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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Worker injured in fall at New Haven construction site

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 […]

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Mixed-use N. Britain property sold for $890K; 22 apartments to be added

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 […]

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Hartford’s State Office Building: Where history meets modern workspace in $205M makeover

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 […]

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Waterbury to seek developers for 160-acre parcel

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 […]

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The Downtown Highway That Could Drive Hartford’s Comeback

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 […]

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As five towns wait for Hartford Line train stations, transit-oriented developments move forward

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 […]

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Environmental, logistical concerns present challenges to developing Hartford’s waterfront

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 […]

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The ‘godfather’ of implant dentistry eyes $20M-plus hotel-event center in Bristol

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 […]

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Looney, Fasano Tackle Tolls, Transit

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 […]

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As five towns wait for Hartford Line train stations, transit-oriented developments move forward

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 […]

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The Downtown Highway That Could Drive Hartford’s Comeback

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 […]

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Massive $1.4-Trillion Spending Measure Goes on the Books

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 […]

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Stories that shaped the decade: Smaller-scale development projects help revive the city of Hartford

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 […]

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Norwich seeks state approval for $167 million sewer system upgrade

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 […]

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Work Enters the ‘Last Mile’ on New England Thruway

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 […]

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Bond Commission Approves Funding For Landfill Work Including PFAS Remediation

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 […]

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East Lyme officials still seeking residents’ input on conservation, development plan

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 […]

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The Dotted Line: How contractors are finding and vetting subcontractors

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 […]

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Bond Commission OKs funding for Hartford apts., transportation projects

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 […]

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Developers purchase Lofts at Main and Temple apartments, seen as critical to $100 million revival of downtown Hartford’s Pratt Street corridor

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 […]

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DOT reports continued increase in Hartford Line ridership

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 […]

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Toll advocates: Revenue will fix CT transportation problems

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 […]

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Multi-state pact could curb transportation carbon emissions

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 […]

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Stamford school laborers protest building privatization

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 […]

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After Years of Antipathy, Construction Puts Out Welcome Mat For LGBTQ Workers

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 […]

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Mayor of Bristol praises state’s plan for Routes 72, 69 construction

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 […]

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Bond Commission to weigh $13.5M for Pratt St., Colt apts

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 […]

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Groton eyes March as start date for construction of new elementary schools

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 […]

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Architect picked for New Fairfield school construction

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 […]

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State putting brakes on $5 billion I-84 viaduct replacement to study how project can work with solving other transportation troubles in Hartford area

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 […]

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House passes defense policy bill backing submarine construction at EB, provides money for new pier at sub base

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 […]

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Old Lyme water authority weighs changes to sewer project fee formula

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 […]

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Stamford Planning Board proposes $47M for capital projects

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 […]

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Contractor gets jail sentence for worker trench deaths

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 […]

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Training Boom Set To Power Offshore Wind Energy Growth

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 […]

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Update to Waterbury-Oxford airport master plan underway

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 […]

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New Haven alders push $838M neuroscience center forward amid traffic, gentrification concerns

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 […]

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Site plans chosen for Wilton police station

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 […]

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As CT begins next round of $50M apprenticeship program, some say funding is woefully inadequate to fill manufacturing jobs pipeline

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 […]

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Gov. Ned Lamont says Connecticut would win legal battle on truck-only tolls, wants vote next week

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 […]

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How sustainable is the $24 million renovation at Connecticut College?

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 […]

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GOP wants Gov. Lamont to slam brakes on trucks-only tolling plan after Rhode Island court ruling; Lamont downplays ruling

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 […]

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‘The Epicenter Of New Offshore Wind’–Bridgeport Selected By State For Wind Power Project

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 […]

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CT transportation, local funding stalls until new year

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 […]

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For Democrats and labor, tolls are a family fight

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 […]

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Phase 2 of $55M Meriden transit-oriented development debuts

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 […]

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Gov. Lamont wants special session to vote on highway tolls, hospitals and restaurants during week of Dec. 16

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 […]

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Lamont tells municipalities funding on the way

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 […]

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Dems and GOP share common flaws in transportation plans

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 […]

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Waste agency plans to borrow $333M for Hartford trash-plant overhaul

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 […]

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Navy inks $22.2 billion contract with Electric Boat for at least nine new submarines

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 […]

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State awaits release of Lamont’s revised plan for transportation funding

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 […]

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Waste agency plans to borrow $333M for Hartford trash-plant overhaul

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 […]

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Construction Among Sectors Targeted In Feds’ Bid Rig Crackdown

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 […]

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Transportation finance plan could lead to breakthrough on state bonding impasse

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 […]

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CT’s wealth inequality remains a looming obstacle to tolling cars

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 […]

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Poquonnock Road reconstruction project planned

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 […]

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Gov. Ned Lamont, Democrats unite around truck-only tolls, rule out passenger cars in compromise

Top legislative leaders said they have not held caucuses with rank-and-file House and Senate Democrats on the details of the plan, but they said there was more support among lawmakers for truck-only tolls than for tolling passenger vehicles. Lawmakers are targeting the large tractor-trailers they say cause far more damage to the roads than passenger […]

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NY developer proposes $40M mixed-use development along CT River in Hartford

The proposed development by Aqua Ark LLC, of Rye, N.Y., aims to include a variety of retail, restaurant and event spaces along city-owned land within Riverfront Park adjacent to the Mortensen Riverfront Plaza at 300 Columbus Blvd. Aqua Ark President George Bryant on Tuesday said the complex would be built on land-based floating technology that […]

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Hartford’s State House Square undergoing $12M facelift

More than $12 million is being spent to upgrade elevators, lobbies and a food court in the three-tower office and retail complex located across the street from Constitution Plaza. Half of the newly revamped Otis elevators at 90 State House Square will begin operating by Thanksgiving, with the other units coming online by February. The […]

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Lamont, legislators to reopen transportation talks today

Legislative leaders are going to the Executive Residence today to talk to Gov. Ned Lamont about the prospects of passing a transportation financing bill in special session, uncertain if the governor is ready to commit to one of the two competing ideas outlined by Senate Republicans and House Democrats. If Lamont passes a transportation financing […]

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Fixing Construction’s Fixed-Price Conundrum

Fixed-price contracts, also known as lump sum, have become essential to owners moving forward in the tumultuous energy megaproject market and for public-sector entities struggling to stretch funds and quickly execute transportation and other infrastructure jobs. Experienced contractors have historically been able to manage fixed-price projects to some level of profit or recover from a […]

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Study finds maternity benefits for construction tradeswomen financially feasible

A new study from the Chicago Women in Trades highlights the success that trade organizations like the Ironworkers have had offering pregnancy and maternity benefits to their workers. The lack of pregnancy and family medical leave policies can be a barrier to women’s entry and retention in the trades, according to the report, which also […]

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Transportation could make Lamont a one-term governor

I think Lamont should be commended for going all-in on an issue he and many others view as critical to Connecticut’s future. Good leaders often have to do and support unpopular things, and Lamont’s approval ratings — hovering around a paltry 24 percent — have already taken a beating because of tolls. The biggest problem […]

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$100M Pratt Street redevelopment project includes renovation of apartments at old Sage-Allen department store

A partnership planning a $100 million redevelopment of the Pratt Street corridor plans to acquire the Lofts at Main and Temple, currently mired in a foreclosure, to form the second of three parts of the larger redevelopment project. On Thursday, a major obstacle to purchasing the mortgage was removed when the Capital Region Development Authority […]

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Legal ruling moves Hartford one step closer to DoNo redevelopment

Bronin said Wednesday’s Appellate Court ruling “fully clears the way forward” for developing the parcels around the ballpark. He said the city is in the final stages of negotiating a development agreement with RMS Companies of Stamford, which is led by Randy Salvatore. Phase one of RMS’ plan includes a $46-million investment to build 200 […]

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Hartford Hospital to break ground on $70M expansion

Hartford Hospital will break ground Thursday on a $70-million expansion of its sprawling South Green neighborhood campus. The project centers around construction of a 49,550-square-foot addition to the north façade of its existing Bliss Building at 80 Seymour St., which will provide four floors of additional space to support clinical areas including MRI, interventional radiology, […]

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$20M mixed-use development eyed in Hartford’s North End

7 Summits Realty CEO Rohan Freeman on Tuesday said his firm is looking to secure public and private funding to build a four-story mixed-use development on vacant city-owned land at the corner of Albany Avenue and Woodland Street. The $20-million proposal includes 50 apartment units and retail/office space. According to plans, the top two floors […]

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Gov. Ned Lamont wants meeting soon on potential tolls compromise: ‘My job is to reach a solution’

With three proposals on the table, Gov. Ned Lamont said Wednesday he wants to host a meeting with legislative leaders soon to reach a compromise on financing for his $21 billion transportation plan to fix the state’s aging roads, bridges and railroads. House Democrats and Senate Republicans have released their own plans, with House Democrats […]

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$20M mixed-use development eyed in Hartford’s North End

7 Summits Realty CEO Rohan Freeman on Tuesday said his firm is looking to secure public and private funding to build a four-story mixed-use development on vacant city-owned land at the corner of Albany Avenue and Woodland Street. The $20-million proposal includes 50 apartment units and retail/office space. Freeman’s firm has committed $1.5 million to […]

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Hartford Hospital to break ground on $70M expansion

Hartford Hospital will break ground Thursday on a $70-million expansion of its sprawling South Green neighborhood campus. The building is scheduled to be open by Aug. 2021. Hartford Hospital has gradually expanded its campus over the years, including the late 2016 opening of its $150 million Bone & Joint Institute. Hartford HealthCare CEO Jeff Flaks […]

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House Democrats propose truck-only tolls at 12 sites across Connecticut; say tolling cars is off the table

House Democratic leaders proposed a new compromise Tuesday that calls for installing electronic highway tolls for trucks only on a dozen bridges across the state in the latest chapter in the long-running debate at the state Capitol. In return, Gov. Ned Lamont is expected to support using a portion of the state’s rainy day fund […]

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On tolls plan, local officials torn between tax burden and infrastructure needs

While some support tolls to fund improvements to the state’s highways and bridges, others want more details on the plan and some are worried about the potential clogging of local roads and financial impact to residents. The proposal calls for funding 14 infrastructure projects — including the rehabilitation of the northbound span of the Gold […]

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Vineyard Wind CEO sees both New London and Bridgeport as viable wind hubs

Vineyard Wind, which has two leases in waters south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, wants to transform Barnum Landing, an underused part of Bridgeport Harbor, into a manufacturing and staging facility for the offshore wind industry, and later into a long-term hub for workers servicing the turbines, which have a life cycle of 25 to […]

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Senate GOP’s no-tolls alternative relies on rainy day fund

The GOP would use nearly two-thirds of the state’s budget reserves to pay down pension liabilities, producing an annual savings of $130 million that could be spent on transportation. Another $100 million would come from cutting annual borrowing for things such as capital spending on local schools and public universities. The GOP’s alternative echoes several […]

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Lamont rebuffed on tolls by Senate Democrats

The Senate Democratic majority effectively took highway tolls off the table Wednesday as a means to leverage low-cost federal financing of Gov. Ned Lamont’s sweeping $21 billion plan to maintain and modernize Connecticut’s aging transportation infrastructure over the next decade.  Senate Democrats met for two hours with Lamont in their third-floor caucus room at the […]

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Nonunion building contractors criticize organized labor’s hold on public works construction tied to potential toll revenue in Connecticut

Lamont has assured organized labor in Connecticut that his administration will honor so-called project labor agreements, which are bargaining pacts that apply to construction projects. Lamont sees labor on board his recently revised $21 billion transportation plan as a key component of his sales pitch to the legislature. On Tuesday, he showed the other side […]

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Crane falls on New London construction site

A crane working on the construction of an apartment complex on Howard Street Monday morning fell into the road. The crane, which was being used for the apartment complex under construction at the corner of Bank and Howard streets, fell partially into the roadway. No one was injured. Pennsylvania-based A. R. Building Company is working […]

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East Hartford’s Founders Plaza eyed for major mixed-use redevelopment

The town’s economic-development arm is searching for a developer for an ambitious plan to convert the area surrounding the half-century-old Founders Plaza office tower on Pitkin Street into a mixed-use residential-retail center with up to 2,000 new apartment units. East Hartford’s development-services department this year collaborated with the building’s landlord, Merchants 99-111 Founders LLC, the […]

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