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CT still has thousands of lead pipes carrying drinking water. New funding aims to replace them
Connecticut is set to receive $27.5 million from the federal government to replace thousands of aging lead pipes still carrying drinking water to homes across the state. The funding, announced last week by the Environmental Protection Agency, is the latest allotment given to Connecticut through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Enacted in 2021, the federal law set aside $15 billion for finding and replacing lead pipes nationwide, including about $150 million for Connecticut. Lead, a heavy metal once common in products such as pipes and paints, is a neurotoxin that is harmful to human health, especially for children and pregnant women. Even small amounts can stunt children’s development and lower IQ scores, according to the state Department of Public Health.
Though water quality experts say the federal funding covers only a fraction of what it will ultimately cost to replace all of Connecticut’s lead pipes, public health officials have described the investment as a big step toward improving the state’s drinking water systems. “Drinking water infrastructure projects are costly, and this funding provides significant support to our communities as they work to identify and remove lead service lines,” DPH Commissioner Dr. Manisha Juthani said. “These resources allow Connecticut to move faster in eliminating lead exposure risks, strengthening local public water systems, and protecting the health of all residents — especially our most vulnerable.”
Connecticut’s century-old coastal rail bridges are getting billion-dollar replacements
As passengers travel on the rail lines along Connecticut’s coast, more than 100-year-old bridges carry their trains over some of the rivers that flow into Long Island Sound. Billion-dollar projects are underway to replace two of those movable bridges. And by the time work wraps up in 2030 or 2031, assuming there are no delays, a third new bridge could be under construction. The complex projects aim to keep Amtrak, Metro-North and Shore Line East trains running while work is ongoing and to ultimately increase train speeds. Here’s what those barges, cranes and construction crews are up to, and what plans are still in the works.
Higher gas prices could strain CT construction plans as diesel, asphalt prices surge
While rising gasoline prices threaten Connecticut families’ summer travel plans, the trend is putting pressure on the state’s transportation program as well. Gov. Ned Lamont’s budget director said Thursday that certain gasoline and sales tax receipts could “soften” this summer if prices remain elevated or turn worse in the coming months. And a key business leader warned that the state’s transportation construction dollars likely won’t stretch as far, as the cost of diesel fuel, liquid asphalt and other petroleum-related products surge along with gasoline. “I think we are, unfortunately, all at the whims of the federal government and the decisions of our current president, and this is a situation where we are all suffering,” Lamont’s budget director, Office of Policy and Management Secretary Josh Wojcik, said Thursday. According to AAA, the average price of regular gasoline stood Friday at $4.55 nationally and $4.64 per gallon in Connecticut, with the latter up 60% since the U.S. and Israel went to war with Iran on Feb. 28. That created a brief surge in the state’s $2.3 billion Special Transportation Fund, thanks to a percentage-based tax that reflects changes in the wholesale price. But that tax also has a cap, which has been in effect since March 31. In other words, tax receipts from this source are maxed out — unless motorists start driving more. That’s unlikely given current prices, not to mention a new forecast posted Wednesday on X by GasBuddy. The popular gasoline price-forecasting service projected an average retail price nationally of $4.80 per gallon between Memorial Day and Labor Day, provided supply lines from the Persian Gulf remain blocked.
Major milestone: Coast Guard Museum hoists rescue helicopter into building
New London — A retired MH-60T Jayhawk U.S. Coast Guard helicopter was lifted into the under-construction Coast Guard Museum on Wednesday. The multi-mission recovery helicopter, which was active from 1990 to December 2023 and saved over 333 lives, arrived Monday from Elizabeth City, N.C., according to retired Coast Guard Capt. Wes Pulver, president of the National Coast Guard Museum Association. The helicopter is white and red and has a 54-foot wingspan. It can reach a maximum speed of 205 mph and accumulated 18,855 flight hours during its time. The future director of the museum, retired Coast Guard captain Carl Riedlin, flew the helicopter while serving in Astoria, Ore., and doing search and rescue missions. It just happened by chance that the helicopter he flew ended up in the museum. “It is really neat that it is here. It’s amazing. One of the goals of the museum is that people who served, when they walk through the museum, they see something that they did and the contributions they made. So it’s really neat to see that,” Riedlin said. The helicopter’s career began in Clearwater, Fla., flying drug interdiction missions and responding to the Haitian boat lifts in the ’90s. Some of its other notable stations were Air Station Astoria in Oregon, Air Station Cape Cod in Massachusetts, and Air Station Kodiak in Alaska.Wednesday morning the helicopter was placed on a sled, which was hooked into the side of the building and then lifted and rolled into the building. In a few months, it will hang from the ceiling in the atrium of the museum. The final display with have replicas of a real crew from Elizabeth City, N.C., that flew the helicopter. The display will reenact the crew rescuing a swimmer.
Crumbling ex-CT hospital site targeted for adaptive reuse. City notes ‘live, work, play’ potential
It was started as a state hospital for people with mental illness and remained operational until the buildings were abandoned in 1996. Now some of remaining crumbling and abandoned buildings sit on the banks of the Thames River directly across from the posh Mohegan Sun casino buildings. The city of Norwich wants to change the future of the buildings in its city that serve almost as a gateway to the nearly 300-year-old community at the confluence of the Yantic and Shetucket rivers in eastern Connecticut. The city is soliciting bids for qualifications for developers to study the former site of Norwich State Hospital, a plan that seeks adaptive reuse of the parts of the site that are in Norwich. The city said it seeks “professional consulting firms and teams to complete a planning study to reimagine the former Norwich State Hospital.” The Norwich property is located at 628 and 705 Laurel Hill Road on Connecticut Route 12, and the Norwich request for quotation indicates there also is a hope to create a community-driven vision for the site. “The planning effort will focus on creating a vision for the future redevelopment of the area that will provide a sense of place for city residents and visitors alike. The former hospital property is a prime location for the construction of a live, work, play development that would exist in concert with the neighboring Preston Riverwalk,” according to the city of Norwich RFQ. The RFQ project is funded by a $250,000 Community Investment Fund 2030 Grant and is expected to complement the upcoming Preston Riverwalk development, which will be constructed by the Mohegan Tribe. “The Gateway Norwich planning project is intended to provide the community with a blueprint for strategic future growth through public outreach and visioning exercises,” according to the Norwich RFQ.
Developer proposes 22-story, 305-unit apartment tower in Bridgeport
A developer has proposed a 22-story mixed-use tower with 305 apartments in Bridgeport, according to an application filed with the city’s Planning and Zoning Department. Jonathan Gonzalez, of Meriden, has proposed constructing the building on a 0.44-acre parcel at 110-118 Congress St. A three-story commercial building on the property would get demolished to make way for the proposed building. Gonzalez said the project is part of a broader goal to build 20,000 apartment units nationwide to generate cash flow for Second Start Inc., a nonprofit he founded that provides housing and support services for disadvantaged people. As part of a separate Bridgeport project, he said he also plans to build an eight-story, 346-unit apartment building on Myrtle Avenue in partnership with the property owner. “We have a lot of big initiatives, and in order to get to that initiative, we have to create a cash flow,” he said. The first two floors of the proposed Congress Street building would include office and retail space for tenants such as a grocer, cafe and pharmacy, according to the application. Apartments would occupy the remaining 20 floors. Plans include installing paved driveways, sidewalks, new utilities, a stormwater management system and landscaped areas. “The proposed project represents a significant redevelopment of an underutilized commercial property into a modern mixed-use development that enhances the urban fabric of the surrounding area,” the application said.
Energy company proposes big natural gas pipeline expansion in New England
Less than three years after a large fossil fuel company proposed expanding a major natural gas pipeline in New England, the company, Enbridge, is back with a new proposal. Known as “Project Beacon,” the expansion would substantially increase the amount of gas that can flow into the Northeast through the Algonquin Gas Transmission line. This pipeline carries fracked natural gas from northern New Jersey through parts of New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and into Massachusetts. Details about the proposed project are vague, but according to documents released by Enbridge this week, the company would replace existing lines with larger diameter pipes in some places and run secondary pipe lines alongside existing ones in other places. Project Beacon would also involve expanding some compressor stations along the route, and could include new gas storage facilities. Depending on customer demand, the project could expand capacity on the pipeline by 10%, the company said, and be in service by late 2030. “Project Beacon would help meet growing energy demand by easing longstanding pipeline bottlenecks that have contributed to higher energy costs for consumers,” Enbridge spokesperson Max Bergeron wrote in an email. “By improving access to abundant domestic energy supplies, the project aims to reduce price spikes and strengthen the region’s energy system.”
$150M plan seeks to redevelop aging CT cineplex into 300+ apartments, entertainment venue
Four months ago, the end credits rolled for the last movie shown at the Apple Xtreme Cinema, the lights were turned off and the cineplex boarded up. But now, there are once again scenes of coming attractions. A massive redevelopment planned for the 13-acre multiplex on New Park Avenue in Hartford — a project that could reach an estimated price tag of $150 million — could include more than 300 mixed-income apartments, with rents ranging from affordable — targeted at low-to-moderate income households — to market-rate, officials familiar with the plans said. The apartments would be built on what are now parking lots to the north and south of the theater, bookending a renovated cineplex that could retain a couple of movie screens alongside a new restaurant and bar — perhaps offering wood-fired pizza — and a game arcade. In the rear of the cineplex structure— opened in 2000 and also operated under such brands as Crown and Bow Tie — space would be converted to self-storage. The project also would put to a new use a cineplex built for another era when multiple screens responded to the demand by the movie-going public. The movie industry was battered by the pandemic and increasing competition from the small screen. Construction on “Edge 400” — its name drawn from the cineplex’s location near the town line with West Hartford in the city’s Parkville neighborhood — could begin by early 2027, bringing new attention to a less considered gateway to the city.
NextEra-Dominion deal would put CT’s Millstone nuclear plant under new ownership
Connecticut’s largest power plant would change hands under a merger announced Monday, in which Florida-based NextEra Energy would acquire Dominion Energy, the owner of the Millstone Power Station in Waterford. Millstone is the only operating nuclear plant in Connecticut, and its two reactors supply roughly half the state’s electricity and more than 90% of its carbon-free power, according to Dominion. The deal, an all-stock transaction valued at about $66.8 billion according to Reuters, would transfer control of Millstone to NextEra. NextEra, through a subsidiary, is the majority owner and operator of the Seabrook Station nuclear plant in New Hampshire, which sells its power into the regional grid operated by ISO New England, the same market Connecticut draws electricity from. If the merger closes, the combined company would own both Millstone and Seabrook — meaning a single company would control all of the nuclear power generated inside Connecticut, along with a significant share of the regional nuclear supply that reaches Connecticut homes and businesses. Seabrook is the second-largest nuclear plant in New England, behind Millstone. Neither company’s announcement of the deal — nor its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission — mentions Millstone, Seabrook, Connecticut or New England. The companies framed the merger almost entirely around growth in the South and soaring electricity demand from data centers, particularly in Virginia, where Dominion runs a grid serving the world’s largest concentration of data centers.
EB seeking approval for first conversion projects at former Crystal Mall
Waterford — Electric Boat, the new owner of the former Crystal Mall property, is awaiting state traffic approval tied to its renovation project and is seeking town approval to approve conversions of old anchor stores into training centers. EB wants to renovate the former Bed Bath & Beyond and Sears stores, according to Planning Director Mark Wujtewicz, who said he meets with EB officials weekly. The submarine maker has also applied for a building permit from the town. Wujtewicz said last week the company seeks approval for “selective demolition” and conversions of the two former retailers. The Sears space would be made into permanent workforce training facility, while the shell of the Bed Bath & Beyond will be made into a temporary workforce training center. “It would just be limited to this work,” Wujtewicz said. Wujtewicz said the company’s conversion of the former mall, which officially closed its doors at the end of March after 40 years in business, is proceeding on schedule. He added that EB’s purchase means the town has to rework its own long-term development plans and must abandon its vision of a mixed-use, business and residential operation. EB purchased the mall property last year after pressure from the U.S. Navy to deliver submarines. Moving some workers to Waterford would free up space in the Groton shipyard, which can’t expand because it has the Thames River on one side and neighborhoods on the other. The Groton shipyard could then focus more on building submarines.
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