Hartford — In the ongoing, years-long saga over the
construction of Dunkin’ Donuts Park, the state Supreme Court on Thursday
unanimously ordered a new trial concerning the city of Hartford’s termination
of the original developers in 2016 for allegedly not finishing the ballpark on
time.
The original developers — Centerplan Construction Co. and
DoNo Hartford LLC — in July 2016 filed a $90 million lawsuit challenging the
termination. In 2019, a jury in Superior Court in Hartford sided with the city,
placing blame on Centerplan and DoNo for not meeting deadline. The jury also
awarded the city $335,000 in damages.
On appeal, Centerplan, through its attorney Louis Pepe of
McElroy, Deutch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, and DoNo argued that the trial court
in 2019 did not allow them to present evidence that they could not be held
liable for “countless flaws” in the ballpark designs because the architect was
under the city’s control. That, according to the developers, resulted in cost
overruns, delays in the ballpark’s construction and, ultimately, the
termination of the developers.
The Supreme Court, in a 5-0 decision, held that who had
legal control over the architect and the stadium design from January to June
2016 — from when a term sheet was executed to when the city fired Centerplan
and DoNo — was ambiguous and, therefore, should be decided by the jury.
“The claim was that the trial court erroneously determined —
before the trial began — that the [original developers] were responsible for
all errors and omissions for the architect’s team before, during and after the
construction,” Pepe said in an interview. “We argued that simply could not be
the case. … [T]he architect was hired by the city before the contracts were
entered with Centerplan and had started the design and in fact was well through
the completion of the design before the city assigned its contract with the
architect to Centerplan.”
The original developers also argued on appeal that, under
the terms of the contract and common law, they were entitled to a notice of
default and an opportunity to cure the default before the termination could be
implemented. Evidence bolstering that argument was improperly kept from the
jury during the 2019 trial, Pepe said.
“In construction, termination is the functional equivalent
of capital punishment,” Pepe said. “The law is very clear that before you
impose that extreme remedy, you have to be scrupulous in meeting your
obligations as the owner that are conditions preceding termination. We argued
the city failed to do that. … That was an issue for the jury to decide and it
was improperly taken away from the jury. If we go back to that trial and that
issue is raised, that becomes an issue for the jury to decide.”
With the Supreme Court ordering a new trial, the city could
be liable for tens of millions of dollars of damages to Centerplan and DoNo.
Further muddying the picture is the trial Judge Thomas Moukawsher, following
the 2019 verdict, lifted restrictions that would allow a new developer to
pursue building apartments, retail and entertainment space and parking garages.
The new developer, Stamford-based RMS Cos., has broken
ground on one of the four parcels that comprise North Crossing, formerly known
as DoNo. The project is a mixed-use development that includes apartments, a
parking garage and a restaurant.
“When we took over the case, we gave the city notice that
before it entered into a new development agreement with a new developer, it
should understand that we would be contesting the termination of those
development agreements,” Pepe said.
The city and the new developer essentially proceeded at
their own risk, Pepe said. Centerplan raised the issue before the Supreme
Court, but it did not address it as cited in a footnote in the opinion.
Mayor Luke Bronin said the decision is “disappointing” and
that the city “strongly” disagrees with it.
“That said, we believe that the facts are clear and that a
new trial will result, once again, in a decision in Hartford’s favor,” he said.
“If the city hadn’t fired Centerplan when we did, there would be no baseball in
Hartford today, no development around the ballpark, and Hartford taxpayers
would have been on the hook for tens of millions of dollars wasted by
Centerplan — with nothing to show for it.”
Pepe, meanwhile, said he and his client are “delighted” with
the Supreme Court’s opinion.
“The city of Hartford grossly mistreated [Centerplan CEO
Robert] Landino, his partners and his companies when it wrongfully terminated
his construction contract for the Dunkin’ Donuts ballpark after it was
substantially complete and did the same with his contracts with the development
of the nearby city-owned parcels before he could even begin work on them,” he
said. “Now the city will be held to account for those wrongful actions and the
prodigious pain and suffering they caused. We look forward to the new trial the
Supreme Court has ordered.”
The Supreme Court’s decision is yet another chapter in an
ongoing battle that began with an admittedly aggressive timeline that called
for construction of the 6,100-seat, minor league park in just 13 months, with
the Hartford Yard Goats — the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies —
hosting its home opener in May 2016.
With construction delays, the Yard Goats played their first
season on the road, with a new contractor brought in to finish construction.
The project was completed in 2017.
Courant reporter Ken Gosselin contributed to this story.
Wethersfield plan to modernize, enlarge elementary schools estimated at $271 million
Wethersfield’s school system wants a fall referendum on its
proposed $271 million modernization of the town’s elementary schools.
After years of study, the school board this month endorsed a
plan to replace two schools, renovate and expand two others and shut down the
fourth.
Construction would be done in stages over a decade, and in
the end about 30% of Wethersfield’s elementary grade students would be
transferred to different schools than the ones they attend now, educators said.
The town council heard a presentation last week and expects
to decide June 6 whether to schedule a fall referendum on the plan. It also
will vote on whether the school administration can submit paperwork for state
reimbursement of the first phase of the work; the deadline to be considered for
2023 funding is June 30.
The plan would “incorporate a combination of building new,
renovating and contracting from five schools to four,” Superintendent Michael
Emmett told the council on May 10.
Planner Patrick Gallagher of the SLAM Collaborative, a
Glastonbury architectural firm advising the school board, told the council that
long-term enrollment projections for Wethersfield suggest no major increase or
decline in elementary-age students over the next decade.
Many other Connecticut communities saw population drops
after the 2008 recession, followed by recent upticks, he said. But Wethersfield
has stayed relatively consistent, and its overall public school enrollment
holds steady at about 1,900, he said.
“You’re a built-out community. We’re not anticipating
significant new housing development that would drive enrollment beyond what
we’re planning today,” Gallagher said.
However, some sections of town have been drawing more
families in recent years, so the enrollment balance between the system’s five
schools has been shifting. Most of the schools were built in the 1960s, the
newest dates to 1970. Wethersfield could better meet the needs of modern
classes and school activities with buildings designed now, educators said.
“One of the keys to this is a move from five elementary
schools to four elementary schools. Under the plan we would see new schools
built at the Highcrest and Hamner sites,” he told the council.
The plan is to demolish Hamner, which was built in 1967, and
Highcrest, built in 1969. Both would be replaced by larger, far more modern
buildings on different locations but on the same overall property.
Wethersfield would extensively renovate the Emerson-Williams
and Webb schools, and close Charles Wright Elementary School. Before Highcrest
is taken offline, it would be the “swing” school accommodating the student body
of each of the other schools as they undergo phased construction.
“Going from five to four means that the district will need
to redraw the attendance lines. That will occur once the final building project
is completed,” Gallagher said.
Peak enrollment at three schools over the next decade is
projected to hit in 2028-29: 439 students at Hamner, 463 at Emerson-Williams
and 461 at Webb. The peak at Highcrest would be 644 in 2023-24, he said.
Highcrest would have four sections at each grade level, while the others would
have three.
The Hamner and Highcrest parts of the project would be done
first if voters authorize it, according to planners.
Chuck Warrington of Madison-based Colliers Project Leaders,
another consultant on the project, said the current cost estimates include
projections for stiff inflation in the construction market.
“We’re all seeing what’s going on with (cost) escalation.
It’s probably the most volatile time in the market for going out to bid,”
Warrington said.
The cost projections are estimating $400 per square foot
construction cost, and reflect contractors’ bids for recent, similar projects
in the state, he said.
“This reflects bid numbers, not estimates. We carried 8%
escalation out to 2025 - that can certainly fluctuate,” he told the council.
For projects that will continue between 2026 and 2029,
estimators worked with a 5% annual inflation cost.
Estimators calculate the state government will shoulder $107
million of the cost, leaving Wethersfield taxpayers to cover $164 million.
U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is scheduled Friday
to visit Connecticut to highlight federal and state efforts to advance nuclear
and wind power alternatives to carbon-based energy and tout the federal
infrastructure bill pushed by President Joe Biden.
Energy prices across the board -- at the gas pump and
heating homes and businesses -- are
skyrocketing, adding to the fastest pace of inflation in more than 40 years
and complicating efforts by Democrats to hold or expand their slim
congressional majorities in November elections. Granholm, a former Democratic
governor of Michigan, will be joined by several members of Connecticut’s
all-Democratic congressional delegation.
The Department of Energy said her visit will underscore
collaboration among the public and private sectors to accelerate America’s
clean energy initiatives and decarbonize the U.S. economy. Granholm is
scheduled to tour a Department of Energy facility in Storrs, the Millstone
Nuclear Power Station in Waterford and State Pier in New London.
At the Energy Department’s Southern New England Industrial
Assessment Center at the University of Connecticut, she will make an
announcement related to the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure program, the
agency said. She will be joined by Rep, Joe Courtney, D-Conn., and UConn
President Radenka Maric.
With Courtney and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.,
Granholm will visit Dominion Energy’s Millstone plant. The Department of Energy
is reviewing responses to a request for information
it issued to nuclear industry stakeholders late last year as a first step in
another attempt to figure out how and where to store the highly-radioactive,
spent uranium that is the waste product of nuclear energy production.
She will end her visit at the State Pier with Blumenthal and
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn. Ørsted, a Danish wind energy company, and
Eversource Energy are partners in a wind energy program using the State Pier to
assemble turbines.
Eversource said recently it’s considering selling its wind power
stake to capitalize on valuable offshore leases.
Glastonbury to vote next month on 74-unit apartment building proposed near Buckingham Park
The Glastonbury Town Plan & Zoning Commission has until
June 21, to finalize a developer’s proposal to build a 74-unit apartment
building that could be occupied in early 2024 if it gets final approval.
Town Planner Jonathan Mullen said Thursday the commission
held a public hearing on the proposal Tuesday. The meeting was continued to
June 7, with the town setting a June 21 deadline for the commission to act,
Mullen said.
Developer Richard Hayes Jr., principal of Manchester/Hebron
Avenue LLC, is proposing 74 multifamily units for the site, which is across the
street from Buckingham Park and will be known as Buckingham Corners. The
complex would be located on Manchester Road and Hebron Avenue.
Several town committees and commissions still need to sign
off on the plan, with the final say coming from Town Plan & Zoning.
Hinckley Allen partner Timothy Hollister and associate
Andrea Gomes represent Hayes.
Hollister previously told the Hartford Business Journal that,
if all goes as planned, construction could start in the fall of 2022 and would
take about 18 months. Occupancy could begin in early 2024, he said.
Hollister also said that 70% of the units will go for market
rate while the other 30% will be for moderate-income households. There will be
85 parking spaces, he said.
Neither Hollister nor Mullen said they knew how much the
project would cost.
DeLauro Earmarks Almost $13 Million For Projects In Seymour & Ansonia
JEAN FALBO-SOSNOVICH
SEYMOUR – Seymour and Beacon Falls could benefit from $10 million
in federal funds to build a road and the accompanying infrastructure that
will provide access into 223 acres behind Stop & Shop
on Franklin Street.
The land is owned by The Haynes Group which, in addition to
operating Haynes Outdoor Living on Derby Avenue, successfully developed the $70 million
Quarry Walk, a mix of businesses and hundreds of residences on Route 67 in Oxford.
Haynes has long-term plans to bring a similar
development to its land in Seymour, according to Seymour First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis.
The Haynes Group wants to build a 300,000-square foot
mixed-use project that would include retail, restaurants, medical space, and
some 200-market rate apartments, Drugonis said.
The Valley Indy was unable to confirm those specifics with
The Haynes Group this week, but a company spokeswoman did confirm that the
company is planning to invest $100 million into the Seymour project.
But before any of that can happen: the feds have to approve
$10 million to build a 2‑mile road that will connect Route 67 in
Seymour to Route 42 in Beacon Falls – along with the installation of
public utilities, which include water, sewer, storm water, electrical,
broadband and fiber optic cable.
The path toward approval started Wednesday (May 18),
when U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro announced the $10 million road project was one
of 15 projects she was submitting as part of the “Community
Project Funding” program for fiscal year 2023.
The “Community Project Funding” program falls under
the House Appropriations Committee, the powerful committee that sets federal
spending – of which DeLauro is chair.
The money could be formally approved in July, according to
Lou Mangini, a member of the Congresswoman’s senior staff.
Seymour’s government, eager for a boost to its
non-residential tax base, has been looking forward to the development of the
Haynes property for
years.
Selectwoman Drugonis sees the road project as the potential kickstart to
a major economic development project in town.
“I’m so excited; this is the shot in the arm that Seymour
needs to get things going,” Drugonis said. “This federal grant is the
first step in what will be a transformative project for our communities
and for the Valley.”
Drugonis said the road project itself is expected to create
more than 400 new jobs in the Valley.
Seymour’s Economic Development Consultant Sheila O’Malley
said the Haynes project has the potential to be like Quarry Walk in Oxford –
but with more land.
“It’s a site that holds magnificent potential for
Seymour, Beacon Falls and the entire Valley, and would be a real economic
generator,” O’Malley said.
Also included on DeLauro’s list of projects is $2.9 million
to be used in the City of Ansonia.
The money, if approved, would be used to remove contaminated
materials within the former SHW Casting Company downtown, and
demolish the remaining structure.
Local and state officials have been chipping away at
Ansonia’s old, contaminated factories to bring new life to its downtown.
“The Valley can always count on Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro
to deliver,” Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti said in a prepared statement
released by DeLauro’s office.
“This important parcel known as the SHW site is
the gateway to Ansonia Copper and Brass. This funding will clear the path
towards future development of both parcels — a combined 60 acres.
We are crippled in Ansonia by these contaminated and dilapidated buildings.
This critical appropriation for demolition from Congresswoman DeLauro will
bring us one step closer to putting this parcel back to productive reuse.”
DeLauro, as chair of the House Appropriations Committee, said
she brought back Community Project Funding (earmarked funding for
legislators) last
year for the first time in 10 years.
The program is needed “because our communities have
needs that the federal government must be responsive to,” she said in
a press release.
Click here for the complete list of projects DeLauro
is supporting.
Windsor officials adopt tighter controls for new warehouses/logistics centers
Windsor officials last week adopted stronger controls over
construction of new warehouses and distribution centers, responding to rising
resident concerns.
The change approved unanimously by the town’s Planning and
Zoning Commission makes new warehouses and distribution facilities subject to a
special permit approval, rather than “by right” in industrial and warehouse
zoning districts.
Town Planner Eric Barz, who crafted the changes, explained
to the commission at its May 11 meeting that it could presently only “rubber
stamp” applications that met all the required design criteria.
“Does it meet the regulations? Yes – you must approve,” Barz
said. “With a special use, you can weigh in on such factors as is it compatible
with the neighborhood, does it generate too much traffic, is there sufficient
utility capacity. Things of that nature come into play.”
The change also means that large warehouse proposals will be
subject to public hearings, and the commission can use resident feedback to
require changes to plans to address the concerns of residents and board
members.
The regulation change, however, is designed to have no
impact on the influx of new manufacturing facilities, with the understanding
these will operate on fewer hours and result in less traffic, Barz explained.
Under the regulation, any proposal for a new warehouse or
logistics center that is a) 200,000 or more square feet in size, b) has more
than one loading dock per 1,500 square feet of floor area, c) has more than one
trailer parking space per 7,500 square feet of floor area or d) is within 1,000
feet of a residential zone, would be required to gain a special permit.
Barz said the change doesn’t allow the commission complete
discretion, but it does allow the commission to deny a proposal deemed “too
intensive.” It additionally allows the commission to mandate conditions meant
to lessen impacts to surrounding residents.
The push for tighter controls began with resident complaints
about the approval process for the BDL Logistics Center development in 2021.
Scannell Properties was approved to add two buildings with a combined 487,200
square feet at 1190 Kennedy and 451 Hayden Station roads.
Barz and commission members agreed they did not want to take
the route of South Windsor and place a moratorium on new warehouse development
while regulations are drafted. Barz was complimented by commission members on
the speed with which he was able to craft zoning changes without the need for a
moratorium.
Interest in Windsor development remains heavy and
applications for two new projects were submitted ahead of the public hearing,
meaning their review will be governed under the previous, more permissive
process.
These include a plan by Indus Realty to build a
248,000-square-foot distribution center on 61.7 acres at 105 International
Drive, and NorthPoint Development’s proposal to build a 750,000-square-foot
distribution center on 93 acres in the Great Pond Village mixed-use
development.
Millions slated for cleaning Connecticut's contaminated sites
The federal government said this week that it will invest
nearly $7 million to clean up and redevelop contaminated properties across the
state.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said the money
will come from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and be used for brownfield
remediation.
Brownfields are contaminated properties – often found in
underserved communities – where redevelopment can be costly and complicated.
The EPA said the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments
will get nearly $4 million to help clean up these sites.
New London, New Haven, Stratford, Vernon, Waterbury and West
Haven will also get money to help clean up everything from a school to an old
button factory.
The EPA said in a statement that “projects can range from
cleaning up buildings with asbestos or lead contamination to assessing and
cleaning up abandoned properties that once managed dangerous chemicals.”
“Brownfield remediation is vital to the economic
development, environmental safety and public health of our community,” said
U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-5th District) in a statement.
“I am thrilled that over $4 million will go to Waterbury and
surrounding communities for the assessment and redevelopment of brownfield
sites,” Hayes said. “This funding will bring a cleaner, healthier environment
and increased economic opportunity for areas that have faced obstacles to
growth.”
Avelo growth at Tweed New Haven airport spurs off-site parking plan
NEW HAVEN — Tweed New Haven Regional Airport is “in the last
stages” of negotiating a short-term, off-site solution to parking
capacity issues expected to arise when Avelo Airlines goes from eight
to 12 flights a day and adds
flights to Chicago, Baltimore-Washington and Raleigh-Durham, N.C. later
this month, an official said.
Tweed, which is owned by the city of New Haven and located
in both New Haven and East Haven, still has never totally filled its three parking lots, Tweed New
Haven Airport Authority Executive
Director Sean Scanlon told the authority this week. But it is moving
forward with a short-term solution that it’s likely to announce as soon as next
week so it will be prepared when the additional flights begin May 26, Scanlon
said.
Scanlon, in a subsequent interview, declined to say where
the soon-to-be-announced offsite parking lot was, but said “it is close by the
airport.
“That’s all I’m prepared to say about that,” said Scanlon,
also a Democratic state representative for Guilford and Branford and the
Democratic Party’s endorsee for the state comptroller position in the
November election.
“It’s a good problem to have, to have grown faster than we
expected to grow,” Scanlon said. “While we still have ample capacity,” given
Avelo’s success so far and growth, “we want to make sure that we can meet the
demand.”
East Haven Mayor Joe Carfora, who earlier this spring
declined to support Tweed’s expansion plans “at this time,” said he was aware
of the plans. The location is not in East Haven, he said.
“I realize that Sean is working hard to solve some of the
on-site parking issues that are developing at Tweed due to the success of the
Avelo service,” Carfora said. “As a result, I understand that he is working to
solidify an off site parking location” and “that location is not in East
Haven.”
Scanlon said that while the two most visible lots, located
right next to the terminal on either side of the entrance as people drive in,
often are posted as full, a third, less expensive remote lot located around and
behind the terminal — and served by a minute-and-a-half shuttle bus ride
— has
never been full.
The two closer lots sometimes have vehicles parking on the
grass when travelers have difficulty finding marked spaces, which has been a
flashpoint with airport neighbors.
Scanlon said that as Avelo continues to expand, the
additional parking “won’t be enough,” however, and said, “We’re working on
other solutions. ... We need a medium-term solution.
“Part of it will be met by the off-site parking lot,”
Scanlon said. “But there also will be a need for us to expand or reconfigure
our parking here before we move to East Haven.”
Additional parking will be part of the plan when
Tweed eventually applies to build a
new 74,00-square-foot terminal and entrance off Proto Drive on the East Haven
side of the airport as part of a $70 million expansion plan. That
would be part of a $100 million total investment that would be paid for by
Tweed’s contract operator, Goldman Sachs-owned Avports LLC, which in turn would
be signed to a 43-year management contract.
The New Haven Board of Alders has approved the contract and
a long-term lease with the authority but the contract is still being
negotiated.
The expansion plan also includes lengthening Tweed’s runway,
currently 5,600 feet, to 6,635 feet and building a new terminal where the east
end of Tweed’s former crosswind runway is now.
Avelo announced March 8 that it will add
service to Chicago’s Midway International Airport, Baltimore-Washington
International Thurgood Marshall Airport and Raleigh-Durham Interational Airport on
May 26, bringing the total number of destinations from Tweed to 13.
It also announced it will increase the frequency of service
between Tweed and Orlando, which recently was named Avelo’s third base, along
with Tweed and Los Angeles’ Hollywood Burbank Airport.
Those additional destinations followed the announcement
that Avelo
would fly from Tweed to Nashville, Tenn.; Savannah, Ga.-Hilton Head, S.C.
and Myrtle Beach, S.C., all of which began May 5. It also flies to six Florida
destinations: Orlando, Tampa, Fort Myers, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and
Sarasota-Bradenton.