New Jersey-based NRG to Sell Middletown, Montville, Hartford and Devon Plants

NRG Energy, a New Jersey-based energy company, announced on Monday that it was selling 4.8 gigawatts worth of “non-core fossil assets” to a subsidiary of Boston-based ArcLight Capital Partners for $760 million. Schrader said NRG needs to have more discussions with ArcLight about their plans for the Middletown plant, where NRG has been working to […]

Share This Article:

read more

Bristol community forum to give updates on magnet school

The public school district is planning a community forum for city residents and families on Thursday, March 25, at 6:30 p.m. to provide updates on the progress of the Memorial Boulevard Intradistrict Arts Magnet School. The city and the Board of Education are collaborating on the project, which will be open for grades six through […]

Share This Article:

read more

Siting Council gives East Windsor solar farm green light

The approval marks the final significant hurdle for the project’s developers, D.E Shaw Renewable Investments, or DESRI, and North Light Energy. They anticipate construction to begin this summer with the bulk of it occurring in 2022, Aaron Svedlow, director of development for Gravel Pit Solar, said. Developers said the project would generate enough clean energy […]

Share This Article:

read more

Data center deal in Senate clears way for development

The Senate overwhelmingly gave final approval Monday to the data center incentives measure, as well as a second bill that pledges roughly $110 million to $120 million in new general government aid to cities and towns — but doesn’t commit the funds right now. Negotiations between the Senate Democratic caucus and the Lamont administration over […]

Share This Article:

read more

S. Windsor debates second grocery store at Evergreen Walk

Karen Johnson, vice president of development for Charter Realty, the new management company for the Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk, asked the PZC Tuesday to remove restrictions and allow a second 40,000-square-foot grocery store in the area. Zoning regulations don’t allow two grocery stores within 1,500 feet of each other in the Gateway Zone. The […]

Share This Article:

read more

‘Backbone of the digital age’: Lawmakers advance legislation to promote new data centers in Connecticut

The House voted 133-13 to send the data center legislation to the state Senate, which is expected to take up the measure next week. Governor Ned Lamont said the data center legislation, if passed, will encourage increased economic development for the state. Under the terms of the legislation, data centers will be required to be […]

Share This Article:

read more

Proposed bill takes aim at DOT’s tree-cutting practices along CT highways

The recently proposed bill from state Sen. Alex Kasser, D-Greenwich, and state Rep. Stephen Meskers, D-Greenwich, suggests forming guidelines that would conserve urban forests and examine how the Connecticut Department of Transportation manages trees along highways and railroads. Many residents and groups including the Greenwich Tree Conservancy have lamented the tree-cutting along the Metro-North Railroad […]

Share This Article:

read more

New Milford seeks affordable housing plan

New Milford is looking for a new affordable housing plan, with the hopes of increasing the town’s affordable housing from its current share of roughly 4.7 percent. The purchasing department is accepting applications from professional planners and consulting firms ready to develop the plan. The proposal must outline a plan to evaluate demographics, resources, and […]

Share This Article:

read more

New London Wins 10-Year Commitment For Northeast Offshore Deal on State Pier

State officials announced today the signing of a Host City Agreement between New London and a joint venture of Ørsted and Eversource that includes a 10-year commitment paying the city an average of at least $1 million each year during offshore wind operations at State Pier. The long-awaited agreement includes the potential for $250,000 to […]

Share This Article:

read more

Charter Oak Bridge Project Set to Bring Congestion Relief for Connecticut’s Capitol Region

The delivery of the Connecticut Department of Transportation’s (CTDOT) I-91 Charter Oak Bridge (COB) Project, a large-scale initiative that combines two projects to reduce congestion and improve safety in the city of Hartford, and towns of East Hartford, and Wethersfield, is less than two years away. The contract, administered by CTDOT, District 1 and the […]

Share This Article:

read more

O&G Industries Leads $54.6M I-84 Safety, Operational Improvement Job

The Connecticut Department of Transportation’s (CTDOT) $54.6 million I-84 Safety and Operational Improvements project in West Hartford, awarded to O&G Industries Inc., is based upon the mitigation of traffic congestion and safety concerns that can arise in heavy traffic situations. Stage 1A of the project, which was just completed, dealt with the first half of […]

Share This Article:

read more

New London community recreation center gains key approvals

A planned $30 million community recreation center received two key endorsements this month. The city’s Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously agreed to issue a positive referral on use of land at Fort Trumbull for the planned facility. The City Council already has approved the bonding for the estimated cost of the facility, which is still […]

Share This Article:

read more

House approves big municipal aid pledge, tax incentive bills

The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a measure Wednesday that effectively promises $110 million to $120 million in new annual aid to cities and towns — but doesn’t officially fund the initiative just yet. Legislatures and governors have struggled to maintain their commitment to PILOT over the past two decades as surging pension and other […]

Share This Article:

read more

Release of Biden’s infrastructure plan details delayed

President Joe Biden’s first address to a joint session of Congress — where he is expected to outline specific goals and priorities for measures like an infrastructure package — will not occur this month as was expected. The coronavirus package is legislators’ top priority, as they eye a March 14 deadline on unemployment benefits. Biden’s […]

Share This Article:

read more

Apartment plan near UConn Health draws Farmington neighbors’ opposition

A developer’s plan for 146 apartments near the UConn Health Center is drawing stiff neighborhood opposition. Farmington-based Metro Realty Group is presenting its plan as a way to bring modern apartments to a stretch of Route 4 that has become a medical and technology jobs corridor. The property is behind the Hartford Health Care Medical […]

Share This Article:

read more

Biden DOL Targeting Government Contractors for Wage Enforcement

As the administration readies those big-ticket legislative proposals, which would increase government investment in projects developed by private companies, the department has begun preparations to expand its investigative capacity under two statutes that require government contractors to pay workers prevailing wages and benefits, as determined by the DOL. The building trades and service unions have […]

Share This Article:

read more

Danbury’s downtown ‘needs to be refreshed’: City to start streetscape project amid COVID

Construction is expected to start in the spring on the first phase of a roughly $12 million project to upgrade the sidewalks and install amenities to make the downtown more pedestrian friendly and appealing to shoppers, diners and developers. The first phase includes redoing the Danbury Green and installing streetscape on Delay Street, National Place, […]

Share This Article:

read more

CT legislature poised to make early budget pledge to help cities and towns

The House of Representatives is expected to approve an omnibus bill Wednesday that commits more than $100 million in new aid to municipalities, shields thousands of residents with out-of-state employers from double taxation, and ends the controversial practice of placing liens on the homes of former welfare recipients. Legislative leaders also were considering a proposal […]

Share This Article:

read more

Developers hope Bridgeport’s newly named Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater on track for packed concerts

Saffan and his partner in the venture, veteran concert promoter Jim Koplik of Live Nation, were on hand at the amphitheater with other officials Tuesday to celebrate another milestone in their joint venture: The announcement that Hartford HealthCare, which in 2019 acquired Bridgeport-based St. Vincent’s Medical Center, had purchased the naming rights to the amphitheater. […]

Share This Article:

read more

Carrier Construction plans for commercial, residential development of large section of Centre Square

The city’s Economic and Community Development Commission reviewed Carrier’s letter of intent earlier in the month, planning to send them on to the council for action. The letter said Carrier intended to buy Parcels 6, 7, and 8 – a total of 3.44 acres – for $172,000. Carrier’s original plan was to build at least […]

Share This Article:

read more

Berlin planning to building new community, senior center, but plenty of questions remain

The town is planning to build a new community and senior center sometime in the near future, but the “when” and “how” are still uncertain. No referendum date has been set and community information sessions are not yet in the works. Public forums initially gaged interest in 2018, with residents expressing excitement about the possibility […]

Share This Article:

read more

As the Electrical Grid Collapses in Texas, New England Takes Note

Dan Dolan, president of the New England Power Generators Association, the trade group representing the region’s power producers, said the widespread power outages in Texas are a product of the state’s grid not being prepared for the extreme and prolonged temperatures that the state is experiencing. In New England, power producers invest in winterization, Dolan […]

Share This Article:

read more

‘Looking to develop’: Demand for homes could lead to construction spike in Connecticut

As home hunters pounce on listings nearly as fast as sellers are putting them onto the market in Connecticut, construction of single-family homes is shaping up as the state’s next boom following a decade of apartment construction. The last burst of new construction in Connecticut in 2008 ended up with many homes built “on spec” […]

Share This Article:

read more

Referendum on $137 million Farmington High School plan slated for June

Municipal officials are tentatively looking for a townwide vote June 3 on whether to tear down the high school and build a three-story replacement for $137 million. If voters approve the idea, architects would start work this summer, construction could begin in early 2022 and wrap up in mid-2025, Finance Director Joseph Swetcky told the […]

Share This Article:

read more

Offshore wind a good bet for CT

Currently, the United States has more than 28 gigawatts of offshore wind in development. According to the Department of Energy, offshore wind has the potential to generate more than 2,000 gigawatts of clean, renewable power per year, nearly double the nation’s current electricity use. In Connecticut, a redeveloped State Pier will be one of these […]

Share This Article:

read more

Spring groundbreaking set for 111-unit upscale Bloomfield apartment development

Krohn, of New Britain’s Jasko Development, and Zelman, of West Hartford’s Zelman Real Estate, said in a recent interview that they’ve named the project The Residences at Wash Brook, after one of several nearby brooks at the 20-acre site located midway between Routes 178 and 218. Fresh project renderings show a two-story atrium with a […]

Share This Article:

read more

Carrier Construction plans for commercial, residential development of large section of Centre Square

The city’s Economic and Community Development Commission reviewed Carrier’s letter of intent earlier in the month, planning to send them on to the council for action. The letter said Carrier intended to buy Parcels 6, 7, and 8 – a total of 3.44 acres – for $172,000. That means Carrier would acquire the entire remaining […]

Share This Article:

read more

Biden calls union reps ‘real friends,’ seeks their infrastructure input

Among those present were several heads of construction-related unions including Richard Trumka, the president of the AFL-CIO; Sean McGarvey, president of North America’s Building Trades Unions; and Lonnie R. Stephenson, the international president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, who served on Biden’s transition advisory board. “I said from the beginning of my campaign, […]

Share This Article:

read more

Finance panel eyes cap on property tax hikes, gears up for another battle over CT’s credit card

Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, the new House chair of finance, is spearheading the property tax cap, which he says was inspired in part by Massachusetts’ Proposition 2 1/2, a statute that has drawn national attention since Bay State voters enacted it by ballot in 1980. The poorest people in Connecticut in terms of adjusted gross […]

Share This Article:

read more

Courtney: State could get more than $4 billion if Congress passes COVID-19 relief package

Connecticut could receive more than $4 billion in federal coronavirus aid if Congress passes President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan. An estimated $2.7 billion would be allotted to the state and $1.6 billion to cities and towns, Courtney said. Courtney said Democrats see mid-March as the deadline for Congress to pass the legislation given that’s […]

Share This Article:

read more

State and local leaders support private development of Seaside property

State Sen. Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, has introduced a bill that requires the state Department of Economic and Community Development “to develop and issue a request for proposals to develop or dispose of the former Seaside Sanatorium facility in the town of Waterford and to preserve the adjacent area for a park with public access.” […]

Share This Article:

read more

Bristol City Council approves contracts to begin design process for renovating City Hall

The City Council has approved contracts to begin the design process for renovating City Hall, something council members said was long overdue. The contracts are for $175,770 to D’Amato + Downs Joint Venture to be the construction manager and for $760,750 to Quisenberry Arcari Malik for architectural engineering services. It’s important to improve the appearance […]

Share This Article:

read more

‘People don’t want to be poor:’ Bill touts apprenticeships as a key pathway to good-paying jobs

Across Connecticut, Vasaturo’s story is retold thousands of times in automotive garages, machine tool factories and scores of other trades where the path to good-paying jobs is not college but the “earn as you learn” apprenticeship track that was launched in 1937, when the nation was in the grips of the Great Recession. A $3.5 […]

Share This Article:

read more

After waiting for decades, Hartford’s Park and Main apartment development raises hope it will bring lasting change to a city neighborhood

The first phase of the $26 million Park and Main mixed-use development — 39 mixed-income studio, one- and two-bedroom rentals — is expected to begin leasing in April. A second phase of 87 apartments on the northern side of the intersection is scheduled to break ground next month. Park and Main is far more modest […]

Share This Article:

read more

Massachusetts demo firm hired for Waterbury project

City officials on Friday awarded a Massachusetts company a $1 million contract to demolish eight buildings of the former Anaconda-American Brass site on Freight Street. Costello Dismantiling Co. has six months to clear eight buildings on 10.5 acres at 130 Freight St., according to its contract with the Waterbury Development Corp. Eight companies bid on […]

Share This Article:

read more

Biden hopes infrastructure can bridge partisan divide

Biden met with lawmakers from both parties at the White House to discuss infrastructure on Thursday, even as the Senate is holding impeachment proceedings against former President Donald Trump where partisan divisions are on full display. “I’ve been around long enough,” Biden said, “that infrastructure wasn’t a Republican or a Democratic issue.” “The American people […]

Share This Article:

read more

Worker-hungry contractors say rules limiting apprentice hires stymies business

The state Department of Consumer Protection imposes a so-called “hiring ratio” on contracting companies in electrical, plumbing and metal-working trades. The rule is a bit technical but it essentially requires contractors to have a certain number of licensed journeymen on staff for each apprentice they hire. State Sen. Julie Kushner (D-Danbury) chairs the General Assembly’s […]

Share This Article:

read more

Lamont’s budget keeps transportation program afloat through 2026 with new truck fee

The two-year state budget Lamont proposed Wednesday includes a new highway mileage fee on trucks and includes Connecticut in a regional initiative to control greenhouse gases by changing transportation policy — a program that also would boost gasoline taxes. For years Connecticut has relied chiefly on fuel tax receipts to support the Special Transportation Fund, […]

Share This Article:

read more

Tolls and gas tax hike off the table so Gov. Ned Lamont will look for other ways to fund transportation improvements in his new budget

The state’s special transportation fund is facing a deficit of more than $60 million in the current fiscal year, and could face larger deficits in the future if moves are not made to shore up the fund. Connecticut has joined a regional climate initiative with nearby states, but Lamont’s chief spokesman says that does not […]

Share This Article:

read more

Multimodal Planning in the I-84 Danbury Corridor

At the third Project Advisory Committee (PAC) meeting in September, committee members were asked a series of questions about needs for the I-84 corridor in greater Danbury. The exercise provided the Project team with local insights and input towards the Project’s Purpose. Primer Multimodal planning considers many types of transportation including cars, buses, trains, bicycles, […]

Share This Article:

read more

Lamont uses federal dollars and reserves to boost local aid, avert tax hikes in his new budget

Gov. Ned Lamont will propose a $46 billion, two-year budget Wednesday that relies heavily on federal aid and state reserves to close a major deficit without tax hikes and bolsters funds for cities and towns. The package would channel more than $400 million in emergency federal relief to low-performing school districts, according to several sources […]

Share This Article:

read more

History Revisited: Local area no stranger to transportation levies

For the past several years, a great deal of debate has taken place when the state legislature introduced bills proposing electronic tolls on various major highways in Connecticut. The new highway bridge, ultimately named the Gold Star Memorial Bridge, opened to traffic in November 1943 and the established tolls for using this bridge included: 15 […]

Share This Article:

read more

How the PRO Act would change the construction industry

By redefining “employees” and “employers” in revisions to the National Labor Relations Act, the Protecting the Right to Organize Act grants benefits to workers previously classified as independent contractors. Additionally, the way in which unions and employers collectively bargain and agree could be altered in states where unions have little to no say in the […]

Share This Article:

read more

‘A godsend for the neighborhood:’ New development proposed in north Stratford

The owners of Ryders Landing want to put a new coffee shop on Main Street as the first phase of a development that could ultimately include retail and office space, a restaurant and a 105-room riverfront hotel. The Sbriglios own five properties totaling roughly 5.5 acres off Main Street immediately south of the Ryders Landing […]

Share This Article:

read more

New housing development along CTfastrak in West Hartford latest sign of revival along New Park Avenue

The $20 million project will bring another 52 mixed-income apartments to the mile-long stretch between the Elmwood and Flatbush CTfastrak stations. The “workforce” housing is expected to be ready for occupancy in May, 2022. Trout Brook Realty Advisors, the development arm of the West Hartford Housing Authority, planned both projects and sees a dual purpose. […]

Share This Article:

read more

Big changes could be coming for transportation around greater Hartford, from buried highways to bicycles. Here’s what’s under consideration.

The state Department of Transportation has been laying the groundwork for a comprehensive study ever since it made the startling announcement at the end of 2019 that the state would put a hold on replacing the viaduct and include it in a larger regional transportation plan. A broader array of transportation options are seen as […]

Share This Article:

read more

What a Marty Walsh-led Labor Department could mean for construction

Born in Boston, Walsh joined Laborers’ International Union of North America Local 223 in 1988 and worked his way up through the ranks to lead both Local 223 and the Boston Building Trades Unions before being elected mayor in 2013. Walsh also served in the Massachusetts legislature. Labor organizations hailed Walsh’s nomination as a win […]

Share This Article:

read more

Buttigieg DOT confirmation boosts hope for massive infrastructure investment

Industry and elected leaders praised Pete Buttigieg’s confirmation as Transportation Secretary after his nomination passed the U.S. Senate 86-13 on Tuesday. Buttigieg’s confirmation could be a boon for investment in the nation’s infrastructure, which has been called for on a bipartisan basis for many years, according to experts. During his nomination hearing before the U.S. […]

Share This Article:

read more

Eyeing Obstacles, Dykes Offers Optimism for State’s Green Energy Goals

The latest draft of Connecticut’s Integrated Resources Plan — a semi-annual assessment of the state’s electric supply needs and possible sources of energy supply — is being touted by the department as the first to identify sources of supply to meet the state’s goal of zero-carbon electric generation by 2040. Already, 65 percent of the […]

Share This Article:

read more

Construction set to begin on $20M W-Hartford mixed-use project

Construction of a $20 million mixed-use retail/residential project on West Hartford’s New Park Avenue is set to begin this month, with developers projecting a completion date of May, 2022. Trout Brook Realty Advisors, the nonprofit development arm of the West Hartford Housing Authority, is set to break ground on the transit-oriented development project located on […]

Share This Article:

read more

Wall Street, public construction firms eager for Biden’s infrastructure push

Major Wall Street firms and publicly traded construction companies are eagerly awaiting President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better infrastructure plan, which he said he will detail in his first State of the Union address scheduled for Feb. 23. While the plan is forthcoming, the president pegged it at as much as $2 trillion in the […]

Share This Article:

read more

It has been slow to arrive, but high speed rail could be coming

For the last three years, another high-speed rail concept has been quietly germinating, one that would go inland through Connecticut instead of along the shoreline. Called North Atlantic Rail, the plan originated at University of Pennsylvania planning studios directed by highly regarded planner Robert Yaro, former president of the Regional Plan Association and advised by, […]

Share This Article:

read more

Noise, dust and fumes: Ansonia neighborhood group vies with construction business

A cadre of Westwood Road residents claim the noise, dust and fumes generated by one of the city’s largest taxpayers is making their lives unlivable. And residents of the city’s Westwood Road neighborhoods also say they believe that Burns Construction is violating city zoning laws by crushing rock on the company’s Woodlot site. The association […]

Share This Article:

read more

Brookfield to vote on $3.6 million fourth phase of Four Corners streetscape project

The town plans to present the design for the $3.6 million fourth phase of its downtown revitalization project for approval at an upcoming special town meeting. Brookfield has completed two of five phases of the Four Corners streetscape project, and will start construction on its third phase this summer. Now, at 7 p.m Tuesday in […]

Share This Article:

read more

Work nears completion on missing Stratford exit ramps

Work to complete a $29 million reconstruction of the Interstate 95 Exit 33 interchange near the Milford border is ramping up — literally and figuratively. The new ramps will correct a quirk in the state’s highway history dating back to the days when toll plazas dotted I-95 and the Merritt Parkway. Removing the toll plazas […]

Share This Article:

read more

Biden’s Executive Orders Has Construction Industry Concerned

“The EOs also show how President Biden will incorporate his priorities into future rulemakings by asking agencies to ‘identify ways the regulatory process can promote public health and safety, economic growth, social welfare, racial justice, environmental stewardship, human dignity, equity and the interests of future generations.’” For transportation projects, “this could mean an increased focus […]

Share This Article:

read more

Connecticut’s building trades need the Killingly energy plant project

The 30,000 men and women of the Connecticut State Building Trades unions, were shocked and gravely disappointed by the Gov. Ned Lamont’s quotes, “I don’t want to build Killingly” and that the administration could “play some games there,” referring to slowing the permitting process at DEEP. These quotes are deeply hurtful to the hardworking members […]

Share This Article:

read more

Connecticut has nearly $1B in new federal relief. Legislators and municipalities want to know how Lamont plans to divvy it up.

Not long after Congress enacted a $900 billion relief bill on Dec. 21 — which President Trump signed six days later — Connecticut learned it included nearly $750 million to support education here, and more than $230 million for affordable housing. The linchpin of this new money was $492 million for elementary and secondary schools. […]

Share This Article:

read more

Danbury scrambling to build CT’s first condominium-style school before enrollment surge hits

The city’s plans to be first in Connecticut to open a school in an office park under a condominium-style agreement has put leaders in a race against an Oct. 1 grant deadline to get blueprints to the state. Missing the state deadline would make Danbury ineligible for an 80 percent reimbursement of the school’s estimated […]

Share This Article:

read more

Dominion officials discuss future of Millstone Nuclear Power Station

Gov. Ned Lamont stepped in to help secure the deal — called a power purchase agreement, or PPA — between Dominion, Eversource and United Illuminating. The contract calls on the utilities to buy half the plant’s output over the next decade. Dominion had threatened to shutter the 2,100-megawatt Millstone unless the state let it compete […]

Share This Article:

read more

New apartments, hotel proposed near Norwalk-Wilton border

iPark Norwalk II LLC filed a special permit application earlier this month for a 244,750-square-foot expansion to its property at 761 Main Ave. The expansion calls for two new buildings to be added to the property: A 164,750-square-foot apartment complex featuring three floors of residential housing over one story of parking, and an 80,000-square-foot, 120-bedroom […]

Share This Article:

read more

Connecticut Port Authority working to bring State Pier project on budget

Kosta Diamantis, deputy secretary for the Office of Policy and Management, addressed the Connecticut Port Authority this week and fielded questions about the possibility of costs escalating for the $157 million project, which is being funded through a partnership by the state and joint venture partners Eversource and Ørsted. OPM was tasked by Lamont with […]

Share This Article:

read more

146-unit apartment development proposed in Farmington’s medical district

The project, which is garnering opposition from nearby residents, is expected to be discussed during a planning and zoning meeting Jan. 25, and would convert vacant land on Farmington Avenue — across the street from Jackson Lab and behind a UConn Health building — into a 146-unit apartment development with 224 parking spaces, including garages. […]

Share This Article:

read more

Lamont to business: We need ideas for transportation funding

As he plans his two-year budget proposal, the state’s rapidly-depleting fund for transportation infrastructure is a major headache, Gov. Ned Lamont told a business audience on Friday. The state’s Special Transportation Fund is slowly but steadily going broke and could be exhausted by 2024. And updated transit infrastructure remains a key to the state’s future […]

Share This Article:

read more

A big infrastructure spending bill might finally be in the cards

“With the slim majority the Democrats have in the Senate, infrastructure spending is probably going to be one of the less controversial measures and could be implemented,” said Gautam Khanna, senior portfolio manager with Insight Investment. “A $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion package — somewhere in that zone — could get through.” But economists and […]

Share This Article:

read more

Building trades council exec joins Biden administration

Looman is now the deputy administrator of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, trades council President Harry Melander said in a press release. She started her new job Wednesday. “Jessica has dedicated her life to the labor movement and has been a pivotal voice in fighting for working families in Minnesota,” Melander […]

Share This Article:

read more

How much federal funding will each state DOT receive?

State departments of transportation are set to receive funds totaling $9.8 billion as a result of emergency aid from the $900 billion COVID-19 relief measure passed late last year. That number is a part of nearly $10 billion total earmarked for transportation spending, and experts say the funds are much needed. State DOTs can use […]

Share This Article:

read more

CT Democrats looking to Biden’s help to fight virus, build economy

Gov. Ned Lamont, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, state Attorney General William Tong and Secretary of the State Denise Merrill told reporters that Biden’s inauguration puts on-track the next $1.9-trillion aid plan, including up to $400 billion for state and local governments. Connecticut is well positioned to fare well under the Biden […]

Share This Article:

read more

Cuomo announces $306B infrastructure plan for New York

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced a $306 billion spending plan as part of his 2021 infrastructure agenda. In what Cuomo called “the largest, most ambitious plan put forward by any state in the nation,” the initiative will focus on a $51 billion transit-oriented redevelopment of Manhattan’s Midtown West area and the continued modernization […]

Share This Article:

read more

OSHA raises penalty maximums, establishes new debt collection procedures

The maximum federal penalty for serious and other-than-serious violations is now $13,653 per violation, up from $13,494. The maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations is now $136,532 per violation, up from $134,937. Since 2017, OSHA has adjusted the fines according to the Cost of Living Index every year. If an establishment fails to make […]

Share This Article:

read more

Eversource to start Forestville gas line installation Tuesday

Eversource Gas is scheduled to start installation of a gas line on Tuesday, Jan. 19, in the Forestville neighborhood that includes Fair Street, Grove Avenue, Buckley Avenue, Garden Street, Vernon Street and Pleasant Avenue. “The purpose of the work is to upgrade the existing gas line,” said Mayor Ellen Zoppo-Sassu. The hours of construction will […]

Share This Article:

read more

With its newest building, BLT bets on a growing Stamford

BLT plans to formally open its 435-unit building on Feb. 1, but it has been leasing units for much of January. Escape is the latest puzzle piece in the ever-expanding Harbor Point development, which has steadily grown over BLT’s tenure in Stamford. The pandemic strengthened the market for single-family homes in Stamford, something that is […]

Share This Article:

read more

Brookfield construction temporarily shut down following alleged misclassification

KBE Building Corporation, the general contractor in charge of the construction project at 291 Federal Road was given a stop work order on Dec. 23 when issues arose over one of its subcontractors, according to Department of Labor spokesperson Juliet Manalan. According to Manalan, subcontractor Wall to Wall Drywall — a drywall company based in […]

Share This Article:

read more

Funding to fix CT’s roads and bridges is drying up, and officials don’t have a solution

Now Connecticut is left with a $2.8 billion bill, a cash-starved Special Transportation Fund headed toward insolvency, and a construction industry poised to shrink even as the state struggles with unprecedented unemployment. “Once we get out to the next several years, nothing is [fully] funded,” said Nate Brown, vice president of the Connecticut State Building […]

Share This Article:

read more

Lamont talks State Pier deal, emergency powers

Gov. Ned Lamont said Tuesday — a day when the state’s COVID-19 test positivity rate hit 10.72%, the highest in a while — that he thinks he will ask the legislature to extend his emergency authority, currently set to expire Feb. 9. “If I just get another two-plus months, I think sometime in April we’ll […]

Share This Article:

read more

Newington finalizing tax agreement with developer looking to build $11 million hotel in town

The town is now finalizing a tax agreement with a developer looking to build an $11.1 million hotel at 712 Cedar St. Town Councilors voted unanimously Tuesday night to offer Gold Coast Premier Properties a 40% tax abatement for 10 years, contingent on the developer’s plan to build a 122-room extended-stay hotel on the site, […]

Share This Article:

read more

Report: Collective bargaining agreements create ‘robust’ middle-class jobs for union construction workers

A new report says collective bargaining agreements help create “robust” middle-class careers and make significant contributions to local economies. The report, released this week, was produced by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The study also found that apprenticeship programs paid by […]

Share This Article:

read more

Infrastructure gap reaches $5.6 trillion: Trade group

America’s infrastructure gap has reached to $5.6 trillion, according to the trade group American Society of Civil Engineers. The group said that the gap is a problem that, unaddressed, could lead to the loss of 3 million jobs over two decades. The group in its annual report card outlined how much infrastructure investment is falling […]

Share This Article:

read more

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont to offer ‘revenue-raising ideas’ for transportation in February budget

Gov. Ned Lamont said Monday that he will propose “revenue-raising ideas’’ for transportation in February to help the state’s long-troubled special transportation fund. After the high-profile failure last year of controversial highway tolls, Lamont says the state still needs to provide money to balance the Special Transportation Fund. The projected deficit for the transportation fund […]

Share This Article:

read more

New $18k cost study floated to assess possible Killingly community center move

That previous cost break-down led to for bonding $16.1 million to address roof, window and other long-standing issues at the former school, while also paying for modifications to allow a portion of the building to be used for recreation programming. Calorio said to accommodate the public at the school, new security doors would need to […]

Share This Article:

read more

Lawmakers considering boosting CT’s credit card limit to assist those hurt by the pandemic

The pandemic-induced recession has left Connecticut legislators with one of their tightest credit card limits in recent history — less than one-seventh their 2020 level. “I supported the ‘debt diet’ during the beginning of the Lamont administration,” said Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, new House chairman of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee. “I thought that […]

Share This Article:

read more