State Contracting Standards Board says status quo funding would ‘gut’ the board
Members of the State Contracting Standards Board say
the status-quo funding included in the governor's proposed budget would
"gut" the watchdog agency.
Gov. Ned Lamont's budget
proposal, released Wednesday, instead calls for allocating $218,770 to
the Auditors of Public Accounts,
a legislative agency whose mission is to "audit state
agencies," to fund three additional auditors.
But the proposal does not adjust funding for
the Contracting Standards Board, leaving just enough money to fund
the agency's two existing staff members — an executive director
and an intern — and for the 14-member board to
operate, according to board Executive Director David L. Guay. The agency
has been requesting an additional $467,055 for more staff.
The Contracting Standards Board's mission is to ensure "that
state contracting and procurement requirements are understood and carried out
in a manner that is open, cost effective, efficient and consistent with State
and Federal statutes, rules and regulation," according to its website. The
watchdog agency recently
issued a report on the Connecticut Port Authority and has been
reviewing the
potential disqualification of the Mystic Education Center developer as
a state contractor under a lease he formerly had with the state.
State Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, said Thursday that she
and other members of the southeastern Connecticut delegation have submitted a
bill that would move the State Contracting Standards Board to the
legislative side of the budget and fully fund it. She said the bill would
be taken up by the Appropriations Committee.
David Bednarz, a Lamont spokesman, said in an emailed
statement that, "In order to enhance oversight of state agency
contracting, Governor Lamont is including $218,770 for the Auditors of Public
Accounts for three additional auditors to review procurement and contracting
processes. These positions will improve the State Auditors' ability to review
state agency contracting in a non-partisan manner while providing efficiency
and cost savings to the state. It also adds to the Contracting Standards
Board's powers to refer cases to the auditors."
But Contracting Standards Board Chairman Lawrence
Fox said the intention of the governor's proposal amounts
to "a wholesale gutting of the authority of the board."
The Appropriations Committee last year
had approved $624,994 for five new positions for the Contracting
Standards Board, according to an email from Office of Policy and Management
Undersecretary for Legislative Affairs Jeffrey R. Beckham to
Guay. However, the budget implementer bill rescinded $449,124 of that
funding for fiscal year 2022 and $454,355 for fiscal year 2023, so the new
positions were not funded. Beckham said that left about $175,870 for the board,
enough to fund the executive director position and an intern position,
which has been the status quo for years.
The governor's new budget
proposal shows $637,029 for the Contracting Standards
Board in fiscal year 2023 but notes a zero net adjustment. Guay said
that means the proposal will have no adjustments after the
implementer bill rescinded funding, so it does not include the extra money
for the additional positions.
OPM could not immediately be reached for clarification.
Noting that the governor's proposal includes funding for
auditors, Fox recommended that funding go to the Contracting Standards Board so
it can do the job the way the legislature and the statute itself think it
should.
"We need a chief procurement officer, we need a staff
attorney and we need an auditing staff, and that would go a long way to be
an effective watchdog," he said.
Osten said legislators will delve into details of the
budget proposal. "Right now we're not convinced that that it is
providing the funding they need and fully staffing the contracting
board," she said.
She said Lamont's proposal for additional
auditors "doesn't address the issue" of the Contracting
Standards Board missing staff members.
"The Contracting Standards Board continues to get
pushed around," Osten said. "It needs to be fully funded and fully
staffed."
She said while auditors may be needed, "that's
different than the fact the Contracting Standards Board was designed with a
mission and it's not meeting that mission."
The board was established in 2007 by then Gov. Jodi
Rell in the wake of procurement scandals that occurred during the
administration of prior Gov. John Rowland. Osten said the lack of funding dates
back to the Rell administration.
Formica, Kelly call for audit and public hearing on school financing program
State Senate Republican Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford
and Senate Republican Leader Pro Tempore Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, are calling
for a state audit and public hearing on the state's school construction
financing program.
Kelly and Formica wrote to Connecticut State Auditors and
Democratic legislative leaders with the request in light of federal
authorities requesting
documents associated with the projects overseen by Konstantinos
“Kosta” Diamantis, former head of the state’s Office of School Construction
Grants and Review.
A federal Grand Jury issued a subpoena in October requesting
documents associated with Diamantis, who as part of his duties as deputy
secretary in the Office of Policy and Management led state oversight of the
Connecticut Port Authority’s $235 million State Pier reconstruction project.
While it is unclear what federal authorities are
specifically investigating, they requested documents associated with school
projects, hazardous materials projects and the State Pier improvement project.
Diamantis was involved in numerous municipal school construction projects that include
New London’s high school and middle school, with costs totaling more than $150
million.
"Connecticut has a responsibility to ensure that
taxpayer sacrifices are always respected," Kelly and Formica said in a
statement.
"An audit is vital to immediately identify and correct
any breaches in public trust and begin a long process to rebuild public
confidence. The legislature must also seek transparency and demand answers for
the people we represent. Lawmakers have long raised concerns about the Governor's
administration shifting management of the school construction financing program
from the Department of Administrative Services to the Office of Policy and
Management. We have always said that school construction financing should be
free of politics and partisanship,” the statement reads.
The two Republican leaders said the reported federal
investigation “has tarnished the reputation of this vital financing program
intended to support schools across the state. We must demand transparency,
accountability, and answers to root out any wrongdoing and begin to rebuild
public trust."
$100M apartment, townhome and retail development planned in Cromwell
Plans to replace the shuttered Red Lion Hotel in Cromwell
with a mixed-use apartment development will cost about $100 million, developer
Martin Kenny says.
Kenny is teaming up with frequent business partner Alan
Lazowski and the current owner of the property – a limited liability company
tied to California-based investment management firm M360 Advisors.
M360 acquired the shuttered hotel and 9 acres of associated
land at 100 Berlin Road for $2.55 million in October. The town sold a
neighboring, undeveloped 3.7-acre property to the company for $60,000 in
November, land records show.
The plan is to knock down the hotel and replace it with a
mixed-use development with 265 apartments, 24 townhomes and 30,000 square feet
of retail. Designs are underway, Kenny said.
Kenny said the development will include a walking trail by a
“wetlands preserve,” open to residents of the development as well as other area
residents.
Kenny said he and Lazowski will buy a majority stake in the
property once local and state development approvals are secured. The State
Traffic Commission is part of the approval process because the site is located
adjacent to Interstate 91.
The State Department of Revenue Services abruptly closed the
hotel in January 2020. At the time, the state claimed the hotel owed more than
$200,000 in back taxes and fees. About 50 employees lost their jobs.
Kenny hopes to demolish this summer and launch construction
in fall.
Proposal for 110 apartments off Greenwich Avenue would develop land that was called ‘underutilized’
GREENWICH — A row of homes and businesses on Benedict Place
and Benedict Court in central Greenwich would be demolished to make way for 110
residential units if a local developer gains permissions from the town.
A six-story apartment building would be erected a short
distance behind St. Mary’s Church on Greenwich Avenue under the proposal
submitted late last month.
The plan would demolish the structures at 7, 9, 15, 19, 21,
23 Benedict Place, which are currently residences, beauty salons and offices.
Around the corner, the buildings at 5, 7, 11, 13 and 15 Benedict Court would
also be razed for the new housing, according to the preliminary application on
file with the town Planning and Zoning Commission.
The latest application follows a surge of other proposals
for central Greenwich that seek to encompass the state’s affordable housing law
and build large-scale residential units. The Benedict Place application would
set aside 30 percent of the units as “affordable,” gaining benefits in the
approval process under the state’s 8-30g affordable housing regulation.
Plans have also been submitted for a proposed 192
rental units on Sherwood Place near Church Street, and the 30 percent
set aside for affordable housing would be invoked in the approval process there
as well. Another developer is looking to build 86
residential units on Brookridge Drive near Greenwich High School, also
using the 8-30g statute.
The state law prohibits local zoning and planning agencies
from denying or modifying building proposals that invoke the affordable housing
statute for any reasons except public health and safety, which gives local
land-use commissions much less discretion over the projects.
The application for the 110 housing units behind St. Mary
has yet to be reviewed by the Planning and Zoning Commission. The developer is
listed as Benedict Court Development LLC, and the application was signed by
Joseph Tranfo, who is listed as the managing member of the limited liability
corporation.
Tranfo has been active in downtown construction proposals
and had discussed plans for new
construction on Benedict Court and Benedict Place in 2018.
According to the lawyer representing the application, Chip
Haslun, the land on Benedict Place and Benedict Court is “underutilized.” The
proposal would “add diversity to the housing stock and would considerably
increase the affordable dwelling units in Greenwich,” Haslun said.
Continuing, Haslun said, “Due to its central location, we
believe the development will be attractive to those looking to down-size, to
young professionals and to workforce employees, such as hospital workers,
teachers and first responders, both currently residing in Greenwich and looking
to relocate to Greenwich.”
The state’s affordable housing law has been under
scrutiny in recent months, as a large number of 8-30g applications
have been submitted in Greenwich.
The proposal has not yet been scheduled for a preliminary
review at Town Hall.
Plans for Mercedes-Benz dealership near Danbury airport move forward
DANBURY — Plans by a New York car dealership to build a
Mercedes-Benz sales
and service center on a construction lot near Danbury Municipal
Airport got a green light from the city’s Environmental Impact Commission this
week.
The thumbs-up for Curry Automotive to disturb a corner of
environmentally sensitive land near Kissen Brook clears the way for the
dealership to apply for a permit from the Zoning Commission and for special
exception approval from the Planning Commission. Curry also needs approval from
the Federal Aviation Administration.
The environmental commission’s approval on Wednesday follows
a positive
recommendation from the city’s Health Department, which found that the
proposed construction of a retaining wall and parking lot in the wetland buffer
was “limited” and should be permitted.
Before a Wednesday’s vote,
Danbury’s EIC chairman double-checked with Richard Janey, a public health
inspector with the city’s Health Department.
“Richard, you’re all set with this I assume?” EIC Chairman
Bernie Gallo said.
“Yes, sir, I’m all set with it,” Janey said. “Our project
report went out with six conditions.”
Janey is referring to plans by Curry to transform a 2.5-acre
storage yard at Miry Brook and Sugar Hollow roads into a dealership with 230
parking spaces and the display of 85 vehicles on the second-story roof.
Among the conditions of approval is a requirement for Curry
to “maintain sediment and erosion controls at the site … to prevent the
pollution of wetlands and watercourses.”
“[C]controls are to be inspected by (Curry) for deficiencies
at least once per week and immediately after rain events,” the health
department said.
Wetlands have important flood
control properties that degrade and stop working as nature intended if
measures are not taken to protect them during development.
“If the project is conducted in accordance with the plan and
with appropriate conditions of approval and site control, the proposed activity
will not significantly affect wetlands or watercourses,” Janey wrote.
The proposed dealership sits at the gateway of an
emerging high-end
auto niche that is home to luxury dealerships, storage garages, and a
manufacturer of $400,000 sports cars.
Milford aldermen OK $20 million for school and sewer upgrades
Saul Flores
MILFORD — Funding is in place for some $20 million worth of
improvements citywide.
The Board of Aldermen, at its meeting Monday, approved some
$20 million worth of bonds to cover improvements of sanitary sewers and wastewater
facilities ($3 million) and various public and school upgrades ($16.2 million).
“The projects for which we are seeking bond authorization
this evening will not be bonded this October. It will likely be bonded in a
subsequent October bonding session,” Mayor Ben Blake told the aldermen. “For
the first year or two, those projects are funded by the anticipation note and
through cash advancements.”
Blake said the $3 million sewer improvement section will be
used to upgrade Rogers Avenue Sanitary Pump Station, including replacement of
pumps, removing a buried oil tank, and design materials and construction costs.
“There’s always a possibility of a leakage when you’re
dealing with an underground storage tank, and it’s an active tank,” said
Christopher Sealey, public works director. “The tank is still being used, but
we are taking it out because, in the past, people weren’t as concerned in this
area, but now with sea-level rising and other weather effects in that area, it
is open to flooding.”
Improvements for the schools include partial roof
replacement at Joseph A. Foran High School for $3.6 million, traffic flow and
safety improvements at Orchard Hills Elementary School for $1.8 million,
athletic facility improvements and upgrades at Foran and Jonathan Law High
School for $4.2 million, and playgrounds and exterior play area improvements at
various schools for $525,000.
“I’d like to thank the PTA members, parents from the schools
that came out to advocate for the kids and for the improvements,” said Alderman
Anthony Giannattasio. “I think that’s what makes Milford great. We have people
that live here that have a stake and are very dedicated to the schools that
their children attend.”
The various public improvements include citywide road,
parking lot, sidewalk and curb repaving adding up to $3 million; various city
building maintenance improvements adding up to $1.5 million; various erosion
and flood control projects adding up to $525,000 and automated recycling and
solid waste vehicles adding up to $756,000.
Director of Finance Peter Erodici said the city’s total bond
principal stands at $170 million as of June 30, 2021, and it includes the clean
water fund loans.
“So those low-interest loans are part of the bond principal
because we had refunded them and gotten lower interest rate through bonds,”
said Erodici in response to Alderman Raymond Vitali’s question about how many
bonds the city has.
Could Danbury’s career academy be built at a different site? Leaders are discussing new locations.
DANBURY — City leaders expect to grow closer this week to
determining the location for the career academy after faltering
negotiations with developers threw a wrench into the flagship school
project.
Danbury Mayor Dean Esposito was scheduled to meet Thursday
with City Council leadership to discuss where to build the middle and high
school that would serve 1,400 students.
“We’ll bump questions off of each other,” Esposito said
Thursday morning before the meeting. “We’re going to have a list of positives
and negatives for each location, and hopefully with their advice, we’ll move
forward on one in the near future, the very near future.”
The proposal for other sites for the school come a little
over a week after Esposito walked away from deliberations with the developer
over the purchase of space in the 1.2
million-square-foot building for the school.
Still, he and city leaders have been in touch with the
developers and building the school at the Summit remains a possibility.
“They’ve made some change in their proposal, and in my mind
they’ve been positive,” Esposito said.
Summit developers agreed talks are improving.
“All is well here,” Mike Basile, project manager for the
Summit, said in a text message in response to a request for comment on the
negotiations. “I don’t have much to add other than we’ve had productive
discussions over the last week.”
But the city is also negotiating with another party to build
the school on a different property that the mayor declined to name. The city
could build another high school by Danbury High School and an addition to
Broadview Middle School.
“Our goal is to increase space for the school system and
we’re going to do what we have to do to make sure the location is suitable for
the staff and students,” Esposito said.
School staff have been working to prepare the curriculum to
go along with the new school, which would see students at the academy and
Danbury High School gaining experience
in career fields of their choice.
“We are still optimistic, very optimistic that our work, all
the work behind the Danbury career academy is still moving forward,”
Superintendent Kevin Walston told the school board on Wednesday night.
He said his impression is that the school could open on time
in fall 2024, regardless of the location. He said he expected to have more
answers for the board members at their next meeting.
“We’ve all been a little anxious about what’s next,” Walston
said. “We were all a little surprised by the stall in negotiations and a little
confused about what that meant for us moving forward, but we’ve been assured by
the city that a venue is their top priority.”
City Council initially approved borrowing
$99 million for the project, with Danbury seeking a state grant to
cover 80 percent of that cost. But the mayor informed the council last week
that cost estimates have increased to $144.5
million. That was when the plan was to build the school at the Summit. The
city is still working with the state to earn the grant.
‘What’s best for the students’
Republican Vinny DiGilio, City Council president; Warren
Levy, Republican majority leader; Paul Rotello, Democratic minority leader;
Jack Knapp, Republican legislative leader; and Fred Visconti, Democratic
legislative leader, were expected to attend the Thursday meeting.
The superintendent or representatives from the schools won’t
be at the meeting, but Esposito said he’s received feedback from him.
“He’s been involved every step of the way,” the mayor said.
Esposito said he hasn’t ranked the options.
The mayor hasn’t physically met with the Summit developers
since last Thursday but has been in “constant communication” with them. He said
he won’t schedule another meeting with the Summit or the other party until
after he’s met with the council leadership.
It’s unclear what the next steps would be or when the city
could decide on a location.
“I don’t want to rush this thing,” Esposito said.
He said he’ll get feedback from the council leadership and
school officials, but he’ll ultimately decide what the city should do. That
decision would then be subject to counsel approval, he said.
The city will consider construction costs, purchase price
and building accessibility as officials look at locations, Esposito said.
“In the end, it’s what's best for the students and what
we’re going to provide for them, and the best possible project we can get for
the best possible price,” he said.
The academic experience will remain the same, regardless of
the location, Walston said.
“The team and I, we’re working very hard to make sure the
academic experience is top notch,” he said. “That is not going to change, but
the venue might.”