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Environmental council takes dim view of Tilcon plan
Written by LISA BACKUS
NEW BRITAIN - A state environmental council has concluded that the Tilcon mining proposal would be “adverse” and that a study of the plan doesn’t establish the need for a new reservoir.
Mayor Erin Stewart was forwarded the comments by the state Council on Environmental Quality Friday her aide said. “We are in receipt of CEQ’s comments and look forward to a robust public discussion about the proposal to build a regional water supply for Central Connecticut,” said David Huck, the mayor’s public affairs specialist.
Under the hotly contested proposal, Tilcon is seeking approval to mine 131 acres of protected watershed that acts as a tributary to Shuttle Meadow Reservoir, for 40 years. At the end of the mining, the quarry would be returned to the city as a “storage” reservoir.
A similar plan was quashed by opponents in 2007. In order to get approval to allow Tilcon to mine the protected watershed, the city was required to hire an engineering firm to study the environmental impact of the plan.
The Glastonbury-based Lenard Engineering submitted its study to the CEQ and the state Water Planning Council for review in February. Both agencies are required to submit comments about the study to the city of New Britain.
The CEQ’s comments, forwarded to Stewart in an 11-page report, largely pan the Tilcon proposal. “Needless to say, the project itself is contrary to long-established state policy of not allowing the intrusion of commercial activities onto Class I and Class II reservoir watershed lands as protection of water quality for drinking water sources,” the council said.
Among the major concerns expressed by the CEQ, Lenard failed to make the case that the city needs a “storage” reservoir for future water reserves and the council pointed out that the project would decrease the city’s water supply as the mining proceeds.
“During construction, the (Lenard’s) report projects a reduction of safe yield of 70,000 gallons per day, from a project that is being promoted as a strategy to reduce risk of water shortages,” the CEQ noted.
The agency also pointed out that Lenard failed to include three additional water sources, Patton Brook Well, a property in Burlington acquired for the development of a reservoir,r and nearby Crescent Lake, which is a decommissioned reservoir, in their assessment of what the city can readily use for additional drinking water supplies.
Council members also called into question the method of “flood skimming” from surface storm water runoff to fill the new reservoir, “which is among the dirtiest of water sources and carries the risk of high treatment costs,” they said.
Lenard’s study also failed to indicate mitigation practices that could be used to protect wildlife and plant life in the area and provided “misleading” information by saying additional watershed would be created by the “hole that is being dug in the middle of currently existing watershed land,” the council said.
The city must hold a public hearing on the findings of the CEQ and the WPC.
New East Hampton Town Hall/PD project could begin this fall
By Jeff Mill
EAST HAMPTON — Construction of the new town hall/police station could begin as early as this fall The Town Council was given that assessment this week during a quarterly report on the $18.98 million project. It was delivered by Lisa Motto, customer project manager for the project, as well as co-owner — with her husband — of the 5.4-acre property on which the new facility will be built.
Motto attended the council meeting in the company of Glenn Gollenberg, chairman of the Town Facilities Building Committee, which is overseeing the project.“We hope to break ground in early September,” she told the council. In response to a question from Councilor Josh Piteo about when residents will see iron support beams climbing up into the sky, Motto said, “The goal is the have the foundations done before the end of November.”
That usually marks the end of the construction season. If that timetable can be met, Motto said the support beams could be in place in December. Motto also said the project architects, Armenta Emma, have completed the schematic design for the proposal, and the estimated cost “is still right on budget.” The design development phase of the project has also been completed and is being gone over by “two estimators,” Motto said. “We’re awaiting those estimates to come back.”
According to Business Dictionary, the design development is “a transitional phase of an architect/engineer services in which the design moves from the schematic phase to the contract document phase. “In this phase, the A/E prepares drawings and other presentation documents to crystallize the design concept and describe it in terms of architectural, electrical, mechanical, and structural systems. In addition, the A/E also prepares a statement of the probable project cost,” the site said.
Meanwhile, the revised version of the traffic plan for the project has been submitted to the Office of the State Traffic Authority, Motto said. “We expect to have that approval by mid-July.”
The building committee has also been reviewing “some of the finishes that have been discussed for the building.”
During its most recent meeting, the building committee worked with Rob Adams, interior designer for Amenta Emma. “He had with him carpet samples, possible materials for doors/wainscoting, floor and bathroom wall tile, paint color swatches, laminate samples, and a wall covering (for) an accent wall,” Motto added The committee also reversed itself and approved “a vestibule for the door that leads from the outside into the community room.”
Committee members came to “believe that, especially at night and during the winter, this door will be utilized,” according to the minutes of the committee meeting.
Route 8 resurfacing to begin in Bridgeport, Trumbull
Work to resurface a heavily used stretch of Route 8 in Bridgeport and Trumbull is scheduled to begin Wednesday night. The work. that will be done from 7 a.m. to 5 a.m.. is expected to be finished by the end of June.
The project consists of milling and resurfacing 2.36 miles of Route 8 north in Bridgeport and Trumbull
Motorists can expect lane closures on from .01 mile north of northbound overpass Capitol Ave to .03 mile south of northbound the northound Huntington Turnpike overpass. Traffic control personnel and signing patterns will be used to guide motorists through the work zone.
The milling segment of this will be done from Wednesday, May 30, 2018 through Friday, June 8, 2018.
The resurfacing segment of this project is anticipated to be performed on Sunday, June 17 through Thursday, June 28
Meriden diner demolished to make way for bridge project
Mary Ellen Godin
MERIDEN — An excavator clawed through the former Bradley Eatery Thursday and Friday to make way for rebuilding the Sodom Brook Bridge on West Main Street.
The former diner and a small red building at 367 W. Main St. were recently razed to allow the state Department of Transportation to begin the $6 million project to replace the 88-year-old bridge. Those properties will be landscaped after the work is completed, said DOT spokesman Judd Everhart.
The Bradley Eatery was owned by Mark Hartman, of North Carolina, who sold the 70-year-old building to the state for $103,000. The property at 367 W. Main St. was sold for $38,500. Allison Romano ran the diner from 2008 until it closed in May 2017. She could not be reached for comment Friday.
The state had determined there are weaknesses and holes in the bridge that make it “ structurally deficient.” Plans call for a temporary bridge to be installed while the main bridge is replaced. Construction will likely cause traffic delays and detours along West Main Street for more than a year.
The city has done some prep work to replace a water main that will run on a separate utility bridge along the main structure, said Utilities Director Dennis Waz.
Cisco LLC of New Haven is doing the demolition work and another contractor and subcontractor will rebuild the bridge and do the utility work.
”It is a state structure but our water main is part of the bridge,” Waz said. "This is a state project, so I'm kind of at their mercy as far as when we start."
More than $164,000 was spent on acquiring six surrounding properties through eminent domain, Everhart said.
Construction on the bridge is expected to begin in July and conclude in May 2020, Everhart said in March, lasting "a little over two construction seasons."
"There will be some traffic issues over there," Waz said.
Luis Gonzalez, owner of the King Kutz next door to the former Bradley Diner, said the demolition has been disruptive to business but he was surprised at how quickly workers finished.
“All the stuff was parked in front,” Gonzalez said. “Once (the reconstruction job is) said and done, it should be two years.”
Isolated Middletown Neighborhood Sees Hope In Route 9 Plans
Finally, for the handful of Middletown residents living on Miller and Bridge streets, there’s hope of safer access to their isolated North End enclave.
They live directly under the Arrigoni Bridge, and the only way they’re allowed to get in and out of their neighborhood is from the busy southbound lanes of Route 9.
He said the project currently has about a two-and-a-half year completion window, mostly because of the coordination DOT needs with the Providence & Worcester railroad and the permits it would need to obtain. The estimated construction budget is $1.5 million.
“It’s pretty straight forward designwise,” Jarboe said. “It’s all of the interactions with the environment and other agencies that will take some time.”
Where most neighborhoods have a stop sign or a light at the end of their street, Miller and Bridge residents have a highway, and they already have to brave the traffic routinely going by at up to 80 mph.
Engineers told residents at public forums that they were alarmed after seeing a school bus waiting to pull out onto Route 9.
Using the railroad crossing at the end of Bridge Street is a change that would allow them to access the North End safely.
Since it’s prohibited to cross the median on Route 9, anyone traveling North on the highway has to go all the way to Cromwell, get off at Exit 18, then get back on the other side and drive South on Route 9 to turn onto Miller Street. Some people still cross the median and the three lanes of highway traffic to get into the neighborhood, but their impatience comes with the risk of a traffic ticket.
The gate at the railroad crossing is open periodically for access by the railroad or public safety agencies, and residents will nearly always choose to use the railroad crossing instead of going onto Route 9.
“I don’t know who opens it, but believe me when it’s open I use it,” said Miller Street resident Betty Clemons. “I won’t go across Route 9. I do not cross the highway.”
Dmitri D’Alessandro, who grew up on Bridge Street and still lives there with his family, said he’s more optimistic that the old railroad crossing will be restored.
“We’ve made multiple efforts via the North End Action Team, and now we’re still making efforts,” D’Alessandro said. “Finally in this last round of DOT plans they at least presented something about the neighborhood. Before, it was completely ignored.”
The Neighborhood
As recently as 15 years ago the city’s official position was that the neighborhood should be totally demolished.
City officials said they didn’t want people living there because of drug activity, blight, poor housing conditions and pollution. Federal funding paid for some people to relocate, but the available money dried up.
There’s no longer support for demolition and relocation, but residents still say their neighborhood’s reputation is unfair.
“We’ve been fighting for 30 years to get a different way out,” said Peter Evans, who has lived with his wife Joyce on Miller Street for more than 40 years.
They’ve enjoyed living there despite the nearby train tracks and the bridge straight above their well-cared-for garden, Evans said.
D’Alessandro, 40, said the city-sponsored demolition made the area increasingly quiet as its density decreased. The remaining residents have built a community with a shared chip on their shoulder from being told by others what it’s like to live in their own neighborhood.
“Nobody ever really came here and looked at the people or the kids,” D’Alessandro said. “The only quality of life that’s bad is you have to drive all over creation just to get in here. The only thing that’s not quiet about my neighborhood is the jake brakes from the trucks. What people don’t understand about this neighborhood is that it’s amazing.” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Under the hotly contested proposal, Tilcon is seeking approval to mine 131 acres of protected watershed that acts as a tributary to Shuttle Meadow Reservoir, for 40 years. At the end of the mining, the quarry would be returned to the city as a “storage” reservoir.
A similar plan was quashed by opponents in 2007. In order to get approval to allow Tilcon to mine the protected watershed, the city was required to hire an engineering firm to study the environmental impact of the plan.
The Glastonbury-based Lenard Engineering submitted its study to the CEQ and the state Water Planning Council for review in February. Both agencies are required to submit comments about the study to the city of New Britain.
The CEQ’s comments, forwarded to Stewart in an 11-page report, largely pan the Tilcon proposal. “Needless to say, the project itself is contrary to long-established state policy of not allowing the intrusion of commercial activities onto Class I and Class II reservoir watershed lands as protection of water quality for drinking water sources,” the council said.
Among the major concerns expressed by the CEQ, Lenard failed to make the case that the city needs a “storage” reservoir for future water reserves and the council pointed out that the project would decrease the city’s water supply as the mining proceeds.
“During construction, the (Lenard’s) report projects a reduction of safe yield of 70,000 gallons per day, from a project that is being promoted as a strategy to reduce risk of water shortages,” the CEQ noted.
The agency also pointed out that Lenard failed to include three additional water sources, Patton Brook Well, a property in Burlington acquired for the development of a reservoir,r and nearby Crescent Lake, which is a decommissioned reservoir, in their assessment of what the city can readily use for additional drinking water supplies.
Council members also called into question the method of “flood skimming” from surface storm water runoff to fill the new reservoir, “which is among the dirtiest of water sources and carries the risk of high treatment costs,” they said.
Lenard’s study also failed to indicate mitigation practices that could be used to protect wildlife and plant life in the area and provided “misleading” information by saying additional watershed would be created by the “hole that is being dug in the middle of currently existing watershed land,” the council said.
The city must hold a public hearing on the findings of the CEQ and the WPC.
New East Hampton Town Hall/PD project could begin this fall
By Jeff Mill
EAST HAMPTON — Construction of the new town hall/police station could begin as early as this fall The Town Council was given that assessment this week during a quarterly report on the $18.98 million project. It was delivered by Lisa Motto, customer project manager for the project, as well as co-owner — with her husband — of the 5.4-acre property on which the new facility will be built.
Motto attended the council meeting in the company of Glenn Gollenberg, chairman of the Town Facilities Building Committee, which is overseeing the project.“We hope to break ground in early September,” she told the council. In response to a question from Councilor Josh Piteo about when residents will see iron support beams climbing up into the sky, Motto said, “The goal is the have the foundations done before the end of November.”
That usually marks the end of the construction season. If that timetable can be met, Motto said the support beams could be in place in December. Motto also said the project architects, Armenta Emma, have completed the schematic design for the proposal, and the estimated cost “is still right on budget.” The design development phase of the project has also been completed and is being gone over by “two estimators,” Motto said. “We’re awaiting those estimates to come back.”
According to Business Dictionary, the design development is “a transitional phase of an architect/engineer services in which the design moves from the schematic phase to the contract document phase. “In this phase, the A/E prepares drawings and other presentation documents to crystallize the design concept and describe it in terms of architectural, electrical, mechanical, and structural systems. In addition, the A/E also prepares a statement of the probable project cost,” the site said.
Meanwhile, the revised version of the traffic plan for the project has been submitted to the Office of the State Traffic Authority, Motto said. “We expect to have that approval by mid-July.”
The building committee has also been reviewing “some of the finishes that have been discussed for the building.”
During its most recent meeting, the building committee worked with Rob Adams, interior designer for Amenta Emma. “He had with him carpet samples, possible materials for doors/wainscoting, floor and bathroom wall tile, paint color swatches, laminate samples, and a wall covering (for) an accent wall,” Motto added The committee also reversed itself and approved “a vestibule for the door that leads from the outside into the community room.”
Committee members came to “believe that, especially at night and during the winter, this door will be utilized,” according to the minutes of the committee meeting.
Route 8 resurfacing to begin in Bridgeport, Trumbull
Work to resurface a heavily used stretch of Route 8 in Bridgeport and Trumbull is scheduled to begin Wednesday night. The work. that will be done from 7 a.m. to 5 a.m.. is expected to be finished by the end of June.
The project consists of milling and resurfacing 2.36 miles of Route 8 north in Bridgeport and Trumbull
Motorists can expect lane closures on from .01 mile north of northbound overpass Capitol Ave to .03 mile south of northbound the northound Huntington Turnpike overpass. Traffic control personnel and signing patterns will be used to guide motorists through the work zone.
The milling segment of this will be done from Wednesday, May 30, 2018 through Friday, June 8, 2018.
The resurfacing segment of this project is anticipated to be performed on Sunday, June 17 through Thursday, June 28
Meriden diner demolished to make way for bridge project
Mary Ellen Godin
MERIDEN — An excavator clawed through the former Bradley Eatery Thursday and Friday to make way for rebuilding the Sodom Brook Bridge on West Main Street.
The former diner and a small red building at 367 W. Main St. were recently razed to allow the state Department of Transportation to begin the $6 million project to replace the 88-year-old bridge. Those properties will be landscaped after the work is completed, said DOT spokesman Judd Everhart.
The Bradley Eatery was owned by Mark Hartman, of North Carolina, who sold the 70-year-old building to the state for $103,000. The property at 367 W. Main St. was sold for $38,500. Allison Romano ran the diner from 2008 until it closed in May 2017. She could not be reached for comment Friday.
The state had determined there are weaknesses and holes in the bridge that make it “ structurally deficient.” Plans call for a temporary bridge to be installed while the main bridge is replaced. Construction will likely cause traffic delays and detours along West Main Street for more than a year.
The city has done some prep work to replace a water main that will run on a separate utility bridge along the main structure, said Utilities Director Dennis Waz.
Cisco LLC of New Haven is doing the demolition work and another contractor and subcontractor will rebuild the bridge and do the utility work.
”It is a state structure but our water main is part of the bridge,” Waz said. "This is a state project, so I'm kind of at their mercy as far as when we start."
More than $164,000 was spent on acquiring six surrounding properties through eminent domain, Everhart said.
Construction on the bridge is expected to begin in July and conclude in May 2020, Everhart said in March, lasting "a little over two construction seasons."
"There will be some traffic issues over there," Waz said.
Luis Gonzalez, owner of the King Kutz next door to the former Bradley Diner, said the demolition has been disruptive to business but he was surprised at how quickly workers finished.
“All the stuff was parked in front,” Gonzalez said. “Once (the reconstruction job is) said and done, it should be two years.”
Isolated Middletown Neighborhood Sees Hope In Route 9 Plans
Finally, for the handful of Middletown residents living on Miller and Bridge streets, there’s hope of safer access to their isolated North End enclave.
They live directly under the Arrigoni Bridge, and the only way they’re allowed to get in and out of their neighborhood is from the busy southbound lanes of Route 9.
About 15 homes are boxed in by the highway, a railroad crossing and the vast wetlands on the Cromwell line.
Nestled in the state Department of Transportation’s hugely difficult plan to remove the highway’s peculiar, often dangerous traffic lights is a gold nugget: DOT is planning to permanently reopen the gated railroad crossing connecting their neighborhood to Portland Street behind St. John Church.
The crossing is now considered a “breakout” project, which means the state is actively working on it separately from the larger Route 9 plans.
“We know what we want to do there. It’s pretty straightforward. We want to open up that crossing with full access,” said DOT Project Manager Erik Jarboe. “This is an important project and we’ve commited resources to it.”He said the project currently has about a two-and-a-half year completion window, mostly because of the coordination DOT needs with the Providence & Worcester railroad and the permits it would need to obtain. The estimated construction budget is $1.5 million.
“It’s pretty straight forward designwise,” Jarboe said. “It’s all of the interactions with the environment and other agencies that will take some time.”
The idea to reopen the railroad crossing has been discussed before, but it barely got any traction. DOT has taken arguably its most serious steps yet toward traffic light removal, and closing off the Route 9 access to Miller Street is a must if those plans go forward
Once the traffic lights are removed, cars will likely never be slowing down enough to make it safe for people to pull out from Miller Street, Jarboe said.Where most neighborhoods have a stop sign or a light at the end of their street, Miller and Bridge residents have a highway, and they already have to brave the traffic routinely going by at up to 80 mph.
Engineers told residents at public forums that they were alarmed after seeing a school bus waiting to pull out onto Route 9.
Using the railroad crossing at the end of Bridge Street is a change that would allow them to access the North End safely.
Since it’s prohibited to cross the median on Route 9, anyone traveling North on the highway has to go all the way to Cromwell, get off at Exit 18, then get back on the other side and drive South on Route 9 to turn onto Miller Street. Some people still cross the median and the three lanes of highway traffic to get into the neighborhood, but their impatience comes with the risk of a traffic ticket.
The gate at the railroad crossing is open periodically for access by the railroad or public safety agencies, and residents will nearly always choose to use the railroad crossing instead of going onto Route 9.
“I don’t know who opens it, but believe me when it’s open I use it,” said Miller Street resident Betty Clemons. “I won’t go across Route 9. I do not cross the highway.”
Dmitri D’Alessandro, who grew up on Bridge Street and still lives there with his family, said he’s more optimistic that the old railroad crossing will be restored.
“We’ve made multiple efforts via the North End Action Team, and now we’re still making efforts,” D’Alessandro said. “Finally in this last round of DOT plans they at least presented something about the neighborhood. Before, it was completely ignored.”
The Neighborhood
As recently as 15 years ago the city’s official position was that the neighborhood should be totally demolished.
City officials said they didn’t want people living there because of drug activity, blight, poor housing conditions and pollution. Federal funding paid for some people to relocate, but the available money dried up.
There’s no longer support for demolition and relocation, but residents still say their neighborhood’s reputation is unfair.
“We’ve been fighting for 30 years to get a different way out,” said Peter Evans, who has lived with his wife Joyce on Miller Street for more than 40 years.
They’ve enjoyed living there despite the nearby train tracks and the bridge straight above their well-cared-for garden, Evans said.
D’Alessandro, 40, said the city-sponsored demolition made the area increasingly quiet as its density decreased. The remaining residents have built a community with a shared chip on their shoulder from being told by others what it’s like to live in their own neighborhood.
“Nobody ever really came here and looked at the people or the kids,” D’Alessandro said. “The only quality of life that’s bad is you have to drive all over creation just to get in here. The only thing that’s not quiet about my neighborhood is the jake brakes from the trucks. What people don’t understand about this neighborhood is that it’s amazing.” CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE