Construction faces over half-a-million-worker shortage
Construction needs more than half a million workers above
its current pace of hiring in order to meet demand in 2022, according to
an analysis
released Wednesday by Associated Builders and Contractors. Predictive
models from ABC indicate the industry needs 650,000 additional workers.
For every $1 billion in additional construction spending,
construction gains 3,900 jobs, ABC found. As massive infrastructure spending
enters the pipeline, the industry will have a lot of hardhats to fill.
Anirban Basu, chief economist for ABC, described the
workforce shortage as the "most acute challenge" the industry
faces, even in the face of sluggish spending growth.
"After accounting for inflation, construction spending
has likely fallen over the past 12 months," Basu said in a release.
"As outlays from the infrastructure bill increase, construction spending
will expand, exacerbating the chasm between supply and demand for labor."
An estimated 1.2 million construction workers will leave for
other industries in 2022, ABC found, but an anticipated 1.3 million will offset
that departure — leaving other industries for construction. Nevertheless,
the age of the workforce raises concerns, as fewer young workers join and stay
on jobsites, and veterans of the industry retire.
The number of workers ages 25-54 dropped 8% over the last
decade, while the number of older workers has increased proportionally.
"According to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, the industry's average age of retirement is 61, and more than one
in five construction workers are currently older than 55," Basu said.
The number of entry-level laborers has increased 72.8% since
2011, Basu said, while the total number of workers has grown by less than 25%.
"The roughly 650,000 workers needed must quickly
acquire specialized skills," Basu said. "With many industries
outside of construction also competing for increasingly scarce labor, the
industry must take drastic steps to ensure future workforce demands are
met."
ABC CEO Michael Bellaman emphasized how construction workers
will be essential to fulfill the projects associated with the $1.2 trillion
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. He railed against regulations attached
by the Biden administration.
Some of those regulations include President Joe Biden’s
recent executive order mandating
the use of project labor agreements on federally funded construction
projects over $35 million.
"More regulations and less worker freedom make it
harder to fill these jobs," Bellaman said in a statement.
Correction: The headline of this story been updated to
reflect that the industry needs half a million new workers this year.
Shelton land buy paves way for Mas property access
SHELTON — After decades on the drawing board, construction
of Constitution Boulevard is only weeks away from getting underway, according
to Mayor Mark Lauretti.
The Board of Aldermen, at its meeting Tuesday, approved the
city’s purchase of 56 Blacks Hill Road for $590,000, with the cost being
covered through use of American Rescue Plan funds.
“This gets us one step closer to an April 15 construction
date for the beginning of Constitution Boulevard,” Lauretti said.
Lauretti has stated that he expects the cost to be some $5
million for the road work, which would allow for access into the 70-acre,
city-owned Mas property.
Earlier this year, the city agreed to sell 25 acres of the
city-owned Mas property to Fairfield-based RC Bigelow Inc. — known worldwide as
Bigelow Tea. Lauretti has stated he remains in negotiations with other “good
sized” manufacturers interested, and more deals could be struck soon.
According to the mayor, state leadership has agreed to cover
$5 million.
Shelton state Rep. Jason Perillo helped secure $5 million in
funding for the road extension in the state’s 2021 bond package. The funding
will be available once approved by the state Bond Commission, according to
Perillo.
This latest move comes as the city awaits a decision from
the Planning and Zoning Commission on its application for a zone change on the
70-acre piece of property.
Plans on the city website show an extended roadway with
seven separate lots, one of which is 10.6 acres of designated open space. In
all, there is a 276,250-square-foot building, two 105,000-square-foot
buildings, and two 34,250-square-foot buildings, along with related parking for
each structure.
The 70-acre parcel — known as the Mas property — sits near
Bridgeport Avenue, and the roadway plans include extending Constitution
Boulevard to reach Shelton Avenue/Route 108. Lauretti stated that a zone change
would be needed, requiring plans to go before the Planning and Zoning
Commission at some point.
The Mas property is now vacant. It is mostly wooded with
considerable stone ledges and several ponds, including one about 600 feet long
and up to 300 feet wide, and lies between Bridgeport Avenue, Cots Street, Tisi
Drive, Sunwood Condos on Nells Rock Road, Regent Drive, Walnut Avenue, and
Kings Highway. Part of the land abuts the back of the Perry Hill School
property.
New Canaan Library construction going ‘incredibly well’ as $1 million in steel delivered to site
NEW CANAAN — A total of $1 million in steel was delivered on
Tuesday for the new library project as sections of the $39.5 million structure
begin to rise adjacent to the old library between Main Street and South Avenue.
Concrete brick walls have been built for the future elevator
shaft as the building makes major strides for a March 2023 opening, according
to Executive Director Lisa Oldham.
“Getting the steel - it’s really a big deal,” Oldham said
Wednesday. The construction project, with two floors and a mezzanine, “is going
phenomenally,” as the organization works to “deliver on the promises of a
fabulous library.” The steel will create the frame of the 42,000 square-foot
building, which will have nine meeting rooms, an independent “cave” for tweens
and a children’s library triple the size of the current one with a garden
wrapping around the southwest corner.
The new library project was approved by the Planning
and Zoning Commission in July 2021, received building permits from the town
in October and started construction
on Nov. 12. Plans for rebuilding sections of
the original 1913 building were approved in December. The building,
which had major renovations in 1936 and 1979, will remain in place until the
new building is finished.
Per Oldham, the library staff is already hard at work
brainstorming programs for next spring that will be held in the new auditorium
that will accommodate up to 300 people. The large room will have the ability to
be divided into a 200-seat auditorium and a 100-seat community room, directly
adjacent to a demo kitchen.
Oldham expects the facility will be “flexible,” and could
possibly be reconfigured nearly daily “to meet all the demand that the
community has for the space.”
There will also be an “airy,” quiet space where people
conducting business remotely can work, a habit that has become even more
popular during the pandemic, Oldham said. In the new facility, the quiet work
space will be next to a business area with copying and faxing machines.
The meeting rooms include one 35-person conference room,
four 4-person rooms, two 8-person meeting rooms and one 15-person meeting room.
The director said that there have been a few surprises
during the the early construction of the project. Some ground had to be removed
for a residential property that the library purchased for the project because
pollution, confined to the property, was created by out-of-date practices, such
as “people changing their oil,” Oldham said. Clean dirt from other areas of the
construction were moved to near the Lakeside Cemetery.
Once the steel frame is constructed and erected, concrete
slabs will be poured. Once the concrete is poured and dried, “then we can get a
roof,” the director said.
Global supply-chain challenges have not currently presented
problems that Turner Construction, the lead firm on the project, “was not able
to work around” to prevent delays, Oldham said.
There were challenges along the way, as the Planning
and Zoning Commission discussed the project over eight meetings, often
focusing on future of the 1913 building. Preservationists are still fighting
to keep the walls remaining from 1913 library in situ.
The library is privately owned, but receives operating
expenses from the town and the municipality is contributing
$10 million to the project and helping with a low-interest credit line. The
majority of the funding is coming from contributions, such $3 million from
the Barlett
Family.
The “project is going so incredibly well,” and “it is all
exciting,” Oldham said.
New Haven apartment plan debated over height, affordability
Mary E. O’Leary
NEW HAVEN — The options were clear: a tall tower with 136
apartments and some lower-cost rental units; 44 apartments in a smaller
building with no affordable housing; or zero development.
With more than 40 people on a Zoom call to discuss the
future of 78 Olive St., more spoke in favor than opposing the 14-story
apartment complex that also would being infrastructure gains.
What has to happen first, however, is a proposed zone change
from BA to BD-1, with the particulars of a site plan submitted by the owners,
PMC Property Group, only kicking in if the Board of Alders approves that
change.
The 2.48-acre location is bound by Olive, Chapel and Court
streets and the railroad tracks that run behind the State Street Rail Station.
The site plan refers to a smaller carveout of that property.
Some during the two-hour discussion asked that the city get
professionals at the Yale School of Architecture to weigh in on a regular basis
to advise it on growth and to avoid spot zoning.
There also was debate about the precedent of a tall building
on that side of State Street, and criticism of the architecture of the nearly
complete housing along Olive Street as well the proposed PMC tower.
The community meeting of mainly Wooster Square residents was
organized by its alder, Eli Sabin, D-7, who said he is working with other
downtown Alders Ellen Cupo, D-8, Alex Guzhnay, D-1, and Carmen Rodriguez, D-6.
Sabin said the proposals may not be what everyone would like
to see, but he feels PMC has “moved a pretty long way” from its original plan
thanks to the noise residents made at the first community meeting Jan. 31.
As the city heads toward a March 1 public hearing set by the
Legislative Committee of the Board of Alders, Sabin said he continues to have
“a very open mind about what is on the table here and about what our options
are.”
He said PMC characterized its compromise as “unfair,” but he
disagreed with that.
Attorney Chris McKeon, who represents PMC, was not at the
hearing and had no comment except to say they put a lot of time into updating
the proposal.
Sabin told the group that while the 44-unit smaller building
was discussed in his talks with PMC, if the zone change does not happen, it is
more likely PMC will not move ahead with any development plan there.
If it does decide to pursue the smaller development, it may
be able to build market-rate apartments without complying with the new
Inclusionary Zoning law that mandates some affordable units, Sabin said.
Main proposal by PMC Property Group
The proposed apartment building would be 14 stories, about
twice as tall as apartments being built nearby, something that unites the
opposition.
The ground floor would have 68 spaces for vehicles, as well
as accommodation for bicycles. Space would be leased at 270 State St. for an
additional 29 cars.
There would be 11 levels of apartments with 12 units each.
The 13th level would have 4 units and common amenity space. The 14th level roof
deck also would contain common amenity space.
The developers said they would redesign the facade on Chapel
Street with more glass and a mural to make it more inviting, in response to
criticism.
PMC would deed restrict (for 25 years) 10 percent of the
units — 14 apartments — with half for renters earning less than 60 percent of
area median income and half for those making less than 80 percent of AMI. This
would put them in compliance with the Inclusionary Zoning rules.
PMC refused to lower the height of the building unless it
could drop the affordable housing apartments, Sabin said.
No tax abatement would be offered by the city with the
building generating some $920,000 a year in taxes; building permit fees would
be $1,785,000. It estimates the state will get $3.2 million in sales tax.
Response to traffic concerns
The proposed site plan calls for a number of updates on
traffic and pedestrian safety, a major concern voiced at previous meetings.
It plans to provide ADA-compliant ramps at the Chapel and
Union and Artisan and Court street intersections, as well as sidewalk
improvements in front of its property.
PMC will fund a traffic study to determine whether a lane
drop is possible on Chapel Street between State and Olive streets to allow for
bike lanes in both directions.
It is offering a $150,000 donation toward local
improvements, such as pedestrian signal heads at Union and Chapel streets and
bike lanes on both sides of Chapel between State and Olive streets.
It could also be used for possible expansion of the sidewalk
on the north side of Chapel and/or the planting of new trees on one or both
sides to create a buffer between pedestrians and traffic.
Also on the list is installation of pedestrian-scale
lighting on Chapel Street between Olive and Union streets and funding for a
lighting project for the Court Street and Chapel Street bridges spearheaded by
the Town Green Special Services District.
PMC also promised to cooperate with government officials in
future plans to provide access to the State Street Rail Station from its
property.
Discussion covers a range of opinions
Patrick Holland’s comments were representative of a number
of residents who want the parcel rezoned. The land also is home to the
Strouse-Adler building owned by PMC, which has 146 apartments and 148 parking
spaces.
Holland said rents are skyrocketing in the region and the
city is not going to solve that by blocking development.
“We are only going to solve it if we build more housing,”
Holland said. He added that 10 percent deed-restricted affordable housing “is
very significant.” Building next to a train station advances transit-oriented
development.
Also, he said he lives next to the large Corsair development
on State Street where commerce has blossomed, something he predicted would
happen in Wooster Square.
Anstress Farwell, head of the Urban Design League, said a
lot of the new developments are turning out low-quality structures that all
look alike and miss the mark by not building the two- and three-bedrooms needed
by families.
“We are not creating a stable neighborhood where people come
to stay,” Farwell said. She also said 60 percent and 80 percent AMI does not
serve the low-income families who need the subsidies.
Sabin also commented on concerns the alders would be setting
a precedent in the area if they were to approve the zone change.
He said alders should not approve zone changes for the seven
parcels surrounding 78 Olive St. as recommended by the City Plan Commission, as
each should be considered individually.
Farwell said this “comes so close to spot zoning,” and
didn’t see how it could be kept off the table for others once it’s granted for
one.
Eli Pales said the environmental impacts of traveling to and
from work daily are huge and building next to a transit center is vital. He
also said having some affordable units is better than not having any.
Ian Miller, Lisa Sawin and Sam Greenberg all want to see the
new building go up.
“We are so under-housed as a country, as a state and as a
city. ... We need so much more housing to fit all the humans into places they
want to live,” Sawin said.
Jeff Wolcheski, a member of the carpenters union, which
represents almost 175 people in the city, was in favor of the construction with
union wages.
Arthur Nacht said he would favor the 44-unit possibility as
a 14-story building would overwhelm Chapel Street.
Nacht brought up the idea of getting Yale experts to weigh
in on the city’s direction in land use, versus “a bunch of laymen, sort of
feeling their way in the dark about what to do about a project like this.”
The full Board of Alders likely will vote on the proposed
zone change April 4 with a hearing and vote on the site plan after that by the
City Plan Commission.
NEW BRITAIN – The Board of Education terminated a contract
with Construction Advocacy Professionals, LLC during a special meeting in the
wake of recent controversy surrounding the company.
In a letter to the board, Chief Financial Officer Kevin Kane
recommended they terminate its Owner’s Representative Agreement with
Construction Advocacy Professionals (CAP) for the ADA project. The ADA project
was set to correct building code violations at New Britain High School to make
the facility more accessible to people with disabilities.
After a near hour long executive session, the BOE returned
to the regular meeting and voted for the first agenda item, which was to hire a
new director of facilities. The second item on the agenda discussed was the
contract with CAP, which the board voted to terminate. There were no opposing
votes or abstentions to the vote.
“I think we’re all familiar that a lot of things have been
happening in the state since November, the state’s school construction with the
firm we have, as it's been mentioned in many articles,” Kane said at the
meeting. “Right now we have a clause in the contract that allows us to
terminate without any cause. With everything going on, it does make sense.”
Former deputy secretary of the Office of Policy and
Management for the state Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis is being investigated
by the FBI for the state-financed reconstruction of the State Pier in New
London and school construction projects, including in New Britain. Diamantis,
who was also the director of the Office of School Construction Grants and
Review, has been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury for documents related to a
broad range of construction projects. The Connecticut Division of Criminal
Justice has placed Anastasia Diamantis, the daughter of Kosta Diamantis, on
administrative leave following an investigation into her hiring at the
division, according to the CT Mirror. A federal grand jury is currently
investigating Anastasia Diamantis, who was hired by a construction management
firm that received contracts in a process overseen by her father.
Board of Education President Gayle Sanders-Connolly told the
Herald in a previous interview the school district agreed to move forward with
the company because it needed assistance and it was recommended by Diamantis to
work with CAP, the same company his daughter worked for.
The school board considered hiring the company again for its
next project, which was to upgrade the high school to meet federal Americans
with Disabilities Act codes and standards. Instead, the school board agreed to
go out to bid for the services. Later, it instead approved a preliminary bid
from Newfield Construction Group for the construction, but retained CAP as an
“owner’s rep,” or project consultant.
Kane said “in light of what has been reported both statewide
and local,” the board should terminate the agreement.
According to Section 16-A of the agreement, the school board
“may terminate this agreement at any time and for any or no reason upon seven
days prior written notice to CAP.” The termination of the contract severs all
agreements the school has with the company.
Now that the school board voted to terminate the contract,
they have the right to request from CAP copies of all records in the company’s
possession related to the project. Kane said any outstanding paperwork or
interaction with the company would be to pay outstanding balances of work they
have already done.
Data center agreement proposed for land south of I-95 in Groton
Groton — A proposed data center agreement for land
south of Interstate 95 between Hazelnut Hill and Flanders roads, which has been
met with opposition and questions, will be presented to the public
Thursday.
NE Edge LLC, under manager
Thomas Quinn, is requesting a data center host municipality fee
agreement with the town, which is the first step in the process of
developing data centers.
According to the agreement, NE Edge seeks to develop one or
more data centers on contiguous properties, which are south of I-95
and north of the Groton Open Space Association's Sheep Farm and Sheep Farm
South properties. The properties listed in the agreement
include about 56 acres at 327 Hazelnut Hill Road, about 92 acres at 351
Flanders Road, and about 1 acre at 449 Hazelnut Hill Road, as well
as several properties with the address 0 Flanders Road that overall
comprise about 19 acres.
A host municipality fee agreement sets conditions
to potentially allow data centers "on particular properties under
certain conditions and sets the revenue that would be provided to the Town,
since the State has made data centers tax exempt," Town Manager John Burt
said. "These agreements are required before anything could be built."
Any proposed building project then would have to go
through all standard requirements, including through the Planning and
Zoning and Inland Wetlands Commissions, Burt said.
The General Assembly passed
legislation last year to provide tax incentives for data centers,
defined as facilities to house computer servers "to centralize the
storage, management, and dissemination of data and information pertaining to a
particular business or classification or body of knowledge." To be
eligible, the developer must make at least a $200 million investment,
or a $50 million investment if the data center is located in an enterprise or
opportunity zone.
Quinn said at a Feb. 8 meeting that his team was
instrumental in getting the data center legislation passed in Hartford.
The act provides tax exemptions for 20- or 30-year periods
"based on the size and location of the data
center investment" and requires state approvals and for the
company to sign a host municipality fee agreement before the center facility
can be built, according to a town document.
Burt said the town is considering the agreement because
having a data center can help spur ancillary businesses and hopefully continue
putting the town on the radar as being a tech hub, which has started
with the town's blue tech economy. He also said the proposed
agreement allows the Town Council to put conditions on the industrial zoned
properties, whereas other industrial uses don't afford the same opportunity.
But before any decisions are made, he said, the Town Council
wants to hear from constituents.
"I've done extensive research on the project and I
think as a whole it's great for Groton," said Town Mayor Juan Melendez
Jr., who is one of nine members of the Town Council.
"However, we are being careful to make sure concerns from the community
are answered before the council votes on approving the agreement. On the 24th
we have a presentation from the developer and we encourage residents to come
out and give us their thoughts."
The Town Council was slated to do its first review of
the proposed host municipality fee agreement at its Committee of the Whole
meeting on Tuesday. The council had not yet begun its review as of print
deadline and was discussing other matters on the agenda.
Burt said the council is expected to continue to
discuss at its March 1 meeting the agreement and digest the
information from the public meeting; there will also be an opportunity for
public comment during the March 1 meeting.
He said the council may vote on March 8, but is taking it
step by step and will see where to go from its discussions on March 1.
Groton Conservation Advocates Co-Chairs Elizabeth
Raisbeck and Eugenia Villagra wrote a letter to the Town Council in which they
raised questions and concerns about the proposal, including calling for an
annual economic analysis and for an environmental impact study to assess
the data center's potential impact on streams and wetlands and the impact
of noise and air pollution.
They requested that the council postpone a vote until
the town has more information about the project, its leader and
site-specific plans. They said the proposal should first go through Planning
and Zoning and Inland Wetlands, and if permits are received, then to the Town
Council.
Melendez said the council still is gathering information and
input and expects to learn a lot at this week's presentation. "After
that we'll be in a better position to evaluate how to move forward," he
said.
When asked at the Town Council's Feb. 8 Committee of the
Whole meeting about environmental concerns that people have raised, Quinn
said it would be an electrically run facility with efficient cooling and
efficient back-up diesel generators. Burt said language related to environmental
protection and noise was added to the proposed agreement.
Burt said the water resource district touches the corner of
the land, but not where the development would be, though no specific plan has
been filed yet.
The agreement calls for NE Edge to donate at least 50 acres
from the properties to the town, "with at least one accessway to and
from Hazelnut Hill Road. A portion of the donated land shall directly abut the
conservation land to the south" of the properties.
The developer plans to pursue the purchase of a 17-acre
town-owned parcel along Flanders Road, to the east of 351 Flanders
Road, though it is not being considered as part of the agreement, Burt
said.
Burt said specifics, such as the number of data centers,
size, specific location on the properties and value, are not yet available.
At the Feb. 8 meeting, Quinn said NE Edge would bring
in a construction entity and an operating entity for the data center,
but NE Edge would stay on as a joint venture partner throughout the
project. The Groton Conservation Commission and the Groton Economic
Development Commission will host the public
presentation on the proposed agreement, followed by a period for
questions or comments, at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Thrive 55+ Active
Living Center, formerly called the Groton Senior Center, at 102 Newtown Road.
People also can view the meeting via Zoom, with a link available on
the town's website, or on Groton Municipal Television.
Other projects in the region
Burt said the proposed agreement for the properties
south of I-95 is similar to a data center host municipality fee agreement
with Gotspace Data Partners LLC the town approved last year for properties off
Route 117. Quinn was a former Gotspace partner, according to the town.
At the Feb. 8 meeting, Quinn told the council
that an investor "contracted to fund, partially funded,
defaulted, and, when we called the default, attempted a hostile
takeover." He said it took some time to "straighten out."
"We have straightened out," he said. "We
have our whole team with us."
When asked for comment on Tuesday, Gotspace Data Partners Chief
Operating Officer Mike Grella, who spent seven years at Amazon, said in an
emailed statement that "Gotspace Data Partners is on a
trajectory to become one of the leading developers for the Connecticut data
center/high technology corridor."
He added that "Gotspace was ahead of the
marketplace in seeing the potential for big data in Connecticut before the
State passed one of the most aggressive tax incentive programs in the country
and is well positioned to seize upon the momentum created by the proliferation
of 5G, Internet of Things, Streaming, AI, and cloud computing. Partners and
customers we speak with every day share our enthusiasm and are aligned with the
Company's strategy to build out data infrastructure throughout
Connecticut."
"I am fully supportive of the Gotspace's ownership and
leadership team as well as the actions taken to preserve the Company's business
interests," Grella said.
In 2019, Quinn was
quoted by The Day as the CEO of Verde Group LLC in an article about the
company's plans for a data center campus in Montville.
Joel Greene, the founder of the company, who died last
summer, and Verde Group were subject to litigation related to
the proposed data center, The Day reported.
A lawsuit, brought in June 2020 by Vineyard Meadows
Investment and Bruno Blanchet and scheduled for trial in July, against Greene,
Verde JG LLC and Verde Group LLC, accuses the defendants of breach of fiduciary
duty, breach of contract, breach of duty of good faith and dealing, and unjust
enrichment, among other counts. Blanchet was working on the data center
project, the lawsuit said.
There also was litigation brought in September 2020 by
All of Us at North LLC against Mohegan Hill Montville LLC, Kleeman Farms, LLC,
Verde Group LLC and Joel and Donna Greene, according to court documents.
Quinn, who was not named in the litigation, could not
immediately be reached to comment.
Burt said the town did a background check and its due
diligence on Quinn and did not find any issues, but will continue its
research.
Eversource eyes 2023 siting approval for CT-linked wind farm
Eversource Energy says it is moving full steam ahead on its
offshore wind power projects, including turbine farms that are expected to one
day feed into Connecticut’s power grid.
During a conference call with analysts to discuss the
utility’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2021 earnings, Eversource CEO Joe Nolan
said the company has made more progress in offshore wind in the last 13 months
than in the previous three years.
Nolan cited the recent groundbreaking for the South Fork
wind farm, which will connect to Long Island’s power grid. The site is expected
to become operational in late 2023.
Revolution Wind, which is expected to channel renewable
energy to Connecticut and Rhode Island, is “well into” the state and federal
siting process, according to Nolan. Final siting approval is expected in the
second half of 2023, and if that timeline is met, the project could be up and
running sometime in 2025.
Nolan also highlighted what he described as an improving
relationship between Eversource and its Connecticut customer base, pointing to
the regulator-approved October settlement in which the company agreed to
provide bill credits for electric customers as part of a penalty for its
handling of Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020.
“Compared with a year ago, I believe we are in a much better
place,” he said.
Eversource reported full-year 2021 earnings of $1.22
billion, or $3.54 per share, up slightly from $1.2 billion, or $3.55 per share,
in the year before. Fourth-quarter earnings came in at $306.7 million, or 89
cents per share, up from $271.9 million, or 79 cents per share, in 2020.