The city is close to crafting an agreement with a Hartford developer to build a housing and retail development off Main Street in a public-private collaboration that would include municipal parking spots to replace those lost when the arcade was razed in 2018. The project is a partnership with Spectra Construction & Development Corp., which has proposed building the Village at Riverside, a block-size complex downtown in full view of the Connecticut River. The city’s former multi-level parking arcade, located behind Middletown Superior Court on Court Street, was demolished because it posed hazards that arose from the nearly 50-year-old structure. The mayor declined to provide any more specifics on the project before it is considered by the EDC, a request made by Spectra. “It’s a process we want to respect,” he said.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/middletown-development-housing-parking-downtown-18287141.php

The proposal to renovate the school and make it handicap accessible was reviewed at the Planning & Zoning Commission’s Tuesday meeting, where the upgrades and preservation of the 1902 structure were endorsed by a number of community members. The expected cost of the renovations is in the $42 million range. The Board of Estimate and Taxation in June rejected an appropriation for the renovations, in a split vote, but the committee working on the project has been moving ahead and submitted the proposal to the Planning & Zoning Commission for approvals. A consultant working on the design, David Stein, walked the commission through the plans, which include a new entrance, a new elevator, an addition with four new classrooms to relocate learning space lost to interior renovations, and other upgrades. The enrollment at the school is around 400 students.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/greenwich-old-greenwich-school-18287133.php

According to Mayor Elinor Carbone, the city is working with the building’s property owner, Torrington Standard, which in 2022 received funding for demolition and remediation. The City Council discussed the $2 million Brownfield Remediation Grant, allocated by the state Department of Economic and Community Development, which will be used to tear down areas of the property. Torrington Standard, represented by Glenn Carbone and Christine Bellucci on this project, has been working with the city and the state. After a project review, the agencies agreed to hire Manafort Brothers. A contract is being finalized, Malanca said, and all work is contracted directly with the property owner and Manafort. Once the sites are razed and cleared, the city invited developers to consider these spaces for housing, office and retail space, as well as manufacturing. The Torrington Co. buildings on Field Street, for example, house a variety of businesses and offices, including the Northwest CT Chamber of Commerce, a health club, small manufacturers and other companies.

https://www.registercitizen.com/news/article/torrington-company-brownfield-development-18269864.php

The measure aims to restore an old definition of the “prevailing wage,” scrapped by President Ronald Reagan, that the Biden administration says would change pay standards on federal construction projects. Under the new rule, employers would be required to pay construction workers the equivalent of wages made by at least 30 percent of workers in a given trade and locality. The new rule, which updates the 1931 Davis-Bacon Act, is intended to ensure that labor unions are at the forefront of the projects resulting from the federal spending blitz. “Many workers are paid much less than they deserve, much less than the value of their work. And not just by a little,” Harris said Tuesday. “I’m here today to announce that we are updating this law and giving workers across the nation a raise.” North America’s Building Trades Unions has commended the administration’s efforts, as has the United Association, which represents plumbers and welders, among others.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/08/08/biden-davis-bacon-union-rules/

Highview Commercial, the project’s developer, has filed an application with the Planning and Zoning Commission seeking to amend the already approved Planned Development District for the site located at 801 Bridgeport Ave. The revised application calls for removal of the already approved hotel and an office building planned for the rear of the site and replacing those with no more than 145 apartments, 18 percent of which would be designated affordable. This latest move comes more than three months after Gunia announced that John Abene, part of Highview’s ownership group, was the sole owner of the site, bringing stability to the massive project. Gunia said at the time that all subcontractors and suppliers that were owed money had been paid as were all financial institutions with notes on the site, including Bob Scinto.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/fountain-square-shelton-apartments-18280129.php

Connecticut Water Co. is beginning installation of a new water main this week on Belmont, Warriner, and Columbus avenues. Work hours for the project will be 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Connecticut Water spokesman Dan Meaney said the project is expected to be completed by November. The project is funded through the Water Infrastructure and Conservation Adjustment on customer bills. Connecticut Water’s goal is to replace about 1 percent of its more than 1,850 miles of water main every year through the WICA program. The company plans to invest over $52 million in water treatment, water storage, and pipelines in 2023, Meaney said.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/enfield-thompsonville-water-main-work-18279236.php

The state Department of Transportation has had reconfiguration plans for the Route 10/Route 322/Old Turnpike Road area just north of the Cheshire line since at least 2008. In addition to squaring off unusual intersection angles, the plans call for the removal of the bridge, regrading Route 10 to meet Route 322 and putting a traffic light at that intersection. Josh Morgan, DOT spokesman, said the project improves safety and won’t have an adverse impact on traffic. While DOT officials have said a signal intersection wouldn’t snarl traffic, Perry said any light there would slow drivers more than the current situation. With the Stonebridge Crossing housing and commercial development taking place just south of the town line in Cheshire, he anticipates more traffic in the area as well as the usual flow of large trucks on Route 322.

https://www.myrecordjournal.com/News/Southington/Southington-News/Southington-officials-unsure-about-state-plans-for-routes-10-322-intersection.html

A massive road rebuilding and roundabout construction project on Jefferson Avenue aimed at improving deteriorating pavement conditions and alleviating traffic snarls is expected to be completed by next month. Director of Public Works Brian Sear said the impetus for the work, which has led to some frustration by drivers attempting to navigate alternating lanes and traffic back-up, was the “really horrible shape” of Jefferson Avenue before the reconstruction began. The $3.9 million state-funded project, paid with Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program funds administered through the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments, broke ground in October. Over the summer, construction crews essentially dug up and rebuilt roughly 2,500 square feet of Jefferson Avenue with improved drainage and began work on a “three-legged” roundabout, with new sidewalks, crosswalks, lighting and curbing, set to open the first week of September.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20230807/opening-of-new-london-traffic-circle-set-to-mark-end-of-construction-traffic-headaches/

A multi-state cannabis company headquartered in Michigan plans to build a 72,366-square-foot cultivation site in East Hartford. C3 is in the process of expanding to three new states, according to CEO Ankur Rungta. That includes the proposed facility along Park Road in East Hartford. A request for a special permit is scheduled to go before the Planning and Zoning Commission on Wednesday. Mayor Michael Walsh said he met with C3 representatives in recent weeks and believes they have a well-organized plan that comes with millions of dollars in investment. While he’s skeptical about some of the touted benefits of marijuana, this proposal has his support. Between property, equipment and renovation costs, Rungta said the East Hartford project is a roughly $12 million investment. He said the venture could begin operations as soon as the second quarter of 2024, with plans to eventually employ about 70 people.

Michigan cannabis company proposes 72,366-sq.-ft. grow facility in East Hartford

The proposal by the developer, California-based TRITEC Americas, to construct a solar photovoltaic facility in Bethany is one of dozens of similar projects under construction or in planning around Connecticut, part of the state’s efforts to rid itself of emissions from fossil-fuel burning power plants by 2040. As both governments and developers seek to ramp up construction of renewable energy projects, they are also facing growing scrutiny from local residents, even in climate-conscious locales such as New York, Vermont and Connecticut, according to Kirt Mayland, former solar developer and fellow at the University of Connecticut’s Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation. After an initial set of meetings last fall at which town officials and local residents voiced their concerns, TRITEC agreed to reduce the size of the proposed solar facility to 6.5 acres, while reducing the output from 1.3 megawatts to .99 megawatts, enough to power several hundred homes.

https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:yGKtito-MHoJ:https://www.ctinsider.com/connecticut/article/bethany-ct-commercial-solar-opposition-18279048.php&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us