Dixwell Plaza Plan Unveiled, Embraced

An ambitious planned $200 million redevelopment of Dixwell Plaza would bring a new performing arts center, banquet hall, grocery store, museum, office complex, daycare center, retail storefronts, and 150-plus apartments and townhouses to the neighborhood’s fraying commercial hub. The local team behind the project received nothing but praise from longtime community members who heralded developers […]

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House-Senate deadlock prompts postponement of tolls vote

Democratic legislative leaders informed the office of Gov. Ned Lamont on Thursday that there will be no vote on a truck tolls bill before the General Assembly convenes its regular session Wednesday, despite assurances each chamber has sufficient votes for passage, said Max Reiss, the governor’s communications director. House-Senate deadlock prompts postponement of tolls vote

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Construction’s costliest OSHA fines of Q4 2019

The fourth quarter of 2019 provided little in the way of surprises when it came to OSHA fines. There were no massive penalties, at least when compared to previous quarters, but the usual suspects — fall and excavation hazards — made appearances once again. Falls lead the agency’s Fatal Four list, which, along with struck-by, […]

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Lamont has a trucks-only tolls plan. Trade groups on both sides have questions.

The presidents of the Motor Transport Association of Connecticut and the Connecticut Construction Industries Association both questioned if that could be done. Joe Sculley, president of MTAC, said it is highly unlikely, and Don Shubert, president of CCIA, said it is hard to judge without funding and project schedules for each proposed bridge improvement project. […]

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East Hampton approves sale of outdated town hall to developer

Residents narrowly approved a proposal to sell the existing Town Hall to a Bristol developer for $316,000. Town officials said they had hoped for a higher offer. Bristol developer John Calciano presented his offer late last year. Eventually, the town council accepted a proposal to build a new town hall/police headquarters inside a mixed-use community […]

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The rising cost of Lamont’s State Pier plan is secret

The little we know about this pending deal is all that David Kooris, Lamont’s puppet chairman of the port authority, seated by the governor after leaving state employment, with an interim appointment due to expire before lawmakers can review it, has agreed to disclose. Kooris said after a board meeting last week — in which […]

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Plainville contractor sentenced to 20 months for stealing $3.3M from employees

The former owner of Plainville’s Ferguson Electric and Ferguson Mechanical Co. Inc. will spend 20 months in federal prison for bilking more than $3.3 million from his 300-plus employees, prosecutors say. Lee Furguson, 62, of Farmington, was also sentenced Monday in Hartford federal court to one year of supervised release and ordered to pay a […]

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Sacred Heart unveils plans for $60 million, 4,000 seat hockey arena

“The facility will be home to our Division I men’s and women’s hockey programs, our nationally ranked figure skating team and our men’s club ice hockey team. It is the continuation of a robust, multi-year building and expansion program reflecting our significant growth, appeal and national status,” SHU President John J. Petillo said in the […]

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Marine construction firm envisions expansion, new pier in New London

Mohawk Northeast Inc., a heavy civil construction and engineering company that operates a marine services division in Groton, is contemplating an ambitious expansion project in New London that would boost use of the city’s waterfront. Under plans in the early conceptual stage, Mohawk imagines a bulkhead to expand use of the shoreline, a staging area, […]

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Goshen sewer system could soon connect to Litchfield via pipeline

Woodridge Lake Sewer District in Goshen has turned to Litchfield’s Water Pollution Control Authority after a plan to send its wastewater to Torrington fell through last year. WLSD has been under a state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection order to upgrade its own wastewater treatment facility, but two options for upgrades estimated at $31.5 […]

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Southington residents find out what an expanded library facility or a new building would bring to town

Residents packed the meeting room at Southington Public Library to capacity Thursday as they heard explanations of what either an expanded library facility or a new building would bring to the town. These residents got a look at the library’s priorities for a new or expanded library and how space would be allocated and then […]

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Home Depot to operate $50M distribution center in South Windsor

ndiana developer Scannell Properties is currently building the $50-million, 421,000-square-foot distribution facility on vacant land in South Windsor that will be leased long term by Home Depot upon completion, sources confirmed to HBJ. The combined 46-acre property is officially located at 360 Ellington Road, 245 Chapel Road and R008 John Fitch Boulevard. Construction crews broke […]

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Derby officials pleased with developers’ vision for downtown

The proposal aims to bring two full-service residential buildings to a 2.8-acre parcel at 23 Factory St. It would feature 203 one- and two-bedroom apartments with various amenities, including a pool, health club, library, dog-walking and grooming services, fire pits, bike racks, indoor golf simulator and community spaces. The project would be complemented by 8,500 […]

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Redevelopment plan for State Pier expected to be more costly than projected

The result is a substantially modified agreement between offshore wind developers Ørsted-Eversource, the Connecticut Port Authority and State Pier operator Gateway that likely will cost more than the $93 million originally projected. Ørsted-Eversource are seeking to use the pier in conjunction with their Revolution Wind Farm in federal waters south of Martha’s Vineyard, which will […]

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Public Hearing On Tolls Next Week? Maybe

Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Ned Lamont on Tuesday submitted their final revisions to the Legislative Commissioners Office to be drafted for a public hearing next week. There will be a five-day public notice period before a public hearing is held, according to the rules of the General Assembly. No final bill has been drafted yet, […]

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Development agreement inked for $26M Park-Main St. redevelopment

The agreement, signed in late December, lays out various economic, local hiring and affordable-housing requirements that Spinnaker Real Estate Partners, of South Norwalk, and Hartford’s Freeman Cos., must adhere to in constructing two buildings worth $26 million on a pair of vacant, city-owned properties just south of downtown, officials say. Plans show the two buildings […]

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Wesleyan to issue $75 million in bonds to fund expansion project

“Our work on campus involves modernizing, upgrading, and, in some cases, expanding our core academic centers. These facilities will be transformed into spaces where courageous faculty and students can activate their ideas to make a difference in the world,” said President Michael Roth ’78. “We are taking steps now to ensure Wesleyan is a high-impact […]

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CCM announces support for limited highway tolls

CCM is recommending state legislators adopt a bipartisan transportation financing plan as part of its legislative agenda for the 2020 General Assembly session that opens on Feb. 5. “This plan must identify and allocate appropriate resources which may include the establishment of limited tolling and will enable the state to leverage all available federal funding […]

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Stamford on forefront of public-private partnerships for schools

The district is planning to demolish Cloonan Middle School and build a new school on the property to house both Cloonan Middle School and Roxbury Elementary School, which will move from its current location. https://www.ctinsider.com/local/stamfordadvocate/article/Stamford-on-forefront-of-public-private-14984843.php?cmpid=gsa-stamfordadvocate-result&_ga=2.194238637.1057016774.1579519059-1033831744.1572817739#photo-18787122

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Developer hopes to build apartments in Torrington

TDF Enterprises LLC, the owner of a 39-acre parcel of vacant land in the Greenbriar development, is proposing to build a 120-unit apartment complex for individuals 55 years old and older. The apartments would feature mostly one- and two-bedroom units in four buildings on two different parts of the property – two buildings accessed from […]

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City Council approves redevelopment of Sessions building

The City Council Tuesday night approved a proposal to redevelop the Sessions building into market rate apartments, through a public-private partnership between Vesta Corp. and the Bristol Housing Authority. Vesta/BHA Joint Venture will be working together to clean up contamination and redevelop the property at 273 Riverside Ave. http://www.bristolpress.com/BP-Bristol+News/364920/city-council-approves-redevelopment-of-sessions-building

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New Killingly power plant faces local opposition ahead of appeal

About 20 residents, including some from other towns like Mystic and Ashford, spoke out against the project, said Jason Anderson, the town council president. The Killingly Energy Center has already received the approvals it needs from the town’s planning, zoning, and inland wetland commissions. The state Siting Council denied the project once but last June […]

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New Canaan Library unveils plans for $30 million new facility

The new building, approximately 48,000 square-foot, will sit at the corner of Maple Street and South Avenue, location of the current library. Officials said the design “will reflect New Canaan’s unique mid-century modern architectural heritage. Designed to be a true cultural campus, it will replace the current outdated and failing structure with a large, airy, […]

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DOT could raise rates and 5 more things we learned from a draft of Gov. Ned Lamont’s truck-only toll bill

The state transportation department would have the power to raise toll rates, starting in 2024, based on a working draft of a truck-only tolls bill that lawmakers plan to vote on next week. Estimates of how much the state would collect from truck-only tolls have ranged from $150 million to $200 million a year. The […]

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Old Lyme solar project moves forward despite environmental concerns

The Siting Council, which has jurisdiction over approving proposed solar projects in Connecticut, approved the project after solar developer James Schwartz of Cobb Road LLC, an affiliate of the Essex-based Independence Solar, submitted a petition requesting a declaratory ruling from the council in October. Schwartz told The Day in November that Cobb Road LLC has […]

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Mixmaster rehabilitation project could cost $100 million more than estimated, officials say

A list of projects on the state’s website for CT2030, which is Gov. Ned Lamont’s transportation plan for the next 10 years, says the Route 8 and Interstate 84 interchange reboot will cost $235 million to $260 million. Project overseers say added costs are typical of a rehabilitation project, as discoveries of additional needs are […]

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Lamont answer questions from toll supporters, opponents

During a late afternoon forum in Bedford Middle School, Lamont stressed the need to persuade the Democrat-dominated General Assembly to approve — over unified Republican opposition — his 10-year, $19 billion transit improvement plan, for a variety of economic reasons. “These are all about good-paying jobs,” Lamont told a crowd of about 400 during a […]

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Wilton police station design is scaled back

The new design allows for 16,800 square feet, down from the 19,500 square feet the committee recommended to the Board of Selectmen on Dec. 16. The larger building was expected to cost around $16 million, which the selectmen nixed, tasking the committee to come in with a proposal for $14 million. The present station measures […]

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Judge finds fault with zoning permits for tribes’ East Windsor casino project

In a 36-page decision issued Wednesday, Judge Marshall Berger found that the East Windsor Planning and Zoning Commission “abused its discretion” in approving a site plan and granting a special permit “as to the sale of alcohol,” and lacked jurisdiction to consider the sale of alcohol because it failed to properly publish notice of public […]

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Economists Make 2020 Construction Predictions

Construction economists are not sugarcoating their outlook on the industry in 2020. “Total growth in nonresidential construction spending, as reported by the Census Bureau’s monthly ‘value put in place’ series, will be close to the 2.2 percent increase recorded year-to-date for the first 10 months of 2019 compared to January-October 2018,” he said. “The best-performing […]

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Towns Weigh Huge Cost of Updating Trash-To-Energy Plant

The Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority is asking its 51 member towns to commit to new 30-year contracts for waste disposal by June 1 so it can finance the $330 million cost to renovate the failing trash-to-energy plant. The plant burns a third of Connecticut’s refuse and turns it into electricity. MIRA needs most of […]

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Projects are under budget and Plainville is overjoyed

Both the Wheeler School renovation and the phosphorus reduction upgrades to the town’s waste water treatment plant, projects which began in 2017, are expected to wrap up this spring, said Town Manager Robert E. Lee. Both projects are expected to be completed ahead of schedule and under budget. The town will also begin its second […]

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House Speaker says he’s ‘very comfortable’ there are enough votes to pass truck-only tolls, but situation is murkier in state Senate

After nearly a year of heated debates over highway tolls, House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz said Tuesday he is “very comfortable” there are enough Democratic votes in the state House of Representatives to pass Gov. Ned Lamont’s latest truck-only tolls plan in a special session later this month. But the situation was murkier in the state […]

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2 CT toxic Superfund sites part of growing backlog under Trump administration

Two of the Superfund projects are in Connecticut: One in Durham and one in Waterbury. The accumulation of Superfund projects that are ready to go except for money comes as the Trump administration routinely proposes funding cuts for Superfund and for the EPA in general. The four-decade-old Superfund program is meant to tackle some of […]

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On The Brink Of A “Bigger City”

According to an official local economic statement put together by Piscitelli and his staff in anticipation of the city’s latest bond refunding, private developers completed or began construction on over 1,655 new market-rate housing units in New Haven in 2019. The report states that another 1,937 market-rate units were also in the works as of […]

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Middletown’s Wesleyan University preps $75M bond offering; major campus upgrades planned

Middletown’s Wesleyan University is planning a $75-million bond offering that will help fund major campus upgrades to its art, social science, and science academic buildings, officials said. Wesleyan’s Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer and Treasurer Andrew Tanaka said borrowing now will allow Wesleyan to take advantage of historically low interest rates as the […]

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New remediation plan in the works for Groton water treatment plant project

The Environmental Protection Agency said the plan proposed by the utility’s construction manager to remediate PCBs in the old paint doesn’t meet the EPA’s standards, according to Mark Biron, Groton Utilities general manager of operations for water and electric. Construction has been ongoing on the upgrade project to repurpose the water treatment plant, built in 1939 and […]

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Work Restarts on Silver Sands Construction Project Destroyed in Fire

Nine months after fire destroyed a much-anticipated addition to Milford’s Silver Sands State Park, construction crews are back at work to replace it. The buildings, which included concessions, a bathroom and changing area, elevated outdoor seating, and a lifeguard office, were supposed to open last Memorial Day weekend. Work Restarts on Silver Sands Construction Project […]

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Portion of Route 32 in Norwich to close for two weeks starting Monday

A portion of Route 32 just south of Falvey’s Motors will be closed for about two weeks beginning Monday to allow construction crews to replace a failing corrugated metal pipe and make drainage repairs, the state Department of Transportation announced. The $500,000 project involves removing and replacing the existing 43-inch pipe and concrete endwalls and […]

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