State plans $34M renovations for Darien Train Station
Susan Schultz
DARIEN — The state will hold a virtual public hearing this month on a large-scale Darien Train Station transportation project.
A notice was sent out this week, according to First Selectman Jayme Stevenson, who addressed the project and hearing at Monday night’s Board of Selectmen meeting.
The purpose of the project is to address the “current structural deficiencies at the stations platforms and bring the rest of the station into a state of good repair.” The project is scheduled for winter of 2021.
The project will completely replace all platform sections with electric-heated fiber-reinforced polymer transit panels. The new platform will be designed in conformance with building, Americans with Disabilities Act and all applicable standards and codes.
Lighting, handrails, recycling centers and others areas will be evaluated and replaced or upgraded as needed. The elevators located on the north and south side of the station will be rehabilitated. The station’s existing grounding and bonding system will be replaced using the state Department of Transportation’s newly developed standard. In addition to the work on the platforms, the four catenary structures within the limits of the project will be demolished and replaced.
The $34 million project is expected to be paid with state and federal funds.
Darien Train Station is in the heart of downtown at a busy intersection at the corner of the Post Road/Route 1 and Tokeneke Road.
Stevenson said the information was “interesting news.” She said she’s asked Public Works Director Ed Gentile to find out how many train station parking spaces will be impacted or unusable during the work.
She said when Noroton Heights Train Station recently underwent construction, approximately 30 to 35 spaces were impacted. There is often a waiting list for Darien and Noroton Heights parking spaces.
“We need to know that,” she said.
Darien received a federal grant of $250,000 for a transit-access study in 2015 and the state Department of Transportation began a project to replace both platforms at the Noroton Heights station in March 2017. The work was completed at the end of November 2018, though some commuters expressed frustration with what they felt was slow progress at the time.
Jim Cameron, Darien resident and founder of the Commuter Action Group, said that “first, the work is necessary.”
“Commuters and CDOT have known that for years, watching the crumbling platforms. But we also remember it was only 13 years ago that CDOT did a massive renovation of the station waiting room — though I don’t think the platforms were fixed then. But the elevators were part of that project and they were clearly poorly designed and failed regularly,” said Cameron, who is a Hearst Connecticut Media transportation columnist.
Cameron added the project looks “really expensive” considering it is $34 million to “basically replace what’s already there (platforms and elevators) with some enhancements (heated platform, emergency generator).”
He said he’s hoping the upcoming public hearing explains why.
“The lesson here is deferred maintenance means increased expenses,” Cameron said.
He also pointed out the project will take two and half years.
“We know how long the same platform project took at Noroton Heights. It’s hard to do the work and keep the railroad running. So I hope commuters will be patient while the construction teams do all they can to accommodate the riders’ needs,” Cameron said.
The meeting will be live streamed via Microsoft Teams Live Event and YouTube Live at 7 p.m. Oct. 21. A question-and-answer session will follow the presentation. Instructions on how to access the meeting and on how to provide comments or ask questions, can be found at the project webpage.
Stevenson said she expects more details on the project by next week.
Watch the Board of Selectmen meeting on Darien TV 79’s Vimeo channel.
Plainville receives two proposal for redevelopment of long-abandoned White Oak property
Brian M. Johnson PLAINVILLE – The town has received two proposals for the redevelopment of the long-abandoned “White Oak” property and a public presentation has been set for Oct. 15 at Plainville High School for both developers to present their ideas.
Town Manager Robert E. Lee announced at Monday’s Town Council meeting that the town had received one proposal from D’Amato Construction Company and Meyer Enterprises and another from Manafort Brothers, Inc., Newport Realty and TWM Development LLC.
“Town staff has arranged for both developers to give presentations of their proposals and to answer questions,” Lee said.
At the start of the year, Lee identified the selling of the White Oak property as one of his goals for 2020 for the town. The town has been working on this property for a year and a half, Lee said in January.
“Thirty or 40 years ago, White Oak was one of the largest construction companies in Connecticut; they were known for building bridges,” Lee said. “If we’re able to get this piece of land back on the tax market it could be a big opportunity for us. There are some limitations since the land falls within the 100-year flood plain, but that doesn’t mean you can’t build anything there. It is in a key spot.”
Those who wish to attend the presentation can come to the cafeteria of Plainville High School at 47 Robert Holcomb Way at 6 p.m. on Oct. 15.
“Each of the developers will be given approximately one hour with 30 minutes allocated for their presentation and 30 minutes for questions and comments from Town Council members and town staff,” Lee said. “The public is invited to attend the meeting to observe the presentations.”
Lee said that D’Amato Construction Company is looking to relocate from Bristol to Plainville if the town approves of their proposal.
“They’d be looking to use the property for a very similar purpose to what White Oak used it for years ago,” said Lee.
The other proposal, by Manafort Brothers, Inc., Newport Realty and TWM Development LLC. would see the construction of 155 apartments on the second floor as well as some commercial space on the first floor. It would also see the creation of a 25,000 square foot medical office building. There would also be buildings with large garage doors for use by contractors.
“There would be some 55 and older apartments and some market rate apartments,” said Lee.
Lee also reminded the town council Monday that municipalities are required to perform revaluations of their real estate every five years. Plainville’s revaluation will be in Oct. 2021. The council later approved the recommendation of town staff to select Tyler Technologies of Norwich to do the revaluation for a cost of $195,900. They were one of two low bidders, with the other bidder being Vision Government.
“The Capital Improvement Budget currently has $140,896 appropriated for the revaluation,” Lee said. “The remaining amount totaling $55,004 will be included in the fiscal year 2022 capital budget."
Lee said Tyler Technologies had performed the last revaluation for the town and has already implemented their software system.
“Town staff are recommending that the services include performing the ‘sales only’ comparison work, which includes inspections of all residential and commercial properties that sold in the last two years and an additional 1,500 inspections of residential properties selected by the assessor,” Lee said. “The proposal includes what is known as sketch verification - a technology where aerial flight imagery is matched to all recorded property sketches. Any differences are flagged for further inspection. It is also recommended that the services include photographs of all properties which would be downloaded onto the property cards.”
Group explores options for Portland riverfront development
Jeff Mill PORTLAND — The group studying options for the riverfront property off Brownstone Avenue has suggested more than a dozen possible uses, ranging from a hotel to a variety of restaurants.
The Brownfield Community Focus Group, however, is not close to making a decision about which options to pursue. Much of that will depend on the findings of a study of the contaminants that pollute various portions of the 5.5-acre property the town bought last year.
A portion of the property had served as home of the Connecticut Tar & Asphalt Co.
The engineering firm of Tighe & Bond is completing an analysis of the contaminants. Some will have to be removed from the site, Economic Development Planner Mary D. Dickerson said Tuesday.
Other contaminants can remain in the soil but will need to be capped.
State Department of Energy and Environmental Protection officials were scheduled to visit the property Monday, but that has been rescheduled to Thursday, Dickerson said.
The state Department of Economic and Community Development is funding rehabilitation of the site, with the goal of restoring the property to the tax rolls.
In a memo to the group members, Dickerson said, “Our goal is to create a guide for the redevelopment of three parcels that make up the property that facilitates the limitations of the land (including contamination and flood zone designation), adheres to CT DEEP requirements, and fosters economic development.”
The town’s “existing zoning regulations provide for 16 different business uses” on the site, Dickerson said.
Group members who had suggested the range of potential uses were asked to rate those options from most to least appropriate.
The first choice was for a fishing pier, followed by a promenade/river walk, transient dock space, casual/family dining, public boat launch facility, several variations of restaurants, boat holding tank,food truck patio, brew pub, outdoor recreation, multi-tenant retail and hotel.
Dickerson said she is interested in development that would serve both the land-based and water portions of the property, while also respecting the landscape.
Once the DEEP has reviewed and approved the Tighe & Bond engineering report, the door will be opened to more in-depth discussion of possible development.
That approval could come by month’s end. DEEP approval also would enable the town to seek bids from contractors to remove the contaminants, Dickerson said.
Report: Crane counts in North American cities drop for first time since 2017
- For the first time since July 2017, the number of cranes in North American cities has decreased, according to Rider Levett Bucknall’s newest crane count. The biannual count dropped by 40 cranes, 455 to 415, from Q1 to Q3 2020.
- Toronto still holds the crown for most cranes in a North American city, with 124, towering above all other metropolitan areas recorded. Of the 14 measured cities, only Phoenix, Seattle, Toronto and Washington, D.C., saw an increase in the number of cranes.
- Five of the 14 cities — Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas, New York and San Francisco — experienced what RLB called a “significant decrease,” dropping between 27% and 76%.
Dive Insight:
Although projects across North America have resumed after being stalled by coronavirus restrictions this spring, RLB’s report said “the pandemic-induced recession is expected to have far-reaching effects.” For example, lenders are less likely to provide support for large developments and projects in significantly impacted sectors like sports and hospitality.
"The next weeks are going to be crucial for the future of the construction industry, especially regarding the provision of another economic support stimulus package from the federal government," Julian Anderson, president of RLB's North American region, told Construction Dive. "If there is [a stimulus package], then I am hopeful that the recession will be shallow; if not, then I am concerned that the construction industry will be in for tough times in the new year."
The RLB data is in line with other recent reports showing that construction starts in some U.S. metro areas have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. Starts in the top 20 metropolitan areas posted a decline of 22% through the first six months of 2020 compared to the same period a year ago, according to Dodge Data and Analytics. After a normal start to the year, the drop began in March as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Dodge analysis showed that out of the country's major markets, only Phoenix was spared from declines brought on by COVID-19.
Meanwhile, Toronto's vastly higher number of cranes likely has to do with high-rise condos, Anderson said. The strength and local importance of the condo market makes Toronto a "localized anomaly" in the North American market, though the trend is the same in other parts of the world, such as Australia, he said.
- Healthcare projects experienced an increase of 38% compared with Q1 data.
- Residential projects accounted for 40% of all cranes counted, the most of any sector.
- Mixed-use projects accounted for the second most of any sector at 25%.
- Transportation projects increased by 80% compared with Q1.
- Civil projects dropped by 40%
- Cultural projects saw a 38% decrease.
- Sports projects dropped from seven to zero.