A coalition of more than 40 organizations is urging Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the state legislature to preserve transportation funding by adopting a so-called "lockbox" that would prevent money from the state's Special Transportation Fund (STF) from being used for other purposes.
Comprised of such diverse groups as Yale University, AAA organizations based in Connecticut, and the Connecticut Business and Industry Association, the coalition wants Malloy and lawmakers to adopt a resolution for a "constitutional lockbox" that would keep transportation revenues from being diverted to other areas of the budget so they are used only for transportation.
The coalition also calls for the state to maintain current revenues allocated to STF, in order to ensure sufficient funding for services and infrastructure investments over the next two years.
In a joint statement, the signers of the statement addressed to policymakers acknowledges the state's deteriorating transportation infrastructure, but calls the current STF financial position "fragile." Despite that, pressure has and will continue to exist to divert STF funds to other purposes, a practice that needs to be changed, the coalition says.
Members of the coalition include:
• AAA Northeast
• AAA, Allied Group
• American Council of Engineering Companies of Connecticut
• The Bridgeport Regional Business Council
• The Business Council of Fairfield County
• Capitol Region Council of Governments
• Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce
• Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut, Inc.
• Chamber of Commerce of Northwest Connecticut
• Commuter Action Group
• Connecticut Asphalt & Aggregate Association
• Connecticut Association for Community Transportation
• Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA)
• Connecticut Citizens Transportation Lobby
• Connecticut Commuter Rail Council
• Connecticut Construction Industries Association (CCIA)
• Connecticut Environmental & Utilities Contractors Association
• Connecticut Fund for the Environment
• Connecticut Laborers' District Council
• Connecticut Railroad Association
• Connecticut Ready Mixed Concrete Association
• Connecticut Road Builders Association
• Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers
• Connecticut United for Research Excellence, Inc. (CURE)
• Michael Critelli, Former Chair & CEO, Pitney Bowes
• Emil H. Frankel, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Transportation, 1991-1995; Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation, 2002-2005
• Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce
• International Union of Operating Engineers
• Transit for Connecticut
• MetroHartford Alliance
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Plainville Moves Forward With Plan To Test White Oak Construction Site
The "for sale" sign outside the 14-acre parcel where White Oak Construction had its office and kept its huge fleet of highway and bridge equipment has gotten the town's attention.
"It's a key piece of downtown property, a cornerstone parcel," Mark DeVoe, the local economic development director and town planner, said Monday of the 1 West Main St. site.
The company, founded by the Toffolon family, ceased operations a decade ago and sold off the heavy equipment that used to fill the complex's 10-bay garage. The parcel is listed for $1.4 million with a commercial real estate agent.
Town Manager Robert Lee said the White Oak property, next to the municipal complex, "is the key parcel in the town center." Potential buyers have concerns about possible contamination of the soil from years of construction equipment storage, and the town is seeking state grant money to test the soil. The council has given permission for staff to pursue an "access agreement" from the property owner so the land can be accessed and tested.
"We want to take away the unknown about the site," without using town funds, Lee said.
Testing the site is crucial before any decision is made to pursue the property, DeVoe said.
For years, White Oak was one of the biggest bridge and highway construction and repair contractors in the region. The company once had its own tugboat to work on marine bridge projects.
The lobby of the closed main office building is lined with enlarged photographs of highway and bridge projects done by White Oak.
The real estate property listing says the site has 60,000 square feet of space in three buildings on the site, including 12,000 square feet in a two-story office wing built in 1991.South Windsor Heads To Polls Tuesday To Determine Future Of Two Elementary Schools
The town will decide the future of two elementary schools Tuesday.
Voters will be asked to appropriate $70 million to replace the Philip R. Smith and Eli Terry elementary schools. The town, with a school population of 4,230 students, has five elementary schools. The town will pay a net cost of $47 million with the state reimbursing the town $23 million of the construction costs.
The question will read: "Shall the resolution appropriating and authorizing bonds in the amount of $69,900,000, of which it is expected that an estimated $23,000,000 shall be reimbursed by the state of Connecticut, for planning, design, acquisition, construction, equipping and furnishing of new Philip R. Smith and Eli Terry Elementary Schools be approved?"
The plans call for the construction of two new elementary schools including a 66,586-square-foot building built on the Eli Terry Elementary School campus and a 58,243-square-foot facility built on the Philip R. Smith campus. Officials note the proposed schools will feature "expanded classroom technology, designs intended to increase school safety and security and modern mechanical systems including more efficient heating and cooling systems." They also note the schools will comply with all building and fire codes as well as the ADA accessibility requirements.
The construction of both schools will begin in spring 2019 with completion scheduled for summer 2020. Students would remain in the Eli Terry school while a new building is being built. Students at the Philip R. Smith school would be temporarily relocated at the Orchard Hill Elementary School during the construction period. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
A referendum on plans for a new town hall could happen as early as June 13, town officials said.Project architect Tom Arcari, of Quisenberry Arcari Architects, presented preliminary plans last week for the 73,000-square-foot building with upgraded facilities and a more efficient use of space within the building.
"This is the [plan] we believe the community center and town hall needs," Arcari said.
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 town stipulated that all plans for the town hall renovation must cost $25 million or less to fit the project's budget. It is still to be determined whether the town will completely rebuild or renovate the existing building.
Arcari said the preliminary plans were drawn up based on input from town departments about their space needs. Some departments' office space will be reduced, but others like the Board of Education and the Assessor's office will be given more space.
"This is the [plan] we believe the community center and town hall needs," Arcari said.
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 town stipulated that all plans for the town hall renovation must cost $25 million or less to fit the project's budget. It is still to be determined whether the town will completely rebuild or renovate the existing building.
Arcari said the preliminary plans were drawn up based on input from town departments about their space needs. Some departments' office space will be reduced, but others like the Board of Education and the Assessor's office will be given more space.
Under the preliminary plan, the town hall complex would be three stories high with a basement. It would incorporate the police station and community center. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Encouraging as it is that the Trump administration's fiscal year 2018 Budget Blueprint includes a reference to the President's pending infrastructure package, it is disappointing that administration officials failed to include proposals to provide a permanent and sustainable solution for funding the Highway Trust Fund. As a result, the members of the Transportation Construction Coalition said the budget was a missed opportunity to address the chronic funding shortfalls that regularly threaten to undermine road, bridge and transit repair programs.A permanent solution to the Highway Trust Fund's fiscal instability that would support the President's call for increased transportation infrastructure investment is the most effective way to achieve that goal. Since 2008, Congress has infused the trust fund with more than $140 billion in general fund transfers. While these steps have prevented dramatic reductions in federal highway and public transportation investment, the resulting uncertainty has led to project delays and diluted state efforts to implement long-term transportation improvement plans. Failure to resolve this issue once and for all prior to 2020 will require President Trump and Congress to either pass additional short-term stopgap measures or find a $110 billion off-set to pass a multi-year surface transportation bill. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Aldermen approve $25M increase for Public Works project
WATERBURY – Aldermen voted unanimously Monday to approve a $25 million increase to the budget for a pair of linked city construction projects.
It was $4 million less than Mayor Neil M. O’Leary’s administration requested, but offered a necessary compromise to gain needed Republican votes.
Aldermen had already approved $60.4 million in 2010 for construction of a new Department of Public Works facility and redevelopment of the Waterbury Industrial Commons off Thomaston Avenue.
Originally, the Public Works facility was to be built on the industrial site. After his election in 2011, O’Leary decided to move it to a former MacDermid plant off Huntingdon Avenue. Costs ran high and the administration approached the board in February seeking a $29 million increase.
Republicans balked at the near 50-percent increase. The administration responded with a reluctant offer of versions cutting $3 million or $4 million from the request.
Administration officials urged aldermen Monday not to go the cheaper routes. Finance Director Michael LeBlanc warned the board they’d be making real sacrifices for comparatively insignificant savings spread over a 20-year loan.
The $29 million option would cost $44.2 million in principal and interest over 20 years, LeBlanc said. The highest annual repayment cost in those years would be $2.9 million, he said. By contrast, the $25 million option would ultimately cost $38.2 million, with the highest repayment year at $2.5 million.
That savings isn’t very much in the context of the city’s budget of more than $400 million, LeBlanc told aldermen.
“To cut corners when you are initially building a facility and to build a facility that might be inadequate the day you walk in would be very shortsighted,” Department of Public Works Supervisor David Simpson agreed.
Aldermen approve $25M increase for Public Works project
WATERBURY – Aldermen voted unanimously Monday to approve a $25 million increase to the budget for a pair of linked city construction projects.
It was $4 million less than Mayor Neil M. O’Leary’s administration requested, but offered a necessary compromise to gain needed Republican votes.
Aldermen had already approved $60.4 million in 2010 for construction of a new Department of Public Works facility and redevelopment of the Waterbury Industrial Commons off Thomaston Avenue.
Originally, the Public Works facility was to be built on the industrial site. After his election in 2011, O’Leary decided to move it to a former MacDermid plant off Huntingdon Avenue. Costs ran high and the administration approached the board in February seeking a $29 million increase.
Republicans balked at the near 50-percent increase. The administration responded with a reluctant offer of versions cutting $3 million or $4 million from the request.
Administration officials urged aldermen Monday not to go the cheaper routes. Finance Director Michael LeBlanc warned the board they’d be making real sacrifices for comparatively insignificant savings spread over a 20-year loan.
The $29 million option would cost $44.2 million in principal and interest over 20 years, LeBlanc said. The highest annual repayment cost in those years would be $2.9 million, he said. By contrast, the $25 million option would ultimately cost $38.2 million, with the highest repayment year at $2.5 million.
That savings isn’t very much in the context of the city’s budget of more than $400 million, LeBlanc told aldermen.
“To cut corners when you are initially building a facility and to build a facility that might be inadequate the day you walk in would be very shortsighted,” Department of Public Works Supervisor David Simpson agreed.