Stafford receives more than $530K in state funding to replace bridge on Cooper Lane
STAFFORD — A state grant of more than $530,000 has been
awarded to the town to help cover the replacement of an aging bridge on Cooper
Lane.
The state is providing grants totaling more than $17.3
million for the replacement of several bridges on roads maintained
by municipalities.
The state
Department of Transportation announced the grants this week for 15
projects in Connecticut that will be funded through a state program that fixes
bridges on local streets.
The State Local Bridge Program is a cost-matching grant that
provides half of a project's costs for locally owned bridges.
Among the bridges to be replaced is the one on Cooper Lane
in Stafford, which is being paid in part by the $532,550 grant from the DOT.
"This is great news for Stafford and for the people who
rely on this bridge every day," said Sen. Jeff Gordon, R-Woodstock,
whose district includes Stafford. "Strong infrastructure means safer
travel, more reliable routes for emergency responders, and better quality of
life for our towns."
Rep. Kurt Vail, R-Stafford, called the funding "a great
win for Stafford."
"It not only helps ease the financial burden on our
local taxpayers, but also ensures that we continue to invest in infrastructure
that keeps our town moving safely," he said, adding the Cooper Lane bridge
is one of several infrastructure upgrades the town is planning.
Nine municipalities throughout the state will receive state
funding in this round of grants, with the Brown Street bridge over Great Brook
in Waterbury receiving
the largest sum of more than $4 million.
Cheshire, New Milford, Newtown, Redding, Sharon,
Southbury, and Stamford are
also recipients, with grants ranging from roughly $523,000 to more than $2.4
million.
Municipalities administer all design and construction
aspects of their individual projects and the DOT oversees project milestones
and provides guidance.
"This program helps keep locally owned bridges in good
repair, ensuring they remain safe and reliable for all travelers," DOT
Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said. "As the program continues to deliver
real results for communities both big and small, its popularity grows year
after year. We're proud to support these efforts and get the projects to the
finish line."
Throughout the state, there are roughly 4,200 bridges and
culverts on roads maintained by municipalities, according to the DOT. While
construction and maintenance of the structures are the responsibility of
municipalities, the state created the local bridge program in 1984 to minimize
the financial burden on local budgets.
The program has provided about $162 million in grants to
Connecticut's municipalities since 2016, according to the DOT.
Federal funding is provided to the DOT each year to help
support the program that replaces or rehabilitates structures that meet the
funding criteria under the program.
Gordon said he's proud of increased investments in public
infrastructure in recent years.
"These improvements strengthen our communities and help
keep people safe," he said.
Bristol joins new agency with funding to boost downtown developent across the state
Brian M Johnson
BRISTOL – The city is partnering with a new state
development agency that has $60 million to boost housing development in town
centers around the state.
The Bristol City Council approved a memorandum of
understanding with the CT Municipal Development Authority on Tuesday night,
opening the door for the city to access those funds as it looks to continue
downtown redevelopment.
Founded last year and funded with $60 million in state bond
money, the quasi-public CT Municipal Development Authority is set up to help
cities and towns spur development in their downtowns and districts near public
transportation.
Justin Malley, Executive Director of Economic &
Community Development for Bristol, said the council’s decision to join with the
authority doesn’t guarantee any funding, but gives Bristol the opportunity to
apply for funding in the future.
Malley said the authority is new and working to partner with
cities and towns across Connecticut. Joining gives Bristol and local developers
the ability to work with the authority on possible grants and financing in the
future.
“If we don’t become members, we have no way to work with
CMDA so this first part is critical,” Malley said.
Mayor Jeff Caggiano said the redevelopment of the J.H.
Sessions Building into housing is a good example of a project that could
benefit from accessing more funding from the authority to fill the gaps.
“It’s very hard to do development right now, so we would be
heavily focused on any funding for housing development in the downtown area,”
Caggiano said. “There could be other infrastructure support that would be
helpful, whether it be the streetscapes that we’re doing on Riverside or North
Main Street that could also help development.”
Slim: Egypt's Central Bank Cautious Over Inflation
Felix Reyes, chair of the board of the CT Municipal
Development Authority explained that once a city signs a memorandum of
understanding, they can apply for funding for a wide variety of development
projects. The Board will then review and decide on whether or not to approve
the allocation.
“Gov. Ned Lamont felt that we need to densify urban
centers,” he said. “Many municipalities face challenges in developing those
centers. We can provide ‘gap funding’ capital to assist with a variety of
projects. Funding can be used for anything from putting in a new sewer line to
constructing a new building.”
The vote was taken following a public hearing on Tuesday
evening in the council chambers of City Hall. It was approved unanimously.
“No members of the public attended, but it gave the council
a chance to ask questions,” said City Councilor Cheryl Thibeault. “I asked if
there were going to be any unfunded mandates or costs associated with it and
there are not. We also have the option to drop out of the memorandum at any
time. I will gladly take any kind of additional funding resource.”
The city still needs to approve a more formal memorandum of
agreement with the authority before it or local developers can apply for any
funding, Malley said. When that happens, he said they will be able to apply for
financing for multifamily housing development, downtown infrastructure and
other investments that will encourage development.
Generally, the authority is interested in a city’s downtown
area, or areas near transit, Malley said. The actual area of focus will be set
by the memorandum of agreement, he said.
There are no specific plans for how to use the funding in
Bristol at this point, he said. But the council’s approval allows the city to
move forward with a memorandum of agreement, opening the potential for funding.
State has started to buy property for $80M Norwich roundabouts project
Daniel Drainvile
Norwich — The state Department of Transportation has begun acquiring the properties it needs to move ahead with its controversial plan to install four roundabouts on a section of Route 82 known as "Crash Alley."
Last month, the DOT wrote that the $80 million project is in the final stage of being designed and it anticipated speaking with property owners later this year about purchasing land needed for the project.
But the DOT had already acquired a couple of properties along the busy road, also known as West Main Street.
A 0.24-acre parcel located at 454 West Main St. was acquired by the state last month by condemnation. The property, formerly owned by Suruj Miah, includes a building that currently houses Garage Barber Shop. Miah, who purchased the property almost exactly one year ago for $150,000, could not be reached to comment.
The notice of condemnation states that the DOT is taking the property because it is necessary for the safety improvements on Route 82. Miah was paid $210,000, about $34,000 more than the land's appraised value.
"Unfortunately, yes I have to move," barber shop owner Lorenzo Baulino confirmed Wednesday, "And as soon as possible. I talked to the state last Monday about that. I figured out another place, thank God."
Baulino, who said he will move to a location on the same street, added he feels terrible about having to move out, but had no choice.
"When the state is interested in some property, it don't matter what we're going to do," he said. "We have to move."
According to real estate transactions filed in the city clerk's office, a second parcel at 297 West Main St., the former location for Strange Brew Pub, which moved to Water Street in 2017, was purchased by the state in May, for $345,000 — about $100,000 more than its appraised value. Documents specify the purchase was made for the roundabouts project.
The DOT said Thursday it had not acquired any other parcels since June 27 but three acquisitions are pending.
Take it or leave it
The DOT's original plan, which involved installing six roundabouts, received substantial criticism from residents, business owners and some city officials. The DOT then eliminated the proposed roundabouts at Mount Pleasant Street and New London Turnpike.
The revised two-phase project calls for roundabouts to be built at the junctions of Asylum/Mechanic streets and Osgood Street in the first phase, and then at Dunham Street and Norman Road in the second phase. The current four-lane commercial strip would be reduced to two lanes, with a median divider to prohibit left turns. The DOT needs to acquire properties for both phases.
The DOT said the first phase will cost $30 million, which will be funded 80% by federal funds and 20% by state funds. The first phase would require five total property acquisitions. Those include the entire corner of Asylum Street at West Main Street.
Sign Professionals, a sign-making business that's been in its 303 West Main St. building on that corner for more than a decade, is currently negotiating with the DOT over the costs associated with moving his business, owner David McDowell said Wednesday.
He said the building, which he owns, is close to being sold to the DOT. McDowell said people and businesses in the city have been amazing, and that he plans to stay here or "very close by."
Likewise, All the Right Moves Dance Studio, located at 299 West Main St., is at the same stage of negotiations, said owner Dayna Gallivan. The DOT is expected to close on the sale of the building in the coming weeks, while Gallivan said she is still negotiating with the DOT costs for moving, and outfitting a new building for her dance studio.
Gallivan has owned the business for 35 years, 30 of which she's spent in the 299 West Main St. building.
"This is a thriving business," Gallivan said Wednesday.
She said DOT told her, "This is what we're giving you, and now you have to go and find another place."
She will now have to move out of the city, despite wanting desperately to stay.
"It's sad that they're not giving me enough money to relocate me in another building that I can call my own," she said.
Gallivan said the DOT is slated to pay her $230,000 for the property, which was "significantly less" than what she would need to to purchase another building that could accommodate her dance studio in the city. She said when she brought this up to the DOT, it told her she could always take out a loan.
"Therefore I have to move out of the town of Norwich, because there isn't any rent available that I can afford (here)," she said.
Gallivan plans to move the studio into the former Tally-Ho Mall on Route 2 in Preston, which in May was purchased by Richard Thayer, the owner of Thayer's Marine.
The DOT said in its most recent email that state law dictates the process for any property acquisitions.
"During negotiations, CT DOT obtains an appraisal prepared by an independent licensed real estate appraiser to determine fair market value, which is used to establish an offer," the department wrote. "If both sides cannot reach an agreement, or an owner can't convey a clean title to a property, then eminent domain may be used."
More acquisitions to come
First of two apartment complexes set to rise in Fort Trumbull
John Penney
New London — Bumblebees flitted on sprays of wildflowers and
an abandoned dock Thursday on a large patch of overgrown Fort Trumbull land
that will soon be home to the peninsula's first apartment complex.
New Haven-based RJ Development + Advisors LLC are expected
to break ground on a 251-unit complex by early next year at the latest, said
Felix Reyes, the city’s director of planning and economic development.
“The final financing for the project is in place and they
plan to apply for permits soon,” Reyes said. “People should start to see
movement out there by this fall or by January.”
The complex, one of two scheduled to be built by RJ
Development in Fort Trumbull, is slated to rise off Chelsea Street next to the
U.S. Coast Guard’s Research & Development Center and not far from the
city’s new community center. The building will include 44 studio, 136
one-bedroom and 71 two-bedroom market-rate units, and 234 parking spaces,
according to project planning documents.
Three peninsula projects
The project is one of three proposed by RJ Development in
the immediate area. A second apartment complex, this one on 28 Walbach St.
across from the city’s water treatment plant, will include 249 apartments.
Both complexes are nestled in the city’s maritime district
and opportunity zone, the latter offering tax breaks if certain conditions are
met by developers.
The City Council in 2024 approved nearly $6.5 million in tax
breaks over 20 years for the two apartment projects. The fixed tax
agreement with RJ Development would offset about half the $13 million in
estimated pre-construction costs needed to meet flood plain, remediation and
other sub-surface issues at the two sites.
RJ Development, representatives of which could not be
reached to comment Thursday, also plans to build a six-story private parking
garage bordered by Walbach, Smith, East and Trumbull streets.
The firm last year paid
the Renaissance City Development Association (RCDA), the city’s development
arm, $500,001 for the three properties that total 6.28 acres.
Reyes said RJ Development is still working to craft a master
lease agreement with Electric Boat, which has offices on the peninsula, for the
garage project. He said such an agreement would fast-track financing of the
project and get rows of cars off the narrow streets surrounding the area.
City Parking Authority Director Carey Redd said he’s been
trying since 2017 to get a parking garage in that area. He said the exact
number of planned spots has vacillated between 1,000 and 1,200.
“At any given time, EB workers take up 80 to 85% of the
off-street parking in that area,” Redd said Thursday. “A robust parking
structure would help with that and also open up opportunities for some overflow
parking from the (apartment complexes) coming in, which are both within walking
distance.”
While the incoming Chelsea Street complex will be the first
non-municipal project in Fort Trumbull proper, RJ Development previously built
the 200-unit Beams apartment complex on nearby Howard Street.
“This is a big deal, and I expect there’s going to be great
demand for those (new) units,” Reyes said.
Hotel project stalled
An unrelated project approved nearly four years ago appears
to have stalled. The Massachusetts-based Optimus Construction Management, which
specializes in senior living facilities, paid $750,000 in 2022 for 4 acres of
city-owned land on the northeast end of the peninsula.
The company pitched a 104-unit apartment complex and an
extended-stay hotel for the site, located near the Fort Trumbull Riverwalk.
Except for the recent installation of some test wells, that
property remains untouched. Reyes said Optimus has been “frustratingly quiet”
about its next moves.
“At least they cut the grass out there the other day,” he
said. “I hope we see some movement out there. They do own the land, but if they
can’t do anything, I hope they find someone who can.”
Optimus representatives could not be reached to comment
Thursday. Last year, RCDA Executive Director Peter Davis said Optimus was
trying to woo a "boutique hotel chain" to the property.
The Fort Trumbull area in the late 1990s was cleared of
homes and businesses as part of a plan developed by the city and the New London
Development Corp., the predecessor of the RCDA, to help jumpstart economic
development in association with the construction of Pfizer’s research
headquarters.
A bitter fight ensued in which a handful of property owners
refusing to sell their land led to the landmark 2005 U.S. Supreme Court case
Kelo v. New London. The court ruled in favor of New London and its use of
eminent domain to seize the properties for private development.
Except for construction of the Pfizer facility, now occupied
by Electric Boat, and Fort Trumbull State Park, the rest of the peninsula
remained undeveloped for decades, with the area becoming overgrown and devoid
of activity.
The city recently celebrated
the completion of its 58,000-square-foot New London Community Recreation Center
in Fort Trumbull that will open to the general public on Saturday.
According to the designs for the second phase of the project, the DOT will have to acquire the Sunoco and XtraMart gas stations, and a Wendy's on West Main Street.
The DOT last January said the first phase of the project would also involve 52 properties that would be impacted by partial acquisitions and easements.
A Chelsea Groton Bank branch at 44 West Main St. is one property that would be impacted by a partial acquisition.
Lori Dufficy, executive vice president of the bank, said the DOT told the bank in 2023 it would need to use a portion of the front of its property, where the sign is located.
"Which means they'd have to replace our sign, or give us funds for the replacement of our sign," Dufficy said. "They would take two parking spaces. And in return, they would help us reconfigure our parking an entrance there to regain two spots."
She said the bank has not heard from the DOT since.
Mayor Peter Nystrom, who has consistently opposed the project, said the project is "not popular at all."
He worries the project will hurt businesses on Route 82.
Nystrom said not only will the project result in the loss of 5 to 9 businesses but will have a prolonged negative impact on business over several years due to construction.
"People are going to lose their jobs... That's a major economic corridor. We're going to lose businesses, not because of construction, but because of lack of sales," he said. "This is going to be a long, protracted pain in the butt, for anyone who lives in that area, works in that area."
Michael Puffer
A push to transform two vacant office buildings into 201
apartments, a Starbucks and 9,200 square feet of retail space cleared a major
hurdle this week as the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission signed off on the
concept.
The preliminary
concept plan approved Tuesday outlines the layout, density, traffic
patterns and basic architecture of Litchfield Developer Mark Greenberg’s plan
to convert the office buildings at 1 and 10 Targeting Centre, and build a new
property on a neighboring vacant lot.
The 11.6-acre development area is just off Interstate 91.
Greenberg is partnered with Florida-based real estate developer Citicore
Development Group on the proposal.
Now, Greenberg and Citicore must return to the Planning and
Zoning Commission with a fully detailed plan for final approval. Greenberg said
he aims to clear that final hurdle in September, then begin building “right
away.”
Greenberg owns the three-story, 51,778-square-foot office
building on 5 acres at 10 Targeting Centre. He is under contract to buy the
neighboring four-story, 97,256-square-foot office building at 1 Targeting
Centre through a court-appointed receiver.
The owner of the larger office property is disputing the sale price in court.
Greenberg said phased development would begin with a new, four-story building
between the two office properties, and conversion of the office building at 1
Targeting Centre. After those buildings are significantly leased, he would move
to either convert 10 Targeting Centre into apartments, or demolish the building
and build a new apartment property on the site.
The building at 10 Targeting Centre was heavily damaged
during a burglary this spring, Greenberg said, and demolition and new
construction might make more sense.
Plans also call for a Starbucks building with a drive-thru
and a 9,200-square-foot retail building on the eastern edge of the site.