WESTPORT — The creaky Cribari Bridge, the oldest movable span bridge in Connecticut, will be getting some attention The Connecticut Department of Transportation has informed Town Hall that the bridge has failed its last inspection and that “immediate repairs” are needed. The Cribari Bridge carries Route 134 over the Saugatuck River; it’s also known by most Westporters as the Bridge Street Bridge The bridge was erected when Chester A. Arthur was president and it has been the scene of numerous minor accidents over the years, according to state DOT reports. The DOT says that during an inspection several weeks ago, “structural deficiencies were discovered both in the substructure and ornamental truss structure.”The DOT says that work to repair the deficiencies will begin on July 30, and will take about six weeks to complete. Most of the work will take place between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m., closing it to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic during those hours. Also, marine traffic requiring bridge openings “may be limited” during the work periods. This is just a repair. A complete overhaul would take 2.5 to 3 years and would require closure of the span, officials say, necessitating the construction of a temporary span.Last spring, the DOT placed a 20-ton weight restriction on the span, meaning that some fire trucks can't get across.The bridge has caused more than its share of hand-wringing over the decades. The DOT says that its shortcomings are manifold. It’s too narrow. It can’t take today’s traffic loads. Vehicles crash into each other because there’s no room. The guardrails are substandard. It can’t take a high wind. The electrical system gets flooded in tropical storms. The list is a long one.In a 2016 DOT report, engineers suggested a complete replacement, costing $38 million. This, they note, would cost taxpayers about the same over the next 75 years as repeatedly repairing and rehabilitating the existing, substandard structure And a new bridge, they note, would be wider, safer and far more reliable. Also, although it’s part of the East Coast Greenway, it lacks a safe way for bicycles to cross over.The bridge is named after police officer William F. Cribari (1918-2007), who directed traffic at the intersection of Riverside and Saugatuck avenues for years. Cribari, known to many as “Crowbar,” fought in the Battle of the Bulge under General George S. Patton in World War II. He also saw action in North Africa and Sicily. He was awarded seven battle stars, the Arrowhead Campaign Ribbon and several other citations and decorations.Its iconic trusses are no longer necessary because when the bridge was rehabilitated in 1951, it was re-engineered to be supported from below. They remain there as a decorative feature. They’re festooned with colorful lights at Christmastime.
NORWALK — Mayor Harry Rilling announced Wednesday that the city of Norwalk had successfully executed $30 million municipal bond sale to pay for city, school and redevelopment capital projects.The sale of the general obligation bonds was done electronically with bids being received by PARITY online bidding service. The city received eight bids with True Interest Costs (TICs) varying by only a fraction of a percent, according to the Norwalk Department of Finance.The TIC for the winning bidder was 2.799428 percent submitted by Mesirow Financial, Inc.As points of reference, Norwalk officials noted that two other Connecticut municipalities as well as the state of North Carolina issued general obligation bonds Wednesday and achieved less favorable interest rates: 2.95 percent for a $7 million issue for Orange, Conn.; 3.11 percent for a $10 million issue for Portland, Conn.; and 2.86 percent for a $400 million issue for the state of North Carolina. The Norwalk bond sale will finance $18.4 million in Board of Education capital projects, including school construction and district technology, $11 million in city capital projects including road reconstruction and paving; and $600,0000 in urban renewal and redevelopment projects, according to the city’s finance department.According to officials, Norwalk’s debt remains highly attractive due to the city’s favorable “triple-A” bond ratings, as reaffirmed by three major credit-rating agencies earlier this month.Officials estimate that selling the bonds with a “triple-A,” rather than a “double-A” rating, will save Norwalk taxpayers $612,000 over the life of the bonds.
Luther Turmelle Connecticut’s natural gas utilities are continuing to expand their distribution networks across the state as they reach the mid-point of a decade-long growth plan approved by utility regulators.Officials with Connecticut Natural Gas announced this week that construction of a new 7.4-mile main in Bolton has been completed. But even as that project wraps up, representatives of that utility and the state’s other two natural gas companies acknowledge that customer growth hasn’t lived up to original expectations.For example, in the expansion plan approved by Connecticut utility regulators at the end of 2013, the two natural gas companies operated by Orange-based Avangrid — Connecticut Natural Gas and Southern Connecticut Gas — expected to do close to 15,000 conversions per year. Ed Crowder, an Avangrid spokesman, said the gas companies have since revised their annual goals downward, “to account for changing fuel prices and other variables. “The initial goals reflected market conditions, including relative fuel prices, at the time the Comprehensive Energy Strategy took effect in 2014,” Crowder said. “We’ve substantially met our revised annual goals, converting an average of more than 10,000 new gas customers each year since 2014.”Mitch Gross, a spokesman for Eversource Energy, said the company had projected it would add 26,339 new customers a year when the state’s natural gas expansion plan took effect in 2014. Last year, the company revised its conversion figures to 23,313 customers per year.“Expansion efforts continue around the state — in New Canaan, Darien, Torrington, Griswold and Shelton — to name a few,” Gross said. “Inquiries remain steady. Every year when temperatures begin to drop, we see an uptick in calls from people who are interested in converting to natural gas.”The state’s Public Utilities Regulatory Authority in late 2013 gave the go-ahead for the state’s three natural gas utilities to expand 900 miles of mains to 280,000 customers over a 10-year period.A decline in home heating oil prices starting in February 2014 appear to be a significant factor in suppressing demand for conversion.Residential home heating oil price at that time was nearly $4.35 per gallon, its highest level since 2008, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. By February 2013, the price had fallen to $2.13 per gallon.Tony Marone, chief executive officer of Connecticut Natural Gas and Southern Connecticut Gas, said officials at the two utilities “are confident that natural gas will remain an important part of Connecticut’s energy picture, both in the near term and into the future.”The two utilities have expanded their territory maps to include the towns of Bolton, Coventry, Deep River, East Hampton, Essex and Hebron, Crowder said.
State Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo said Wednesday he will not support Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s proposal to borrow $10 million to fund a new analysis on electronic tolling.Opposition from Lembo and others on the 10-member State Bond Commission will likely not be enough to stop the panel from approving the funds when it meets on July 25, however.Lembo, who is one of eight Democrats on the commission, said the question of whether to restore tolls to Connecticut’s highways should be resolved by the General Assembly.“The Bond Commission should not act as a replacement for legislative action,” Lembo said. “While the subject of electronic tolling — and infrastructure funding as a whole — is important to debate and discuss, I do not support financing this study through bonding without legislative directive. These decisions should be left to the next governor and legislature.”Lembo is the only non-legislator on the bond commission who is seeking re-election.“This comprehensive study is essential to providing the legislature with the information they need — and have requested — to address the state’s future transportation funding,” Chris McClure, spokesman for the governor’s budget office, said Wednesday in response to Lembo’s statement. “We face massive costs associated with our transportation infrastructure for the foreseeable future and we must have a concrete understanding of how we will address those costs in order to make our state more economically competitive. We cannot continue to operate as though inaction is inconsequential.”A bill to order an analysis of electronic tolling died on the House of Representatives’ calendar when lawmakers adjourned on May 9.]Malloy, who announced last year he would not seek a third term, declined to support tolls until after he had won his second term.The governor said repeatedly during his 2014 campaign for re-election that while he was not proposing tolls, he would be willing to discuss them should legislators choose to raise the issue.Lembo likely won’t be the only “no” vote on the 10-member commission. Republican legislators have been unanimous in their opposition to tolls. The two-highest ranking Republicans on the legislature’s Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, Sen. L. Scott Frantz of Greenwich and Rep. Chris Davis of Ellington, both also serve on the bond commission and both have been outspoken in their opposition to tolls. Still, these three likely no votes don’t appear to be enough to keep Malloy’s initiative from passing.The governor effectively controls three votes on the bond commission. He has one seat himself, while two others belong to his budget director, Ben Barnes, and his commissioner of administrative services, Melody Currey.The top two Democrats on the finance committee, Sen. John Fonfara of Hartford and Rep. Jason Rojas of East Hartford, also serve on the commission. Both supported an analysis of tolls when a bill to order one appeared before the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, and both said Wednesday they would support the $10 million bond allocation on July 25.“I think the governor recognizes that a lot of work has to be done leading up to the next governor and the next legislature taking office,” Fonfara said, adding that Connecticut continues to forfeit hundreds of millions of dollars it could collect annually from tolls — including funds from out-of-state motorists.“Every day we are foregoing badly needed revenue to shore up our transportation funding,” he said. “This analysis provides the ability to get things moving,” Rojas said. “It is going to take a lot of time to get things planned out.”The remaining two seats on the bond commission belong to Attorney General George Jepsen and state Treasurer Denise L. Nappier, neither of whom are seeking re-election.A spokesman for Nappier could not be reached for comment Wednesday afternoon, but Jepsen’s office said the attorney general would support the governor’s proposal.That would give Malloy at least six votes for the $10 million bond allocation on the 10-member commission.The governor cannot implement tolls without legislative approval.Malloy, who is not seeking re-election, said Tuesday that he would nonetheless seek funds to launch the study to ensure the next governor and the 2019 legislature are prepared to debate the issue.The governor has pressed lawmakers throughout his second term to commit to a two-to-three-decade-long rebuild of the state’s aging, overcrowded transportation infrastructure — something the governor says cannot be accomplished without a major new funding source.State Department of Transportation officials have said very preliminary estimates show that tolls could be fully installed by 2022, and could yield $600 million to $800 million per year in new revenue.