March 3, 2023

CT Construction Digest Friday March 3, 2023

For Walk Bridge project, CT buys Norwalk property for $3.85M and begins demo of former IMAX building 

Abigail Brone

NORWALK — In the latest phase of the Walk Bridge Project, the state Department of Transportation purchased a property about one mile from the bridge to act as a staging area.

News of the purchase comes as construction to replace the 127-year-old bridge is expected to begin in full swing this spring, and as the state begins construction work to remove the former IMAX building to accommodate the project. 

Replacement of the bridge has been in the works since 2017. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 564-foot-long bridge, which is part of Metro-North Railroad’s New Haven Line, transported about 175 trains and 125,000 riders daily, according to the program website.

The state purchased 1.11-acre plot adjacent to the Donald F. Reid Memorial Bridge, the home of the Exit 16 interchange on Sept. 7 for $3.85 million, according to city land records. The 180 East Ave property will hold necessary equipment and supplies needed for the East Avenue portion of the Walk Bridge reconstruction, DOT spokesperson Josh Morgan said. 

“That East Avenue work includes updating drainage and installing new sidewalks in the area, extending the platforms and adding more parking at the East Norwalk Train Station, and replacing the 100-year-old East Avenue Railroad Bridge,” Morgan said. “The property will be used to stage construction trailers, contractor parking and other necessary equipment.”

If needed, the front portion of the property will also be used for additional commuter parking at the East Norwalk Train Station during construction, Morgan said.

Property records show the parcel was purchased by the state of Connecticut, but the “co-owner” address, located on the Berlin Turnpike, is DOT headquarters.

Previously, the land was owned by Antonios and Penelope Koskerides, who purchased the land in the early 1990s, according to land records. In 2018, the property was appraised at $1.42 million.

The land is entirely vacant, with no existing structures, according to the city land records. 

Walk Bridge Project

In addition to replacing the existing bridge, elements of the project include: east and west approach embankment work and retaining walls, track work, catenary and signal system upgrades, new catenary structures, removal of the existing high towers and relocation of high-voltage transmission lines, according to DOT.

Once construction begins, it is expected to take about six years, according to DOT.

“Construction for the Walk Bridge Project is anticipated to begin in spring 2023, pending receipt of a series of environmental permits from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CTDEEP), the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG),” the project website reads.

As part of the project, the former IMAX theater building, located at 2 North Water St. at the Maritime Aquarium in South Norwalk, is being deconstructed beginning this week in sections with the exterior brick facing removed initially and followed by the removal of the structural steel framework, according to the project website. Materials will be deposited into the interior of the building as each section is removed and then transported to designated material storage areas. All resident and business property access will be maintained on North Water Street. 

Access to the municipal parking lot at 2 North Water St. will be maintained, but about 12 parking spaces will be reduced. An alternating lane closure along North Water Street will be implemented when the contractor works on the western wall in mid-April. Pedestrian access will be closed on the east side of North Water Street and maintained on the west sidewalk for one week during this activity. There are no anticipated impacts to Norwalk River commercial or recreational marine users, the project website states. 


Tweed New Haven environmental study says expansion would bring improvements

Mark Zaretsky

NEW HAVEN — A draft environmental assessment for Tweed New Haven Regional Airport's proposed expansion project says extending Tweed's runway and building a new terminal on the East Haven side actually would improve the airport's impact on the environment.

But some airport neighbors who oppose airport expansion remain unconvinced. 

They are continuing to call for a more extensive environmental impact statement, or EIS — and East Haven Mayor Joe Carfora urged people to read the 206-page environmental assessment that was released Thursday and attend a hearing April 1 at East Haven High School. 

Among the EA's findings, highlighted by airport officials, is that the project would reduce overall noise by shifting aircraft ground noise farther from nearby homes. 

It would improve air quality in adjacent neighborhoods — in part because aircraft would be farther away from homes — while having a minimal impact on undisturbed wetlands, affecting less than 0.2 acre, with mitigation measures to achieve an overall policy goal of "no net loss," the report concludes.

While the plan calls for the runway to be extended from 5,600 feet to 6,635 feet, the draft EA found that a 60-foot reduction in that proposed length could avoid construction impacts within tidal wetlands. "Therefore, the proposed runway length would be approximately 6,575 feet," which would accomplish Tweed's goals "while fully complying with FAA design and safety standards," it says.

One reason the longer runway is needed is because the Boeing 737-800 airplanes that Avelo Airlines, Tweed's one commercial airline, increasingly wants to use at Tweed can carry 189 passengers but currently are limited to 162 passengers due to weight restrictions associated with the relatively short runway, the EA says. 

A longer runway would allow Avelo and other airlines to carry more passengers and operate more efficiently, it says.

The expansion plan also calls for building a new, 80,000-square-foot terminal on the East Haven side of the airport. A new airport entrance would be off Proto Drive in East Haven, with access off Coe Avenue.

The proposed new terminal "would be constructed on piers, raising the finished floor elevation above mean sea level," the EA says. "The space below the finished floor elevation would be left open to allow floodwater to pass."

Impact to wildlife and plant life would be below both federal and local thresholds and the site contains no critical habitat for threatened or endangered species, the draft assessment says.

The EA found that the expansion project would not significantly affect traffic at 11 key intersections. A new traffic signal and intersection improvements would be installed at Proto Drive  and Coe Ave in East Haven.

Tweed "needs a new airport access road that bypasses most residential areas and provides standard roadway sizing for the existing and expected peak hour demand and terminal location," the EA says.

The EA is posted at a link on Tweed's TweedMasterPlan.com and FlyTweed.com websites. Paper copies will be available to view at all five branches of the New Haven Free Public Library, as well as the Hagaman Memorial Library in East Haven and the Blackstone Memorial Library in Branford.

The Tweed New Haven Airport Authority also will hold the public information workshop and hearing at East Haven High School April 1. It will begin with an "open house" question-and-answer session from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., followed by a more formal hearing from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

In addition to the public hearing, community members can submit written testimony, which will be reviewed by the FAA and be considered in reaching its ultimate decision. Written comments will be accepted until April 16 via mail or email at: HVN-EA Public Comments, McFarland Johnson, 49 Court St., Suite 240, Binghamton, NY 13901 or hvn-ea@mjinc.com. 

The airport prepared the assessment with the support of McFarland Johnson, a national aviation consulting firm.

“Completion of this environmental assessment marks another successful milestone in our work to enhance HVN and fully realize a $100+ million investment in southern Connecticut that will create more than 1,147 direct jobs, in addition to the more than 300 jobs already created in the last year and a half,” said Jorge Roberts, CEO of Avports, Tweed's Goldman Sachs-owned operator.

Avports would pay for the expansion as part of a 43-year lease approved late last year.

“The airport will continue to see additional activity in the coming years, and the draft assessment makes clear that this project would reduce the airport’s overall environmental impact to the region as that growth occurs,” Roberts said in a release.

“We remain committed to ensuring that this expansion is executed in an environmentally sustainable manner," said Tom Rafter, executive director of the Tweed New Haven Airport Authority. "Avports has been an excellent partner throughout, going above and beyond to fulfill the promise of a more sustainable HVN.

“We look forward to continuing to work with our partners and neighbors in the community to make this vision a reality,” Rafter said in the release.

He said in a subsequent interview that with regard to calls for an EIS, "The FAA is going to be the final arbiter on that. We're following the NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) process."

But the conclusions in the EA are "not just us operating in a vacuum," Rafter said. "This is going through the Federal process. ... It's not like we're just making claims or making assumptions."

With regard to traffic, "They looked at the traffic in detail, studied the different intersections," Rafter said. "They looked at the service levels."

Avports spokesman Andrew King said that "some of it is just logical," such as having airplanes waiting to take off farther away from residential neighborhoods.

"While we understand there's a temptation to use anecdotal information from neighbors, we put in a significant amount of work to get empirical data," King said.

Carfora said in his own release that "while we are disappointed that the FAA did not immediately order the preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) for this major airport project as we and many other parties requested, the FAA is required to consider public comments on this draft EA, and ultimately decide whether an EIS is required. 

"Our mission, of course, is to protect the citizens of East Haven, and ensure that all aspects of this massive proposed expansion and relocation of the airport into East Haven are fully and fairly considered," Carfora said. "Therefore, I have directed my team — including the experts we have hired — to undertake a thorough and comprehensive review of the draft EA and appendices. 

"We will prepare and submit detailed, substantive comments that address the town's concerns and expect that the FAA will recognize the apparent material impacts on the community and, as required by Federal law, undertake the full-scale EIS that is mandated for this significant project," he wrote.

Opponents of expansion say that an EIS still should be done in order to be sure.

"In my opinion, the Environmental Assessment justifies why we need an Environmental Impact Statement and there should be no expansion at this airport in a residential area," said East Haven resident Lorena Venegas, a member of the 10,000 Hawks community group and an administrator of the "Keep Tweed Small" Facebook page

"The environmental justice issues of development without any community benefits plan for East Haven is unacceptable," Venegas said.


Wallingford Inland Wetlands commission approves Choate plans for building

Kate Ramunni

WALLINGFORD — Choate Rosemary Hall overcame one hurdle this week in its quest to build a 14,000-square-foot admissions building and 70-space parking garage on 6.5 acres at the corner of North Elm and Christian streets.

The Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission approved the school's application at its monthly meeting Wednesday after hearing once again from neighbors concerned about how the project will affect their properties. At the commission's February meeting, it also heard from residents concerned about runoff from the construction.

"I'm just thinking of the word volume and water, water, water," said North Elm Street resident Mike Votto. "When you approve an application like this, do you do any follow up to make sure that whatever was promised to have been done was indeed done and is working or do we just say OK, we gave you permission to go ahead, do your thing, and then you're done with it?"

Votto said he is already dealing with the effects of another Choate project recently completed that included the construction of seven homes built for faculty members. 

"I would like to have all of you take a walk in my backyard," he said. "I was told for the last approval for Choate for the seven houses built behind me that there would not be an increase of water. They were going to put this in and that in. I don't think anybody has ever come out here to see if everything they said was going to be done was done."

Despite any precautions taken by the school, the water flows into his yard, Votto said. 

"All I can tell you is that there is much more water in my backyard, and the part of the brook that is on my property is totally filled all year round now whereas it normally goes down once the rainfall has gone through and then it starts going down. It does cut into the bank and it does make its own little streams," he said. 

"You have to make a decision tonight, but I would hope if it is a positive one, I would like to know if somehow that could be followed through with and see if they have done due diligence, and if whatever they said is going to work is indeed working because I have to tell you, it hasn't worked on North Elm Street. I can tell you that right now," Votto said. 

"I just hope the decision you make is a good one, and I'm sure you will think about this seriously and make sure Choate follows up and does what they're supposed to do and what they're promising they're going to do tonight," he said.

Choate attorney Dennis Ceneviva said the storm basin has been evaluated by their team and by the town engineer, who found it "appropriate,"  and if anything, has oversized capacity to control runoff.

But Curtis Road resident Ron Blanchard said the precautions taken have not worked.

"The project is more than just a stormwater discharge," he said. "There was clearing of acreage of trees, and where there's natural runoff, that's now affecting it, and relative to the detention pond, nothing has changed since they built the houses but the water is much greater now." 

Last year was an average year for rainfall, Blanchard said. "So in an average year of rainfall, after this project and with no changes to the detention pond, these poor people have substantial water in their yard. I just wanted to make sure that was clear."

Commission Chairman James Vitali and Vice Chair Debbie Phillips both recused themselves from participating in the application proceedings citing conflicts of interest, so Secretary Nicholas Kern was named temporary chairman for the purpose of conducting the public hearing and the commission's deliberations.

Ultimately the commission approved the application with only Kern voting no, citing too many unanswered questions that came up during the discussions.

Choate now has to gain Planning and Zoning approval before beginning the project. The application is expected to be on the agenda for its monthly meeting March 13 at 7 p.m. in the council chambers at Town Hall.


Wallingford officials pass on purchase of land used for bridge project

Kate Ramunni

WALLINGFORD — The town won’t be purchasing property next to the new Center Street bridge that carries the road over Wharton Brook.

The state offered the town the right of first refusal for the property at 538 Center St. next to Vinny’s Deli which the state purchased as part of the bridge project that dragged on for years before it was finally completed in 2021.

Construction began on the bridge in 2016 but was almost immediately delayed when a contractor expressed concerns about the stability of the structure after a portion of it was demolished. Ultimately plans were redesigned and work began again in 2019 with an anticipated 2022 completion date.

The project was completed early, but the additional work increased the cost of the project from $3.9 million to $5.7 million.

Now that the bridge is complete, the state wants to sell the property it used as a staging area for workers.

“It was purchased in order to allow the bridge to be built, the famous bridge that has gotten attention because it was indeed too long a period of time. I think you can still get bus tours,” Mayor William Dickinson Jr. joked when the purchase was discussed at the Feb. 14 Town Council meeting.

“We don’t recommend administratively (buying the land), Dickinson told the council. “Administratively we checked with all the departments, utilities, etc. and there’s no one who has a need for the property. We have no need for it but you make the decisions for acquisitions of property for sale, and I think we need to know your views if that is something the town should purchase or not.”

The land could be sold for a housing lot, Dickinson said, but the town has no need for it.

I don’t disagree with you at all, Mayor,” council Chairman Vincent Cervoni said. “I don’t see a municipal purpose for us to acquire that.”

Councilor Jason Zandri questioned what would happen if the property was sold but the state in the future needed it should something need to be done on the bridge.

“I don’t expect them to ever work on this bridge in my lifetime but you never know,” Zandri said. “The state purchased this to make it a staging area and an access area for when they were doing that work. I don’t expect them to do major types of work, but what would happen in the future if they needed some type of access?”

If the property were to be sold and a home built on it, the state would need to deal with the homeowner to get access to the bridge, Zandri said.

“Something breaks, there was utilities that ran under there that they had to get access to,” Zandri said. “If a resident or somebody were to buy this land, would they have to allow a right-of-way or would they just have to deal with that?”

Dickinson said it would be the state’s problem to deal with any issues that come up in the future since Center Street is a state road.

“If the state needed that property again, they would use their authority to either purchase it or have a temporary construction easement or whatever, no different than what they did this time,” Dickinson said.

Zandri is concerned that should the state ever need the land, it would be the new owner who would pay the price.

“My concern is that what you’re suggesting now is that if they really kind of need it and the owner doesn’t really want it, that’s an area of eminent domain discussion there,” he said.

“If the state needed that property for a highway project, that would be ultimately, if negotiations fail, the approach that would have to be taken and they would have to pay for relocation if people happen to be living there,” Dickinson said. “But I suspect we are talking about a long time in the future given the recent construction and we certainly are not aware of any reason for further construction there.”

While he is concerned what could happen in the future, he’s not in favor of the town buying the property, Zandri said. But he also fears what could happen to the land if it doesn’t sell.

“I’m not of the desire to purchase this either,” he said. “I actually walked by and took a look at it. It’s really close to where the river is so it doesn’t make it attractive to most people anyway. My concern is that nobody buys it. It’s not in awesome shape right not but it’s not bad, it’s not blight yet but when we get there, what do we do about that?”

It would fall on the state to maintain the land as long as it is in their ownership, Dickinson said.

“It’s owned by the state of Connecticut so certainly we have recourse through the normal means of contacting the state with regards to the condition of the property,” Dickinson said. “That’s Wharton Brook. It does have pretty heavy flows at times, but the bridge should be able to handle that circumstance.”

Dickinson said he disagrees with Zandri’s assessment as to the desirability of the property.

“It appears to be an attractive property for someone to purchase from my viewpoint,” he said. “We’ll find out.”


Waterford data center plan is a winner

The Day Editorial Board

This plan is much better.

About a year ago the Groton Town Council, facing strong public opposition, ended discussions about building a massive data center there. Now the same developer, NE Edge, LLC, is pursuing a data center project in Waterford.

The Waterford proposal gets right many of the things the Groton version got wrong.

In a March 2022 editorial, we backed the Groton council’s decision to pull the plug on the data center proposal there. The site, near a reservoir, was a poor choice. It would have chewed up forested land and detracted from the quality of life for those living nearby.

While recognizing the necessity of these data centers and defending the legislature’s decision to offer incentives so that Connecticut could compete with other states in attracting them, our editorial also called for more sensible decision making in choosing where to build them.

Building data centers in “former industrial sites, existing industrial parks, or repurposed warehouses” made more sense than cutting down trees or squeezing them near residential locations, the editorial argued.

The Waterford proposal calls for construction of a large data center at an existing industrial site, the Millstone Power Station. Even better.

The Waterford Board of Selectmen, in a Feb. 23 joint session with the Representative Town Meeting, approved a deal with NE Edge that will send $231 million to the town over 30 years. To attract data centers the legislature waived local property taxes, leaving it to municipalities to negotiate revenue deals. Even though NE Edge gets a discount over what it would pay if fully taxed by Waterford, it will still be second only to Millstone in terms of the revenue it generates for the town.

This is a terrific location. Electricity for the energy-hungry data center will come from the two Millstone reactors, a power source free of greenhouse emissions. The deal NE Edge signed with Millstone owner Dominion Energy — details were not disclosed — will strengthen its business standing and help assure its operation well into the future.

The Millstone reactors are critically important, both as a major source for the region’s electricity needs and as climate-friendly power generators.

Planned are a pair of massive two-story data facilities. The first will be 568,000 square feet, the second 214,000 square feet. Despite their size, they will occupy only a small fraction of the 500-acre Millstone site.

Providing cloud and other data storage, such centers are critical to life and economic growth in the digital age, allowing the accessing, sharing and storage of enormous amounts of information.

This project would be a major job creator, generating upwards of 2,000 construction jobs and as many as 500 full-time positions when in operation.

Congratulations to First Selectman Rob Brule for negotiating and closing this deal.

While the financial terms of the deal are settled, the project still needs various local, state and federal approvals. As things stand now, however, this project looks like a winner. With data centers, as with real estate, it is all about location, location, location.


Former Children’s Museum property in West Hartford sold for more than $10M. Broker says price sets ‘new benchmark.’

KENNETH R. GOSSELIN

WEST HARTFORD — The developer of a luxury apartment complex on the site of the former Children’s Museum in West Hartford has paid $10.6 million for the property, with construction expected to begin this spring.

The price paid by New York-based Continental Properties for the nearly four-acre property at 950 Trout Brook Drive near Farmington Avenue is about $2.7 million an acre — a price, brokers involved in the sale say, sets a new benchmark for development sites in central Connecticut.

“We’re seeing a tremendous demand for desirable sites throughout the Hartford area,” said John Cafasso, a principal at commercial real estate services firm Colliers International in Hartford, which represented the seller, Kingswood Oxford. “We expect to see more new multi-family development over the next 12-18 months.”

Continental plans to build a six-story, upscale development with a mix of 172 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments about two blocks from Blue Back Square. The complex will include such amenities as an outdoor pool with cabanas, a dog park and wash station, co-working space and a rooftop lounge. The development is expected to have more than 320 parking spaces.

While Continental said the development reflects the kind of residential community renters now seek, the proposal drew the ire of surrounding homeowners who opposed the scale of plans. Despite those concerns, West Hartford’s town council last fall approved a crucial zone change for the development. When built, the complex is expected to add $800,000 a year in new taxes to town coffers.

“Continental is committed to building and operating an iconic, first-class rental community that the town of West Hartford and its stakeholders can be proud of at this important location in the center of West Hartford,” Howard S. Rappaport, a principal at Continental, said, in a release.

In Connecticut, Continental has developed upscale rental complexes in Rocky Hill, Glastonbury, South Windsor, Milford, Shelton and Trumbull.

The museum occupied the site for nearly six decades, and sold the property to neighboring Kingswood Oxford, the independent day school, in 2002. The museum leased the property back but with the intention of finding a new location. Kingswood Oxford made the decision to sell the museum property in 2021, nudging the museum into making a decision about its future.

The museum is temporarily downsizing and has relocated to the Emanuel Synagogue in West Hartford. It is still searching for a permanent home that has yet to be announced.

Meanwhile, plans call for the iconic, 60-foot, 20-ton Conny the Whale sculpture to be moved just across the street to the Trout Brook greenway. Conny was constructed in the mid-1970s as a symbol of the “Save the Whales” movement but had evolved into a playscape and mascot for the museum.