The Federal Highway Administration on Tuesday announced that it released $59.9 billion to 12 programs to help address the nation’s crumbling infrastructure, according to an agency press release. The funding comes from the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The infrastructure law, signed last year by President Joe Biden, provides $550 billion over the next five years to support critical infrastructure efforts like revamping roads and bridges, carbon emission reduction and safety improvements. The Biden administration has focused not only on traditional infrastructure, but also items like broadband internet and climate resilience measures. The Carbon Reduction Program aims to boost projects designed to reduce transportation emissions, such as public transit, bikeways and walkways.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/highway-administration-feds-60-billion-infrastructure-law-iija-states/634032/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-10-13%20Construction%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:45232%5D&utm_term=Construction%20Dive

FirstLight Power gathered company and local officials at its power generation station along the Quinebaug River Wednesday to announce it is retiring the last remaining fossil-fueled plant in its system in May 2023 to be replaced with renewable battery facility. The new system still needs state permits and a connection agreement with ISO-New England, which manages the electric grid in all six New England states, Barton said. Construction will take about two years, and the battery facility is expected to become operational in 2024 or 2025. The new battery plant also will be a peak-period only power generating facility and will be co-located at the Tunnel Dam 3-megawatt hydropower plant in Preston. Operation Fuel also runs a job training program to train people for the growing clean energy industry.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20221012/new-battery-storage-facility-proposed-in-preston/

The sheer number of infrastructure projects the DOT will have to manage is mind-boggling. Over the next year, states, territories, tribes and local governments will begin work to improve 65,000 miles of road and 1,500 bridges; invest in 600 airport infrastructure projects; purchase 15,000 new buses, ferries and subway cars; and buy 75 new locomotives and 73 intercity train sets for Amtrak. On top of that, the administration’s five-year goal is to build half a million electric vehicle charging stations. Labor shortages extend to the construction industry, particularly in skilled trades. That could affect the ability of grant recipients to complete projects on time and on budget. A 2021 report issued by the National Infrastructure Advisory Council found that “the workforce development system in the United States lacks the coordination, data, and strategic human capital management necessary to ensure a skilled workforce for critical infrastructure.” Inflation often results in changes to construction contracts to account for increasing costs, which can also affect the project schedule, the Office of the Inspector General’s report states.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/infrastructure-law-implementation-iija-risk-DOT-OIG-report/633730/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-10-12%20Construction%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:45195%5D&utm_term=Construction%20Dive

President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in November 2021, marking the single biggest sum for roads, bridges and other surface routes in a generation. Money from the infrastructure act is starting to trickle to federal agencies and states, and these entities have lists of upcoming projects to bid on, including those funded by the IIJA. To further help contractors identify opportunities for new work, several organizations have released trackers and tools mapping out the IIJA’s programs and deadlines. The White House released an infrastructure act guidebook to help potential grantees identify funding opportunities and prepare to receive the money. Policy think tank Brookings’ detailed federal infrastructure hub breaks down IIJA funding by project type and agency, and allows users to zoom into specific grant programs.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/7-tools-contractors-find-work-infrastructure-act-law-iija-funding/633626/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-10-12%20Construction%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:45195%5D&utm_term=Construction%20Dive

The White House hosted a summit Thursday to help speed up construction projects tied to the roughly $1 trillion infrastructure law — an effort to improve coordination with the mayors and governors who directly account for 90% of the spending. The summit began Thursday morning and comes at a critical moment for the nearly year-old law as high inflation and worker and material shortages are threatening to delay many projects. The Transportation Department will launch an internal center to provide best practices on project design, planning and construction for state and local leaders. The Commerce Department will have a “Dig Once” effort so that construction workers are not repeatedly punching holes into roads to lay water pipes, broadband connections and electricity and natural gas lines, in addition to other efforts by government agencies and industry groups.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/White-House-aims-to-speed-up-pace-of-building-17506053.php

A more established timeline has been released for Norwalk Hospital’s $220 million expansion, including plans for a massive demolition. In a legal notice alerting the public of its plans, Nuvance Health, which owns and operates Norwalk Hospital, said the eastern portion of Tracey Pavilion and the entire Community Pavilion will be demolished on the hospital’s Maple Street campus. The demolition is part of the hospital’s $220 million renovation and expansion set to be completed by 2026, Nuvance Health spokesperson Donald Fantozzi said. “Following the demolition, construction of the new pavilion is scheduled to begin in fall 2023,” Fantozzi said. “In consideration of weather and other environmental factors, we estimate the building will be complete at the end of 2025 and expected to open in winter 2025-26.” Plans to demolish and rebuild portions of the hospital were first announced in June 2021, following an anticipated “surge” in births.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Norwalk-Hospital-demolition-expansion-17499410.php

The bid packages now approved include: $6.669 million for Marguerite Concrete of Hopedale, Mass.; $11.101 million to Berlin Steel Construction Co. in Kensington; $1.314 million for Giliberto & Sons of Hartford for waterproofing, air barrier and sealants; $1.595 million to Blackwater Services Group of Waterbury for fire protection; $29,330 million to MJ Daly of Waterbury for plumbing; $11.697 million for electrical services to Paul Dinto Electric Contractors of Middlebury; and $17.725 million to CJ Faucci Inc. of New Haven for site work. The council also approved a request from the building committee to terminate its contract with Construction Solutions LLC, as a consultant. In May, the school building committee and the S/L/A/M Collaborative said they wanted to start work in October.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Torrington-school-committee-starts-spending-17500157.php

The U.S. General Services Administration, which oversees the development of federal buildings, announced the potential sites for the $335 million project Tuesday after a search that was launched nearly a year ago. The announcement drew immediate concern from local officials. All three sites have been targeted for years for mixed-use redevelopment, with an emphasis on housing. No timetable for a decision was announced Tuesday, but the next step would involve further study beginning this fall and the seeking of public comment, GSA said. A master plan for the Bushnell South area, near the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, envisions converting a barren stretch of parking lots into a new neighborhood of housing, commercial and entertainment space. The plan has made no mention of a potential courthouse. The Capital Region Development Authority, the quasi-public that is overseeing the area’s development, is in the midst of selecting a developer for the first parking lot, just west of the one being considered for the courthouse.

https://www.courant.com/business/hc-biz-new-federal-courthouse-hartford-20221011-k6iqxh6yufay5fglg6r2num5uy-story.html

Construction added a total of 19,000 jobs in September, with the bulk of those gains coming on the nonresidential side, signaling that the Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hikes have yet to quell demand for hard-to-find workers in the sector. Overall construction unemployment dropped to 3.4%, below the national rate of 3.5% for all industries, as nonresidential builders added 13,100 positions for the month and 181,500 for the year, a 4.2% gain from 12 months prior, according to an analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data conducted by Associated Builders and Contractors. But the gains in the overall job market worried Wall Street on Friday, since they indicate the Fed may need to get even more hawkish in its campaign to reign in runaway inflation. An additional report that came out this week indicates that cooling is already underway in the architecture, engineering and construction space. The latest quarterly market forecast from Newton, Massachusetts-based AEC consultant PSMJ Resources indicates proposal activity is already slipping.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/fridays-hot-jobs-report-terrible-construction/633693/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-10-10%20Construction%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:45130%5D&utm_term=Construction%20Dive

With 200 housing units completed and more under construction, Philadelphia-based Pennrose is asking Hartford officials for permission to modify plans for its “Village at Park River” development in the city’s North End. The development is rising on nearly 40 acres at 1550 Albany Avenue that had housed the Westbrook Village public housing complex. The Hartford Housing Authority demolished the faltering complex to make way for redevelopment. The request to modify the master development plan is on the Hartford Planning and Zoning Commission’s Oct. 11 agenda. Under the requested changes, the development will ultimately yield 412 housing units instead of 431. Other changes include trimming 19 parking spaces, a change in landscaping plans and dropping a requirement that one building be restricted to senior residents.

Developer seeks changes to ongoing 400-plus unit mixed-use development in Hartford’s North End