Plan to ease Hartford-area transportation troubles — including I-91/1-84 interchange — taking shape
A far-reaching plan for solving Greater Hartford’s
transportation troubles is now taking final shape, including a half-dozen
options under consideration for easing congestion at the I-91/1-84 interchange
in Hartford, a notorious bottleneck.
The interchange is at the center of the Greater Hartford Mobility Study,
launched in 2020. The
study is taking a comprehensive look at highway transportation, but it
also is going well beyond to include rail, bus, bicycle and pedestrian — and
how they connect and could work together to ease traffic congestion.
A report from the state Department of Transportation is expected this fall with recommendations that also would help reduce carbon emissions that, experts say, are contributing to climate change.
“We wanted to look at — not just how the interchange interacts with the city and with the other side of the river — we wanted to look at local roadways, pedestrian and bicycle facilities as well as looking at bus and rail transit services,” Shannon Burnham, a DOT spokeswoman, said. “So, it’s looking holistically at the Greater Hartford transit system.”
Traffic congestion is not only a frustration, it can impede economic growth because a city can be seen as too difficult to navigate — impacting the prospects for restaurants, bars, entertainment venues and others to build their businesses, said David Cadden, professor emeritus of entrepreneurship and strategy at Quinnipiac University in Hamden.
Cadden said office workers are more likely to leave earlier and not stick around for dinner, a show or a drink if they believe they need to leave early to beat the traffic.
“If people want to come in for the evening, and they don’t
want to be caught in a traffic jam, they might not come in,” Cadden said. “So,
it has a tremendous impact on the desirability of people to access facilities
within the city.”
The pandemic also threw another variable into the study with
fewer office workers spending the entire work week in Hartford and more working
full- or part-time at home, Cadden said.
The DOT declined to discuss details of the options now being
considered for the interchange. But it is likely some are similar to those
outlined in 2019 after an earlier study of the interchange. The I-84/I91
interchange is the busiest in Connecticut, serving 275,000 vehicles a day.
In 2019, the options for the interchange included rerouting
I-84 into the North Meadows and erecting a new bridge across the Connecticut
River; tunneling the highway through the South End or leaving the interchange
in place and just widening it.
A plan to bury
the I-84 viaduct between Park and High streets in Hartford and I-91
along the Connecticut river in Hartford also were on the table. Both plans have
been advocated for years by U.S. Rep. John B. Larson,
D-East Harford.
The interchange now features tight, sharp exit and entrance
ramps and only two through lanes on the Bulkeley Bridge.
Dramatic shift
The mobility study was a dramatic shift away from years of
focusing on highways to solve traffic congestion in the Hartford area. Those
efforts targeted both the I-84 viaduct —and whether it should be lowered or
buried in a tunnel — and what to do about the I-91/1-84 interchange at the
viaduct’s eastern end.
The viaduct replacement project was estimated in 2019 to
cost at least $5 billion. The cost of the interchange project had not been
pinpointed but would certainly run well into the billions of dollars, possibly
exceeding the viaduct project.
In 2019, just
as a recommendation on the viaduct appeared imminent, the DOT decided to
expand the focus to include more forms of transportation under the mobility
study.
The change was possible because repairs to the viaduct had
extended its life to 2040, and Larson was pushing for highway tunnels. But the
shift disappointed some who saw lowering the viaduct as a means to potentially
reconnect neighborhoods divided by the highway’s construction in the 1960s.
The area included in the study is now larger: stretching
from Bradley International Airport south to Cromwell and from West Hartford
east to Manchester.
The study is considering alternatives in East Hartford where
land — relieved of a tangle of exit and entrance ramps in what is known as the
“mixmaster” — could be redeveloped to build the town’s tax base and create
jobs.
The DOT’s Burnham said large projects such as the
interchange are still a priority. But smaller-scale improvements are likely to
get tackled first, within the next five years. Big-ticket improvements with the
interchange may be a decade or more in the future.
One example of a smaller project could be Pulaski Circle in
downtown Hartford, poised to become a gateway into the Bushnell South
redevelopment area nearby.
Vehicles traveling fast dump off I-91 into the traffic
circle near Bushnell Park. Once there, they converge with slower-moving
vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians already struggling to navigate the
confusing, even dangerous, area.
Pulaski Circle could be helped by more signs to urge those
exiting I-91 on what is known as the Whitehead Highway to slow down, planners
have said. What may ultimately be needed is a reconstruction into a modern
roundabout or intersection with traffic lights, they say.
Should Middletown City Hall, Russell Library be razed, rebuilt or relocated?
MIDDLETOWN — A committee charged with determining the
feasibility of relocating or building new municipal offices and a library has
determined that a vacated Main Street bank site cannot support a combined
facility.
The city has been in conversations with the owner of the
former Citizens Bank corporate offices at 225-243 Main St., on the corner of
College Street. It is being considered as a "potentially workable
site" for
a new municipal complex, Mayor Ben Florsheim said at the
June 5 Common Council meeting.
The feasibility committee hired an architectural firm that
determined the bank site is "quite suitable," but only for a new City
Hall, the mayor said, although the assessment was a preliminary one. The
municipal building is some 35,000 square feet.
However, parking would be an issue at the site.
The issue first came to light in August 2020, when the mayor
said the circa-1958 municipal building at 245 deKoven Drive had undergone
additions and renovations over the decades, but is at the end of its useful
life.
"This is not something that is going to be happening in
the immediate future," the mayor said.
The Russell
Library/City Hall Feasibility Study Committee also is exploring
options for the library's aging 123 Broad St. location, one block up from Main
Street.
The library is comprised of a number of old structures
dating back some 150 years and
has far outgrown its space. In addition, there have been a great deal
of structural and mechanical issues plaguing the facility. It originally
was designed to last only a century, Director Ramona Burkey said.
The Hubbard Room was added in 1930, and the last major construction
occurred in 1983.
“The building is definitely showing its age, she said. “Many
of our major mechanicals are at end of life, and (we are) just short of having
enough square feet to serve our population per Connecticut State Library guidelines.”
Also, it was designed before the Americans with Disabilities
Act was signed into law and the internet became popular. Plus, the third floor
was never built to support heavy book stacks, the director said.
“It is extremely difficult and nonsustainable right now in
its configuration to heat and to cool, and staff. It’s a lot of work to keep it
supervised and safe and secure,” Burkey said.
“You can’t keep adding on and making a big conglomeration of
buildings with many vintages. At a certain point, it gets to where you need to
start over with something major," she said.
An assessment conducted a few years ago determined the
current structure “isn’t functioning well as a 21st century library for us now
— and it won’t be going forward,: Burkey said. "It’s time to make those
plans and have the conversations and see what resources are out there."
Library administrators and the board of trustees want at
least some part of the current building to be an annex — or even a branch,
something the city had in several locations around town some 100 years
ago, Burkey said.
“All these ideas will go into the mix,” the director said.
A new facility would be supported mostly by the public
through a bond referendum, Burkey said. Federal funding is scarce, although
some grants are available through the state, such as the Community
Investment Fund 2030 and Connecticut
State Library.
The library has had a number
of issues in the complex, including significant flooding from heavy
downpours during a storm last November. When it comes time to activate the
air conditioning in the summer, staff “cross their fingers,” Burkey said.
Common Council member Anthony Mangiafico,
co-chairman of the feasibility study along with council Minority Leader
Phil Pessina, said members have determined that, even if the library buildings
were to be razed, the property lacks enough area for a modern-day facility and
parking.
The goal is to find a site between a 2 and 2½ acres,
Mangiafico said.
"People do not want to move the library to, let's
say, Westfield. They want to keep it somewhere in the general vicinity, to
make it a driver of economic development for Main Street," he added.
Committee members recently toured the bank
building, Pessina said. "It was quite revealing that, in the future,
it would be more than adequate for our City Hall and residents," he said.
"… It could be one-stop shopping."
With the Return
to the Riverfront master plan in the works, City Hall vacating the
site could mean new development there.
"The future of this site is one of the exciting
possibilities that has been opened up by this feasibility committee, whether it
is for a new library or another kind of development," Florsheim said.
“I’m really proud of Middletown. I’m really excited
that we are committed to making plans for the future,” Burkey said. “Nobody
that I’ve spoken with wants to kick the can down the road, because we know that
ends up being the least desirable and most expensive option.”
What's next for long-stalled POKO building on Norwalk's Wall Street? Developer updates original plan
Katherine Lutge
NORWALK — For years, the skeletal framework of the
unfinished building at 61 Wall St. stood as a reminder of stalled
progress due
to lawsuits. Finally, developers are moving forward with the project and
updating the original plan.
“As you can imagine, there has been an enormous amount of
interest in this project, in large part because it’s taken so long to get it
moving with the lawsuits,” said Louis Schulman, a member of the Planning &
Zoning Commission.
Architect Michael Weissbrod, representing Wall Street Recap
Associates, presented the “refinements” to the plan during the commission's
meeting last Wednesday. The commission previously approved the project in
December 2020.
“Generally, we are keeping in spirit with the previously
approved project,” said Weissbrod.
The previous developer had planned for an automatic parking
system in the basement of the building, but Weissbrod said they did not find
that plan feasible. In the presentation, he outlined new plans to put a fitness
center, bike storage and leasable commercial space in the basement.
Moving the fitness center and storage to the basement opened
up space on the second floor for two additional apartments, he
said. Weissbrod also mentioned plans to add two more apartments on the
sixth floor, increasing the total number of units from 101 to 105.
Parking was also one of the issues that stalled the project.
The 2020-approved plan included covered parking in the middle of the Wall
Street building and a parking garage across the street at 18 Isaacs,
the former
site of the Garden Cinema. The site will be transformed into a parking
garage with 50 additional units on top.
The original plans entailed a total of 151 housing units,
with 50 at market value, 35 for those qualified at 80 percent of the area
median income, 32 for those qualified at 60 percent, and 34 at 40
percent. Weissbrod confirmed that these numbers would not change with the
addition of the four extra units.
Weissbrod mentioned plans to create a green space for all
the residents to use above the covered parking in the Wall Street building.
The final change to the plan is to update the windows to be
more energy-efficient and alter the balconies to enhance safety.
“Previously, we had proposed these balconies to be 2- to
3-feet deep. We are now rethinking that to make them a little bit safer, just
proposing to make them Juliet-style balconies,” Weissbrod said.
When Schulman inquired about the project’s timeline,
Weissbrod expressed hope to begin construction within a couple of months.
“I think that is going to be very soon. We are just about
done with the construction document, so we are going to be going through the
final approval process with the city very soon,” Weissbrod said.
The Planning & Zoning Commission approved the changes to
the plans unanimously.
POKO History
In 2007, the city sold 61 Wall St. and some property on
Isaacs Street to POKO-IWSR Managers LLC under a Land Disposition Agreement,
aiming to revitalize the Wall Street corridor. However, the 2008 Great
Recession caused construction to halt, leaving the building only partially
completed.
Unexpectedly, in 2017, POKO’s CEO Kenneth
Olson died, leaving the property in a state of uncertainty.
Consequently, the two main properties were sold to separate owners: Citibank
acquired 61 Wall St., while developer Jason
Milligan obtained the remaining Isaacs Street property, which included
a large parking lot.
The sale of the Isaacs Street parking lot by the POKO estate
violated the city’s Land Disposition Agreements, resulting in years of
litigation.
Initially, POKO had planned to use Milligan’s Isaacs Street
property for parking in conjunction with 61 Wall St. However, the lawsuits
between Milligan and the city
entangled the development of 61 Wall St.
In April, a settlement was reached, compelling Milligan to
pay the city $1.25 million and provide 88 public parking spots.
The settlement allowed
Wall Street Recap Associates to proceed with their plans for 61 Wall St.
Hartford's Bulkeley High School will reopen a year later than expected after going $61M over budget
HARTFORD — Bulkeley High School at 300 Wethersfield
Ave. was quiet Friday morning. Surrounded by tall fences and appearing
abandoned, you'd never guess it was in the midst of a complete remodel.
School officials say the project is running behind schedule
and over budget. Construction on Bulkeley High School is set to cost
$61 million more and take a year longer than anticipated due to COVID-19,
supply change issues and inflation.
The project, which began in 2020 and was expected to cost
$149 million and re-open in fall of 2024, will now cost over $210 million and
re-open in 2025.
"Unfortunately, the pandemic has really put a damper on
these projects to where pricing allocated prior to the pandemic doesn't match
the escalation during and post-pandemic and COVID itself has led to the
increased costs of the project," said Paul Drummey, chair of the School
Building Committee.
The school building committee was able to turn to the state
to receive the additional funding needed to complete the project, a feat
Drummey is proud of.
"I have never been a part of such a joint collaborative
effort," Drummey said. "In such a short period of time to make up
that much money? It is an extraordinary feat."
The Bulkeley High School construction project divided the
student body into two campuses on opposite sides of the city. At a recent Board
of Education meeting, students
complained about food quality, student experience and conditions
inside the buildings.
Design phases on the project began in 2019. In 2020,
Hartford's central office relocated to the Bulkeley campus, and the students
moved to the two swing spaces, at the old Dwight Elementary School in the South
End and the old Mark Twain School in the Blue Hills neighborhood. The
construction on the central office building also cost more than expected,
according to Drummey.
The estimate for the construction was $29,750,000, but now is
projected to cost almost $35 million.
Drummey said he is remaining confident the project will not
be delayed again and that central office and Bulkeley will be occupied in 2025.
"I have a high level of confidence that this project
team, along with the city of Hartford and the Hartford Public School system are
going to get this project done in the fall of 2025," Drummey said.
So far, the city has spent just $23 million of the original
$149 million budgeted.
Over the last several months as the school building
committee has waited for the additional funding to come through, progress on
phases of the construction has stalled.
"There's been little to no labor on site over the last
couple of months as we have awaited the approval of these phase seven contracts,"
said John Butkus, program director with Arcadis / O & G / C & R
Program Management at a May 15 meeting of the committee.
Phase seven will include demolition and abatement left over
from phase five as well as working on the new exterior of the building. At the
May 15 meeting, Butkus reported the high school renovation project is just 10.6
percent completed, while the Central Office renovation is 49.1 percent
complete.
Norwalk prepares to bid farewell to old Cranbury Elementary School
Kalleen Rose Ozanic
NORWALK — The Cranbury Elementary School community is
preparing to say goodbye to its old building.
An official Cranbury School
Farewell Event on Saturday will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. At the
event, attendees can enjoy Cranbury memorabilia, look at pictures and
spirit wear, and take home a daffodil or iris bulb for planting.
The school’s gym wall will be open for writing farewell
messages or signatures.
Former and current Cranbury Elementary School staff
will be in attendance.
Lunch will be available from the JJB Wood Fire Pizza and
Pasta Truck, and treats from the Sono Ice Cream Truck.
As the community says goodbye to the old Cranbury school,
it says hello to the new building — where construction is slated to complete in
July.
The new two-story building is part of the $45
million project for a new Cranbury.
With about 65,000 square feet of space, it will serve students in
prekindergarten through fifth grade, starting this fall, with more than 20
classrooms as well as a separate cafeteria and gymnasium.
The new school will have more space for programming and
amenities for education, according to Principal Jennifer Masone.
"Having the gym and cafeteria in separate spaces will
allow for broader programming choices during school hours and beyond," she
said. "Classrooms are equipped with the modern furniture and technology to
support twenty-first century teaching and learning."
Most of the 33 acres on school campus are wetlands,
so the
new construction could only be next to the existing school, Project Manager
Michael Faenz said previously.
The old Cranbury School was originally built in 1959. For
years, parents have complained that parts of the building have fallen into
disrepair and that the community has outgrown its cramped classrooms and
hallways.
The new
building’s facade incorporates stone, brick and wood to reflect the
“park-like nature” of the surrounding area, Lisa Yates, an architect with the
Bridgeport-based firm Antinozzi Associates, said previously.
The school is in a largely wooded area south of Cranbury
Park.
“It’s the kind of space where you like to be outside, so we
like to have this feeling of bringing the outside in,” Yates said previously.
New sports fields will eventually be built where the
existing school is located, but that building will not be demolished until the
new school is operational in the fall.
According to the district’s website for
the project, when the construction is completed, “the existing elementary
school will be demolished and a new parent driveway loop and parking area, as
well as athletic fields and two age-appropriate playgrounds, will be
constructed.”
$25M industrial building development planned for Southington site
Alocal development team is seeking land use permits for a
vacant parcel in Southington that they will sell for a future industrial warehouse
project.
Mark Lovley and Jason Manafort, principals of Technology
Industrial Park LLC, bought a 53-acre vacant parcel at 53 Spring St., for
$550,000 in 2021.
They are seeking wetlands and planning and zoning board
approval for a 283,000-square-foot industrial warehouse that will be built by
Pennsylvania-based Johnson Development Associates Inc.
Once land use approvals are in place, the national real
estate developer would purchase the property from the Technology Industrial
team for an undisclosed amount, Lovley said.
Johnson Development has six office locations throughout the
U.S., and has developed more than 28 million square feet of industrial
property, along with 28 multifamily communities, and more than 70 self-storage
facilities, according to the company website.
Lovley said Johnson has projects in Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, Florida and the Carolinas, and is looking to expand into the
Connecticut market with this Southington project.
The $20 million to $25 million industrial facility will be
built on spec, or without a tenant secured, and can be subdivided for up to
four tenants, Lovley said. Plans call for up to 63 loading bays, 76 trailer
parking spaces and 202 employee parking spaces.
Tenants would include industrial storage and distribution
operations, but no manufacturing, Lovley said.
He anticipates a spring 2024 construction start, with
occupancy roughly nine to 12 months later.