While the Norwich Public Utilities water division spent much of the summer wishing for rain to replenish the city’s reservoirs, the utility’s natural gas division took advantage of the dry weather to plow forward with a busy year of gas line expansions, replacements, maintenance and safety work. The new gas line, costing about $300,000, was funded with money remaining in the 2014 voter-approved $9.5 million bond to expand NPU’s natural gas system. NPU General Manager Chris LaRose said once the line is completed, other businesses and homes along the route of the new Yantic gas line also will be eligible to connect to the service, including the Yantic volunteer fire station across from the mill.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20220823/norwich-public-utilities-natural-gas-crews-had-a-busy-summer/

Months after a development deal to renovate a pair of historic, 100-year-old downtown theaters collapsed, Mayor Joe Ganim’s administration has given up on the private sector spearheading the saving of the Majestic and Poli Palace, and is instead seeking nearly $100 million in state dollars to fix up the structures. The effort to secure such a substantial amount of state money is, according to some local officials, not a plan, but a desperate long shot. Coleman last week told the council’s economic development committee that City Hall has a Plan B — applying to the new Community Investment Fund the state legislature established in 2021 for nearly $100 million to save the theaters. Coleman also noted how that $100 million would not get the job finished.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Development-deal-dead-Bridgeport-seeks-100M-for-17391746.php#photo-21647513

Publicly funded or subsidized construction projects will remain the safest bet for contractors in a downturn, said Turmail. Public buildings like schools and healthcare facilities should also be insulated from a downturn, said Richard Branch, chief economist for Dodge Data & Analytics. “IIJA funds are slated to flow to the majority of programs by the end of 2022,” said Grandy. “Meaning the valve will open up to infrastructure contractors in 2023.” Turmail added contractors could consider targeting areas of the country where electric vehicle plant construction is booming, especially off the back of the passage of the $52 billion CHIPS Act and the Inflation Reduction Act. “It’s safe to assume that there will be a lot of economic activity around the places where electric vehicles and their components are being manufactured,” said Turmail.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/most-least-recession-proof-construction-sectors/629981/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-08-18%20Construction%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:43927%5D&utm_term=Construction%20Dive

Despite fears about a potential recession, Connecticut continued to adds jobs during the month of July. The state added 6,500 jobs last month, lowering its unemployment rate to 3.7%, according to the state Department of Labor. The national unemployment rate is 3.5%. The private sector added 2,600 jobs in July across a wide range of industries, while the government sector added 3,900 jobs, according to DOL. Despite the growth, Connecticut still has only recovered 86.1% of the 289,400 jobs lost during March and April 2020, when the pandemic temporarily shut down significant parts of the state’s economy. And Connecticut’s labor market still lags behind national trends. Connecticut has steadily added jobs over the last two and a half years, but residents’ participation in the labor force has waned in the face of the pandemic.

Amid recession fears, CT adds 6,500 jobs in July 

Yale University is on path to build a new, 49-unit residence hall at its Divinity School with a sustainable design that includes a green stormwater management system and a net-positive solar energy production. But the highlight of the building is that it was designed to meet the standards for a full certification of the “Living Building Challenge,” a design guide that aims at sustainability through connecting occupants to nature and being self-sufficient when it comes to resources. There will be new green infrastructure that allows substantial stormwater retention, reduces flow and improves the quality of the stormwater. Nicole Holme of Nitsch Engineering said replacing the parking lot with pedestrian pavement and roof will make it better for stormwater runoff. As the project will also renovate some of the existing features of the Divinity School’s building, Chmelar said it will create more residential components and become more accessible and more inviting for both locals and Yale students. The construction is expected to begin late this year and is expected to complete in summer 2024.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Yale-s-new-dorm-will-produce-more-energy-than-17382263.php

The United States Department of Transportation announced Thursday that it has awarded $65.2 million for the replacement of the 115-year old train bridge between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme. An initial $65.2 million federal contribution was designated in fiscal year 2020 towards the estimated $432.4 million cost of the estimated 6-year-long project, which is slated to begin construction in 2024. An additional $20 million was also awarded to the state to replace 2 power substations along the New Haven Line. The bridge project will also allow trains to significantly increase their speed on the span. Speeds over the bridge are currently restricted to 45 miles per hour, but with the bridge replacement, speeds will increase to 70 mile per hour, while delays due to bridge openings and closings are projected to decrease. In a joint statement, the state’s Congressional delegation called the Northeast Corridor one of the busiest rail lines in North America, with more than 144,000 commuters using the New Haven Line and Shore Line East daily. It said the two projects are an important investment in Connecticut as they upgrade the power supply and remove a major chokepoint along the Shore Line East line by replacing the outmoded, deteriorating bridge.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20220818/more-federal-money-awarded-to-replace-rail-bridge-over-connecticut-river/

Waterbury Mayor Neil M. O’Leary says the city is moving quickly to authorize $5 million in local matching funds required under a recently approved $23.1 federal infrastructure grant. The $28.1 million in federal and local funding will be used to continue construction of the Naugatuck River Greenway Trail, create a riverfront park on Jackson Street, make improvements to West Main Street and build charging stations for electric vehicles at the city train station. The Capitol Region Council of Governments was awarded a $16.3 million grant to help close the last gap in the 84-mile Farmington Canal Heritage Trail from New Haven to Northampton, Mass. This $30 million project also will connect the multiuse trail to the CTfastrak trail in New Britain. Waterbury will use some of its $23.1 million federal grant to construct the next 2.3 miles of the Naugatuck River Greenway Trail. O’Leary told Buttigieg construction of the first phase of the trail from the Naugatuck border to Eagle and South Main streets is expected to be completed next month.

https://www.rep-am.com/local/localnews/2022/08/17/city-to-match-funds-for-naugatuck-river-greenway-trail/

In an at-times tumultuous meeting, the Tweed New Haven Airport Authority approved a new 43-year lease and management agreement with a subsidiary of its longtime contract operator, Goldman Sachs-owned Avports LLC, on Wednesday, opening the door for a $100 million airport expansion. The meeting took place with East Haven Mayor Joe Carfora speaking forcefully against the lease and expansion and all four East Haven-appointed members voting no. Avports, owned by a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs, has managed Tweed for the past 23 years. The plans calls for a broader partnership under which Avports will invest about $100 million to extend the usable length of Tweed’s runway from 5,600 feet to 6,635 feet by paving currently grassy runway safety area. They also call for Avports to build a new 74,000-square-foot, carbon-neutral terminal with four to six departure gates on the East Haven side of the airport, with a new entrance to be constructed off Proto Drive in East Haven.

https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Tweed-New-Haven-Airport-Authority-approves-17380816.php?t=3992925259&src=nhrhpdesecp

As about 350 people listened online and in person, a long procession of Willington residents on Tuesday night told town officials that the proposed TradeCenter 84 project is far too big and completely unwelcome. None of the roughly 30 speakers supported Hillwood Development Co.’s proposal to build a 1.5-million-square-foot warehouse just off Exit 70 of I-84. One after another, residents told the commission that a six-story mega-warehouse doesn’t belong in a sleep suburb of fewer than 6,000 people. One called it “a gargantuan Godzilla.” Texas-based Hillwood is eyeing 160 acres of woodlands just behind River Road for a massive warehouse with more than 220 loading bays along with parking spaces for 700 tractor trailers and 500 workers. The company said it would bring hundreds of jobs and a net gain of about $2.7 million a year in tax revenue for the town. Additionally, the operation would spur more economic development in that section of town, according to Hillwood’s representatives.

https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-news-connecticut-willington-warehouse-opposition-20220817-dq5skkfplfe4no45ok65ttpv5u-story.html

Port Authority interim Executive Director Ulysses B. Hammond said that three of nine stages of construction at the State Pier have run into difficulties and run behind schedule in the last month – construction of the south wall of the pier, its toe wall, and the heavy lift platform that will allow for it to be used for offshore wind staging. Hammond said the contractor Kiewit reported that higher than anticipated rock elevations and obstructions have negatively impacted pile driving progress on the pier, which needs to be substantially completed by March 2023 in order for Eversource and Ørsted to use it for construction of their joint offshore wind project, South Fork Wind. Despite the issues, Hammond said the target is still “substantial completion of the project” before Feb. 28, 2023, and final completion by June 2023.

One in Three Projects at State Pier Hit Obstacles, Testing Budget and Timeline