The requests to increase distribution rates – which would raise revenue by 5 percent for Connecticut Natural Gas and 9 percent for Southern Connecticut Gas – come at a tense time between utilities and the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority tasked with overseeing them. Customers have bristled at high costs, lawmakers and PURA have pushed for more accountability from utilities, and the companies have warned that the state’s new direction will make it harder for them to attract outside investments. CNG, which serves about 185,000 customers in 25 municipalities in central Connecticut and Greenwich, will ask to raise rates to increase its revenue by about $21 million – a 10 percent increase to delivery revenues and 5 percent increase in overall revenue, the company said. SCG, which serves about 208,000 customers in 24 municipalities, is asking to raise rates to increase its revenue by $42 million – a 20 percent increase to its delivery revenues, and 9 percent increase to its overall revenues.

Two Gas Utility Companies Planning to Raise Rates

Now, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is looking to remove the obsolete dam, in an effort to open up the river for fish passage and restore a free flowing river. Dam removal could open up about 19 miles for fish passage on this part of the Farmington River, said Ramona Goode, state dams sanitary engineer for DEEP Water Planning and Management Division. Right now, migratory fish aren’t able to get over the wall that the dam creates. Goode estimated that construction costs alone could cost around $5 million, and said that they hoped to use the funding currently available through the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to remove the dam as soon as realistically possible. Goode said that, ideally, construction would get underway in 2024.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/farmingtonvalley/article/ct-deep-collins-company-lower-dam-removal-18393899.php

The state Bond Commission is expected to approve millions of dollars for projects in north-central Connecticut, including the next installment of $25 million for crumbling foundations. The agenda for Friday’s meeting includes the fiscal year 2023-24 allocation of $25 million for the Connecticut Foundation Solution Indemnity Co., or CFSIC, which announced last week that it has fixed more than 800 homes with crumbling foundations. More than $100 million for the Community Investment Fund is also expected to be approved Friday. Commission members are also expected to approve more than $6.5 million to finance the planning, design, and construction of electric vehicle charging stations at state facilities to comply with state law requiring that 50 percent of the state’s fleet be electric by 2026.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/ct-bond-commission-crumbling-foundations-18401192.php

But this month, crews of restoration experts erected scaffolding both inside and outside the Gothic Revival national landmark, and using cranes for equipment and demolition hauling, have begun work on rebuilding the two skylights, as well as the long-delayed installation of the antique stained-glass panels inside, called lay lights. Those 300 window-sized panels will be installed horizontally several feet under the skylights. The current work, expected to go into the third week in January, just before the start of the 2024 legislative session, includes repainting the period-correct interior stencils that were damaged when the stained glass panels were removed for restoration in 2014. The work is the first phase of a $54-million restoration of the building that will include a new micro-thin layer of gold leaf on the dome that soars 257 feet above the first floor rotunda as well as restoration and repointing of the soaring marble and granite seat of state government, including architectural towers and observation areas that have been pitted over 145 years of years by wind, rain and pollution.

https://www.chron.com/politics/article/roof-repair-beginning-major-capitol-restorations-18375872.php

Interchanges 39 and 40 – which are supposed to connect the Merritt to Route 7 – currently redirect drivers onto congested Norwalk streets, as they are missing key connections. Due to traffic spillover onto city streets, sharp curves and steep grade changes on the exit ramps, the number of car accidents at Intersection 40 far surpasses those on nearby intersections – with 365 crashes reported between 2015 and 2018, compared to 241 at a Fairfield intersection, 222 in Westport and 220 in Darien during the same period. The new plan would add the missing connections between the Merritt and Route 7, improve local roadways by widening sidewalks and adding new traffic signals, and remove the steep, curvy ramps. Preliminary construction cost estimates are about $109 million, and the project is expected to be completed around 2027 or 2028.

New Merritt-Route 7 Interchange Plan Backed by Conservation Group

After 30 years of talk, the city is well on its way to opening a new community center. And while the facility is expected to come with all the bells and whistles a $40 million price tag could be expected to offer, former Recreation Department Director Tommie Major wants to keep the project in perspective. The facility will include a community lounge, classroom space for early childhood programming, a two-court gymnasium, eight-lane pool, track area and workout and game rooms. While the city’s recreation department is expected to run some programming at the site, general oversight and operation of the facility will be the responsibility of a private company the city will hire. The hiring process is expected to begin by the end of this year. The facility is expected to cost $2 million a year to run with revenue generated by memberships, rental fees and sponsorships.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20230930/gardens-dancing-and-zumba-new-london-residents-create-their-community-center-wish-list/

The city has contracted with Spectra Construction & Development Corp. of Hartford on a project to build a complex called the Village at Riverside, which would be located on property bordered by Court and Main streets, and deKoven and Dingwall drives. Members of the city’s Economic Development Commission heard from several individuals involved in the project at their Sept. 21 meeting. The public-private partnership calls for the creation of 277 market-rate apartments, and small town homes, a public gathering place, two to three levels of underground parking, and retail shops spread out over several buildings on a 228,000-square-foot lot behind the police station. The mayor stressed that the presentation is not a final draft. Officials are looking for public input on the plan as the project moves along, he said.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/middletown-retail-housing-parking-downtown-18391554.php

In a joint letter to the Biden administration in mid-September, Gov. Ned Lamont and other Northeast governors warned the Biden administration of escalating costs that could stall any new wind farm proposals. Blaming inflation and continuing bottlenecks in industrial supply chains that have “created extraordinary economic challenges that threaten to reverse these offshore wind gains,” the governors want more support to be steered to wind power under the Inflation Reduction Act to help cover the jump in wind farm costs. The governors’ plea came two weeks after Orsted warned investors it expected to incur $700 million in lower long-term profits. With no immediate outlook for industry costs ebbing, Connecticut, Rhode Island and other states may have a lengthy wait on its hands to get any developers to step up if the Biden administration does not free up funding.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/ct-eversource-offshore-wind-farm-avangrid-18386772.php

South Windsor on Tuesday approved a developer’s plan to build another 165 apartments near Evergreen Walk, but set several conditions to ensure that people renting the 21 “affordable housing” units will be treated the same as tenants paying market rate rents. Howard Rappaport’s Longleaf Developers LLC told the planning and zoning commission Tuesday night that its plans changed since they were initially presented a year ago, but emphasized that the affordable housing and accessible housing components remained the same. The project will be an extension of Rappaport’s Tempo Evergreen Walk, a 200-unit complex behind the shopping plaza. Commissioners unanimously approved the developer’s site plan, with Town Planner Michele Lipe noting numerous conditions. They include the developer submitting an affordability plan stating that appliances in affordable units will be the same as in market-rate units, and showing how affordable apartments will be dispersed around the two four-story buildings.

CT outdoor mall to get 165 more apartments. Here’s how many will be affordable housing.

The Connecticut Airport Authority is getting nearly $100 million of federal funding for three of its airports. The bulk of the $99.27 million will go to Bradley International Airport, which is in Windsor Locks. Bradley got $76.14 million for an inline baggage screening building, $17.96 million for a vertical circulation project and $278,643 for a taxiway extension project. Groton-New London Airport will get nearly $2.91 million in federal money for airfield lighting and new signs for the facility. Hartford-Brainard Airport will get nearly $1.98 million in federal grant to be used for easement acquisition and obstruction removal. The grants will allow officials at Bradley International, which is New England’s second busiest airport, to “create an easier and more streamlined airport experience for travelers, according to U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/ct-airports-to-get-nearly-100m-in-federal-funding-18395069.php