The Board of Selectmen voted 2-1 Wednesday to give proposed data center developer NE Edge LLC permission to assign the host fee agreement it signed with the town in 2023 to a subsidiary company. Belmont, Mass.-based NE Edge has sought to build a data center consisting of two two-story buildings and a switchyard on 55 acres of the Millstone Power Station property. But so far it’s had trouble getting approval to do so. In order for the project to proceed through town boards and commissions for approval, Dominion Energy Nuclear Connecticut has to petition the Connecticut Siting Council, which oversees power-generating facilities in the state, to host the data center on its property. The host fee agreement opened the door for the town to host NE Edge data center at Millstone and called for NE Edge to pay the town $231 million over 30 years. McCoy said under the agreement, NE Edge has until March 2026 to obtain building permits or the project.

https://theday.com/news/731121/ne-edge-transfers-waterford-data-center-rights-to-new-company/

East Hartford officials are considering an eight-year tax break worth an estimated $5.2 million to incentivize a 150-unit apartment development on a long-vacant property near the Connecticut River. Konover’s development site sits just behind East Hartford’s Great River Park along the Connecticut River. It is immediately west of the Academy of Computer Science and Engineering Middle School, a magnet school run by CREC. Konover’s site is also just south of the Founders Plaza office park, which a group of prominent developers is trying to redevelop into a mix of roughly 1,000 apartments, along with restaurants, retail and other commercial uses. East Hartford’s Town Council is expected to discuss the proposed tax abatement at its Tuesday night meeting. The Capital Region Development Authority last year approved a $6.5 million, low-interest bridge loan to help finance Simon Konover’s plan for an estimated $47.5 million apartment development on a 35-acre property at 341 East River Drive.

East Hartford considers 8-year, $5.2M tax break for 150-unit apartment development

Ticlon is proposing to re-zone its property on Long Swamp Road and Nike Road from residential to quarry zone so it can add the 83 acres to its existing basalt quarry operation. At the town Planning and Zoning Commission last week, Tom Daly of SLR Consulting – presenting the proposal for Tilcon – said the change would increase Plainville’s tax base. But residents at the meeting overwhelmingly opposed the change, saying they already endure the disruption and silica dust from Tilcon blasting at its existing site on the town line with New Britain. While many opposed the expansion, the Manafort Brothers wrote a letter in support of the change that was read in the meeting for the record.

https://www.bristolpress.com/news/residents-worry-about-proposed-tilcon-quarry-expansion/article_ffff48ed-8a20-4f55-ad33-b166bcd3a030.html

State legislators are considering a bill that would transfer Hartford’s 80-acre South Meadows property and $5 million to the Capital Region Development Authority. The site along the Connecticut River formerly was home to a garbage-to-energy plant operated by the quasi-public Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority. MIRA shut down the faltering plant in 2022 and local officials have been pushing to prep the site in Hartford’s industrial South Meadows neighborhood for redevelopment. House Bill 1559 has been raised by the state legislature’s Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee and will be discussed during a public hearing Monday.

CT bill would transfer Hartford’s South Meadows site, $5M to CRDA to oversee development

Mayor Paul K. Pernerkewski said Friday the city’s long search for a redevelopment partner for the former Anamet factory complex on South Main Street could be nearing a successful conclusion. Pernerewski said the city’s recruitment efforts were boosted by by the State Bond Commission’s approval Friday of an additional $5.3 million to support the continued environmental cleanup of the former industrial property abutting the Naugatuck River on South Main Street. The city issued its third request for proposals for redeveloping the former the campus of the Anamet network of factory buildings late last year. The former industrial complex at 698 S. Main St. was used for manufacturing from 1812 to 1977 by, in turn, Benedict & Burnham Manufacturing Co., American Brass Co., Anaconda American Brass Co., and ARCO. The mayor said the $5.3 million bond allocation approved Friday will help negotiations because the cleanup cost is such a major consideration.

https://www.ctinsider.com/waterbury/article/waterbury-ct-south-main-street-brownfield-20271278.php

The nearly 60-year-old structure at 300 Congress St. is considered a cramped, outdated money pit that not only makes it more challenging for those within to do their law enforcement jobs but dampens the enthusiasm of those uniformed men and women. Mayor Joe Ganim’s administration is on the hunt for a consultant to kick off the planning and design process. Thomas Gaudett, the mayor’s chief operating officer, said the selected hire would perform a needs assessment of the force and rate potential new locations for a police headquarters, taking into account response times to emergency calls. The total price tag is not cheap. Ganim’s proposed five-year infrastructure spending plan pending before the City Council estimates borrowing $19 million by 2028 for construction.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/bridgeport-police-new-headquarters-20264601.php

The city received a $10.4 million grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the design and construction of a floodwall around its wastewater treatment plant, Mayor Dorinda Borer recently announced. “When the plant, located on the ocean, gets flooded it compromises the system, the infrastructure breaks down and it’s costing us millions of dollars to repair and we’re millions of dollars behind on repairs,” Borer said. Thursday’s announcement came less than a week after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem issued a memorandum canceling the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program that initially allocated $47.5 million in additional funding for a coastline resiliency program in Bridgeport. The city had been ravaged by Superstorm Sandy and sought infrastructure upgrades. FEMA said in a statement that the BRIC program was “more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.” West Haven’s funding is through FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grant Program, the city said.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/west-haven-wastewater-treatment-plant-flood-feam-20269041.php

In its final meeting before the end of Connecticut’s fiscal year June 30, the State Bond Commission on Friday approved about $790 million in long-term borrowing for dozens of projects, from more than $32 million for planning and renovations to the Agricultural Experiment Stations laboratory in Windsor, to $171 million for statewide school construction. In a fast, 15-minute meeting in the Legislative Office Building, the committee dominated by Democrats, with no debate, approved $222 million for a variety of dwelling initiatives, including workforce housing and the Time to Own program, which offers forgivable loans to first-time home buyers. The 10-member commission also approved $80 million for the state Department of Economic and Community Development’s local investment fund for 35 projects.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/politics/article/ct-bond-commission-enfield-mall-housing-20270595.php

Mayor Kevin Scarpati recently used his tie-breaking power to effectively kill two votes that would have started the center renovation on West Main Street, while protecting the city’s authority to pursue a new build at 116 Cook Ave. Scarpati broke a 6-6 tie to vote against a Finance Committee recommendation to develop plans for 22-28 W. Main St. He also broke a 6-6 tie on a Health and Human Services Committee recommendation to reject the renovation. Those who supported the renovation pointed to significant cost discrepancies between the price tags. The new build is estimated at about $35 million and won’t likely begin until after 2027. The renovation is expected to cost $13 million and construction can begin next year.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/recordjournal/article/meriden-scarpati-reject-senior-center-renovation-20264844.php

Lawmakers pushed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to speed up federally funded infrastructure projects in a recent Senate Environment and Public Works Committee meeting, as they begin developing the next multiyear Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill. The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act added about $550 billion over baseline funding levels and included a five-year reauthorization of federal highway, transit and other infrastructure programs that is set to expire at the end of September 2026. That funding infusion helped improve the condition of U.S. infrastructure, but ongoing support is needed to maintain progress and meet new challenges, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers. Several senators asked Duffy about the status of infrastructure projects in their home states and why some already-approved projects are frozen while agencies review them for mentions of climate change, environmental justice or equity. President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 “Unleashing American Energy” order halted disbursement of IIJA and Inflation Reduction Act funds while federal agencies examine projects for compliance with his policy agenda.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/duffy-hearing-transportation-reauthorization-iija/744753/