Ignacio Laguarda
STAMFORD — Two construction workers were injured on Monday when large chunks of reinforced steel and concrete collapsed from the roof of an empty structure on Canal Street.
The workers were part of a crew demolishing the 90,000-square-foot building at 860 Canal St.
One of the workers was cutting through the concrete structure on the roof of the hollowed-out building when the floor gave way, sending him falling to the floor below, said Deputy Fire Chief Patrick Tripodi. A second worker on the floor below the roof was also injured, he said.
The situation appeared as if it could have been worse, as pieces of concrete and steel were dangling from the roof structure after the incident. It was unclear how much of the roof actually fell to the floor below.One of the men suffered a minor injury, according to Stamford Police Chief Jon Fontneau
The other was evacuated by a fire ladder. Tripodi said the man was secured to a bucket at the end of the ladder and lowered to the ground, allowing him to evacuate the structure safely.
Fontneau said the demolition crew has been working on the site for months, tearing the structure down little by little.
The Canal Street building was sold to Stamford Media Village for $7.6 million late last year. The new building is expected to be a production facility that could include a brewery. The building, which stands next to a marina, is expected to open by the summer of 2019. Tripodi said demolition work comes with many risks.
“Building demolition is a very dangerous job,” he said. “There are inherent hazards with any type of demolition work.”
Tripodi said workers on site were complying with the safety measures of wearing helmets and using harnesses. The site is managed by A. Pappajohn Company, a Norwalk construction company.
Representatives from the company declined to comment for this story.
Wind energy project may bring jobs to Bridgeport
Jordan Grice
An offshore wind development company has its sights set on Bridgeport for a new multimillion-dollar project constructing turbines.
Massachusetts-based Vineyard Wind is one of several companies vying for approval by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection in response to its request for clean energy proposals. Pending DEEP approval, the company intends to partner with local companies to develop an offshore 800-megawatt wind-turbine facility that would provide power to the state.
“We are excited at the idea of creating more than 1,000 jobs and bringing billions in economic benefits to the state with this proposal, and we are equally thrilled to be working with our partners in Bridgeport,” said Erich Stephens, chief development officer for Vineyard Wind in a press releas
Vineyard Wind is a joint venture of Connecticut-based utility Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. In an earlier proposal, Vineyard Wind said it would provide energy at a “very attractive fixed price.”
The company’s proposal includes plans to invest $30 million into the project as part of a partnership with McAllister Towing, which operates the Bridgeport-Port Jefferson Ferry, and the recently opened Bridgeport Boatworks shipyard.The investment would go into improving the sites of both companies to accommodate staging and partial assembly of the turbines that would then be shipped to the facility site, which is to sit 14 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard.
Vineyard Wind has another, similar project also slated for the area that is undergoing the permitting process. Energy would be transmitted from the site to the mainland via cables buried up to six feet below the sea floor.
In Bridgeport, along with setting up both waterfront sites, a portion of the investment is expected to go toward business and workforce development grants for companies and residents looking to contribute to the project and branch into the offshore wind-energy industry, Stephens said.
City officials are speaking out in support of the plan. “It goes in line with the path that Bridgeport has been taking over the last few years of being the focal point of green energy,” said Joe Gresko, the city’s director of sustainability, citing the city’s work with fuel cells, solar panels and a planned thermal loop as examples.
“It’s a nice way of rounding out our portfolio of renewable energy,” he added.
Several members of Bridgeport’s legislative delegation have sent a letter to DEEP Commissioner Robert Klee in support of the Vineyard Wind project. “Vineyard Wind has committed, if selected, to partner with two Bridgeport-based companies … to support the development of the harborside facilities of these Connecticut companies for use in constructing the Vineyard Wind Project,” the delegation wrote. “The partnership of these three companies and the resulting private investment in port infrastructure in Bridgeport will provide immediate job opportunities for Connecticut residents during the construction of the port and the Vineyard Wind project, as well as long-term economic development opportunity for Connecticut.”DEEP is expected to make a decision by the end of the year.
'Untapped' talent engage skills training for better employment
Hector Marrero is beginning to understand the difference between a career and a job.
The 21-year-old Hartford native had abandoned high school, adult education and other job-course programs.
Nearly out of options, Marrero this spring enrolled in Hartford nonprofit Community Renewal Team's YouthBuild program for another shot at new learning opportunities, job training, meaningful employment and, ideally, a better life.
Just months in, Marrero has earned his high school diploma, several construction certifications and a driver's permit. His goal now is to land a union job that pays a livable wage and provides growth opportunities.
"I didn't have anything before this," Marrero said. "We are all behind in life, technically, and are trying to catch up while life is still going. We are not just looking for employment, but better employment."
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Marrero is part of an untapped talent pool that workforce-development officials say is crucial to jumpstarting Connecticut's economy and helping employers fill thousands of open jobs around the state.
They include "opportunity youths," or individuals ages 16 to 24 who are not in school or working, and low-skill adults ages 25 to 64 who have less than, or equivalent to, a high school education.
Added together they number in the hundreds of thousands across the state and include ex-offenders, those who lack English proficiency or are foreign born, veterans, among others.
Community Renewal Team's YouthBuild initiative is one of about 40-plus programs in Connecticut — funded by state, federal and nonprofit dollars — that aim to raise the prospects of this population, many of whom live in the state's urban centers, by helping them gain employment or advance their skills.
The stakes around their success are high because Connecticut has significant demand for middle-skill workers, or individuals who have more than a high school diploma but less than a four-year college degree.
In fact, thousands of middle-skill jobs are available each year in Connecticut's key industry sectors, including health care, construction and manufacturing, but are going unfilled because of a skills gap, industry officials said.
As a result, businesses nationwide are lowering education requirements in many industries, and the same is true in Connecticut, said Andrea Comer, vice president of workforce strategies for the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA), the state's largest business lobby.
Comer said employers in various sectors have reported that many opportunity youths and underskilled adults lack social and collaboration skills for team building. Others face transportation barriers, which need to be addressed for those in urban and rural areas, she said.
While there is a viable workforce development backbone in the state to upskill this population, Comer said coordination is often missing between local programs and employers.
But many initiatives are pushing the right buttons.
The Eastern CT Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative has been successful providing training to address the hiring needs of submarine-builder Electric Boat. The Academy of Engineering & Green Technology, created and sponsored by CBIA and Hartford Public Schools, also connects students to learning-based internships with member businesses, she said.
Since the Great Recession, Comer said businesses have become more engaged in strengthening the employment pipeline due to a "desperate" need for skilled workers.
Employers must continue forging partnerships with local workforce initiatives, she said, adding they should also look at a broader educational pool when considering job candidates.
"The good news is the untapped talent in workforce development is on everyone's radar," she said. "The caveat is more coordination and more collaboration needs to take place if we are going to be successful."
Finding a path
Since its 2009 founding, YouthBuild has connected 228 Hartford residents ages 18 to 24 to secondary education or job-skill training opportunities, which often lead to careers in construction or health care.
The majority of Hartford opportunity youths enrolled in the program have not completed a high school equivalency degree.
YouthBuild connects participants to high school courses, general education development (GED) exams, construction and certified nursing assistant (CNA) certificates or job-site internships, among other post-secondary education options.
Annually, more than 60 youths are split into two six-month cohorts funded by a three-year, $1.2 million grant from the state labor department and federal initiative AmeriCorps. Outfitted with safety equipment, Community Renewal Team-embroidered jackets and shirts, participants have access to the program's on-site trainers and employer specialist, who helps with resume and interview preparation.
Almost all of CRT's construction learners enter the program with little understanding of carpentry before they're trained and linked to job-site internships for 25 hours a week, earning $100 stipends. Employers pay for additional hours.
"We offer a lot but we also expect a lot," said CRT Program Manager Cynthia Baisden. "We understand that life happens so let us help you through that."
CRT supports participants with any barriers that may curb them from employment opportunities, connecting them to transportation, food, clothing or child care services.
Elethia Mills earlier this year applied and enrolled in YouthBuild to earn a GED and CNA certification. After just three weeks, the 23-year-old passed her first GED exam and is moving her way through various nursing and construction certification programs and required community service hours. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
North Main Street reconstruction to get underway in Naugatuck
NAUGATUCK – The reconstruction of North Main Street is ready to move forward.
The project will reconstruct a section of the street between the Route 8 on- and off-ramps and Union Street, which is less than half a mile long. The work, which was proposed nearly two years ago, will include removing old trolley tracks, replacing the asphalt and installing new drainage and sidewalks.
The Board of Mayor and Burgesses last week awarded a $2.34 million contract for the work to Center Earth, a North Haven-based construction company. The work will be paid for through a Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program grant administered by the state Department of Transportation.
Public Works Director James Stewart said the grant includes an additional 10 percent for inspection costs and 10 percent for contingency, bringing the total amount the borough will receive to approximately $2.8 million.
Stewart said he still has to iron out the inspection costs. The engineering firm Milone & MacBroom of Cheshire designed the project and is also slated to be the inspectors for the job. However, the firm’s fee is about 15 percent of the cost of the project, Stewart said, putting the cost above the 10 percent allotted in the grant.
NAUGATUCK – The reconstruction of North Main Street is ready to move forward.
The project will reconstruct a section of the street between the Route 8 on- and off-ramps and Union Street, which is less than half a mile long. The work, which was proposed nearly two years ago, will include removing old trolley tracks, replacing the asphalt and installing new drainage and sidewalks.
The Board of Mayor and Burgesses last week awarded a $2.34 million contract for the work to Center Earth, a North Haven-based construction company. The work will be paid for through a Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program grant administered by the state Department of Transportation.
Public Works Director James Stewart said the grant includes an additional 10 percent for inspection costs and 10 percent for contingency, bringing the total amount the borough will receive to approximately $2.8 million.
Stewart said he still has to iron out the inspection costs. The engineering firm Milone & MacBroom of Cheshire designed the project and is also slated to be the inspectors for the job. However, the firm’s fee is about 15 percent of the cost of the project, Stewart said, putting the cost above the 10 percent allotted in the grant.