A worker was hospitalized Monday morning after he fell while working at a High Street construction site, fire officials said. Firefighters responded to the scene of the accident at a 18 High St. Monday morning, said Rick Fontana, director of emergency operations. Fontana said the condition of the worker does not appear life threatening. Deputy […]
A Cheshire-based property management firm has acquired a three-story, retail-office building in downtown New Britain for $890,000, land records show. Glenstone plans to convert the two vacant upper floors into approximately 22 apartment units to meet the growing demand for living spaces downtown, according to Farmington broker Amodio & Co. Real Estate. The deal comes […]
State employees started relocating just after Thanksgiving, and by the end of January, the building will become the workplace for about 700. The renovated space will primarily be the domain of the state’s constitutional officers, including the attorney general, comptroller, treasurer and secretary of the state. The structure also will house the state auditors and […]
Joseph Giulietti is finishing his first year as commissioner of the state Department of Transportation. As for new rail cars, the additional 66 M8 cars that were to be delivered this year “are running a bit late,” but he called the M8s a tremendous success. Those M8 cars were supposed to also run on Shore […]
Sometime within the next two months, the city will officially begin seeking developers for a roughly 160-acre parcel straddling its border with Naugatuck. Mackenzie Demac, chief of staff to Mayor Neil M. O’Leary, said the city will release a request-for-proposal within 60 days. City officials are looking for job creation and future taxes. Ideally, they’re […]
A new traffic island between Union Street and City Hill Street was built closer to North Main Street than the old one. The new location of the island changed traffic flow for drivers turning left from Union Street onto City Hill Street. Previously, drivers turned before the island, now they turn onto City Hill Street […]
A grant through the state Department of Transportation will provide the town with $1.2 million to construct the bridge. The town is paying $188,125 to design the new bridge and that work is about 30 percent complete. Closing the road also allows construction crews to more easily bring in the crane that will put the […]
Hartford finds another monumental task in its way: a crumbling piece of 20th-century infrastructure, a stretch of the Interstate 84 viaduct adjacent to downtown that is well past its expiration date. Completed in 1965, the elevated thoroughfare was part of the national urban-renewal campaign to ram freeways through downtowns, and it did extraordinary damage to […]
Regardless, most of these towns are still moving forward with transit-oriented development plans, hoping that stations or platforms will one day be built in their backyards. “We’re actually doing things,” said Chris Bromson, town manager of Enfield, which plans to spend up to $4.2 million for a train platform if state funding for a $50-million […]
Development there has been especially difficult because of potential impacts to an underground levee system that curbs the level of riverfront flooding on what is widely considered the narrowest part of the Connecticut River. There is also uncertainty about how utilities, supplies for vendors, emergency services and handicap ramps would make their way down to […]
Niznick, a Las Vegas multimillionaire with few ties to Connecticut, isn’t just a dreamer with a grand vision. Since 2010, he’s already invested $25 million of his own money to renovate and rebrand the former Clarion Hotel at 42 Century Drive into a 141-room DoubleTree by Hilton. He plans to invest another $20 million to […]
Looney embraced Lamont’s latest plan to fund the 10-year transportation plan — now pegged at $19 billion — with the trucks-only tolls on bridges. He argued that a constitutional amendment created a transportation “lockbox” can provide the guarantee needed for toll receipts to be spent as promised. Fasano said he agrees with the goal of […]
A spokesman for Lamont said the administration still views the train stations as a critical investment, but stopped short of guaranteeing funding for them under the trucks-only tolls plan. Lawmakers could vote on that plan in January during a special session. Regardless, most of these towns are still moving forward with transit-oriented development plans, hoping […]
Amid all that earnest activity, however, the nagging question remains: what to do with the two-mile section of I-84 just outside downtown, which in an ironic reference to past glory is known as the Aetna Viaduct. Its projected lifespan ended in 2005, and engineers are now worried about catastrophic failure. Replacement options under consideration include […]
President Trump has signed a $1.4-trillion, two-bill spending package that will keep federal agencies, including their construction programs, operating through Sept. 30. 2020, the end of the current fiscal year. The spending picture was mixed for infrastructure accounts: some, like Army Corps of Engineers civil works, received boosts over their 2019 levels, but others, like […]
Though less dramatic, these more modest projects showed encouraging potential in reshaping the city for the future as it enters the 2020s. The city government has doled out generous tax deals to many of those projects, one of its only avenues to spur development in the wake of its 2017 budget crisis. While the city […]
Norwich Public Utilities hopes it has developed a plan to upgrade the city’s nearly 100-year-old sewage treatment system that continues to pollute Norwich Harbor and the Thames River when heavy rains overwhelm the system. NPU officials presented the new proposal to the Board of Public Utilities Commissioners on Thursday and will meet with DEEP officials […]
Construction crews are in the midst of a $135 million infrastructure project that will complete reconstruction of the final mile of a section of the New England Thruway (I-95) that carries traffic from New York City to the Connecticut border. Construction is expected to be completed in 2021. “After years of discussions and planning, we […]
The commission unanimously approved $750,000 Wednesday, adding to a previously-approved $700,000. The money will go toward a variety of upgrades needed at closed landfills in Hartford, Ellington, Waterbury, Wallingford, and Shelton. Included in the project is work at two homes near the Ellington landfill, where PFAS chemicals have leached into the drinking water. Work in […]
The POCD “is the plan for our town,” Williams said by phone Thursday. “And residents should be pulled in to have their opinion heard.” As part of the efforts of the subcommittee, composed of about a half-dozen members and formed earlier this year, Williams said the group recently held a workshop advising the town’s boards […]
A survey sponsored by Autodesk and the Associated General Contractors of America found that 80% of contractors were having difficulty finding enough qualified craft workers. It stands to reason, then, since subcontractors provide so much of the labor on construction projects, that it has become trickier for many general contractors to find enough quality subs […]
In 2018, residents approved a $38 million referendum to repave city roads, build a new animal shelter and update part of the Torrington Middle School roof. The city is breaking up the bonding for repaving the roads over five years at $7.1 million each year and this year was the first round. Other non-bonding public […]
The State Bond Commission on Wednesday approved hundreds of millions of dollars in new financing to spur apartment and affordable housing developments in Hartford and other transportation-related improvements, among other allocations. The largest approval on Wednesday was a $135 million request from the Connecticut Department of Transportation for various resurfacing and reconstruction projects and road […]
The partners in the development — Lexington Partners, LAZ Investments and Shelbourne Global Solutions LLC — acquired the mortgage in recent days and took over ownership of the property, Martin J. Kenny, who heads Hartford-based Lexington, said Tuesday. The apartment complex sits atop Pratt when looking east from Trumbull Street and was built in the […]
The recent announcement backs up Hartford Rail ridership numbers from rail officials, who said participation has exceeded expectations, from 580,000 annual trips last year to 630,000 this year, with more than 750,000 trips expected next year. Connecticut DOT deployed 10 additional rail trains on the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and four additional trains on […]
The group of about 20 people, mostly from Fairfield County, gathered outside the Legislative Office Building meeting room to greet Lamont before his post-Bond Commission press conference. Angela Liptack, of Ridgefield, said they’ve been studying the issue of tolls for the past year and have concluded that tolls on all vehicles is the “most comprehensive […]
Under the agreement, wholesale fuel companies would be required to purchase pollution allowances at auction. The sale of those allowances could generate billions for states to invest in carbon-reducing transportation options — like electric buses, electric car charging stations, bike lanes and sidewalks. Supporters say the pact would be a major step toward reducing transportation […]
Gov. Ned Lamont has held up the bonding until the legislature passes funding for a 10-year transportation plan which at this point includes tolls for trucks. All of the state’s cities and towns are still dealing with the snow and ice that pelted the region Tuesday, but those that rely on the grant for snow […]
The district’s grand plan to makeover six of Stamford’s public schools by 2024 using a public-private partnership model is garnering push-back from the ranks of workers who currently maintain school buildings. Under the proposed plan, the city would sell about one third of its school land to a private developer for one dollar each. The […]
Richter owns two successful construction companies in the Chicago area. The architect started his own practice and Díaz-Fañas founded Queer Advocacy and Knowledge Exchange (Qu-AKE), one of the first construction industry groups in the U.S. for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) workers. He also moved to a more inclusive workplace, at WSP, where […]
The Connecticut Department of Transportation held a public information meeting on the project recently. It will involve widening Route 72, shifting it to the north, and adding dedicated left turn lanes, and extending Pratt Street one block north to connect with 72. Divinity Street will be terminated at its intersection with Landry Street. The estimated […]
In its first meeting since September, the state Bond Commission next week will vote on authorizing $13.5 million in loans to spur the creation of 155 apartment units in downtown Hartford. The bulk of that amount, $12.5 million, will go to a prominent development trio, the Pratt Street Initiative Partnership, to assist with the first […]
Planning for the district’s two new elementary schools is on track and, if all goes according to plan, construction would begin in March, said Superintendent Michael Graner. Graner said construction hopefully then will begin in March on the new elementary schools, starting in areas as far away on the site from the existing middle school […]
After funding for an $84.2 million new high school and a $29.2 million early learning academy passed by taxpayer vote back in October, the town has been moving forward to bring the projects to fruition. Based on qualifications and fees, Sanzo said, the committee selected Hartford-based JCJ Architecture to provide services for the two school […]
In a startling shift, the state Department of Transportation is putting the brakes on the I-84 viaduct replacement project in Hartford and plans to broaden the scope of its study to better coordinate with other transportation projects in the Hartford area. The $5 billion viaduct replacement is still on the table, but DOT planners say […]
The bill, which authorizes $738 billion in defense spending, passed the House by a vote of 377 to 48. The Senate is expected to take up the measure next week. President Donald Trump has indicated he intends to sign the bill. The bipartisan House support for the bill followed months of partisan debate over what […]
The WPCA has been considering tweaking the formula since it was passed earlier this year, WPCA Chairman Rich Prendergast said. The formula dictates how much homeowners living in the Sound View and Miscellaneous Town Area B neighborhoods, north of Sound View, would pay to hook into state-ordered sewer upgrades planned for the neighborhoods — a […]
Originally city department heads requested $67 million for capital projects, but the board pared down the asks, choosing to focus on city infrastructure upgrades and repairs that include street resurfacing, citywide dredging and equipment for the police and fire departments. The day after the planning board settled on their preliminary capital budget, Mayor David Martin […]
A Suffolk County Superior Court judge in Boston last week sentenced contractor Kevin Otto, owner of the now-defunct Atlantic Drain Services, to two years in jail in connection to the death of two workers who were killed in a trench collapse more than three years ago in October 2016, reported WBZ CBS Boston. udge Mitchell Kaplan […]
The push for the $1.73-million facility on Cape Cod to meet training standards of GWO—a Denmark-based group of offshore wind energy market participants—comes as sector growth momentum along the eastern seaboard drives demand for a trained craft and technical workforce. “Basic safety training will be required for all offshore wind workers who are out on […]
Each public airport in the United States is required by the FAA to submit master plans and revise them approximately every 10 years. The last master plan for Waterbury-Oxford was finished in 2007. The current plan will include information going back to 2018 and will cover future development through 2038. CDM Smith planner Zachary Duvall […]
Years in the planning by Yale New Haven Hospital, the Legislation Committee of the Board of Alders approved amendments to a Planned Development District at its St. Raphael’s Campus to allow construction of a neuroscience center and new replacement inpatient rooms and beds to upgrade aging facilities. The $838 million neuroscience center, which will be […]
Four possible site plans were presented by Tecton Architects, the firm selected by the committee to guide the project through the design phase. The firm will now refine those plans along with providing cost estimates by Jan. 8, which the committee will then take to the Board of Selectmen. Tecton came up with its four […]
A vote on truck-only highway tolls has been pushed off until January as legislators and lawyers craft the final details of the bill and plan for a public hearing. Lawmakers have been debating tolls for the entire year without reaching agreement. A previous plan called for tolls on the Merritt Parkway in Norwalk and on […]
The Lyme-Old Lyme Board of Education is moving forward with a plan to build a more than $2 million artificial turf athletic field, a project school officials say will conserve groundwater without placing a burden on taxpayers. For the past two decades, the district has typically funneled 1 percent of its annual budget into the […]
The Apprenticeship Connecticut initiative, a grant program overseen by the state Department of Labor, is now in its second year with $10 million recently allocated to help fund skills-training programs developed by regional workforce-development boards. Department of Labor Commissioner Kurt Westby said about 1,000 companies are currently enrolled in the state’s formal apprenticeship program, employing […]
A federal appeals court last week allowed a legal challenge of Rhode Island’s truck-only tolls to move forward, setting up a future decision on the merits of truckers’ claims that truck-only tolls are unconstitutional. Rhode Island is the first state in the nation to impose truck-only tolls, meaning there is no legal precedent or case […]
A group of students in Connecticut College’s new Climate Action Club have gathered more than 850 signatures on their petition to make Palmer Auditorium, which is about to undergo a $24 million renovation, carbon neutral and include sustainability considerations. Students criticized Conn for not incorporating sustainability practices in the Palmer renovation when sustainability principles are […]
Truck tolls on a dozen bridges in Connecticut could produce $187 million in net revenue annually and finance $19.4 billion in transportation infrastructure improvements over 10 years, costing drivers as little as $1.25 for a medium truck with an EZ Pass and as much as $19.20 for an 18-wheeler without one. The average one-way toll […]
Sketches for the new design for the boathouse, a New England-style structure with a cupola, were unveiled to more than 70 people during a presentation that began at 4 p.m. in the Stonington High School commons. The new boathouse design hasn’t been priced yet but it is expected to be in the $2.4 million range, O’Neill said. […]
Senate Republicans want Gov. Ned Lamont to slam the brakes on his trucks-only tolling plan after a Rhode Island court allowed a lawsuit to proceed that could block tolls in the neighboring state. “Yesterday’s federal circuit court decision in Rhode Island was merely a procedural ruling regarding whether this case should be heard in a […]
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes on Thursday announced that a bid from developer Vineyard Wind has been selected to advance contract negotiations with the state’s electric distribution companies to provide 804 megawatts of offshore wind through the development of the Park City Wind Project. Bridgeport will serve as the host […]
A special session is possible in December, but only to consider a non-partisan issue: The settlement of litigation over Connecticut’s hospital provider tax. Legislative leaders say passage of any bill involving tolls would be difficult in a pre-holiday special session, due to scheduling and travel conflicts. No Republican support is expected for any bill that […]
Dave Roche, the president of the Connecticut Building Trades, said construction unions played a role in helping Democrats regain outright control of the state Senate last year, only to grow increasingly angry as Senate Democrats refused to embrace any financing plan that included automobile tolls. Labor leaders say a failure by Democrats to pass an […]
The Meriden Commons II project on State Street, which broke ground in July 2018, includes a four-story building with 49 residential units, and two buildings consisting of 27 townhouse-style units, and more than 1,500 square feet of commercial space. With the two affordable housing projects complete, Cloud said his company and Pennrose are in the […]
Lamont said he would like legislators to meet during the week of Dec. 16, and House Democrats have been told by their leaders to set aside the dates of Dec. 17, 18, and 19 for possible special sessions. Besides transportation, Lamont wants votes before the end of the year on the annual bond package of […]
Cities and towns have been waiting on state funding, given annually to towns in the form of grants to pay for things like road repaving, fall tree clearing and winter snow removal. Release of the funds has been held up since July by Gov. Ned Lamont’s debt diet and negotiations over how much he and […]
Gov. Ned Lamont and Democratic legislative leaders recently criticized the Senate GOP plan — which avoids tolls and drains 60% of the state budget reserves — for leaving Connecticut dangerously vulnerable. Democrats, meanwhile, have crafted a plan to pump $20 billion into transportation over the next decade — in part by tolling trucks, but not […]
Overseers of the aging waste-to-energy plant on the banks of the Connecticut River in Hartford expect to issue $333 million in tax-exempt public bonds to finance a proposed overhaul of the facility and a related recycling plant. That estimate is included in a newly signed term sheet between the quasi-public Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority […]
The Navy has signed a $22.2 billion contract with Electric Boat to build at least nine Virginia-class attack submarines over the next five years. The submarines will join the Navy’s fleet starting in 2025 through 2029. The new Virginia submarines will involve more work and cost more than previous versions. An 85-foot section will be […]
The original CT2030 initiative was a 10-year, $21.3 billion financing plan that Lamont released on Nov. 7. It allocated $14.2 billion for roads and bridges, and $7.1 billion for public transportation. The governor and Democratic leaders plan to generally follow its outlines, including its timetable, funding sources, and list of projects. The two House leaders […]
Overseers of the aging waste-to-energy plant on the banks of the Connecticut River in Hartford expect to issue $333 million in tax-exempt public bonds to finance a proposed overhaul of the facility and a related recycling plant. That estimate is included in a newly signed term sheet between the quasi-public Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority […]
The U.S. Justice Dept. has launched a multipronged effort to root out bid-rigging, price-fixing and other forms of collusion in construction and other sectors on local, state and federal government funded contracts, which it says undermines competition in procurement. DOJ hopes a closer focus on construction will help identify leads to investigate and prosecute. In […]
An end of the deadlock could be near now that Lamont and Democratic majority leaders have united behind a truck-only tolls plan, provided House and Senate Democrats can muster enough votes to approve highway charges on commercial trucks. Legislators are eager to get a bonding bill done. Towns and cities are, too, because the holdup […]
The governor and his fellow Democrats are crafting a plan now centered on tolling only trucks, acknowledging that charging fees on cars was a political nightmare. And while officials did increase the state’s minimum wage, tolling passenger cars would have followed an array of smaller tax and fee increases lawmakers dumped on low-to-middle income families […]
A project is being designed to improve a stretch of Poquonnock Road in the City of Groton, starting at the Five Corners area and ending just before the Rainville Avenue intersection. The City of Groton has received a letter from the state with a commitment to fund the project at $2,185,600, said City of Groton […]
