Yet another I-95 study, fixing nothing
Why do we keep “studying” problems instead of fixing
them? Why do we still pay consultants millions of dollars, over and over,
to look at the same issues while we avoid spending that money to change the
conditions that create them?
We keep hoping there’s an easy solution… that some savvy
consultant will find the missing link, shout “Ahah! We’ve found the answer!”
and then we can fix it. But we should know that’s not going to happen. If
the solutions were easy, we’d have found them long ago.
The latest example of wasting money: a $7 million, three-year
traffic study of I-95, the fifth such study in 20 years. This
time the focus is just a three-mile stretch in downtown Stamford ranked
as one of the worst bottlenecks in the nation.
The road sees 200,000 vehicles a day with 40+% of that
traffic entering or leaving the highway in Stamford, “The City That Works” (but
can’t seem to move its own street traffic). Anybody driving that stretch of
I-95 knows what a mess it is most hours of the day.
This new study is looking slightly beyond I-95 itself to
include 50 intersections in downtown Stamford as well as the 1,500+ daily
pedestrians who dodge cars trying to cross under I-95.
Visit the consultant’s beautiful website, I95Stamford.com, and
you are greeted by a background video that immediately makes one
skeptical. The video shows traffic freely flowing on I-95, as if on a
Sunday morning, not the typical 15 mph bumper-to-bumper flow that greets daily
commuters. Do these consultants even understand the problem?
Dig further into the website and you get a sense of why this
project is costing $7 million. In the cause of “environmental justice”
and social equity all of the documentation is available in English, Spanish and
Creole. There are facts sheets, brochures, newsletters and even a
telephone hotline. And there are fascinating video archives of their
first efforts at community outreach.
Let’s just say that local folks are skeptical. We’ve
seen this political posturing, these listening sessions and stakeholder
engagement before and know they lead to nothing.
During the Q&A with the consultants in the first public
session there were the usual calls for bike lanes, pedestrian crossing and yes,
one old timer said we need to replace the highway with a monorail.
The consultants listened politely, nodded and said they appreciate “big ideas.”
But the first caller, Zach, really said it best: “This seems
like a waste of money. You can’t take three years to study this.” Then he made
the best observation of all: “The problem with I-95 is that the trains run too
slow. Let’s get more people on the train and out of cars.” Exactly.
So why isn’t the Connecticut Department of Transportation
studying Metro-North and the Stamford Transportation Center (which they own)
right next to the highway? Why aren’t they figuring out why people are
driving instead of taking the train?
Answer those questions and the traffic problems will be
solved.
Work Begins on I-95 Exit 74 in East Lyme on Monday, March 13
Cate Hewitt,
EAST LYME — Long-anticipated work on the I-95 interchange
with Route 161 at Exit 74 will begin on Monday, March 13.
During the first week impacts on traffic will be minimal
according to Josh Morgan, spokesman for the Connecticut Department of
Transportation, who said the state’s project team met with East Lyme officials
on March 9 for a pre-construction meeting.
East Lyme First Selectman Kevin Seery, in his March 9 blog post
on the town website, said that work during the first week will involve
surveyors placing stakes and ribbons.
“It is not anticipated that there will be lane closures
while the survey work is being done next week, but it is possible,” he wrote.
The next phase will include relocating the “utility poles,
gas lines, and water and sewer lines on Rt 161,” said Seery.
“That is when the lane closures are anticipated to begin.
The Project Managers have stated their intention is to notify the Town
approximately two weeks in advance of the need to close lanes so ample
notification can be provided to the public,” he wrote.
The project was estimated at $142 million in 2021, when it
was expected to
begin. The project was delayed for
two years due to a number of property issues pertaining to acquisitions and
easements.
According to Morgan, the project — which includes replacing
the bridge, widening the highway, adding auxiliary lanes, extending on/off
ramps, widening Rte. 161, and adding commuter parking lots — is expected to be
completed in 4.5 years.
“Lane closures will be required based on project needs. All
lane closures and project updates will be shared via the project website, local
alerts through the municipality, and social media,” said Morgan. “The project
website – I-95EastLyme.com – is still being developed and will be online in
mid-April.”
Meriden approaching conclusion of Harbor Brook channeling, officials say
Ben Baker
MERIDEN — After launching the project nearly a year ago,
city officials say disaster prevention measures along Harbor
Brook are nearing completion, with a possible conclusion date as early as
this fall.
The efforts to expand and deepen Harbor Brook represent
one component in a multifaceted, decades-long initiative to confront over a
century of repeated flooding in downtown Meriden.
City Engineer Brian Ennis said floods first began as a
byproduct of the second Industrial revolution in the mid 19th century
after factories were built directly on top of natural floodplains
along waterways snaking across Meriden, effectively removing a buffer
between river waters and the city.
“There's a lot of rivers and streams that go through town,
and because of the industrial nature of Meriden, a lot of overdevelopment on
the brook was done,” Ennis said. “So the what used to be floodplain at a Brook
was filled and developed and buildings were put on it and when there's no place
for all the water to go.”
Construction is running ahead of schedule, Ennis said,
thanks to this year’s atypically mild winter which
gave crews space to operate with greater efficiency and avoid
weather-induced roadblocks traditionally seen between December and early
March.
Flood Control Implementation Agency member Michael Rohde
struck an optimistic tone while outlining development progress in and around
Hanover Street, suggesting the city is rapidly approaching an end
to channeling in the area.
“We’re coming down to the final phases,” Rohde said. “We’re
about 70% plus done with the whole project.”
Ennis said while a conclusion to channel work in
northern Meriden could come in the fall of 2023, he conceded an end date
in 2024 is also likely given demolition roadblocks engineers faced in
the neighborhood.
Ennis said widening Harbor Brook required the removal of
three buildings, two of which have either been cleared away or are
currently being torn down. A third, however, was initially intended to be repurposed,
but was severely damaged by a fire in 2022, forcing the city to abruptly change
course.
“It’s not that we’re running out of money [for demolition],
it’s that we didn’t plan on doing anything about that,” Ennis said. “The
original plan was to reuse that building, but when we had a fire last year, it
became structurally unsound.”
In order to raze the former medical office building on Cook
Avenue, Ennis said engineers must obtain approval from the city Department of
Economic and Community Development.
In conjunction with measures to expand Harbor
Brook, Flood Control Implementation Agency member Sonya Jelks said,
engineers are set to begin working on an adjacent expansion of the nearby
Linear Trail, with a preemptive start date slated for this summer and an end
date “hopefully this year.”
Jelks said trail developments aimed to connect
Meriden, Southington, Wallingford and Cheshire to one another, but starting
construction hinged on widening out Harbor Brook.
“The goal is to create these trails such that they go from
town to town so that folks can take advantage of safe walkways [and] safe
bikeways for families and young people,” Jelks said. “That whole process has
been somewhat rooted in flood control work that we're doing.”
Completing a joint channeling and trail development
initiative proved to be an ambitious and costly project with what Ennis
labeled a price tag of roughly $13 million — $6 million of which was funded by
the city of Meriden. The other $7 million, Ennis said was acquired through a
mixture of federal and state grants.
Jelks attributed the success of channeling in recent years
to an influx of cash from Hartford and Washington, as well as a willingness on
the part of local bureaucrats to finance a development she sees as vital to the
long term economic stability of both business and homeowners in Meriden.
“I'm just extremely happy that we've been fortunate in
Meriden to receive state and local support on trying to complete these
projects, which we know ultimately will be of benefit to not only the
businesses that are in downtown district, but even some homes that we're going
to be lifting out of flood control,” Jelks said.
At East Norwalk I-95 interchange, CT's first 'diverging diamond' intersection is still on table
NORWALK — Nearly four years after plans for a complete
redesign of the East Norwalk Interstate 95 exchange, the state continues to
study whether the area should be converted into Connecticut's
first "diamond intersection."
In early 2019, the state Department of Transportation
announced it was considering restructuring the I-95 interchange on East Avenue
in East Norwalk.
At the time of the project’s announcement, the state was
looking to convert the interchange to a “diamond intersection,” which would be
the first of its kind in Connecticut.
"A traffic study is ongoing to determine if a diverging
diamond is a feasible alternative in the area, and what other potential
alternatives may improve safety and alleviate traffic," DOT spokesperson
Josh Morgan said. "A timeline for this potential project is still being
developed."
Near the overpass eyed for the diamond intersection, the
state recently purchased a plot of land for $3.85 million. However, the land is
not intended for use in the I-95 interchange, Morgan said. The property, at 180
East Ave., was instead purchased as part of the Walk Bridge project.
The diverging diamond interchange would involve both
directions of traffic briefly crossing over to the opposite side of the road
between the on- and off-ramps. The proposed design would eliminate the need for
drivers to cross oncoming traffic, theoretically resulting in less
bottlenecking at the intersection.
The change would also decrease the amount of dangerous
T-bone accidents and limit time spent at traffic lights, Matthew Vail, a
principal engineer of state highway design for the DOT previously said.
Diverging diamond interchanges first became popular in
France during the 1970s and, since the early 2000s, have begun to catch on in
the American Midwest.
During a June 2021 public hearing on median reconstruction
and resurfacing of I-95, DOT’s Andy Fesenmeyer confirmed the diamond design is
still under consideration for the intersection.
“This project is currently in the concept stage and options
are being evaluated,” Fesenmeyer said, according to the meeting minutes.
STAMFORD — Mayor Caroline Simmons' proposed $91.4 million
total capital budget funding for next fiscal year is more than 60
percent higher than this year's adopted $55.5 million, and the lion's
share of the new spending would be on school projects.
Borrowing would fund $56.2 million of the capital budget for
the new fiscal year, which begins July 1. The rest would be funded through
other sources, such as state or federal grants.
Of the total proposed capital budget, $51 million would be
set aside for school projects, with $34.5 million funded by bonding. The budget
would increase authorized bonding for school projects by about $28 million
compared with the 2022-23 fiscal year — which Simmons said is needed to advance
a 20-year,
$1.5 billion master plan for Stamford schools.
“Investing in our schools is essential to executing our
long-term facilities plan, so we increased the amount of bond authorization for
school facility projects in this budget,” Simmons told members of the Board of
Finance and Board of Representatives during a joint meeting Wednesday night.
In December, the Board of Finance set a $70 million
borrowing limit for the coming fiscal year — a $30 million increase driven by
the schools’ master plan. The city and the state are expected to share the
total cost of the plan roughly 50-50.
Simmons said the school projects within the fiscal 2023-24 capital budget include a roof replacement at Stamford High School, new flooring at Julia A. Stark Elementary School and improvements at Rippowam Middle School and at Springdale, Davenport Ridge, Northeast and Newfield elementary schools.
Here are some of the budget items that Simmons highlighted
in her presentation Wednesday to the Board of Finance and Board of
Representatives as well as in letters accompanying her proposed operating and
capital budgets.
ROADS AND SIDEWALKS
Simmons' capital budget seeks a $5 million allocation for
road paving and $300,000 for sidewalk reconstruction outside of downtown
Stamford.
"Our goal is to get an adequate sidewalk around all of
our school buildings over the next three years," Simmons said during
Wednesday's presentation.
PEDESTRIANS AND BICYCLISTS
Simmons has suggested using $500,000 in federal American
Rescue Plan Act funding to build bicycle and pedestrian facilities in the
Pepper Ridge and Hubbard Heights areas of the city and another $500,000 in ARPA
funding for two traffic studies - one of the Cove and East Side neighborhoods
and one to design improvements to the state-owned
Washington Boulevard.
The mayor also wants to bond $250,000 for an inventory of
sidewalks and pedestrian ramps; $1.5 million for roadway design and
reconstruction projects; $1.2 million for traffic signals; and $1.4 million for
a redesign of the West Main Street corridor. The U.S. Department of
Transportation awarded
the city a $2.1 million grant for the West Side project last year.
PUBLIC SAFETY
Within the proposed capital budget is $1.7 million in
funding for fire department apparatuses; $500,000 to replace fire hydrants;
$200,000 for the Glenbrook fire station; and $200,000 for specialty police
vehicles.
The city is also "making enhancements to the way that
our Emergency Communication Center, or our 911 call center, is staffed,"
Simmons said Wednesday. Members of the Board of Representatives have voiced
concerns about the center's staffing.
PARKS
Simmons' capital budget proposes a total of about $2.6
million in funding to make upgrades at Cummings Park, Scalzi Park, West Beach,
Barrett Park, Carwin Park, Hatchfield Park, Cove Island Park, Kosciuszko Park,
Northrop Park and Fort Stamford.
"One of my goals is to ensure that every resident in
our city has access to a quality park within a 10-minute walk of where they
live," Simmons said.
SUSTAINABILITY
Simmons included a $125,000 request in her capital budget to
install charging stations for electric city vehicles. She also asked for
$250,000 for an inventory
of trees in city rights-of-way and larger parks; $50,000 for tree
replanting; and $100,000 for remediation of tree pits in Stamford's downtown.
HOUSING
Simmons has proposed adding a position to the city's Land Use Bureau that will focus on housing. She also requested $1.25 million in her capital budget to support the redevelopment of Charter Oak Communities' Oak Park affordable housing community.
While the budget would authorize a total of $56.2 million in
bonding, Simmons said the city plans to only issue $50 million in bonds later
this year. Lauren Meyer, a special assistant to Simmons, told The Stamford
Advocate that the city will determine which city and school projects are
“shovel ready” and bond for them then. Last year, the city sold $40 million in
general obligation bonds.
Simmons has also proposed to raise $20 million through taxes
and reserve the cash for school projects. It would be a repeat of what the
Board of Finance and Board of Representatives decided to do during last year’s budget process.
“This reserve will allow for full payment of invoices
related to school improvement projects until our state reimbursement is
received,” Simmons said.
A state budget bill signed into law last year increased
the reimbursement rate for certain school construction projects in
Stamford from 20 percent to 60 percent for 25 years.
In addition to school buildings, Simmons said her
administration prioritized spending on roads, sidewalks and pedestrian safety projects; public safety equipment; parks
and sustainability projects; and housing.
Separately from the capital budget, Simmons rolled out a
$654.7 million operating budget for the city and its schools — which would
represent an overall increase of 3.7 percent from fiscal 2022-23.
Simmons didn’t mention a potential average mill rate.
Property taxes account for more than 90 percent of the city’s revenue.
The schools’ portion, approved
by the Board of Education last month, makes up $314.8 million of the total
proposed operating budget. It would be a 4.3 percent increase for Stamford’s
public schools if approved without cuts.
The Board of Finance and Board of Representatives only have
the power to make cuts to the proposed capital and operating budgets; they
cannot add funding to the proposal.
Simmons has asked for $329.2 million for the “city side” of
the operating budget or a 2.98 percent increase. The total figure includes
$191.8 million for operating expenses, $83 million for employee and retiree
benefits and $53.8 million for debt service payments.
Simmons said the main cost drivers in her proposed operating
budget included employee salaries and benefits.
“On the salary side, the majority of those (increases) were
contractual wage obligations, but we did also add new positions, which I
believe were mission critical to serving the city,” she said. “With respect to
benefits, we did see an increase in active health care benefits due to an
increase in premiums.”
In terms of savings, Simmons said the city’s pension and
other-post-employment-benefits costs were down.
“It’s mostly due to two factors,” Simmons said. “One is that
the number of retirees changed, and two is we switched a number of our OPEB
retirees to the state partnership (health) plan, which resulted in cost
savings.”
104-year-old Norwalk-based construction company that built Merritt Parkway to close
Dan Nowak
NORWALK — A 104-year-old, family-run construction company
that built the Merritt Parkway and countless other projects in the city and
state will close.
Despite some mixed feelings, owners Mike and Dan Deering
have decided to shut down the Deering Construction company, a family-run
business that's spanned five generations.
“This wasn’t something that was planned, it’s bittersweet,
but it’s the right time for us,” Mike Deering said. “We’re at that retirement
age now, we talked about it and it’s a good time for us to step away.”
Mike Deering is 60 and his brother Dan is 65.
The company plans to auction off everything — from outdoor
heavy machinery to office desks and chairs — beginning 10 a.m. Saturday until
all is sold at the company site at 20 Sherman Ave.
Deering Construction was started by their great grandfather
Dan Deering in 1919. The company has provided construction services in greater
Fairfield County and throughout Connecticut. Its services include heavy civil
construction, excavation and grading, storm drainage, sewer, utility,
streetscape construction and Bituminous Concrete paving.
The construction of the Merritt Parkway, one of the
company’s first projects, and the Route 7 Connector were two of the biggest
projects for the company. There are three final projects to be completed,
including the Norwalk
River Valley Trail. Mike Deering said the company will completely shut down
when the last three projects are done at an unspecified date.
“It’s been a great experience for the five generations of
our family,” Mike Deering said. “Thanks to everyone who used our services over
the years.”
Bethel to demolish old police station with federal funds; affordable senior housing weighed for site
BETHEL — With nearly $200,000 in federal funds allocated for
its demolition, the former police station building on Plumtrees Road may
be on its way to becoming affordable senior housing, if some town officials get
their way.
The Board of Selectmen voted during its Feb. 27 meeting to
use $194,500 in COVID relief money from the American Rescue Plan Act to tear
down the old building. It has sat mostly vacant since the fall of 2018, when
officers moved into the new police station on Judd Avenue.
“We’re looking at options for affordable senior housing and
part of getting (the old police station) out of the way is to that end,” First
Selectman Dan Carter said Wednesday. “That is our primary goal right now.”
It’s been nine months since the Board of Selectmen approved the old police station’s demolition, and Carter
said the decision to use ARPA money was made after plans to get a state grant
fell through.
“We had a package all set up and were hoping to have it
funded by a STEAP grant, but we didn’t get the grant, so we decided to go this
way,” he said.
In addition to approving the teardown of the old police
station in June 2022, the Board of Selectmen authorized the town finance
department to seek bids for remediation and demolition of the vacant facility.
Bethel’s first selectman at the time, Matt Knickerbocker,
said demolishing the old police station and repurposing the land would be more
economical than spending $1.5 million to $2 million in an attempt to salvage
the building. Anything constructed in its place would need to be built to
different specifications due to nearby wetlands, he said.
The idea is to build affordable senior housing on the site,
Carter said, but nothing has been finalized.
“If we can’t do it for whatever reason, we have other
options on the table,” he said.
Other ideas floated for the old police station property have
included a skate park and additional parking for nearby soccer fields.
Selectman Rich Straiton proposed the senior housing last year, saying it would be
“a great asset to the town,” while helping to fulfill the housing needs of
Bethel’s aging residents.
No date has been set for the former police station’s
demolition, but Carter said he expects it to take place in the next few months.
In Hartford’s Parkville, a $92 million redevelopment wins key state funding approval
HARTFORD — A redevelopment of an abandoned factory that was
once a cornerstone of Hartford’s Parkville
neighborhood won a key, state funding approval Friday for a $92 million
conversion into apartments and business incubator space — a project that could
significantly boost the Parkville
Arts & Innovation District.
The highly ambitious conversion of the three-story, former
Whitney Manufacturing Co. would take its place among the largest and most
complex redevelopment projects in the city in the last decade.
On Friday, a committee of the Capital Region Development Authority, the
quasi-public agency that provides state taxpayer-backed loans for housing and
other development projects in the city and surrounding suburbs, approved an
$8.5 million loan for the factory conversion.
“This project I see, and the city sees, as a linchpin in the
broader Parkville revitalization, redevelopment effort, which was accelerated
by the creation of the Parkville Market and the expansion of the market which
is now underway,” Hartford
Mayor Luke Bronin, a member of the CRDA’s housing and neighborhood
committee, said, at Friday’s meeting. “And to really build on that momentum, we
want to create residential density and make sure that area around that market
is a viable, walkable neighborhood and what achieves that is getting
residential density in that vicinity.”
Creating a vibrant, energetic neighborhood is key to attracting
— and keeping — workforce talent that will not only benefit Hartford but the
rest of Connecticut, Bronin said.
Bronin also said the city’s strategic plan of development
includes the Parkville Arts & Innovation District as one of the 10 projects
that could transform Hartford by the time the city turns 400 in 2035.
Developer Carlos A. Mouta, a major force behind
redevelopment in Parkville, including the successful Parkville Market food hall, plans
235 market-rate apartments on the upper floors of the factory, at the corner of
Hamilton Street and Bartholomew Avenue, and almost exclusively studios and
one-bedroom units. The plans include 45,000 square feet of business incubator
space on the ground floor to foster new start-ups.
Mouta told the committee he focused on studios and
one-bedroom units because they are in demand in the neighborhood. Parkville’s
existing three- and six-family houses accommodate larger families, Mouta said.
The planned rentals would include studios, one- and
two-bedroom units ranging in size from 325 square feet to 975 square feet.
About 60% of the units would be larger studios, at 450 square feet. Estimated
monthly rents for the studios range between $1,089 and $1,281. One-bedrooms are
estimated at $1,760, and two-bedrooms, $2,413. Rents include utilities and
internet.
In addition, there would be seven penthouses in existing
space on top of the building. They would range in size from 775 square feet for
a unit with one-bedroom to 1,225 square feet for two-bedroom units. Estimated
monthly rents would range from $2,167 to $3,285.
CRDA’s full board must still approve the financing plan
backed by its committee, and the State Bond Commission also must sign off.
Construction — expected to start this year — is forecast to take about two
years.
Mouta is nearing completion of an environmental clean-up at
the property, funded by a $4 million city loan, included in the overall cost.
The conversion of the factory, built in 1906 with successive
expansions until 1941, would help more sharply define the arts and innovation
district. A major focus of the district is creating innovation space to form
startups while providing space for them to grow and creating jobs at all skill
levels. While the plan rests heavily on encouraging innovation, it also seeks
to create new housing, after-hours dining and entertainment, and a thriving
arts community —all aimed at revitalizing a long impoverished area of the city.
The district also seeks to tap into the roots of the
Parkville neighborhood, once a hub of manufacturing turning out bicycles,
typewriters and automobiles. Bartholomew Avenue is envisioned as the “spine” of
the district.
The conversion of the Whitney Manufacturing plant would
rival the stature of projects such as the $85 million conversion of the former
bank headquarters at 777 Main Street
into apartments, completed in 2015; the unfolding North Crossing development
around Dunkin’
Park, the city’s minor league ballpark; and the planned Bushnell South
project near The Bushnell Center for the
Performing Arts.
In addition to an $8.5 million CRDA loan, financing includes
$12.8 million in developer equity, a $17 million bank loan, $26.4 million in
historic tax credits, $5.75 million in deferred developer fees and a $17
million loan from the Connecticut
Green Bank to improve the building’s energy efficiency.