Vote on Torrington housing project not likely until September
Emily M. Olson TORRINGTON — The Planning & Zoning Commission has heard both sides of the debate over a proposed over-55 adult community near the Greenbrier Estates subdivision, but likely won’t vote on it until its next meeting in September. The commission’s virtual meeting room was crowded this week, as residents logged on to hear a decision on the project, proposed for Notting Hill Gate and Wimbleton Gate North by TDF Enterprises, represented by attorney Chris Smith. The commission previously has heard from the public both in support of and opposed to the project. Since its was first presented in February, neighbors living in Greenbrier Estates, adjacent to the proposed project site, have continuously objected to the idea of the project in their neighborhood, citing a decline in property values, increased traffic, flooding and other environmental impacts to their own properties, according to meeting minutes.TDF Enterprises is proposing four buildings with a total of 120 units, with 88 one-bedroom units and 32 two-bedroom units, labeled active adult housing, on just less than 40 acres. The one-bedroom apartments are 928 square feet; the two bedroom units are 1,280 square feet. Each apartment will have a balcony. A pool and clubhouse, a community garden and walking trails also are proposed. Retaining walls will be used in the development. City Planner Martin Connor read more objections into the record Wednesday from people living on neighboring properties who say their homes and yards are flooded periodically, and that another development would exacerbate the problem. According to the minutes from a Feb. 19 hearing, those who spoke in favor of the project said having a over-55 development that wouldn’t impact the school system was a good idea. A majority of the speakers in February and July, however, spoke against the project, according to the minutes. Many of the residents against the plan live in Greenbrier Estates, adjacent to the development site. Residents said the impact of a dense housing development would lower their property values, increase already dangerous traffic and cause flooding, according to the minutes. Homeowner Keith Perkosky on Wednesday asked project engineer Dennis McMorrow about flooding. McMorrow said part of the project will include a “rain garden” and drainage pipes on the lower level of the property, with catch basins to prevent flooding.Commission member Donna Greco asked how the drainage system and rain garden would be maintained; McMorrow said the property owner would be responsible. The pipe system to be installed would be underground and would require mowing to maintain it, he said, and the driveways would be paved. Another resident asked what would happen to large trees near her home, and wondered whether their root systems would be disturbed by the construction project. Engineer Stephen LaTour said a large pine tree wouldn’t be disturbed because “we’re only digging a foot in the ground. ... That won’t hurt the trees at all,” he said. In his own comments, City Planner Marty Connor said the application meets city and state requirements. “It is my opinion that the plans conform to this specific zone requirement of active adult housing, but the commission will now need to discuss the general rules for special exception permits,” he said. Connor also referred to an intervention action by environmental expert Peter Olson, filed on behalf of the Greenbrier Estates homeowners association, saying the Inland Wetlands Commission ruled in 2019 that the project will not have a negative impact on the air, water or environment. That ruling is being challenged in court, Connor said. Commission member Jim Bobinski raised a number of questions and concerns, including the impact of traffic on the neighborhood during construction. Large trucks hauling material in and out of the neighborhood, he said, will have a negative and dangerous impact, especially because there are no sidewalks. Commissioner Donna Greco also was concerned about traffic. “It seems that there could have been a better design for this,” she said. “I have gone through the area (of Greenbrier Estates) a number of times, and I realize how detrimental the traffic is. ... It has become a throughway. It is, to me, in my opinion, a dangerous situation for the people who live there. People drive fast. “It’s obvious that it can be a very dangerous situation,” Greco said. “It’s not perfect. ... (The project is) just out of character for that area.” Connor said he would begin to write a resolution for the commission to consider, based on all the comments that were made. “The requirements have been met, but the general requirements of a project such as this ... that’s up to the commission to decide,” he said.
Big step taken in revitalization of Berlin town center as work will begin on Steel Center
Matt Hornik The next step in the revitalization of the Berlin town center was taken Thursday as Plantsville-based Newport Realty Group officially purchased the first two parcels of land on Farmington Avenue to begin work on the Steel Center at Farmington Avenue development. Located next to the Berlin train station, this is the first phase of a three-phase, $18 million project that will bring 76 market-rate apartments and 19,000 square feet of medical, restaurant, retail and office space. The entire project is comprised of four parcels at 861, 889, 903 and 913 Farmington Avenue and while Newport is contracted to purchase all four parcels, it made its purchase of the first two official. “At this point, they have the go ahead on renovating the existing building at 861 [Farmington] and starting new construction at 903 [Farmington],” said Chris Edge, Berlin economic development director. “That is important because it’s going to be the kickoff of this large construction project.” Edge expects work to begin on the two sites no later than a month from now. The building at 861 Farmington is going to be renovated into a commercial unit on the first floor with an apartment on top with the existing facade and historic attributes retained. A 21,000 square-foot multi-use building is to be erected at 903 Farmington, with retail and restaurant space on the first floor and 16 apartments on top. The project also includes the addition of Steele Boulevard, which will connect the new buildings on Farmington to the train station and allow the surrounding area to be developed additionally over time. That part of the project will be funded locally and with grants from the state and Berlin Mayor Mark Kaczynski announced that Guerrera Construction from Oxford will be doing that work. “The Steele Center project will bring new residents and businesses to Berlin and more feet on the street to support our stores and restaurants on Farmington Avenue,” Kaczynski said in a press release. “Many challenges have been overcome to bring these projects to the development stage and I thank Newport Realty, the State of Connecticut, Town Boards and Commissions and Town staff that have all worked diligently to make this project a reality.”
East Lyme builder forges forward to complete affordable housing development
Mary Biekert East Lyme — A local homebuilder is forging ahead to see that an affordable housing development he proposed on the west side of town moves forward, despite the Inland Wetland Agency putting up roadblocks to a similar proposal he made earlier this year. Developer Jason Pazzaglia, owner of the custom homebuilding company Pazz & Construction LLC of East Lyme, under the state’s affordable housing statutes, this past week submitted to the Zoning Commission an “application for site-plan approval” proposing an 80-unit affordable housing development on North Bride Brook Road near Bride Lake. He proposed a similar project to the Inland Wetland Agency earlier this year that was denied without prejudice in May due to concerns the development would adversely impact a nearby brook. In that earlier application, Pazzaglia had sought to build three of the 13 proposed buildings within 100 feet of the brook, creating a need to go before the wetlands agency, which reviews all proposed activity within 100 feet of a body of water or watercourse, for permit approval. Pazzaglia since has appealed that May decision in New London Superior Court. But in his new application to the Zoning Commission, Pazzaglia has, according to submitted plans, repositioned buildings and eliminated those sitting within what's known as the upland review area, bypassing the need to formally go before the Inland Wetland Agency for a permit. The Zoning Commission accepted his application at its regular meeting Thursday and scheduled a public hearing on Oct. 15. Commission members did not comment on Pazzaglia’s application Thursday and Pazzaglia was not immediately available by phone.In his new application, Pazzaglia proposes to build 80 multifamily units within 10 buildings over a smaller footprint compared to his first proposal, which had outlined building 108 multifamily units within 13 buildings on about 12 of the 20 acres he owns at the 90 North Bride Brook Road property. In a submitted affordability plan to the Zoning Commission, he outlined that 24 of the proposed 80 units would be rented as affordable housing, while the rest would be rented at market rate. The undeveloped property, which Pazzaglia purchased for $450,000 from its estate owner, Edward H. Dzwilewski, in 2017, abuts the southern side of Interstate 95 and is located about a mile away from the eastern side of the Rocky Neck Connector.
Left in the dark: Eversource faces investigation after storm
Taylor Hartz The week before her 16-year-old daughter, Kyla, was scheduled to have surgery, Autumn Craig and her family had to break their two-week precautionary COVID-19 quarantine due to a power outage, driving their SUV through the woods and down a neighbor's driveway to find food and water after being trapped in their home by downed trees and wires for days. During Isaias, a tree on Craig's property — that she said she brought to Eversource's attention before — came crashing down, falling straight onto power lines that now laid in her driveway. Craig was one of the last 20 people to have her electricity restored in Colchester, where 99% of Eversource customers lost power when Isaias tore through. For eight days, she tried to keep Kyla, who has a genetic condition, healthy as they lived without power or water. She called Eversource day after day, looking out at the wires blocking her driveway, only to be told that power had been restored to her street and that her driveway wasn't blocked. No matter what she told the company, she said, it wouldn't help. "We weren't supposed to leave the house but we had no choice," she said. "It was a really long eight days." As Craig fought for help in Colchester, Amy Souza-Gagnon of Gales Ferry stood at the end of her Christy Hill Road driveway last Saturday with a large cardboard sign that read, "Live wire down / 5 days / Where's Eversource?" The next day, she changed the number and returned to her spot, all the while worrying about the live wire on her property and a tree that fell atop it, inches from her house. Daily attempts to contact Eversource were futile. After six worrisome, powerless days, Groton Utilities came to help. Eversource never did. Emily Penza, who is 30 weeks pregnant, sweltered in the heat in Colchester for four days with both her and her baby's health at high risk — Penza has been diagnosed with gestational diabetes, requiring her to take insulin and eat a specific diet, mostly of fresh foods that need to be refrigerated. Her insulin supply needs to be kept cool. Without electricity or water, she wasn't able to properly store her insulin, stick to her recommended diet, hydrate or cool herself off without scouring their powerless town for ice, usually without any luck. During the four days, Penza and her husband only heard that Eversource was "evaluating" the outage. Eversource says it was as prepared as could be for Tropical Storm Isaias. But more than 700,000 Connecticut customers lost their electricity, according to numbers listed on the utility's website immediately after the storm, though the company said the peak was 632,000 customers without power on Aug 5. The total number of outages still was being recorded as of Thursday. Some residents gained power back within 24 hours, while others waited more than a week for their lights to be turned back on, leaving them without refrigerators, the ability to charge phones or run medical equipment and, for many on wells, running water. So, what went wrong? How did a relatively mild tropical storm wreak such havoc on the state's electrical grids? And what will happen if another — bigger — storm strikes this hurricane season? According to Eversource, the company was thrown slightly off track when the storm itself went off track, heading farther west than meteorologists originally predicted, decimating power lines in areas further from the Connecticut coastline than expected. Gov. Ned Lamont and local legislators have publicly criticized the company, which provides most of the state's power, saying the response was unacceptable, the number of outages was outrageous and an explanation was necessary. Regulator to investigate Lamont has asked the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, or PURA, to conduct a thorough investigation of the state's public utility companies, including Eversource. PURA will consider whether companies were adequately prepared; if their response met regulatory and statutory requirements; whether resources that were invested into their outage response system were prudent in light of recent system failures and whether civilian penalties should be applied. PURA is aiming to issue a schedule for the investigation by Monday, according to PURA Chairman Marissa Gillett. The first step in the process, Gillett said, will be public hearings, held mostly virtually using Zoom due to COVID-19. Residents across the state will have an opportunity to share their stories, telling the agency how their lives have been impacted by wide-spread, long-lasting power outages and extremely high electricity rates. Residents and town and city officials will be able to register for a Zoom hearing or send a written statement to the agency via email. After a couple of days of hearings — and ample time to review all emailed testimonies — PURA will hear from the utility companies in evidentiary hearings. PURA, which operates like a court, then will draft a decision with its findings, which it hopes to issue within six months. Though PURA has yet to fully investigate what happened, and what needs to happen, Gillett said, "it would be difficult to say something didn't go wrong here." "Clearly there was some kind of major breakdown, whether it was with their infrastructure or communications or structure," she said. Gillett said as Isaias made landfall, it was likely inevitable that there would be power outages, but PURA plans to analyze whether Eversource and other companies "prepared for the storm properly so that the outages were restored on a timeline that was acceptable." PURA also plans to look into communication failures that left thousands unable to report outages immediately after the storm. In 2011, then-Gov. Dannell P. Malloy created a panel to review similar issues after Tropical Storm Irene and a nor'easter on Halloween six weeks later each knocked out power for 800,000 customers. A report issued by that panel nine years ago referred to those two storms "as a wake-up call for Connecticut."Yet this month, residents saw similar failings all over again. The report contained 82 recommendations for better prevention, planning and mitigation of utility outages during natural disasters — including an increase in workforces during emergencies; better communication systems; plans for companies to operate on a "worst case scenario" basis, effectively planning for a Category 3 hurricane that would be much more destructive than a tropical storm like Irene or Isaias; and a statewide tree risk assessment and plans for potentially hazardous trees. After Isaias, an Eversource spokesperson said the company has invested significant funding into the removal of hazardous trees, but said felled trees were absolutely the cause of most outages during this storm. Trees and limbs downed power lines, knocking out electricity, and blocked roads, delaying restoration, he said. Mitch Gross, spokesperson for Eversource, said the company's response to the storm was swift and sweeping. In the days following the storm, Eversource brought in 2,500 workmen and linemen from across the Eastern U.S. and Canada to help restore power in the state. The company had crews on the ground as soon as the storm passed and worked 16- to 18-hour days in the heat with disgruntled customers, he said. Gross said they the company was prepared for the storm as it was forecasted. "We were ready with people and equipment based on the best available weather information at that time, the storm was forecasted to go directly over the center of the state and we prepared accordingly," he said. "As everyone knows, it decided to shift to the west so we shifted, as well, which meant redeploying equipment, resources deploying and getting to work." Gross said "every storm is a learning experience" and said he's sure there will be lessons learned from this one. He said the company will work with PURA to respond to data inquiries, answer questions and attend meetings. Gillett said PURA plans to look at the "playbook" utility companies follow for major storms and determine if it is wrong or if companies just didn't follow it correctly. The playbook contains specific requirements as to how electric companies are supposed to communicate and work with towns and cities to clear blocked roads and address other safety hazards, she said. Gross, when asked if the recommendations made after 2011 were followed, said that would be determined in the investigation. "What I can say is we were prepared," he said. In the days following Isaias' landfall, many residents told their local legislators in southeastern Connecticut that the reporting line for Eversource was down — there was no way for them to report outages. State Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, said in a recent news conference that in order to get some answers from the company, she and other elected officials had to call Eversource executives on their cellphones. Gross said he didn't know why the reporting line wasn't functioning as it should have been. Once PURA finishes its investigation, the agency has the authority to order Eversource and other companies to make adjustments moving forward and will assess whether they are responsible for costs associated with recovering from the storm. The panel investigating the 2011 storms heard testimony from 100 witnesses. PURA already has received "hundreds if not thousands of emails" from concerned residents about Isaias, Gillett said. When the schedule is released by PURA, customers can follow a Zoom link to preregister to speak live, or can submit their testimony in writing by emailing pura.executivesecretary@ct.gov and referencing docket 20-08-03.
Developer of New Haven’s ex-Coliseum site questioned on lack of details
Mary E, O'Leary NEW HAVEN — Words spoken by Anstress Farwell, head of the New Haven Urban Design League summed up feelings of the residents at a meeting of the Downtown Wooster Square Community Management Team who were eager to hear details of the proposed reuse of the 5-acre former Coliseum site at the entrance to the city. “This doesn’t really cut it.” And “It isn’t sufficient.” “It seems that it is economically one-dimensional and aesthetically very, very thin,” Farwell said, expressing a tone of criticism of the Spinnaker Real Estate Partners, Fieber Group and KDP proposal that was repeated by others in various iterations during the two-hour meeting.Adding to the frustration was the length of time the public has been waiting for plans for the premium acreage to come together. It has been a year since Spinnaker agreed to take over the development and essentially adopt the original deal signed two administrations ago under then-Mayor John DeStefano Jr. But it had lingered for five years before when the Montreal-based preferred developer Live Work Learn Play stalled over disagreements on adding a hotel and the complications of infrastructure work along Route 34 that has since progressed. Farwell and others asked that the partnership work with the public and put off its submission for site plan review to the City Plan Commission on Aug. 20 until they could hear more details or at least have a public hearing on the proposal.Alder Abby Roth, D-7, said it was frustrating to have the same conversation that they had two months ago with the details still lacking. Frank Caico, vice president of development at Spinnaker, at the beginning of the meeting gave the basic outline of the proposal, which is a minimum of 30,000 square feet of retail; 30,000 square feet of public open space; 500 residential units and 80,000 square feet of other commercial uses over several phases. Coliseum Presentation - 8.13.2020 by Helen Bennett on He said they want to exceed this with 52,500 square feet of retail; 44,440 square feet of open space and 700 units of housing at completion. In phase 1A and 1B, rather than 200 apartments, they envision 310 units that would then grow to 461 apartments before reaching 700. Caico said the master plan has evolved to improve circulation through the site and create more meaningful public open space and linkages with the city’s phase two improvements of the Downtown Crossing. There will be a driveway that bisects the property connecting State Street with South Orange Street.He said they anticipate that the open space, almost 30,000 square feet will be “really attractive, well utilized, active. It could be a great meeting space, a really great public realm.” He said there will be an additional plaza area that would be somewhat more passive. Caico said the property is divided into two phases, generally divided east and west with the west side being Phase 1. It is further divided by the retail lane through the property north and south. Construction of Phase 1 is set to begin in the spring of 2021 and be completed by the spring of 2023The subject of the site plan that will go to City Plan next week is Phase 1A with 200 apartments, the public plaza and the retail lane. Phase 1B would include a parking garage that would be wrapped by a residential building similar to what they built at Audubon Square farther down on Orange Street. He said the southern part of the property along Route 34 as the initial phases are constructed will remain a parking lot activated possibly by a temporary screen where they could show movies. As far as walkability is concerned, Caico said the retail lane is designed for pedestrians and vehicular traffic, while the perimeter will have streetscape details to make it inviting with much of the retail fronting on South Orange and George streets versus what is now only a parking lot.But the lack of any discussion on building materials and other aspects did not sit well. “I think the whole point of this meeting is to get public feedback on your design, on your renderings on your 3-D modeling and to withhold it until you submit it to the city cuts out public input and that is the whole point of this meeting,” Ian Dunn said. Steve Fontana, city deputy economic development administrator, said the meeting was to be an update on the project and he had hoped more details would have been forthcoming Thursday.Caico, near the end of the session, did share some images of the apartments, which feature woodframe construction over two levels of concrete podium, similar to the Audubon Square apartments on Orange Street that they are building and are almost complete. Farwell said the city should be doing more to protect public involvement in this huge project being built on public land. She said it is not only unclear what it will look like, but how it fits in other development parcels in the area of Union Station. One of the architects who was part of a peer review of the proposal back in January also spoke up at the meeting, which was presented virtually on the Zoom platform. Elihu Rubin, associate professor of urbanism at the Yale School of Architecture, said they were presented with more detailed drawings at that time. He said they showed “a very festive quasi-public pedestrianized street that was supposed to represent one of the public space benefits of the project.” He told Caico that he could have shown that at the meeting as it “reflects pretty well on the project.” Rubin said they did have concerns then about the scale of the buildings on the street and the amenities. He said developers are in an “amenities race,” where they all put 15 tread mills in the front windows. “Stop building all these tread mill rooms everywhere,” he said. He said it would be better not to make them exclusive to the residents, but rather quasi-public. Rubin said it was good that the city is not investing in the project and pushed Caico on what taxes would be generated by the plan. Caico did not have that analysis in front of him, but all developments qualify for a phased in tax bill over five years.Rubin asked what the life-cycle of the development is for Spinnaker and did it plan to hold it for 10 to 20 years “to be good stewards and managers of this incredibly strategic property in the city?”Gregory Fieber of the Fieber Group, said its method of operating is to “hold things forever.” He said the way he and the principals of Spinnaker think “are very much aligned,” as is KDP, the third investor. “It is not something we plan to flip,” Fieber said. Rubin said it was “encouraging to hear about the intention of your group being a long-term owner, although it sounds like that is not something we can really insist on.” Much of the talk was about the 20 percent of the units that will be affordable and what that means. Caico said the 20 percent, which for the first phase of 200 apartments is 40 units, will apply to a proportionate combination of studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units in a later phase. Ten percent of the 40 units, or four apartments would be the larger units. He said there will be “banded” rental prices ranging from 50 percent to 120 percent of the area median income. The city is committed to finding $1.5 million to assist in that effort, while the Housing Authority of New Haven will work with the developers to identify funding sources, such as Section 8 vouchers. Caico also explained why his proposed Hilton Garden level hotel planned for Elm Street, after he razed the structure formerly owned by Webster Bank, is not progressing . Caico said since the COVID-19 pandemic began in mid-March hotels and the hospitality industry have been among the hardest hit, which has impacted capital investment in this sector, although Spinnaker will continue to monitor that market. On the other hand, there continues to be available investment capital in apartment complexes with Audubon Square now over 80 percent occupied. “They are really two very different projects,” he said. The rents for the proposed apartments were questioned at $1,900 for a studio and $3,000 for a two bedroom, two bath unit. Alder Ellen Cupo, D-8, said she and her husband, Ian Dunn, have good jobs, but that larger apartment price was out of their reach. When applying an affordability marker, Fieber said 60 percent of AMI would put a two-bedroom unit at $1,100 a month; 80 percent translates to a rent of $1,485. Caico said the 20 percent figure for affordable housing is “significant.” He said the 140 units out of the 700 total is much more than other developers have agreed to. He said 10 percent of those, or 14 units would have to be two- or 3- bedroom units. For the first phase of 200 apartments, 40 would be affordable with four larger units set aside. “Four units when we are in an affordable housing crisis is not going to cut it,” Cupo offered when a higher number of affordable would really be a contribution to New Haven. Caico said if a development is not economic, it doesn’t attract investors. “There are certain economics that are inescapable when you invest millions of dollars in land and to build all of the improvements and to build these projects. ... It has to make sense in the overall economic condition, in the grand scheme of things,” Caico said. He said until fairly recently there was a lack of new housing, but now that the supply is increasing, the market will find the right price point for other properties that will be more affordable. Alder Carmen Rodriguez, D-6, stressed the need for job opportunities for residents of the Hill and called a total of 140 affordable units “very dismal.” She also questioned the hiring of city residents in Spinnaker’s previous projects. Fieber said the developers are in the process of signing an agreement with New Haven Works on bringing in local workers, as well as local businesses to take some of the retail spaces, while he promised assistance for new entrepreneurs. Caico also talked about the construction hiring process they have undertaken in a development in the works in Bridgeport that it will repeat when the New Haven project gets underway. “We have already been proactively trying to make sure we comply with all of the requirements that are part of the LDA (land development agreement). It is not like this is an afterthought. This is front and center,” he said. Arthur Nacht asked for better screening of the portion that will be developed later by investing in trees to block what will continue to be a parking lot. After prompting by Frank Rizzo, Caico said there would likely be some artworks in the plaza, but not along the lines of the type of investment required of public projects. Fieber said he had nothing to add except that the “entire project could be perceived as a work of art.” “We don’t buy that Greg,” Rizzo said. “It is hard to call the project a work of art until we actually see what it looks like. So far we really have no idea what it really looks like.” Caico said they were uncomfortable sharing more until it was a polished finished project, the details of which will be public when they are submitted to the city by next week. “We are not trying to hide the ball,” he said. Andrew Giering also took issue with the prices of the apartments, characterizing the tenants as “some students, fellows, post-docs and other Yale affiliated people who can afford them for maybe a year or two and often only because someone else is paying for it.” He asked how many of these type of apartments does the city need? Giering questioned why the city allowed this project to get this far. He also asked about the traffic impact, but Caico said its traffic study found it will not have a significant impact. Dunn had a more philosophical observation and directed his comments at the city. He said the kind of “big box” apartment developments in the city approved lately “do not create life. They make you feel unwelcome when you walk by. ... We need to work for our residents. ... We need to stop working for developers. We need to look past the short term growth in the tax base and really look into what makes this city a beautiful city.” “There is something wrong with what we are enticing to the city,” he said, referring to the shops on Broadway. Dunn said the Coliseum site could be a “wonderful walking market, a place where people hang out.” Caico argued that that is what they are presenting. Dunn said the challenge is to figure out what the residents want to see in the next 20 to 40 years. “Break the chain of looking for that next quick buck in this city and what makes New Haven New Haven. That is what City Plan needs to do.”
The city of Hartford is seeking to increase the property it owns in a critical but now blighted stretch just north of Dunkin’ Donuts Park, an area seen as key to reconnecting downtown with the city’s northern neighborhoods. The city has reached an agreement to purchase the properties at 522 and 532 Ann Uccello St. – both vacant lots totaling a little over a half-acre – from the House of Bread for $17,000. The House of Bread operated a soup kitchen and housing on the property for 13 years, until a fire destroyed the building in 1995. If the city council backs the purchase, it would solidify the city’s control of the corner of Ann Uccello and Main streets, adding to the adjoining vacant lot and the former Arrowhead Cafe building on Main Street. both already owned by the city. A public hearing on the purchase will be held Monday.Across Ann Uccello Street from the House of Bread properties is the historic, but vacant “Flat Iron” building. The building was acquired by Shelbourne Global Solutions LLC, of Brooklyn, N.Y. earlier this year.This area is at the northern end of a block of mainly brick buildings, some with storefronts, including longtime retailer Salvin Shoes. The majority of the buildings are privately owned. The city sees potential for future revitalization, forming a connection with the planned Downtown North project just to the south. The first phase of Downtown North is expected to break ground this fall. “We want to work not only with the new owners of the Flat Iron building, but also the longstanding owners of the properties along Main Street to revitalize this area,” Mayor Luke Bronin said. “In some parts of this block it may mean new construction and substantial renovation. In other parts, it may simply mean facade improvements.” Plans for the land the city is cobbling together at the corner of Main and Ann Uccello could include housing over storefronts, Bronin said. The block “is part of the bigger strategy of reconnecting neighborhoods, making sure we deliver on the promise of Downtown North, a development that helps bridge the divide between downtown on the one hand and Albany Avenue and North Main Street on the other.” There is at least one project already underway on the block, at 1279-1283 Main, known as the San Juan Center. The $1.4 million project is creating 10 apartments over two storefronts, and could be ready later this year. The financing for the project includes $725,000 from the Hartford Community Loan Fund, $265,000 from the Capital Region Development Authority, $220,000 from the Connecticut Main Street Partnership and $224,000 from the center. CRDA also has another $4 million intended for other projects in this area.David Kozak, vice president of the board of directors at the House of Bread, said the organization had no plans for the Ann Uccello properties. The House of Bread relocated to a new building on Chestnut Street soon after the 1995 fire. “When the city of Hartford approached us about acquiring the lots from us, we were excited to partner with them on this opportunity,” Kozak said. “Any proposed development project within the capital city that will make Hartford a more vibrant place to live and work is certainly aligned with the our mission at the House of Bread.”
Overhead, underground or boots on the ground: Hardening the grid would be costly
Alexander Soule Over the past three years, Eversource customers paid on average $450 each to replace old utility poles, lines and other apparatus across Connecticut. That $570 million outlay helped keep the refrigerator on for some during Tropical Storm Isaias — but it was no help to many who were forced to replace spoiled food and endure long, hot days with no power. Following the prolonged blackouts that Isaias left behind, many have called for utilities to better armor the rickety electrical grids operated by Eversource and United Illuminating. But some warn that could translate into customers paying several thousand dollars more on utility bills in the coming years — and the lights still might go out the next time a hurricane or nor’easter throws a haymaker at Connecticut’s old-growth pine, maple, oak and tulip trees. Eversource removed more than 8,400 trees in the days after Isaias, according to the company’s initial count, with nearly 2,100 poles breaking in its Connecticut grid and Isaias downing more than 12,500 spans of electric distribution cable.Lawmakers and regulators are left again with the question of whether to spend more, through utility bills and other means, to better protect and secure the overhead lines that deliver electricity from substations across Connecticut, or bury more of them underground to put them out of harm’s way. The question is recurring nearly eight years after the devastation caused by Sandy in 2012, at a time when the state is strapped for cash and grappling with the long-term, economic implications of a killer pandemic. “In a case like this — when you have trees actually fall over — the system’s not going to stop that tree from [knocking] the lights out,” said Craig Hallstrom, Eversource’s regional president, speaking last week to reporters during restoration efforts. “That’s the crux of it. ... No matter how much hardening of the system you do, a giant tree coming across a street is going to take that pole and wire down.” ‘That’s on you’ The state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority opens hearings into Eversource’s and United Illuminating’s performance before and after Isaias in less than two weeks. Attorney General William Tong is expected to argue the power companies could have performed better. “It is the responsibility of the utilities to take that risk and to manage that risk of being prepared,” Tong said Thursday. “You have a monopoly that’s been granted to you to manage that risk and to do it well, and in many ways to ‘insure’ ... that storm response. And sometimes you’ll get it right, and sometimes you’ll get it wrong — but that’s on you.” But whether the PURA inquiry ends up focusing on response or infrastructure or both, a central, simple question remains: How much money is too much money to better brace Connecticut’s grid? An Eversource spokesperson declined to provide details on the company’s investments to reinforce its Connecticut electricity distribution system against threats like falling tree limbs. But Eversource — and its ratepayers — have invested hundreds of millions of dollars since Sandy to remove trees and branches near lines, and protect electric substations from coastal flooding.In its annual report released earlier this year, Eversource described its Connecticut grid as comprising 17,000 miles of overhead lines with an additional 6,700 miles below the streets — nearly enough to circle the planet if strung together. The utility runs electricity through about 180 substations and more than 291,000 transformers to reach outlets in homes and businesses. Connecticut has more than 900,000 utility poles statewide owned by Eversource, United Illuminating and Frontier Communications. Eversource spent $225 million last year replacing what it described as “aging infrastructure” in its Connecticut electric grid, about 2.5 percent of the total value of Eversource’s historic Connecticut Light & Power grid, which the company valued at $9.6 billion entering 2019. Against revenue, the replacement work in 2019 equated to 7 percent of the $3.2 billion generated by CL&P operations; or more than half of the CL&P operating profits of $411 million in 2019. “It doesn’t sound like enough to me,” Tong said. “There is an inherent conflict between the public-service mission and their fiduciary responsibility to ratepayers ... and their fiduciary responsibility to shareholders, to make money.” A $1,600 pole — and $10,000 crew Many utilities are investing in poles made of fiberglass composites by companies like BASF, Creative Pultrusions Intelli-Pole and Valmont. In addition to being resistant to weathering, deicing salt and other threats like burrowing insects, composite poles weigh two thirds less than those made from pine tree trunks, making for easier installation. They can be manufactured in colors to match surrounding trees and terrain. And the poles eliminate the possibility of wood preservatives leeching into soil. One called pentachlorophenol, used historically on roughly one of every two poles nationwide, was banned a few years ago as a possible carcinogen. But the Electric Power Research Institute noted in a 2018 study that composite poles have yet to prove they can withstand the test of time, with the possibility of faster-than-expected deterioration due to sunlight, heat and ice. Other opportunities include strengthening accompanying hardware like the fastenings that attach lines to poles, or installing more poles to reduce the distance between any two, reducing sag on lines and accompanying stress from falling trees and branches. Whether wood or composite, however, pole installations are a pricey proposition. A California litigation consultancy called Garrett Forensics did the math five years ago, costing out a pole replacement at $3,800 for materials (including the pole itself at nearly $1,600) and heavy equipment like borers and aerial work platforms. With Eversource using the industry standard of 40 poles for every mile of electric wire running along roadways, the Garrett Forensics estimate works out to about $152,000 per mile of new poles — and that’s before a single line crew gets paid for the installation work. Replacing Eversource’s entire pole system — pre labor — would cost more than $2.5 billion, or more than $2,000 per customer. And that is a bargain next to trenching lines underground. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company three years ago estimated it costs close to four times more to bury lines along roadways rather than run them above, reflecting both the cost of labor as well as cost of the line itself, which must be insulated with extra protection. Underground cables offer long-term operational savings by eliminating the need to trim back tree branches, and they are far less susceptible to failures. But when they do fail — whether an underground circuit blowing or a backhoe operator not doing homework before digging — they are far more expensive to fix. Eversource has added more than 5,500 miles of underground cable in its Connecticut grid since Sandy, but reduced its overhead distribution cables only by about 1,400 miles, suggesting the subterranean infrastructure has supported new developments largely, rather than served as a storm-mitigation strategy in Connecticut’s leafier towns. Replacing infrastructure is not the only storm protection that costs money. As the post-Isaias blackout dragged on, Eversource in particular came under heavy fire for underestimating the storm and not having enough crews at the ready to set the state right. Some have suggested the company should have reserve brigades of line and tree crews at the ready when trouble is brewing in the Atlantic. But as Eversource’s Hallstrom noted, those crews will cost the company big each time a storm veers wide of Connecticut. “You can’t hire thousands and thousands of crews based on, ‘We just want to be prepared,’” Hallstrom. “Economically [and] financially, that doesn’t make any sense. We make the best predictions we can, and then we adjust accordingly.”