October 31, 2018

CT Construction Digest Wednesday October 31, 2018

Point of Interest: Construction progresses at ‘hole in the ground’ site
Construction at the famed 4.3-acre ‘hole in the ground’ downtown during the summer of 2018.  Photo: Michael Cummo / Hearst Connecticut Media / Stamford Advocate    
Greyrock Place and Tresser Boulevard: As hardhats make quick work of putting up 11 new apartment buildings, part of the new Stamford “Urby” apartment complex, new details this week emerged on when the project will likely be completed. Certificates of occupancy for some of the buildings will be sought in July by developers F.D. Rich Co. and Ironstate Development Co., others in January 2020, attorney Lisa Feinberg told the Zoning Board. The project, started last fall, calls for nearly 650 residential units on the sprawling 4.3-acre site across from Stamford Town Center. The lot was long an undeveloped parcel leftover from Urban Renewal’s downtown razing. It sat vacant for decades earning the moniker “the hole in the ground.”

Civil engineers give state’s infrastructure a C-

Michael P. Mayko
Connecticut’s roads and wastewater treatment systems are in need of major repairs costing billions over the next two decades while issues facing the state’s bridges and drinking water are nearly as bad.
As a result state leaders and residents should consider spending more than $40 billion over the next two decades to make major repairs and upgrades
That’s what the Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers determined in their inaugural 2018 Report Card for Connecticut’s Infrastructure which was released Tuesday.
Combine the grades for their evaluation of bridges, drinking water, rails, roads and wastewater and the state gets an overall C- on its infrastructure. Those are the five areas the engineers focused on.
“There are bright spots in this report, but it is clear that we must prioritize our infrastructure systems to keep our state competitive and grow our economy,” said David Chapman, president of the Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers.
 However Jim Cameron, founder of the Commuter Action Group and a Hearst Connecticut Media transportation columnist, suggested “their grades should come with a dose of skepticism.”
"I'm always a bit suspicious of reports from a group with a strong self-interest in what they are grading. Like the construction trades, engineers are looking for work,” he said.
Still Cameron added, “who is better qualified to comment on something like this? So let's assume they're being objective and not just priming the pump for their own profits.”
Perhaps surprising to some the civil engineers graded the state’s railroad system the highest with a B rating.
They pointed out that the 41 million passengers who annually ride Metro-North have made it the busiest of its kind in the nation. They also commended the Department of Transportation for investing almost $780 million in the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield line.
In addition to passengers, more than 3.6 million tons of freight pass through Connecticut every year through the 10 freight train lines that service the state.
“I think the grade of B is fair, especially given the state and Amtrak's huge investments since the 2013 Fairfield derailment,” Cameron said. “There is still much more to be done and none of it will be cheap. Slower train schedules, daily delays for things like broken rails and broken down branch-line diesels will only worsen without the kinds of investments the report cites.”
Meanwhile Naugatuck Valley officials and legislators are calling for money devoted to increase train service on the Waterbury line as cities like Ansonia, Derby and Shelton increase the number of rental properties in their downtowns.
While rails ranked the best, the state’s roads and wastewater received the lowest grade of D+. The engineers maintain that at least $30 billion is needed to spent over the next 30 years to repair, refurbish and realign the 20,000 miles of road, most of which are over 55 years old. They claim the poor condition and congestion on state roads cost drivers $2.4 billion annually.
They grade the state’s bridges at a C- even after finding 7.8 percent are structurally deficient and 59 are over 50 years old. Everyday 79 vehicles cross state bridge, according to the engineers.
“ A D+ seems generous, as anyone who drives regularly can attest, Cameron said. “Like the C- for bridges, they’re in terrible shape. We're already paying a sort of "toll" in the form of bent rims, flat tires and front end re-alignments because our vehicles take a pounding.”
A similar issue faces the wastewater infrastructure where the engineers found 50 of the state’s sewage treatment plants were high risk for flooding during major storms. They believe $4.6 billion is needed to repair, renovate and upgrade plants throughout the state.
And on the flip side the engineers believe at least $4 billion must be spent through 2034 to keep the state’s drinking water dispensed at a high quality rating. They gave the aging systems a C-.
“I'm so glad drinking water and waste water treatment systems also were included, as they are often forgotten in discussions of infrastructure,” Cameron said. “We take them for granted until we have a drought or our beaches are closed after a heavy rain. We might be able to live with late trains and bad roads, but we cannot live without water.”
With the grades came recommendation and those include prioritizing investment in infrastructure during difficult budget cycles and modernizing and building resilient infrastructure to prepare for increasingly severe storms”
They recommend a transportation lockbox to ensure “all transportation funds are used solely for transportation purposes.”
“All of these things are fixable... if we find the money,” Cameron said. “So until we get serious about tolls or taxes and put a lock on the state transportation funds’ box, these conditions will only get worse with time. Will it take another Mianus River bridge disaster to get Hartford's attention?”
Chapman said the report card was created “as a public service to citizens and policymakers to inform them of the infrastructure needs in their state”
It was modeled after the national Infrastructure Report Card, which gave America’s infrastructure a grade of “D+” in 2017.
A full copy of the 2018 Report Card for Connecticut’s Infrastructure is available at
 InfrastructureReportCard.org/Connecticut.

Judge Denies Hartford's Motion For Control Of Downtown North Properties, Throwing Project Timeline Into Question


A Superior Court judge has denied Hartford’s motion for summary judgment in its case against the fired developers of Dunkin’ Donuts Park, a move that could throw off the city’s timetable for an expansive project in the Downtown North neighborhood.
As part of the lawsuit between the city and Centerplan Construction Co., the ousted developer, Hartford had asked the court to remove liens placed on the properties surrounding the ballpark and to allow the city to press ahead with new development there.
Centerplan won the original bid to build office space, housing and retail on the parcels, but was fired from the entire project after it missed two key deadlines to complete work on the baseball stadium. Another firm finished construction at Dunkin’ Donuts Park, and it opened a year late.
Centerplan sued the city for wrongful termination.
But as the case wound its way through the legal system, Hartford leaders put the remainder of the Downtown North project out to bid again, and last summer selected Stamford-based developer RMS Cos. The firm has proposed building 800 apartments and 60,000 square feet of retail at the site, along with parking garages. RMS owner Randy Salvatore said work could begin as early as May 2019.
The court’s decision Tuesday could complicate that schedule.
“The plain language of the contracts doesn’t allow the city to terminate the ground lease in the absence of a developer default,” Judge Thomas Moukawsher wrote in his decision. “This may be deeply inconvenient to the city. But it would be deeply inequitable to terminate a contract on equitable grounds without first weighing the equities for and against it.”The city had used Centerplan’s failure to finish the ballpark on time as justification for firing the company from the larger Downtown North project. Moukawsher said Tuesday, however, that Centerplan has not yet been found in default of its city contract.
“The developer hotly insists it isn’t in default, so the court can’t give the city what it wants — a summary judgment merely from the face of the contract,” he wrote.
Reached by phone, Raymond Garcia, an attorney for Centerplan, said only: “The decision speaks for itself.”
Howard Rifkin, Hartford’s corporation counsel, said the city is “disappointed” in the ruling and is “considering our options going forward.” He did not say whether it would affect Hartford’s latest effort to develop the area.
The city and Salvatore are in discussions. Officials had expected to send a tentative contract to the city council this fall.
Development of the parcels circling the ballpark is considered crucial in generating needed tax revenue for the city. Hartford, which last year nearly filed for bankruptcy, is on the hook for annual debt service payments on the $71 million baseball stadium. Tax revenue from the wider development would help to make those payments.
Last month, the State Bond Commission authorized borrowing $12 million to support the first phase of construction in Downtown North — 200 apartments behind the Red Lion Hotel on Trumbull Street.
The overall project, which is estimated to cost more than $200 million, would be financed primarily with private funds, but could need as much as $60 million in state taxpayer-backed financing, records show.

New London, labor and environmental leaders tout offshore wind’s potential

Benjamin Kail
New London — More than 100 people packed a meeting room at St. James Episcopal Church on Tuesday night for a forum on offshore wind, an industry whose leaders are targeting New London as a potential hub.
City, labor and environmental leaders who led the forum were enthusiastic about the possibilities. Spurred by the federal government's leasing of waters along the East Coast, seven states have committed to build more than 10 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity in federal waters by 2030. Officials argue New London is a prime location for some manufacturing and shipping — a deepwater port, with no overhead obstructions, between Boston and New York City.
Deepwater Wind — the Block Island Wind Farm developer tapped to deliver electricity to Connecticut from a wind farm in federal waters south of Martha's Vineyard by 2030 — pledged to invest $15 million to help revamp New London State Pier to facilitate offshore wind development. Denmark-based Orsted, which recently purchased Deepwater Wind, and New Bedford, Mass.-based Vineyard Wind also pitched projects to the state with promises of a regional economic boom through clean energy.
But how, when, and for how long offshore wind projects create local jobs and economic development remains to be seen. Questions also remain on pricing — with competitive cost and price data redacted in proposals to regulators — and overall impacts on the environment and electricity grid.
Felix Reyes, the city's director of development and planning, assured guests that officials were asking developers tough questions about what's best for the city and how to take advantage of a burgeoning industry.
"We've got a lot of housing opportunities, industry opportunities, and then there's the manufacturing aspect," said Reyes, arguing that the area around the Crystal Avenue properties and State Pier could "transform dramatically to be our manufacturing and industrial area of the city. I get excited when I hear manufacturing and things being built by hand."
Orsted, Reyes noted, placed a bid with the Connecticut Port Authority to manage State Pier. Reyes and Orsted officials say a successful bid could lead to local supply chains and manufacturing jobs.
Christopher Bachant, business agent and organizer for Carpenters Local 326, said New London could "be used for potentially all the offshore wind projects from Massachusetts to New Jersey. It doesn't mean everything is going to be built here. It could be for support."
Bachant said he couldn't make a hard estimate on local job potential, but he said development in the region would lead to local vendors supplying "tie wire, plywood, staging planks, hammers, nails, screws."
Bachant said wind developers have agreed to project labor agreements allowing for apprenticeship programs and job creation "for your grandkids and your kids. People who live here, they don't have to watch people who aren't from here come into the work."
Jamie Vaudrey, a University of Connecticut marine sciences professor, said for hundreds of years humans have been accessing carbon stored in the earth hundreds of millions of year ago as oil, gas and coal.
"We're creating a shortcut for the carbon cycle," she said. "We're not giving it a chance to leave the land through its normal pathway, which is volcanoes. Instead, we're digging down, bringing up those fossil fuels and we're burning them."
Emitting so much carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, she argued, creates "climate weirding," with more intense storms, record temperatures and increased rainfall.
"We need to make a change now, and offshore wind energy is a good option for building that renewable energy sector," said Vaudrey, who noted that offshore wind companies must conduct rigorous studies and site surveys to avoid impacting wildlife such as birds, marine mammals and benthic life on the ocean floor.
For Rev. Ranjit K. Mathews, the forum represented an opportunity for civil discourse.
Mathews pushed visitors to avoid thinking of humans as having dominion over the planet, "when in actuality it should be about relationality" and a deep respect for nature.
Matthew Morrissey, Deepwater Wind vice president, said in an interview the company was "extremely excited the community is getting together to discuss the impacts of offshore wind."
Morrissey said the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority will soon begin its evaluation of and, "we hope, approval, of the contract we successfully negotiated with Eversource and United Illuminating."
Regulators say PURA should complete its process in the next few months.
Morrissey added that Deepwater Wind has "vessels out at sea that will be active through the turn of the year. The information that comes back will inform many aspects of the design of our project."

October 30, 2018

CT Construction Digest Tuesday October 30, 2018


REMINDER

Strong Industry Attendance is Needed at an Infrastructure Press Conference

 

Today, October 30, 2018
10am  (Please arrive early)
MDC Parking Lot – 231 BRAINARD Road, Hartford   (THE SAME LOCATION AS THE FEBRUARY PRESS CONFERENCE)

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will be releasing their Connecticut Infrastructure Report Card on:

Roads,    Bridges,    Rail,    Clean Water, and    Waste Water.

This is our last opportunity to show support for infrastructure investments before election day. 
Please join us as we make a strong showing that infrastructure investments mean jobs and a better Connecticut!


Bridge over still waters

KURT MOFFETT
WINSTED – The bridge over the Still River near the intersection of Holabird Avenue and North Main Street is now open.
State and local officials led a 20-minute ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday morning to celebrate the opening. The $2.9 million deck replacement project began in September 2016, but the bridge was closed by former Town Manager Dale L. Martin nearly three years before that.
The project was completed on time, officials said.
State Rep. Jay M. Case, R-Winsted, who was instrumental in getting the funding for the project and moving it forward after being on the shelf for roughly 10 years, thanked former lawmaker David Scribner for supporting the project.
Scribner, of Brookfield, said he was a leader on the legislative transportation and transportation bonding committees in 2014, when Case contacted him about procuring the funding. He is now the commissioner of the state Department of Consumer Protection.
Scribner told the more than 50 people who circled around the speakers that the completion of the project is a “significant accomplishment in your community.” He said 80 percent of the project was covered by federal funds and 20 percent by the state, so the grants are “extremely competitive,” but Case was “smart enough” to seek his help in pushing the project.
David Ferreira, Northwestern Connecticut Community College’s dean of academic and student affairs, said the staff and students are “super excited” because the campus will be “much more navigable. This really does bring together all of our buildings to connect the community to the college” and enable students to walk the campus.

Town Manager Robert Geiger said this is “one more step” in removing “the black eye” for which the town was long known.
Mayor A. Candy Perez thanked the businesses in town for their patience during construction, as well as Geiger, who she said kept a close eye on the progress.
The general contractor was the Schultz Corp. of Plymouth. The state Department of Transportation gave Schultz 571 days to complete the project.
Inadequate funding delayed the project for years.
The project called for widening and replacing the bridge deck, which the DOT rated in poor condition. The structures beneath it were rated in fair condition.
The bridge was built in 1955. Nearly 3,000 vehicles travel on it per day.

Old questions for Stamford’s new train station parking plan

Angela Carella
STAMFORD - Esther Marie Giordano thinks the façade proposed for the new train station garage looks like braces used to straighten teeth.
She wonders whether the planned 350-foot pedestrian bridge over Washington Boulevard, which would connect the garage to the train station, could have a moving walkway like the ones in airports.
Giordano has another question for state Department of Transportation officials in charge of designing the $100 million garage, to be built on South State Street, a block from the train station

“What is the broader vision?” asked the Stamford commuter, one of the few to attend last week’s public hearing on the plan. “I think the state is looking at a tiny piece of a big problem. The entire train station needs work, and traffic is a mess — there are no zones for dropping people off or picking them up, which slows everything down.”
Unlike the DOT’s failed 2013 plan for a new garage, which was little publicized, state transportation officials this time are asking for commuters to weigh in. But rail riders have not turned out for two meetings held this month.
Jeff Maron, a Stamford commuter and vice chairman of the Connecticut Commuter Rail Council, said it’s not surprising because word of the meetings was not widespread and, given how the last plan was handled, people might not trust that their comments will have weight.
“Last time the same question was raised, the overwhelming response … was for the new garage to be across from the station, on the same site as the old garage. The DOT has disregarded that overwhelming request from taxpayers and commuters,” Maron said. “Why would they come? Just to be ignored again?”
It’s good that the DOT is inviting comment, which didn’t happen when the agency was negotiating with private developers to build a $500 million office, residential, retail and hotel complex on the site of the old garage and move parking farther away, Maron said. That deal died two years ago.
“I think having open meetings rather than closed meetings is a huge step forward, and I applaud DOT for taking that step,” he said. “However, if the end result remains ignoring the wishes of those who use the station, then we will be no better off. The net result is disregarding the wishes of those who use the station.”
Space for future
Last week’s meeting at City Hall was attended by members of Mayor David Martin’s staff, half a dozen city representatives and a few candidates running for state House of Representatives.
The DOT’s plan is to build an eight-story garage connected to the train station on level four by an enclosed pedestrian bridge and on level two by a ramp leading to New York-bound Track 5.
Walk time from the new garage will depend on where riders park and which track they need to reach. Some trips will be shorter than walking from the old garage, some the same and others longer, DOT officials said.
Work on the new garage is set to begin next year and be completed in 2021.
The original 727-space garage, built in 1987, has been crumbling for many years. Only 200 spaces are now in use. The 1,200-space addition, built in 2004, needs maintenance but will remain.
City Rep. David Watkins, R-1, wanted to know more about traffic flow, since DOT data shows that two-thirds of the vehicles that will use the new garage will come down Washington Boulevard, and the rest from South State Street. Watkins said he’s concerned about bottlenecks.
DOT Commissioner Jim Redeker said traffic will move better around the station because the new garage will be designed for good flow, and it will divert traffic from congested Station Place. Retiming the traffic signals will improve flow more, Redeker said.
The current demand for parking calls for 825 spaces in the new garage, Redeker said. It is to have 960 spaces, according to plans.
“Are we planning for the future with that number?” asked Stamford resident Shelley Michelson, onetime member of the Board of Finance. “Don’t you want to make sure you are leaving room for future demand?”
Jeff Parker of CHA Consulting, the DOT’s design firm, said the South State Street site can’t accommodate a bigger garage.
“We are providing the maximum we can build,” Parker said.
 River barrier
Giordano asked why the garage has two entries but only one exit, on South State Street.
 “Why not put a second exit on the other side?” Giordano said. “It’s better than waiting 15 minutes to get out, like the old garage.”
A second exit would have to go to Greenwich Avenue, but that’s across Mill River, Redeker replied.
“Put a bridge over the river,” Giordano said.
 There is no funding for that, Redeker said, but “nothing we are doing precludes something like that in the future.”
City Rep. Eric Morson, D-13, asked why the new garage can’t be built directly across from the train station, like the old one.
“If you park on the eighth level of the northwest corner of the new garage, it’s a long trek,” Morson said.
Redeker said a garage is not “the highest and best use” of the old site, and developers are interested in it. The DOT needs revenue from its sites to maintain rail stations and garages, he said.
“The old site might be more parking, or something else,” Redeker said. “We are not precluding some parking for the old site.”
Representatives of Malkin Properties and Building & Land Technology attended this month’s meetings. Maron said the developers “want to understand the impact on their buildings in the area, and I think they are hunting to do a deal with DOT to purchase the space occupied by the old garage.”

Democrats eye push for infrastructure plan if they retake House

Mark Niquette and Alan Levin, Bloomberg
Democrats are planning to pursue a major U.S. transportation and infrastructure measure if they retake control of the U.S. House in the Nov. 6 midterm elections, but the same question that helped stall Donald Trump's trillion-dollar initiative remains: How would it be funded?
Rep. Peter DeFazio, who's in line to become chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has said Democrats would seek a spending measure for roads, bridges and other public works if they take power. Nancy Pelosi, who could become speaker again, said it may be something Democrats can do with the Republican president.
"One of my themes is build, build, build," Pelosi said at an Oct. 22 event hosted by CNN. "Build the infrastructure of America from sea to shining sea. Not only surface transportation but broadband and water systems."

Trump said in an Oct. 17 interview on Fox Business News that "infrastructure is going to be starting after the midterms and we think that's going to be an easy one.''
Despite the bipartisan enthusiasm for the idea, several recent efforts to reach agreement on a major bill have all faltered -- and ballooning federal budget deficits along with growing partisan rancor will make it even harder.
House Democrats could start hearings in late January if they take power, with the aim of crafting a bill that could pass by May, said Ed Rendell, the former Democratic governor of Pennsylvania who co-founded Building America's Future, a bipartisan coalition of officials that promotes infrastructure spending.
Rendell said he and other transportation advocates met Oct. 23 in Philadelphia to discuss a potential Democratic bill with Rep. Earl Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat and member of the House Ways and Means Committee.
A spokesman for Blumenauer declined to discuss the meeting, but said the representative is exploring the idea of creating a subcommittee on infrastructure with his colleagues and stakeholders around the country.
DeFazio also didn't provide specific details but said in a statement that "it's well past time for Congress and the Trump Administration to get serious about our infrastructure needs."
A Democratic majority "will prioritize investment to rebuild our transportation networks, boost affordable housing, and expand broadband access in towns and communities," said Rep. David Price, a Democrat from North Carolina who serves on the the House Appropriations Committee and is the top Democrat on the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee.

"I am hopeful that the Trump administration will show a willingness to engage Congress on meaningful infrastructure investment that finally matches their public rhetoric," Price said in a statement.
Trump promised to "build gleaming new roads, bridges, highways, railways, and waterways all across our land." He released a plan in February, but Democrats criticized it for allocating only $200 billion in federal money over 10 years -- mostly to spur states, localities and the private sector to fund the balance of $1.5 trillion in investment.
There were a few committee hearings on the plan, but it stalled amid a backlash about a lack of federal investment and because it failed to specify a funding source, said Bud Wright, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
Senate Democrats released a $1 trillion plan in March funded by rolling back tax cuts for the wealthy. But Republicans won't accept that, raising federal taxes has not proven feasible politically and more borrowing is unlikely with the ballooning federal deficit, Wright said.
"It's going to come down to the same question: Where is the money actually going to come from?" Wright said in an interview.
Trump surprised a group of lawmakers Feb. 14 by saying he would support a 25-cent-per-gallon increase in federal gasoline and diesel taxes -- an idea also backed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and American Trucking Associations. But the president never endorsed the plan publicly, and prominent Republicans flatly rejected any tax increase.
The gas tax of 18.4 cents per gallon and diesel levy of 24.4 cents were last raised in 1993, even as many states -- including those led by Republicans -- have increased fuel levies. As a result of inflation, the federal tax provides just over half of its original value, according to government estimates.
Republican Rep. Bill Shuster of Pennsylvania, the retiring chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, released his own proposal July 23 to spur discussion about fixing infrastructure and shore up the Highway Trust Fund, which is projected to become insolvent by 2020.
His plan includes raising the federal gas tax by 15 cents a gallon over three years and the diesel tax by 20 cents, with a goal of replacing the fuel levies by 2028 with a per-mile-traveled fee or other sources of revenue.
If Republicans maintain control of the House, Rep. Sam Graves of Missouri and Rep. Jeff Denham of California are vying to take Shuster's place as committee chairmen. Both have endorsed the need for infrastructure projects in previous statements.
There's a question about whether Republicans will be willing to pass a major spending bill if they maintain control of the Senate as expected, but if Democrats take back the House, voters will be asking what results they produced beyond investigating Trump, said Rendell of Building America's Future.Trump and Republicans also will have to answer in 2020 if they don't produce an infrastructure measure, he said.
"If we sent him an infrastructure bill that was a significant bill, I think he would sign it because he has talked about infrastructure ad nauseam but he hasn't done anything about it for two years," Rendell said.
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers, which represents companies including Caterpillar Inc., Volvo Construction Equipment Corp. and Link-Belt Cranes, has already launched a "Mission Not Accomplished" campaign reminding voters that Trump hasn't kept his promise so far.
Improving infrastructure historically has had bipartisan support, and that's needed today with the American Society of Civil Engineers estimating an additional $2 trillion is required by 2025, said Shailen Bhatt, president and chief executive officer of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America and a former state transportation director.
"It can't be a Republican wins and a Democrat loses or a Democrat wins and a Republican loses, because then Americans lose," Bhatt said in an interview. "On infrastructure, that just can't happen.''

By the numbers: UConn's new hockey arena is expected to cost $45 million and other new details about the facility


A plan set to go before the UConn Board of Trustees Wednesday would see the construction of a new ice hockey facility at a cost of $45 million on campus.
The board previously approved moving forward with the project, but members will have the chance to sign off on the financial details at the upcoming meeting. A board committee agreed to the financial proposal during a meeting on Monday.
The facility would serve as a home venue for the Huskies sometimes, although UConn would still primarily use the XL Center in Hartford. But the Hockey East conference requires an on-campus arena and the Freitas Ice Forum, where the Huskies currently play, is not large enough.
Here’s a look at the plan for a new arena by the numbers:UConn officials suggested multiple ways to fund the project, but in the end are recommending a plan that would use both public and private funds.
The university will pull $12.5 million from its reserves. Those funds will be repaid through philanthropy and fundraising, with the difference if necessary made up through funding from the athletics department.
Another $10 million will be used from the profits from recent property sales — the former UConn West Hartford campus, which was sold to the town of West Hartford and the sale of the Nathan Hale Inn to a developer.
The remainder — $22.5 million — is where it gets a little more complicated. UConn plans to hire a developer for the project. The developer will create a special purpose entity, essentially a subsidiary, that will design, construct, own and operate the new arena. That company will finance the rest of the project through tax-exempt bonds.In return, UConn and the entity will enter into a 30-year lease and the university will pay an annual fee to pay down the overall project cost. The annual cost over the lease is expected to be about $1.6 million, but operating revenues could drive that down to about $1.2 million.
The university will be in charge of maintaining the arena, while the developer would operate and manage it.
At least 2,500 seats
Hockey East requires facilities with at least 4,000 seats, but UConn has obtained permission to build a smaller facility with 2,500 seats. That said, expansion is still a possibility. The proposal states that the new arena could eventually reach 3,500 seats.
The new arena would add 750 parking spaces to campus that would be directly next to the arena. That might not be enough for every single person should the arena sell out, but planners said many of those in attendance would be students who walk or take a shuttle to the facility.2021
If all goes according to plan, the new arena would open in fall 2021.
Construction on the project is expected to last 18 months with design, permitting and bidding to take place over the next year and a half, or so. Construction would start in 2020.
According to the proposal, the arena will be “efficient, functional and durable in size, appearance, and finishes.”

Plans For Hartford's Westbrook Village Move Foward; Demolition Expected By Early Next Year

The red brick buildings that line Albany Avenue and stretch 40 acres into Hartford’s North End will soon be dismantled, a first, significant step in a yearslong process to redevelop hundreds of housing units for families of mixed incomes.
The 360 derelict units that make up Westbrook Village are slated for demolition by the start of next year. Developers are planning 400 new dwellings, the majority of them rentals. Some will be billed as “affordable housing” and others will be market rate.
But the project, which aims to enliven an area that has fallen into disrepair, will go beyond apartments and include a major grocery store, a pharmacy, a “destination” restaurant and other retail, organizers said.
“Our vision is to build a gateway project that will end up being a wonderful new community of mixed income and mixed use,” said Sanford Cloud Jr., whose firm, The Cloud Company, is part of the development team. Pennrose LLC, Quisenberry Arcari Architects, Freeman Cos., JDA Development, JCJ Architecture and WRT Design are also involved.
The enterprise is expected to unfold in six or seven stages and feature 382 rentals and 18 units for sale. Crews will break ground on the first phase — along Plainfield Street across from Annie Fisher Montessori Magnet School — early next spring. That phase includes 60 “affordable” apartments and 15 market-rate units. Construction is estimated to be complete within 14 months, and leasing would begin in summer 2020.
Developers have not yet disclosed what income brackets would qualify for the affordable housing.
The initial stage, costing $28 million, is backed by a combination of state funds, a federal home loan grant, tax credit equity and first mortgage financing. The state has also contributed $9 million for demolition and resident moving expenses.
The old Westbrook Village, built in the late 1940s and early 1950s, catered to low- and middle-income families. Part of the Hartford Housing Authority’s original portfolio, the complex stopped taking new tenants in 2012. Most have since relocated.
“We knew we were moving toward a redevelopment effort, and the buildings were beyond their reasonable use,” said Annette Sanderson, head of the housing authority. “So over the years you’ve seen the occupancy dwindle. Everyone we’ve located out either through the use of a Section 8 subsidy or another replacement housing payment.”
About 20 households remain in the complex. Management is working to have the families moved.
The housing authority has been the target of complaints by tenants in recent years for water damage, holes in the floor and leaky faucets in the units, among other maintenance problems.
Sanderson acknowledged that the apartments needed “more care and attention” as conditions deteriorated, but said her staff was doing the best it could. Workers have dealt with other nuisances, such as the theft of copper piping from buildings, she said.
The townhouse-style apartments feature brick facades, wood siding and porches. Each unit has its own entrance.
Tenants from the old Westbrook Village who were in good standing can apply to live in the new rentals, Sanderson said.
Gregory Woodward, president of the University of Hartford, said he is in talks with the developers about the possibility of a partnership. The university may use space at Westbrook for teaching or programs.
The new apartments would give students another rental option, he said, and the retail would be enticing to visiting families.
“We don’t have our own little college town area,” Woodward said. “Our students use downtown Hartford and West Hartford and a little bit of Bloomfield, but this would be close by.”
Sixty rental units are planned for the second phase of development. The project’s organizers said they do not yet have a timetable for construction, and don’t know the final price tag. They are pursuing funding.
The retail phase could run concurrently with the housing. Charlie Adams, a regional vice president for Pennrose, said the development group has been in discussions with grocery store operators and restaurateurs, but he declined to name them.
Westbrook was formerly part of a 130-acre property with another complex, Bowles Park. Units at the old Bowles Park have been demolished and are being rebuilt in stages.
Cloud, who grew up in one of the original Westbrook apartments, has high hopes for the new housing.
“This is a project the community has been waiting for for over a decade,” he said. “This area touches the West End, it touch parts of West Hartford, it touches parts of Bloomfield, along with Blue Hills Avenue and Upper Albany. These are several different communities that we’re hoping to bring together.”

October 29, 2018

CT Construction Digest Monday October 29, 2018


I-84 reconstruction project nearly done in Waterbury
WATERBURY, CT. 25 October 2018-102518 - Workers for Empire Paving lay down new asphalt during paving operations, at the on and off ramps of Austin Road on I-84 Westbound in Waterbury on Wednesday. Bill Shettle Republican-American
ANDREW LARSON
WATERBURY – Now that three lanes of Interstate 84 are open in each direction, crews are putting the finishing touches on asphalt that’s expected to carry 130,000 vehicles a day for decades.
On Tuesday night, the final overlay on I-84 westbound was completed. Paving of the exit ramps will continue for the next few days. Paving was finished in the eastbound direction earlier this month.
With the infamous I-84 S-curve straightened, the two-lane merge eliminated and a glasslike asphalt surface, cars can glide through Waterbury without having to stop, even during rush hour. The speed limit remains 45 because other parts of the $330 million project are still under construction.
Paving of side roads, including Reidville Drive and Hamilton Avenue, will continue until the asphalt plants close for the winter.
The paving process involves strict requirements and extensive testing to ensure a high-quality roadway is built that won’t crack or sink to create potholes.
First, crews lay a gravel subbase followed by multiple layers of asphalt. The subbase and asphalt surface is 30 inches thick when it’s finished.
Starting at about 9:30 p.m. and until 5 the next morning, workers used a caravan consisting of a paver, a dump truck and a material transfer vehicle sandwiched between them. The transfer vehicle, a Roadtec Shuttle Buggy, used a conveyor beltlike arm to keep asphalt continuously flowing into the paving machine. The Shuttle Buggy has massive tires with a diameter of about 6 feet.
The paving machine crawled along the highway at 0.4 mph, according to Project Engineer Christopher Zukowski. The slow speed helps ensure a consistent depth.
“We don’t want the paver to move too fast, and we don’t want it to ever stop during the pull,” Zukowski said.
The asphalt must meet the state Department of Transportation’s specific requirements. It needs to be between 265 degrees and 325 degrees Fahrenheit when it’s placed on the ground.
Workers use a temperature gun to measure the heat level in the truck, and if it’s questionable, a DOT inspector tests it with a thermometer.
The crew moves in the same direction as traffic, paving the entire roughly 3-mile length of the highway between Pierpont Road and Washington Street, one lane at a time. They work to keep the proper depth by controlling the “attack angle” of the screed and speed of the paver.
A single paving crew would put down 3,000 tons of asphalt per night, Zukowski said.
The lanes are linked by notch wedge joints, which prevent water from seeping in between them and causing potholes to form.
Even the pavement markings require meticulous work. The dashed white lines – which are 10 feet long and are separated by a distance of 30 feet – are embedded in the asphalt.
“We mill the pavement prior to painting the markings into the roadway, this way the plows are less susceptible to damaging them,” Zukowski said.

Connecticut asks Amtrak to add cars to address overcrowding

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut officials are asking Amtrak to add cars to some trains traveling between New Haven and Springfield, Massachusetts, to alleviate overcrowding.
Expanded passenger rail service on the 62-mile (100-kilometer) Hartford Line between New Haven and Springfield began in June.
The Hartford Courant reports that Amtrak says it's now working with the Connecticut Department of Transportation to resolve crowding issues occurring on some Hartford Line trains. Amtrak trains on the Hartford Line have two cars.
Connecticut Public Radio reported Friday that passengers with college student transit passes were kicked off Amtrak when trains reached capacity.
Connecticut's transportation commissioner, James Redeker, says that's not supposed to happen. An Amtrak spokesperson told the radio station they had no record of removing passengers
Amtrak often works on a reservation system, selling only as many seats as are available. The Hartford Line removed caps on ticket sales.
Rail service was expanded to ease congestion along the Interstate 91 corridor.
The $765 million project, which began with a feasibility study 14 years ago, included the construction of 21 new bridges and the laying of 21 miles of new track, allowing for a second working track between New Haven and Hartford. Some of the round trips are operated by the state of Connecticut; the others are Amtrak trains. The state's trains have four cars.
Amtrak could potentially use some of Connecticut's rail cars that aren't currently in use, Redeker told Connecticut Public Radio. He said the good news is that ridership is growing.

Private investment already crucial to Connecticut airports

Kevin Dillon
In response to the Oct. 16 column entitled "Private investment in state assets? CT should explore it," I wanted to take a moment to note the significant ways in which the Connecticut Airport Authority (CAA) has already fully embraced this approach.
Our agency is a strong proponent of working with private businesses, as evidenced by our recent history and plans moving forward.
First, it is important to note that the lion's share of development at CAA airports is already private. Think of the CAA as a landlord. While we own the land and key facilities at our airports, we regularly work with private entities that are interested in investing in our airports. This can take the form of hangar development, concession build-out and more.
We have negotiated development deals with a wide array of entities across our entire airport system, with particularly significant hangar developments recently completed by TAC Air at Bradley Airport. In these scenarios, the private entity negotiates a lease term in return for making their own investments into facilities that will inevitably revert back to CAA control at the expiration of that term.
This is similar to the concept that was employed at JFK airport in their renovation program. In fact, since the CAA took control of our five general aviation airports from the Department of Transportation, we have negotiated roughly 1.7 million square feet of development from private entities, with investment commitments totaling roughly $50 million.
At Bradley alone, we have negotiated well in excess of 600,000 square feet of developments and more than $15 million in private investment over recent years. Looking towards the future, we have a master plan at Bradley totaling $1.4 billion worth of projects, a vast majority of which will come through utilizing private investment.
Another major example can be found with the ground transportation center that we are planning at Bradley Airport. In this case, the rental-car companies at Bradley will be jointly developing the nearly $215 million facility on property leased from the CAA. While the project will be backed by airport-generated bonding, the rental-car companies are the primary funding partners, and they will inevitably bear the cost of constructing and operating this facility.
Again, after the lease term expires, the facility will revert to CAA control.
While we believe that we are still years away from justifying the expenditure for new terminal facilities at Bradley, we fully intend to review opportunities for private investment for that major project. Private-sector investment is a key part of what we do at our airports, and we certainly do not intend to break that trend when presented with such an attractive opportunity.
In short, private investment has been core to many of our recent successes. We fully agree that private-sector engagement is important in developments across the state, and we plan to continue our aggressive use of this development tool in the future.
Kevin Dillon is the executive director of the Connecticut Airport Authority.

Voters Should Put Lock On Transportation Fund

During my 18 years in the General Assembly, including 14 years as House chairman of the Transportation Committee, I’ve witnessed governors and legislative leaders raid the state’s Special Transportation Fund to avoid tough choices during short-term budget crunches. In doing so, they diverted millions upon millions of dollars, particularly in gas tax revenues, away from transportation projects. This has been not only a breach of the public trust, it has greatly undermined our ability to fund the state’s desperately needed infrastructure safety and needed upgrades.
On Nov. 6, the voters of Connecticut will finally have the chance approve the ballot Question 1, which will create a constitutional “lockbox” to ensure that dollars set aside for transportation will actually be spent on transportation. This is not a Democratic issue or a Republican issue. It’s an issue that affects the life of every single resident of Connecticut.
For decades, the state has failed to invest adequately in our transportation infrastructure. As a result, the condition of our roads, bridges, tunnels and rails is increasingly alarming. Chunks of concrete are falling off the Hartford I-84 viaduct, I-95 turns into a parking lot most hours of the day and the Merritt Parkway simply cannot support the current volume of traffic.
We are endangering ourselves, our loved ones and the future of our state by failing to safeguard transportation dollars. Consider this: 47 percent of state-maintained roadways are in less than good condition, and that number could grow to 71 percent over the next 30 years. Connecticut has 334 bridges and one tunnel rated in poor condition. Nearly a third of those bridges were built prior to 1950. On the New Haven Rail Line, the busiest commuter rail line in the country, 76 percent of rail bridges were built before 1940, and four of those bridges were built more than a century ago. It would be nothing short of gross negligence for Connecticut to wait for a major bridge to fail before acting.
Our historic lack of infrastructure investment is also harming our economy. The economic cost of traffic congestion in Connecticut is at least $4.2 billion annually, with some estimates putting it at more than $5 billion. Business leaders continually rank highway accessibility as their number one concern in deciding where to locate their businesses. We must take steps to support highway improvements for their job-creating growth.
Simply put, transportation investments are crucial to our state’s long-term interests. The good news is that over the last eight years, we’ve had a governor and legislative leaders who did the hard work of redirecting previously diverted gas tax revenues back into the Transportation Fund. Still, the risk remains that future governors and future legislatures may revert to old habits and once again raid the Transportation Fund instead of meeting budget needs head on.
It’s also true that the state passed legislation in 2015 to try to protect the Transportation Fund, but that’s not enough. It remains far too easy for future legislatures to circumvent that law. That’s why we need to go a step farther, and why a constitutional lockbox is absolutely essential. People and businesses from Stonington to Greenwich, from New Haven to Enfield and from Danbury to New London have spoken loudly and clearly. We need to upgrade our infrastructure to be competitive. Connecticut citizens deserve the assurance that money set aside for transportation will be used only for transportation.
We have an opportunity, and we need to seize it. We need to upgrade our infrastructure to be competitive, and this state deserves nothing less than a best-in-class transportation system. A “yes” vote Nov. 6 on Question 1 will be a vital step toward achieving Connecticut’s safer and more dynamic transportation future.
Tony Guerrera of Rocky Hill is the state representative from District 29. A Democrat, he is not running for re-election.

October 26, 2018

CT Construction Digest Friday October 26, 2018

Strong Industry Attendance is Needed at an Infrastructure Press Conference
Tuesday, October 30, 2018
10am  (Please arrive early)
MDC Parking Lot – 231 BRAINARD Road, Hartford   (THE SAME LOCATION AS THE FEBRUARY PRESS CONFERENCE)
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will be releasing their Connecticut Infrastructure Report Card on:
Roads, Bridges, Rail, Clean Water, and Waste Water.

This is our last opportunity to show support for infrastructure investments before election day. 
Please join us as we make a strong showing that infrastructure investments mean jobs and a better Connecticut!

Voters to decide if state should create ‘legal lockbox’ for transportation costs

When Connecticut voters head to the polls Nov. 6 they will decide the fate of two proposed amendments to the state Constitution.
And, according to some, they also will set the stage for whether Connecticut will begin a long-overdue rebuild of its aging transportation network.
One of the proposed amendments, which has gotten a hefty share of headlines over the past three years, involves creating a legal “lockbox” to safeguard the gasoline tax and other related revenues from being spent on non-transportation purposes.
The second, which has been relegated to a much lower profile, would reform — but not end —the longstanding practice of conveying surplus state property to municipalities and other entities in the waning hours of the annual legislative session.
Nearly a decade of diverting transportation funds
For years, the “lockbox” has been touted as the best defense against the tendencies of elected officials to redirect fuel tax revenues for non-transportation purposes.
The “lockbox” language effectively states that once a revenue source — such as Connecticut’s 25 cents-per-gallon retail gasoline tax — is dedicated to the budget’s Special Transportation Fund — it cannot be removed unless it is repealed entirely.
“This is an absolute priority if the state is going to move forward with any type of meaningful infrastructure rebuild,” said Don Shubert, president of the Connecticut Construction Industry Association and one of the founders of Move CT Forward — a coalition of construction businesses, trades and other transportation advocates.
“It’s not like the state is flush with money,” said former Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele, one of the leaders of Securing Connecticut’s Future, another coalition of business and labor groups backing the lockbox. “We’re looking at billion-dollar budget deficits and we don’t have a strategy to protect these transportation funds.”
And while some in political circles like to debate what does or does not constitute a “raid” of transportation funds, Shubert has no interest in parsing out rhetoric. “Transportation advocates have a long memory,” he said. “We know Connecticut is very good at not maximizing its ability to fund transportation.”
That was supposed to change in 2005 when then-Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the legislature launched an aggressive series of gasoline tax increases in 2005. They thought that modest consumer pain would be offset by a transformed transportation network.
As gas prices skyrocketed, tax revenues grew by more than double what was expected. Those tax increases became a cash cow for the state.
Meanwhile, transportation spending limped along, as non-transportation programs gobbled up fuel revenues in good economic times and bad.
After three summers’ worth of tax increases, the retail price of gasoline in Connecticut topped $4.30 per gallon by the spring of 2008. It would take the Great Recession to bring prices down dramatically.
But between 2005 and 2013, about $1.27 billion raised by the tax has been spent on non-transportation programs.
By the end of his first term in office, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy would wean the budget’s General Fund off fuel tax receipts.
Transportation rebuild bogs down
Then, in early 2015, Malloy asked lawmakers to launch a 30-year, $100 billion rebuild of Connecticut’s transportation infrastructure, warning that decades of neglect had left the state’s highways, bridges and rail lines overcrowded and badly in need of repair while creating an economic drag.
That initiative bogged down, however, as neither the governor nor lawmakers from either party would propose tolls — or any other major revenue-raiser — to pay for this initiative beyond the first few years.
Malloy instead formed the Transportation Finance Panel, a panel of experts who identified billions of dollars in revenue-raising options centered chiefly on establishing electronic tolling on Connecticut highways.
But he declined to support any of the recommendations until lawmakers endorsed a “lockbox” amendment.And while the transportation fund, on paper, is projected to run surpluses over the next four fiscal years, the administration says that’s based on the dangerous assumption that Connecticut will ignore dozens of necessary strategic projects, costing billions of dollars, in the coming years.
Some of the key projects on that list include:
  • Replacing the elevated section of I-84 in Hartford, commonly known as the viaduct.
  • Renovating the “Mixmaster” junction of I-84 and Route 8 in Waterbury.
  • Widening Interstate 95 in southwestern Connecticut.
Malloy warned Wall Street credit rating agencies, Connecticut businesses, state legislators — and anyone else who would listen — last winter that absent more funding, these projects would fall into limbo.
GOP: Lockbox can be picked
Republican lawmakers have been unanimous in their opposition to tolls. The GOP has countered that Connecticut must better prioritize its transportation program, and borrowing in general, to free up more dollars for infrastructure improvements. The governor and some of his fellow Democrats in the legislature counter this would barely provide enough resources for basic maintenance.
Some in the GOP also argue that the lockbox is nothing more than the first step toward electronic tolling.
“Democrats seem intent not on dedicating transportation revenue for transportation projects that will allow us to eventually improve our infrastructure and decrease taxes and fees, but, instead, to gradually garner popular support for tolls,” Rep. Richard Smith, R-New Fairfield, wrote in an Oct. 19 op-ed published in CT Viewpoints, the CT Mirror’s opinion website.
And House Minority Leader Themis Klarides, R-Derby, says the stakes are too high, and not just because transportation officials estimate tolls could collect $600 million to $800 million annually from motorists.
Klarides says the lockbox is flawed, and too easy for the legislature to crack open and raid.
What happens if lawmakers repeal an existing tax, such as the levy on wholesale fuel transactions, and replace it with a slightly modified version? 
The current tax is calculated based on a percentage of the wholesale price. But the same $280 million that tax is projected to raise this fiscal year also could be generated using a formula based on pennies per gallon.
Could this be identified as a brand new tax, and some of the revenue assigned not to transportation, but to the General Fund?
And what if, rather than trying to shift tax dollars out of the transportation fund, legislators instead shift expenses into that portion of the budget? Could certain costs tied to non-transportation programs be billed to the Special Transportation Fund?
Klarides and other Republicans wanted a lockbox system that gave the Judicial Branch authority to review all fiscal workings. That was not included in the amendment.
“This is a way to pull the wool over the people of Connecticut’s eyes and to lull them into a false sense of security,” Klarides said. “We need to vote it down and start from scratch. Give the citizens of Connecticut a lockbox that works.”
Malloy: Transportation is key to economic competition
Former state Rep. Cameron Staples, who chaired the Transportation Finance Panel, said “there are always ways to imagine commitments in the future being changed. But what you have to look at today is a coalescing of support for a major infrastructure investment. … I think the politicians are going to be pretty hard-pressed to divert funds away from that.”
Republicans and Democrats have been saying they wanted this for years,” the governor added. “Republicans decried the failure to have this and so I’m proud to have been the governor who got it through the legislature.”
In addition, Malloy said, some don’t understand “how good this is. … One of the reasons we fell so far behind Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey in transportation is people in the legislature, Republicans and Democrats, and a Republican governor, were literally stealing transportation money.
“ … If you want to go back to the good-old bad days, go ahead.”
New limits proposed on state property transfers
The second proposed amendment on the Nov. 6 would prohibit the legislature from selling, conveying, or swapping state land or buildings without first holding a public hearing.
The legislature traditionally closes the regular session each spring by enacting an omnibus bill with dozens of property conveyances. In most cases the property is not sold, but transferred to a municipality.
But while that bill is raised in a committee, it typically is chock full of last-minute additions that never have been subjected to a hearing.
“Some of it is habit, but it is certainly a bad habit,” said Eric Hammerling, executive director of the Connecticut Forest and Park Association, whose group supports the ballot question. 
The association expressed concerns this year when the longtime site of a farmers’ market in Hartford — about 34 acres between Interstates 84 and 91 and overseen by the Department of Agriculture — was transferred to the Capital Region Development Authority.
The CRDA is studying redevelopment options, but Hammerling says any future plans should have been established, and discussed, before the transfer.
“Because the public lands are owned by the public,” he added, “the public should have the ability to provide input.”

Derby is paving Wakelee Avenue Friday, from Franklin to Dwight streets

Jean Falbo-Sosnovich
ANSONIA — Starting Friday, paving will begin on another stretch of Wakelee Avenue, from Franklin to Dwight streets.That’s according to Mayor David Cassetti, who advised residents to park their cars on nearby side roads or at Nolan Field at night during the paving process.
Paving of this latest 900-foot stretch of Wakelee Avenue is expected to wrap up Nov. 2. Work is slated to take place from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Economic Development Director Sheila O’Malley said once this portion is complete, the next phase will include “installation of signs, pavement markings, cross walks, pedestrian push buttons, topsoil and seeding, benches and a couple trees.”
O’Malley said she’s excited to see the finished product                           
“I’m particularly thrilled,” she said, noting during her first week on the job a few years back, Cassetti asked her if she could secure a grant for Wakelee Avenue.
O’Malley succeeded in getting state money, and said she couldn’t have done it without help from Rick Dunne, executive director of Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, the state Department of Transportation and VHB Engineering.
Cassetti thanked residents for their cooperation and told them to stay tuned for a grand opening.
Reconstruction of the historic Wakelee Avenue got underway last April. The $5.2 million project will give a much-needed facelift to the heavily traveled road that spans from Seymour to Derby. The project is being funded by $4.4 million in state bonding, along with an additional $441,000 in state contingency funds and $441,000 from the city.
J.Iapaluccio Construction of Brookfield is in charge of the project.
The project calls for straightening, milling and paving the slightly more than mile-long buckled, patched roadway which many residents have likened to a roller coaster ride. Cassetti previously told the registerthe entire surface is being dug up, and the asphalt covered turn-of-the century trolley tracks underneath removed and new drainage and catch basins installed.
All of the deteriorated sidewalks on both sides of the street will be demolished and a new base with cement will be installed. Corners will have granite curbs cut for handicapped access while, street lights will be installed every 75 feet.
What won’t be replaced, according to Cassetti, are the cement block horse ties or the Pork Hollow monument installed in 1901 in front of Klanko’s Market. The monument commemorates the actions of colonial soldiers and civilians who hid provisions, particularly pork, from an invading British Army in 1777.The entire project is expected to be complete by Dec. 1.
Wakelee Avenue is home to dozens of 1900-era multi-family homes and businesses.

Route 9 improvement project in Middletown to begin construction in spring

Cassandra Day
MIDDLETOWN — The state is moving ahead with three portions of the project to remove traffic signals on Route 9 and make improvements to Main Street, as well as opening access to an isolated neighborhood in the North End that has been closed off for decades.
The overall price tag for the project is $70.75 million. Eighty percent of the costs would be borne by the federal government and 20 percent by the state.
The off-ramps at Exit 16 north onto Hartford Avenue and Exit 15 south onto Washington Street (St. John’s Square) would be eliminated, according to the proposal.
The project to provide access to downtown from Route 9 north, which includes building a bridge to move cars over the highway, railroad tracks and yard, is on hold, according to the state. The idea is that an off-ramp will intersect Rapallo Avenue at a new signalized intersection, also known as a flyover.
“We’re not moving forward without another public info meeting,” according to Connecticut Department of Transportation Project Engineer Erik Jarboe. That meeting is expected to take place some time in the spring,
“The large-scale project — the flyover or bridges or whatever we do to remove the signals — has its own hang-ups, but it seemed pretty clear everybody was on board,” he said.
State engineers will be reimagining the project, trying to come up with some other possible options.
“We’re going to look at that all over again”, and bring it to the public,” Jarboe said. “Do we go with one of these two options we already came up with? Is there something else? So far, we’re not seeing anything else that we potentially could do, so we’re revisiting all that to determine what direction we want to go in.”
That would entail incorporating input from city officials, residents and commuters as well as the project’s needs.“We’re still in the scoping phase of all that,” he said.
Public concerns, which include safety issues, have factored into the project since its inception. The most recent available statistics, from Jan. 1, 2015, to Dec. 31, 2017, show there were 528 collisions, which caused 121 injuries, including a single fatality, on state roads within the project limits of all three projects, according to the DOT.
Jarboe said the DOT is constantly balancing the goals of the project between public comments and what residents did and didn’t like about the plan for each one of the concepts.
“We’re rehashing it all,” Jarboe said.The second phase is the creation of 18 bump-outs, or curb extensions, to ease pedestrian volume for those crossing Main Street downtown. The distance is 97 feet long, and signals allow a full 28 seconds for walkers to make their way across. In all, bump-outs are expected to reduce the pedestrian crossing distance to 55 feet.
Construction on that portion will begin in the spring.By late summer, improvements to St. Johns Square, which includes redoing the entire intersection, will begin. Included in that project will be a “short, dedicated right-turn lane” from Main Street south onto Route 66/Washington Street near Luce Restaurant. Presently, Main Street is two lanes and motorists often take right turns on red by driving over the parking stalls that line the west side of Main, officials said.
That phase will be launched in late summer. Jarboe anticipates there will be a loss of a couple parking spots. “It’s a little bit further behind: We have some rights of way to acquire and things like that,” he said. As a direct result of the info sessions in the spring, the state has initiated another project to reopen the rail crossing at Portland Street in the North End, which has been fenced off for decades. That plan will have its own set of challenges, so the state will work with the rail company to make that happen, Jarboe said.Motorists would again have access to the Miller/Bridge neighborhood through Portland Street. Once complete, cars will have access to Main Street south and Route 66 east and the Arrigoni Bridge through St. Johns Square, as well as North Main Street via St. Johns Street, which runs under the Portland Bridge.Once that is complete, Miller Street will be closed off.
Now, access to the Miller and Bridge street area is only from Route 9 south, a very dangerous endeavor on this fast-moving highway yards away from an uncommon traffic light. Drivers are forced to take a right-hand turn into the neighborhood from the north. To exit, motorists turn right with southbound traffic. Over the years, there have been multiple of accidents there at Exit 16.One of the big concerns is school buses that carry children to and from the neighborhood.
“We’re all kind of scratching our heads here, saying, ‘Why is this not already done?’” Jarboe said.
  For project information, visit ct.gov/dot.

Developer of downtown Meriden apartment complex still waiting for funding

Jeniece Roman
MERIDEN — The construction of 81 apartment units at 11 Crown St. remains on hold until funding for the project is finalized.
Laura Zaner, spokeswoman for the New Jersey-based developer Michaels Organization, said funding should be secured in the coming months.
“We are working towards a financial closing before construction will start,” Zaner said. “Once the funding is secured construction will immediately begin.”
The former Record-Journal building was demolished in 2017. The city paid $495,000 for the 109-year old building and property in May 2014, using a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Sustainable Communities Challenge grant.
The city utilized $1,725,000 in funding it received from the Department of Economic and Community Development to pay for cleanup and demolition.
Economic Development Director Juliet Burdelski said the city completed soil cleanup in April. Construction was also pushed back because a transformer needed to be removed.
“We realized an electric transformer was located behind the building and we planned to remove it,” Burdelski said.
Burdelski said the removal of the electric transformer proved to be more complicated than expected due to its large size.
“We’re back on track and should be moving back to the plan,” Burdelski said.
In May, Burdelski and others were optimistic work might begin over the summer.

N.Y. developer submits plan for 151-room hotel at Hale Mill in Norwich

Claire Bessette           
Norwich — A New York developer has submitted plans to convert the granite and brick former Hale Mill in Yantic into a 151-room hotel with several amenities.
Mill Development LLC of Woodside, N.Y., which purchased the mill for $826,000 on June 1, submitted three sets of plans to the city Planning and Neighborhood Services Department for inland wetlands, site development and special permits needed for the project.
The plans call for converting the historical four-story, nearly 100,000-square-foot mill into a 151-room hotel with a swimming pool, fitness room, lounge with breakfast area, beauty salon and an 11,300-square-foot multipurpose venue.
The project needs approval first by the city’s Inland Wetlands, Watercourses and Conservation Commission, which may decide to schedule a public hearing on the application, City Planner Deanna Rhodes said. If the wetlands commission grants approval, the project would move to the Commission on the City Plan, which must schedule a public hearing on the requested special permit, because the 5-acre property near the Yantic River is in a floodplain. The project needs a site development plan by the planning commission.
Rhodes said the wetlands commission will review the project at its Dec. 6 meeting and the planning commission could hold a public hearing either at the Dec. 18 meeting or in January.
Gadi Ben Hamo, co-owner of Mill Development LLC, said the development group does not yet have a brand affiliation for the hotel, named “Hale Mill Hotel” on the plans. But Hamo said the group is considering some “well-known” names and is awaiting approval of the permits before deciding.
Hamo said the group was attracted to the property for several reasons, including its proximity to the New London ferries for visitors to the region from the Hamptons in Long Island, the location near the region’s two major casinos, the William W. Backus Hospital and other local attractions.
“And also, the building,” Hamo said. “It’s such a beautiful building.”
The proposal is the second effort in the past two decades to convert the former mill, built in 1846, into a hotel. The Boston area-based Phoenix Development Group first launched plans to convert the mill into a 142-room full-service hotel in 1995.
That project met with financial difficulties, with on and off construction over the years until construction stopped for good in 2007 amid a bitter partnership dispute and complex mortgage foreclosure action. The mill failed to sell at two auctions in 2011 and was purchased the next year by a Harlem-based developer for $209,000. Eggoman LLC sold the property to Hamo in June.
Hamo said Thursday his hotel plan cannot use much of the previous construction — which included framed hotel rooms with bathrooms partially fitted out in some areas of the building — saying the work is not suitable to the new plan.
Mayor Peter Nystrom said Thursday that city and Norwich Public Utilities officials met with the hotel developer and assisted with the group’s interest in purchasing the building. City officials met with the new owners and explained city utilities and city services.
Nystrom said NPU General Manager John Bilda “was instrumental in making that project go forward.”
NPU spokesman Chris Riley said the Yantic Mill area currently has NPU electricity, water and sewer services, and NPU officials are working with the developer to determine if natural gas makes sense for their project.
“As always, NPU is supportive of any reasonable project, big or small, that will add to the tax base of Norwich,” Riley said.

Newington PZC nixes affordable housing complex

Joe Cooper
Newington's Planning and Zoning Commission on Wednesday voted against a $32 million-plus affordable-housing development proposed near one of Newington's CTfastrak busway stations.
Town Planner Craig Minor said the zoning commission voted 4-2 against the development at 550 Cedar St. amid safety concerns.
A key part of the denial, Minor said, had to do with the need for a sidewalk to connect the three building, 108-unit apartment complex on land owned by Stop & Shop Supermarket to the CTfastrak bus station.
Massachusetts developer-landlord Dakota Partners Inc. offered to fund the sidewalk installation and pledged to work with the state Department of Transportation to mitigate safety concerns.
The sidewalk plan, however, was not feasible based on the steep topography of the land, Minor said.
The town planner said there is a lack of shoulder room to fit a sidewalk, making it "difficult if not impossible" to create enough space from traffic. Minor said the sidewalk would have also not complied with requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
"The commission just felt it was unsafe," Minor said of sidewalk's uncertainty. "There was no way to guarantee there would be sidewalks from the CTfastrak station."
Residents during public comments aired concerns over an increase in traffic, but Minor said the commission agreed the traffic impact would have been minimal.
Dakota Partners, which also owns Hartford's Capitol Lofts and 179 Allyn St. apartment buildings, may appeal the decision as the town has less than 10 percent affordable housing, Minor said.
"I imagine they will appeal," he said. "They have put a lot of effort into the project at this point, it seems likely they will try to get it approved through the appeal process."
A spokeswoman for Dakota Partners on Thursday said the developer has not made a decision on whether to appeal Wednesday's decision.
Under the site application, Dakota Partners pitched a three-building complex at the long-vacant lot spanning over 7.7 acres. The complex, billed as Cedar Pointe, was aimed at low-income residents at the former site of automobile dealership Crest Motors.
If approved, the developer had planned to break ground in spring 2019 with an estimated completion in 12 to 14 months.
The proposal called for 81 two-bedroom units and 27- one-bedroom units and 152 parking spots.
Rents ranged from $410 to $1,046 for one bedroom and $486 to $1,240 for two-bedroom units.