Winsted voters approve borrowing additional $2.3 million for water projects
WINSTED — Voters have chosen to approve borrowing an
additional $2.3 million to supplement a $6.2 million project for new water
mains and improved water storage tanks on Wallens Hill Road and Crystal Lake.
A referendum saw 209 votes in favor of the additional
borrowing versus 170 votes against.
The projects first were proposed in 2021 by the Water and
Sewer Commission. Costs to replace a water storage tank on Wallens Hill Road,
and build a second tank at Crystal Lake, have increased since the projects
first were proposed.
The commission in March 2022 received approval from the
Board of Selectmen to borrow $6.2 million for the project, which includes
replacement of an aging water storage tank on Wallens Hill, construction of a
second, smaller storage tank at Crystal Lake and replacing 4,000 feet of water
mains on streets served by the water and sewer plant.
The commission is borrowing the money from the state
Department of Public Health’s Drinking Water Revolving Fund to pay for the
project, which will be paid back over a 20-year schedule.
To pay for the improvements, customer rate increases will be
phased in over the next five years and will apply to a customer’s quarterly
base rate, fixtures and a grinder pump maintenance fee. The loans will be paid
back using those fees.
In November, Director of Public Works Jim Rollins presented
selectmen with an explanation of the cost increases and the need to borrow more
funds.
The original $6.2 million, he said, was based on estimates
the commission developed more than three years ago. Since then, the cost for
materials has gone up, and the project costs have increased by more than 35
percent, for a total of $8.5 million.
Wilton receives $1.4M to prevent flooding at high school sports fields
WILTON — The town was awarded $1.425 million to cover the
design and construction costs of a storm
mitigation system for the high school sports complex, Department of Public
Works head Frank Smeriglio said.
U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., helped advocate for the funds,
which were awarded through a Congressional Member-Directed Community Project
Grant.
"We are extremely appreciative to Congressman Himes and
his staff for their efforts leading to this award," First Selectwoman
Lynne Vanderslice said in a statement.
Smeriglio said the town will work with Boston-based athletic
vendor Stantec for the design phase, although the price has not yet been
finalized. Once the design for the project is complete, the contract for
construction on the high school complex will go out to bid.
The total will be used strictly to address storm mitigation
in and around the high school complex, according to Smeriglio.
The need was first determined after Hurricane Ida
severely damaged
the turf football field and then-newly unveiled track worth nearly $1 million.
In September 2021, the Board of Selectmen set aside $300,000
to clean up the severe stormwater flooding and infill displacement on Veterans
Memorial Stadium at Wilton High School.
Smeriglio first presented the recommendations for the storm
mitigation system to the selectmen in April 2022. The DPW director said Friday
the project will be completed in coordination with the Parks and Recreation
Department and its director, Steve Pierce.
"Member-Directed Community Project Grants are highly
competitive. We have successfully leveraged the program by receiving awards two
years in a row," Vanderslice said in a statement. "We have
aggressively focused on grants as a means of improving or creating new
infrastructure while limiting the growth of property taxes. Since September
2018, we have been awarded approximately $26 million of such grants."
Cost to convert office building into Wallingford PD could be more than $34.3M
Kate Ramunni
WALLINGFORD — The Police Station Steering Committee on
Tuesday approved the amount of money it will ask the Town Council to bond to
renovate an office building into a police headquarters, but it won't be the
total amount the project will cost.
The committee, at a special meeting, approved a motion to
ask the council to bond $34,357,000 to renovate the building last used to house
3M offices into a new police station at 100 Barnes Road. It's likely the
committee will make its presentation to the council at the council's meeting
Jan. 24 at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Hall Council Chambers.
The committee has been working on plans for the new station
since the town bought the property in July 2021 for $1.76 million. It hired
Downes Construction of New Britain to act as construction manager for the
project and Jacunski Humes of Berlin as the architect. Representatives from
both companies were at Tuesday's meeting to discuss the final numbers that the
committee will bring to the council.
The $34,357,000 figure includes both hard and soft
construction costs, as well as $3 million for the property purchase and design
fees, said Town Engineer Alison Kapushinski, who chairs the committee. It does
not include the cost of communication equipment, she said, because it has not
yet been decided whether the new station will have a rooftop antenna or an
antenna in a standalone tower.
The committee has been grappling with that issue for months.
Initially, it was told that the tower wouldn't be necessary, but now it looks
like it may be, which would add to the cost of the project. The question of
whether the antenna can be mounted on the roof depends upon the design
specifications of the roof as to the weight it can handle.
The radio equipment and tower is expected to run from $1
million to $1.5 million, Kapushinski said, which is not included in the
$34,357,000 total.
Mayor William Dickinson Jr. said he is hesitant to bring
that to the council right now because the committee still doesn’t have a solid
number. “I hesitate to vote on it until we have hard amounts,” he said. “Right
now I have no confidence” in the amount quoted from the vendor, he said.
The project is made up of several different areas, including
hard costs, soft costs and contingencies. The hard costs are the costs
associated with the renovation of the physical structure, such as steel and
construction materials. Soft costs include the costs to furnish the building,
and the contingency is in essence funds that are used for unanticipated costs
that crop up during the work.
The hard costs for the project are $27,627,467, said Jeffrey
Anderson, vice president of preconstruction. Downes went out to bid for
different aspects of the construction, and almost all of those contracts are
being awarded to the low bidders, Anderson said. One contract for the
integrated technology system hasn't yet been finalized, Anderson said, and
they continue to vet the ability of the low bidder to be able to complete the
project. To be on the safe side, Anderson said, the amount included in the bond
request for that contract is equal to the bid of the second lowest bidder to
assure there is enough money included in the bond to complete the work. If the
low bidder is awarded the contract, Anderson said, the difference between the
amount of the low bid and the second lowest bid will be returned to the town.
The rest of the money will go toward soft costs and
contingency. Downes Construction is not involved in the awarding of contracts
for the soft costs, such as furniture and shelving. That will be done by the
committee, Kapushinski said.
Affordable housing developers close to approval for conversion of West Hartford Inn into 44 apartments
A proposal by affordable housing developers to convert and
expand the West Hartford Inn into 44 apartments is nearing approval.
A site plan submitted by WHI Camelot LLC can be approved by
Town Planner Todd Dumais once the town’s Design Review Advisory Committee
finishes its review, which is expected as early as the committee’s scheduled
meeting Thursday.
WHI Camelot lists Honeycomb as its principal in its state
business filing. WHI Camelot’s listed business address in the Weatogue section
of Simsbury is shared by affordable housing developer Vesta Corp. Vesta and
Honeycomb have partnered previously.
The plan submitted by WHI Camelot calls for “adaptive reuse”
of the existing four-story hotel and new construction over the footprint of an
attached restaurant. The 0.67-acre West Hartford Inn property at 900 Farmington
Ave. is located just off the northeast corner of downtown West Hartford.
Nearly 80% of apartments will be affordable and the proposal
meets the standards of the states 8-30g affordable housing law, according to
WHI Camelot’s site plan narrative, which anticipates government financing for
the project. The redevelopment will provide modern features and amenities, new
landscaping and parking in an updated building envelope, creating curb appeal compatible
with the surrounding neighborhood, according to the application.
It will also provide opportunity in an area without adequate
affordable housing, according to the application.
“The lack of affordable housing options in this part of West
Hartford has left few opportunities for residents and families to gain access
to affordable housing proximate to the center,” the application said.
“With an array of amenities, jobs and educational resources, this section of
West hartford provides ample opportunities for residents to thrive.”
The apartments will have “resilient” flooring with wood
appearance and modern, open kitchen/living rooms, along with “crisp, clean
finishes in the bathrooms,” according to the plan. The apartment community will
contain a fitness center, community room and computer rooms, in addition to
shared laundry rooms.
The location affords access to bus transportation, the Trout
Brook Walking Trail and a short walk to downtown shopping, according to the
plan.
WHI Camelot’s plan said it has a purchase agreement with the
current owner, Lisaraj LLC.
Lisaraj paid $1.49 million for the property in 2012.