on whether Jepsen advises the project could withstand a legal challenge by MGM and a review by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.
“Now, we really need to know for sure,” Looney said.
“Without that opinion, it puts us all in a very bad spot,” Ritter said. “There’s lot at stake here.”
In a letter to Jepsen, the governor asked: CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Construction Spending Slips in January According to AGC
Construction spending slipped from December to January but increased modestly from a year ago, as private construction grew solidly but public infrastructure outlays tumbled, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said the January data indicates the need for new public investments in infrastructure along the lines of the trillion dollar proposal President Trump outlined during his Congressional address last night.
"These numbers suggest that demand for residential and private nonresidential structures remain strong but all levels of government are struggling to fund needed projects," said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. "It appears that homebuilding, office and power construction will continue to grow through 2017, while manufacturing, highway and other transportation construction are likely to hold down overall growth."
Construction spending in January totaled $1.180 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, Simonson said. He added that the January rate was down 1.0 percent from the month before but up 3.1 percent from the January 2016 level.
Private residential construction spending increased by 0.5 percent between December and January and rose 5.9 percent over the past 12 months. Spending on multifamily residential construction jumped 2.2 percent for the month and 9.0 percent year-over-year, while single-family spending climbed 1.1 percent for the month and 2.3 percent from a year earlier. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE