Max Reiss
Gov. Ned Lamont is looking to get a vote on tolls before the end of the legislative session next Thursday, and not looking to a Special Session like he announced last week.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the discussions Lamont has held with Democratic leaders in the General Assembly told NBC Connecticut that Lamont believes there will be time, once the state budget is finalized, to get his tolls proposal through the General Assembly.
“I certainly hope this is not the case,” said Sen. Len Fasano, (R – North Haven), the top Republican in the Senate.
Last week, Lamont announced with the speaker of the House and the president of the Senate, their intention to hold a Special Session devoted to infrastructure planning and spending.
One source told NBC Connecticut, “with the budget at 98 percent done,” the governor feels there will be momentum, but importantly, the time to pass tolls through both the House and Senate.
Democrats in both chambers discussed the measure behind closed doors Wednesday.
Fasano said if the plan changes to hold a vote on tolls before lawmakers adjourn at midnight next Thursday, then there will be trust issues with the administration.
"You only have your word in this building and your word is your bond,” Fasano said. “That's what you live with in this building and if you break your word, it goes a long way to wreck your relationships in the future so I just hope if he's done this he rethinks this because that would be going back on a promise that he has made to me."
Later Wednesday, Lamont's Communication Director Maribel La Luz told NBC Connecticut, "The Governor met with Leaders last week to state that his immediate focus and priority was to pass a budget that was balanced and on time. Now that we’re close to an agreement the Governor has turned his attention to getting PFML and Transportation across the finish line which he has wanted all along. Once he heard from the minority leader there was no way any Republican would vote to improve our transportation system, he also figured waiting was pointless."
Rob Ryser
NEWTOWN — If the town wants to convert the former state hospital grounds into the civic and cultural center of Newtown, it needs to have more places on campus to eat, drink and be merry.
That’s according to a new survey of Newtown residents about the 185-acre Fairfield Hills property, commissioned by planners to understand how the campus is meeting residents’ expectations.“I think that small businesses, restaurants, and shops would be a great asset to the campus, as people could go to these places while at events and help Newtown’s economy as well,” one resident said in the write-in section of the survey.
The survey results, which were discussed publicly for the first time Tuesday at a meeting of the Fairfield Hills Master Plan Review Committee, found that residents want more bathrooms, rest areas and outdoor entertainment at Fairfield Hills, along with more restaurants and pubs.
The survey found residents were strongly against building housing of any kind on campus.
“Fairfield Hills has always been one of the best places to go to relax and enjoy nature,” a survey taker wrote in the write-in section. “Putting in housing and big buildings for shopping will just ruin the whole campus ... a couple of small shops here and there are fine but please do not overdo it.”
The survey of 1,800 Newtown adults, conducted from mid-April to mid-May, comes at a time of transformation for Fairfield Hills, where contractors have nearly completed a $15 million community center and adjoining $3 million senior center.
First Selectman Dan Rosenthal declined to comment on the survey results until he had read the report, but said it was unlikely the hulking empty hospital buildings that dominate the campus landscape could be reused by the private sector for anything other than housing.
“I think we have to encourage mixed-use development,” Rosenthal said.
The town originally hoped commercial developers would renovate the red brick buildings when it bought Fairfield Hills in 2004. The reality is that it costs more to remediate hazardous materials and renovate the buildings than to build from scratch.
As a result, Newtown has been paying several million dollars apiece to tear down the old buildings, while marketing smaller buildings for reuse.
The 225,000-square-foot Canaan House was razed at a cost of $3.5 million.
That cleared the way for the town to begin construction on the community center and senior center, which are slated for a soft opening in July.
Smaller buildings are faring better. An outfit called Asylum Brewing Co. is renovating the 9,000-square-foot Stratford Hall — once the hospital’s library and executive dining room .
As for the remaining large buildings, residents are holding out hope for redevelopment.
Some 54 percent of survey takers were against demolishing the boarded-up buildings. “I strongly encourage the renovation and reuse of existing structures, as they have historical and cultural value and because it seems wasteful to demolish them,” one resident wrote.
In another shift, Lamont wants regular session vote on tolls
Ken Dixon and Emilie Munson
HARTFORD — Gov. Ned Lamont has asked lawmakers to fast-track electronic highway tolls, reversing a previous position to let the issue slide for a special session after the June 5 adjournment of the General Assembly.
In meetings with majority Democratic leaders this week, Lamont asked for them to return his signature legislation to the front burner. Doing so would threaten hundreds of other bills that would die at 12:01 a.m. June 6 if they don’t get legislative approval.
“He reached out to leadership to see if there was one last try, to see if the votes were there for this session, and to not have to go into a special (session) for the issue of tolls,” said Sen. Carlo Leone, D-Stamford, co-chair of the Transportation Committee.
This change now puts extra pressure on lawmakers, including Rep. Roland Lemar, D-New Haven, Leone’s transportation co-chair, who would have to lead passage of tolls through the House, before the legislation can advance to the Senate. Lemar was told by legislative leaders on Tuesday to get ready to run the bill in the House, he said.
“There is an opportunity, I think, to get tolls done in the regular session,” he said. “Now it’s just a matter of making sure the votes are there and people are prepared for, you know, it’s likely to be a long debate in the House.”
Leone said his chamber is also counting the votes in favor tolls now.“The threat of doing nothing is real,” he said. “The infrastructure cannot stand the lack of investment.”
As recently as a week ago, there may have been time to finish crafting a far-reaching toll bill to address controversial items including in-state and commuter discounts, as well as the location of about 50 electronic gantries over Interstates-95, 91, 84 and the Merritt and Wilbur Cross parkways. But now, Leone said worries he may not have the time to “get it right.”
“I don’t think that the possibility of passing tolls right now is the best thing to do because other bills die and there has been a lot of work put into them,” he said. “So I think we’re at the point where a special session might be the only recourse. A lot of bills might not see the light of day if we talk about one bill for hours on end.”
Some leaders said they see Lamont’s request as the flip flop of a new governor who isn’t acquainted with the dynamics, or the personalities, of the 151 members of the House and 36 senators. The administration disagrees.
“I don’t think we’ve had a change of position at all,” said Colleen Flanagan Johnson, senior adviser to Lamont. Last week, Lamont wanted to prioritize passing an “honest budget,” and now that budget negotiations are wrapping up, he believes the best use of the last week of session is pushing for investment in the state’s transportation infrastructure, she said.“The governor and leaders are close to finalizing a budget agreement in the next 24 hours,” she said.
Tolls are a top Lamont priority. They will have no Republican support in the House and Senate. They remain a divisive topic for lawmakers in border districts.
Lamont won his election last fall in a campaign favoring trucks-only tolling, which he abandoned upon taking the oath of office, admitting that it wouldn’t generate enough revenue to funds the state’s neglected transportation infrastructure. In recent weeks, Lamont seemed to submit to the reality that lawmakers might not generate enough support among Democrats, or get crucial questions from federal transportation officials in time to act on a a final bill before June 5.
Rep. Chris Perone, D-Norwalk, said beating the midnight June 5 deadline might be a good idea for the survival of tolls, which he supports.“We’re going to try to accomplish as much as possible by the end of session,” he said. “When you put things out into a special session, you’re putting things out in the summer months. It is not as easy to track down people in the summer as it is when we have everybody here now.”
He predicted the toll proposal may change again before it comes to the House floor for a final vote.
In the daily flow of paperwork for the legislature, including daily calendars and House and Senate journals from the day before, arrived the latest pieces of legislation to be written by the nonpartisan Office of legislative commissioner. Each active bill is given a file number. Wednesday mail included File 1012. Hundreds and hundreds of bills await action on the thick House and Senate calendars.
Leone said that Lamont might be surprised at the amount legislation that has been approved and awaits action in the House, Senate or both.
“I think he and many others just don’t understand how many bills get drafted and how much we try to get accomplished in a year,” Leone said. “Many will not pass because time runs out and I think he’s realizing that. But this was such a big issue, I just thought he tried to make it happen, if it had the possibility to happen. But now the clock is running out. We don’t have overtime in the session.”
Meriden City Council approves additional $2.2M for wastewater treatment plant upgrade
Matthew Zabierek
MERIDEN – The City Council’s Finance Committee unanimously authorized bonding an additional $2.23 million for upgrades to the city’s wastewater treatment plant, bringing the project’s total to $50 million.
Public Utilities Director Dennis Waz told councilors Tuesday night that the additional money is needed to cover $1.3 million in accrued interest the city will pay as part of a low-interest state loan for the state-mandated project. The remaining $900,000 is being included to cover any possible legal or financial issues. Waz said some of that money may never be spent.
“My goal was, before I left, to make sure everything regarding this project was in place so that when (new Public Utilities Director Richard Meskill) came aboard, all the finances would be present and accounted for,” Waz, who is retiring next month, told councilors Tuesday. Meskill, who started Tuesday, also attended the meeting.
Waz doesn’t foresee any additional funding requests, noting that the $50 million price tag includes contingency funds.
Meriden expects a state grant to cover 38 percent of the project's costs. The city will receive a 20-year, low-interest loan for the remaining costs.
The project includes state-mandated upgrades to the phosphorus removal process at the city’s water pollution control facility, as well as a wholesale upgrade to the remote Silver Lake pump station, which Waz said is in “dire” need of repairs.
Meriden is one of several local municipalities completing upgrades to meet stricter phosphorus discharge limits being enforced by the Environmental Protection Agency. Phosphorus is considered an environmental hazard because it causes algae blooms, which deplete oxygen in water bodies and pose a threat to wildlife.
“Nobody wants to do this, but we’re mandated…” said Finance Committee Vice Chairman Walter Shamock. “So I just want the public to know that we’re not indiscriminately spending the money.”
The $1.3 million represents how much interest the city will accrue during construction, which is expected to begin this summer and last around 33 months.
Waz said he asked that the accrued interest be added to the project’s old price tag of $47.7 million at the recommendation of state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, which has oversight over the phosphorus upgrades.
The city recently submitted its application to the DEEP for the grant funding and low-interest loan. Once the application is approved, Waz said the city will proceed with awarding a construction contract. Barring an unforeseen development, the contract will be awarded to the "lowest apparent bidder" — C.H. Nickerson & Co. Inc., a Torrington-based contractor that has completed wastewater treatment plant upgrades for several Connecticut municipalities.