A committee of the Capital Region Development Authority recently backed a request from the city to transfer $2 million in city funds managed by CRDA to the demolition of the deteriorating, former data processing center on Windsor Street. The full CRDA board must still approve the transfer from a stalled, mixed-use development in Parkville, but typically committee approval leads to backing by the full board. The city expects a $6 million state grant to largely cover the estimated, $9.4 million cost of knocking down the former bank procession center at 150 Windsor St. The city has another $1.4 million set aside for the demolition. The developer of the apartments and parking garage at 17 and 35 Bartholomew Ave., Carlos Mouta, told The Courant that the project is essential to future growth in Parkville because it will provide sorely needed parking, already at a premium in the neighborhood. But Mouta said he understood the need for pulling the funding for the downtown project, as long as it become available again in the future for the development in Parkville, given the need for parking.

How $2 million in public funding could help a CT site needed for future major development

Despite a company’s assurances about using only modern technology, its proposed trash-processing plant in Connecticut hit a wall of public opposition when residents recently voted 10-1 against the idea. The non-binding Plainfield referendum doesn’t stop the Smart Technologies LLC proposal, because the state government — not the town — has authority over it. But the lopsided result shows that despite an extensive public outreach campaign, Smart Technologies still faces a steep uphill battle to build local support. Only 12% of the town voted, but gave the project a resounding defeat: 1,148 to just 125. The company wants to build an unconventional trash-to-energy plant on about 81 acres near Route 12 and Route 14. Unlike typical trash-burning incinerators, this facility would employ “gasification” — a process of break down garbage into gases, which would power a turbine and generate electricity for the power grid. Smart Technologies contends the system doesn’t generate the smoke and ash associated with trash incinerators, and wouldn’t be an environmental hazard. The company, a partnership of O & G Industries and Advanced Waste Technologies International, contends its system can separate hazardous materials as well as recyclable metal and glass from a stream of municipal trash. It directs organic material to an anaerobic digester that produces a biogas capable of being converted into natural gas, and can separately process methane and carbon dioxide to prevent pollution.

The proposal is for a high-tech trash plant. For many CT residents that’s a hard ‘no’

A section of Route 8 in Connecticut is currently under repair. Crews are making improvements to the the Commodore Hull Bridge, which connects Shelton and Derby over the Housatonic River. State inspectors say they found that some parts of the bridge are beginning to deteriorate. Once officials learned of the deterioration, CTDOT signed an emergency declaration to quickly hire contractors to begin working on the project. According to Morgan, the bridge is still safe for travel. However, CTDOT has implemented a 32-ton weight restriction on the bridge to avoid putting any additional stress on it. The bridge will still be open for travel, but different lanes will be closed during different phases of the project. Morgan said it’s too soon to give a timeframe as to when the work will be finished, but CTDOT officials expect construction to continue at least through this month.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/deteriorating-route-8-bridge-connecting-derby-and-shelton-in-connecticut-is-receiving-repairs/ar-AA1G6zTt?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=1e1fd1e766664339b800c78e0658d5b9&ei=39

The town is holding off digging up Main Street and the town green until the fall, due to a glitch in the bidding process, officials said. The new timeline would mean that the disruption could continue through the summer of 2026. All the events, which were moved off the green in anticipation of the work, won’t be able to reclaim the town green this season. Instead, they will remain at the new assigned venues. The planned $13 million downtown and $1 million town green revitalization projects are delayed due to some bidders not responding to the town’s addendums to the plan, said First Selectman Jamie Cosgrove. This sends the project back to the town, state Department of Transportation and South Central Regional Council of Governments for new approvals. The town will start the bidding process from scratch, Cosgrove said.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/shoreline/article/branford-downtown-roadwork-green-events-ct-20348956.php

The projects to rebuild both Westhill High School and Roxbury Elementary School cleared a major obstacle last week after the state General Assembly reauthorized both with larger budgets. The authorization, which was included in the state bond act that passed on Wednesday, sets the the maximum state grant reimbursement at $356.8 million for Westhill and $78 million for Roxbury, according to a press release from the office of Stamford Mayor Caroline Simmons. The most recent estimate for the work — which would tear down the 1971 building and construct a brand new building — is $446 million. The budget was decreased by $15 million due to the size of the project being reduced by roughly 10,000 gross square feet, among other adjustments. If Westhill’s budget is approved, it would go out to bid — likely between November and January of 2026 — at which point the city will receive a “guaranteed maximum price,” which will need to be approved by both the Board of Finance and Board of Representatives. Matt Quinones, Stamford’s director of operations, said the two projects are slated to begin in 2026.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/stamford-ct-westhill-roxbury-school-projects-20364749.php

And appearances to the contrary, that timeline is correct, Wes Pulver, president of the museum association overseeing the $150 million project, said Tuesday as he walked the site of the future 89,000-square-foot, six-story building. “We’ve had some delays, but I’m not stressed about it,” Pulver said walking past an excavator that minutes before was scraping mounds of stone from property between Union Station and the Thames River. “It’s our obligation to not cut corners.” That anticipated framing, expected to last for several months, was delayed after prep work that began earlier this year found a host of underground issues that didn’t show up on easement maps and other survey documents. Those issues included utility pipes, sewage lines and electrical components that needed shifting, and the decision to install underground “vaults” at various locations to allow for safer cable and pipe access. Pulver said project construction manager, the North Stonington-based AZ Corp, worked with city officials and representatives of Eversource, Amtrak, Cross Sound Ferry and other stakeholders to identify work-arounds.

https://theday.com/news/750329/construction-of-150m-coast-guard-museum-set-to-begin-next-month-as-donations-rise/

The remaining St. John’s Towers buildings could be torn down to make way for a residential development that would bring 305 apartments to downtown Stamford. The owner of the roughly 1.6 acre property at 109 Tresser Blvd., Saint John Urban Development Corporation, submitted a project application to the city May 2 and said the plan was to redevelop “the aging, mostly vacant residential towers to be more in line with the residential setting of the surrounding neighborhood,” according to the application for the project. The three towers were built, according to the application, as part of a government program that “maintained the units as affordable” for those making 80% or less of the AMI for 40 years. Those restrictions expired in 2010, though, and no affordability requirement applies to the remaining buildings.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/stamford-ct-st-johns-towers-20359538.php

The state legislature has approved an additional $100 million to repair homes with crumbling foundations, which is expected to end the decade-long crisis in the state, according to Connecticut Foundations Solutions Indemnity Co. Superintendent Michael Maglaras. The state’s bond package, voted on during the last day of the legislative session on Wednesday, includes $25 million for crumbling foundations in each of the next four fiscal years. The continued funding is “everything we’ve asked for,” Maglaras said. “We’re going to fulfill our mission.” CFSIC is expected to surpass 1,100 homes fixed by Labor Day, restoring equity for homeowners, and tax assessments for municipalities, which benefits taxpayers in affected towns. The work spearheaded by the captive insurance company has also created more than 225 construction jobs, and contributed to sales tax revenue due to the purchase and lease of large construction equipment, Maglaras said.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/ct-crumbling-foundations-bonding-general-assembly-20362769.php

A new technical magnet school is preparing for liftoff next year, offering students a chance to touch down on Mars as part of the curriculum. Goodwin University Magnet School System has begun construction on RiverTech, a new 288-student high school with a new four-story building next to the existing four-story Pathways Academy on Pent Road in East Hartford. Though the school has plans to offer opportunities to students interested in a wide variety of STEM subjects and careers, its flashiest feature is the “astronaut training center” that aims to simulate space missions to the surface of Mars. Goodwin Superintendent Salvatore Menzo said Wednesday that the $85 million school, funded with full reimbursement through the state, expects to open “mid- to late fall” next year, in time for the 2026-27 school year. East Hartford officials and future students joined the district at a groundbreaking event Tuesday, marking the beginning of the new building’s construction.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/ct-east-hartford-magnet-school-mars-simulation-20357734.php

The borough is developing a public-private partnership to bring a freight rail project to the former Uniroyal site. The partnership would include Darien-based Genesee & Wyoming Railroad Services Inc., which owns or leases more than 100 railroads across North America, to develop a Naugatuck Industrial Rail Park off Elm Street. Hunter said some of the advantages of the site for businesses include direct rail access, being in a strategic location, lower transportation costs and access to labor and incentives. Some of the potential uses include warehousing, lumber distribution, bulk propane and recycling and trans-loading, a shipping term referring to the transfer of goods from one mode of transportation to another. Genesee & Wyoming Railroad employs roughly 90 people in Connecticut and has operations in 42 states, a company spokesman said in 2023.

https://www.ctinsider.com/waterbury/article/naugatuck-freight-rail-park-genesee-wyoming-20356732.php