New exit and ramp from Route 15 north to I-91 north to open at Meriden interchange
Another change is coming to the Interstate 91, I-691
and Route 15 interchange in Meriden that
may take some time to show up on drivers’ navigation systems.
A new ramp, marked Exit 64A, is set to open Wednesday that
will connect Route 15 northbound to I-91 northbound. An existing ramp between
the two highways — Exit 65A — will stay open.
The new ramp is part of a more than $712 million overhaul
of the interchange that started in 2023 and is expected
to be finished by 2030.
A notice
posted to the project’s website describes the opening of the ramp as
“an important milestone,” while also warning that “it may take a while for the
GPS guidance systems to reflect the new alignment,” so drivers should follow
posted signs and lane markings. The new exit is on the left, while the existing
exit is a little past it on the right.
“Motorists are advised to maintain a safe speed when driving
in this area,” the notice said.
The state
Department of Transportation has said that a speed
camera will operate on each side of I-91 when nighttime construction
work is taking place. The owner of a vehicle detected traveling 10 mph or more
over the 55-mph speed limit faces a written warning or $75 fine.
The ramp opening comes less than two months after a major
change to the way cars transition from I-91 northbound to Route 15 northbound.
In July, Exit 17 on I-91 northbound was permanently
closed, and traffic shifted to Exit 16. The state DOT advised drivers at
the time to disregard GPS guidance to the closed exit.
Meanwhile, for drivers traveling through Meriden, an
alternating one-way
traffic pattern recently went into effect on the bridge that carries
Murdock Avenue over I-91. DOT has said the traffic pattern will allow one lane
on the bridge to remain open while the structure is replaced over the next two
years.
Preston looks to prohibit data centers and large shipping centers
Daniel Drainville
Preston — Planning and Zoning Commission members agreed
unanimously Tuesday night to have Town Planner Kathy Warzecha draft regulations
to prohibit or limit the size of data centers and large shipping centers.
The regulations would include definitions of what qualifies
as a "large shipping center," and data center, and specify what the
town doesn't want, Warzecha said.
Locally and nationwide, elected officials have seen pushback
against AI data centers — including an unsuccessful proposal in 2023 by
developer NE Edge to build one in Waterford on the Millstone Power Station
property. Locally, there has been opposition to shipping centers as well, as
Killingly residents are fighting Amazon's plan to build a 1.3-million square
foot warehouse there.
Commissioner Victoria Schulz opened the discussion by saying
many communities close to Preston have seen proposals for large shipping
centers and data centers and specifically mentioned the Killingly project.
"I feel like they've seen that with Killingly, where
they pushed back against a few things, and they've gotten sued, because they
didn't have regulations for things," she said. "I feel like we have a
lot of farmland in Preston, and while we don't necessarily have the
infrastructure right now, it's not that it's not possible and not coming. So I
think it's best to have some at least basic regulations around them to at least
get us started when they do potentially approach us."
Warzecha told commissioners that if they didn't want to see
data centers or large shipping centers, and didn't think they’re good for the
town, they could add them to prohibited uses in the zoning regulations. She
said those regulations could always be modified later, if a company approached
and wanted to come put one in town.
“The likelihood that either of these uses would locate in
Preston is probably not high," Warzecha said.
Commissioner Kayla Thompson said if a company were to
propose a large shipping center in town, the company would probably want to put
it on Route 12, where there is close access to the highway.
"The only way that you would see that is if it went
into the Riverwalk property," Warzecha said. "And I don't even know
if they would be able to accommodate this there. But you don't know. So I don't
have a problem if you want to prohibit them, or if you do want them. Maybe you
do want them."
The commissioners shook their head no, and commissioner Art
Moran Jr. said “Not really."
"It doesn't really fit the character of the
community," Warzecha said.
Schulz posed the question of what kind of business the town
wants, and whether the regulations would be prohibiting business in the
community.
Thompson said she didn't want companies not to approach the
town with a business idea, but didn't want something massive.
"I think the key is the definition," Warzecha
said.
During public comment, resident Claire Stadtmueller
suggested the town take a more comprehensive approach to the regulation of data
centers.
She said the town needs a set of standards addressing the
size and electrical demand of a facility, water and cooling requirements,
wastewater, continuous noise, lighting, backup generation, emergency response,
infrastructure requirements, expansion of existing facilities, environmental
impacts and compatibility with neighboring properties.
“Would Preston benefit from having a data center, and if so,
how?” Stadtmueller questioned the commission, before asking how many permanent
jobs one would create, and how many of those jobs would be filled by Preston
residents.
She referenced other towns in Connecticut like Morris, which
has adopted a two-year moratorium on data centers, Groton which previously
imposed a temporary moratorium while it developed regulations and New Haven
which is currently considering a moratorium.
$30 million project would bring 125 apartments, modern retail to CT suburb
The site of a deteriorating, outdated South Windsor shopping plaza could
be transformed into 125 apartments with 60,000 square feet of modern retail
space under
a developer’s proposal.
Farmington-based REESG Properties is proposing a full-scale
makeover of the empty Sullivan Plaza on Sullivan Avenue, a project estimated at
$30 million.
Years of decay had the roughly 60-year-old strip center
teetering for most of the past decade, with the vacancy rate of small stores
rising as traffic dropped off and the building facades and parking lot fell
into disrepair.
The final loss was the anchor tenant, Geissler’s; the
supermarket chain had been the star attraction at the plaza since opening in
1988, but shut down the location last summer.
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Homeowners and small business owners nearby have been eager
to see the nearly 20-acre plaza property revitalized in some way; it’s been
fenced off from the street and derelict since Geissler’s departed.
“The proposed development will have a significant positive
impact on the surrounding neighborhood and the entire town of South Windsor,”
the town’s Economic Development Commission predicted on its website.
REESG’s proposal is to renovate 60,740 square feet of
commercial space.
It plans “development and renovation of the existing large
retail building to align with current trends in retail and the town
architectural character in a New England colonial style. New walkways
connecting each of the buildings and improved landscaping, including bicycle
parking, are proposed,” according to the town.
There has been no public discussion about potential tenants
for the space.
In addition, the company plans to build four three-story
apartment buildings along with a clubhouse of about 3,400 square feet. Three
would be a pair of 36-unit walk-up buildings and a 12-unit walk-up building,
along with a 41-unit building served by an elevator.
Preliminary indications suggest individual patios or
balconies along with a wide variety of apartments. The plan includes 17 studios
of 538 to 703 square feet, 50 one-bedroom apartments of 801 to 826 square feet,
and 16 one-bedrooms with dens each totalling between 943 and 958 square feet.
The apartments would be to the north and east of the
commercial building.
The company has not publicly specified projected rents nor
discussed a construction timetable. It is applying this week for a permit
through the local wetlands commission.
Hartford attorney Eliot Gersten of the Pullman & Comley
firm is listed as manager of REESG Properties, which is a co-owner of the
property along with the Zelda Gersten Trust and
REESG NEWCO South Windsor LLC.
The owners had proposed a similar redevelopment about six
years ago, but that stalled and was never built. At the time, the Goman & York
consulting firm projected that a 125-unit apartment project with 60,000 square
feet of retail could generate as much as $787,000 a year in new taxes for the
town. The net gain would be more than $500,000 a year after discounting higher
local government expenses, the report said.
“In addition, the mixed-use development will create and/or
sustain temporary construction jobs, permanent jobs, and generate new consumer
spending in local businesses,” the firm reported.