The city was approved for a $2 million federal grant to come up with ways to knit back together neighborhoods cleaved when I-91 was built in the 1960s, officials said Thursday. The “Reconnecting Neighborhoods” grant comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Among other things, the $2 million grant will pay for design and a related community engagement process to find out how residents would like to see the long-bisected areas of the city stitched back together, said Mayor Justin Elicker. Among the areas the project is likely to affect are Fair Haven, Cedar Hill, East Rock, Wooster Square, Long Wharf, and the Hill, along with Downtown, said Alder Carolyn Smith, D-9, whose ward includes parts of the East Rock and Fair Haven sections. Fair Haven and East Rock are two areas that I-91’s completion split apart.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/new-haven-2m-grant-reunite-neighborhoods-i91-20024933.php

General Dynamics Electric Boat recently paid $5.5 million for a nearly 55-acre property in North Stonington, where the Groton-based submarine builder plans to construct a roughly 480,000-square-foot warehouse. The property at 45 Frontage Road, right off Interstate 95, currently hosts a 40-year-old, 5,000-square-foot garage. John Cafasso, a principal of Colliers, brokered the sale on behalf of the tribal nation. An Electric Boat spokesperson confirmed the purchase of the North Stonington property but declined comment on plans for the site. Susan Cullen, North Stonington’s planning development zoning official, noted the new warehouse will be about halfway between Electric Boat’s Quonset Point Facility in North Kingstown, Rhode Island and its Groton facility. The Frontage Road property is also within a district targeted by the town for industrial and commercial development, she said.

General Dynamics Electric Boat to build 480,000-sq.-ft. warehouse following $5.5M North Stonington land purchase

The importance of infrastructure is largely acknowledged as a bipartisan issue, said Mary Scott Nabers, CEO of Austin, Texas-based Strategic Partnerships, a government procurement consultancy. “I think that the construction industry should feel very positive about 2025,” Nabers said. “From all indications, the next three or four years will be very good for the construction industry.” There’s plenty of work to be done: Not only the country’s massive repair backlog, but also burgeoning demands for climate resilience, tougher infrastructure cybersecurity and new energy sources to power the rapidly growing domestic data center and manufacturing industries. Three years into the five-year, $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Biden will pass the baton to Trump with a sizable chunk of money left. The new administration will have to staff up and get up to speed with the IIJA’s many programs.

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/trump-impact-infrastructure-construction-2025/736597/

A plan to build a solar farm the size of 12 football fields off Fawn Meadow Lane has been approved by the Connecticut Siting Council with a long list of conditions. Greenskies Clean Energy’s application for a certificate of environmental compatibility and public need was granted Dec. 5, clearing a required hurdle to operate a 4,625-megawatt solar array. The approval requires that Greenskies of North Haven provide a full site plan before construction on the 36-acre, heavily wooded property begins. Woodbury land use coordinator Will Agresta said Greenskies’ business model involves using the panels to generate enough electricity to power as many as 400 homes. That electricity would be harnessed and then sold to power companies. The Siting Council’s approval follows multiple hearings on the proposal last year.

https://www.rep-am.com/localnews/2025/01/08/siting-council-oks-massive-solar-farm-in-woodbury/#google_vignette

Clinton-based utility company Connecticut Water announced Monday that it replaced more than 93,500 feet, or roughly 18 miles, of water main in 2024. The work consisted of 22 projects in 18 municipalities, at a cost of about $44.5 million, according to Connecticut Water. Some of the pipes replaced were more than 120 years old, including one in Killingly with a date of 1905 on it, the utility said. Fire hydrants were also replaced as part of the initiative. The effort was part of the utility’s Water Infrastructure and Conservation Adjustment program. Connecticut Water said its goal is to replace 1% of its nearly 1,800 miles of water main every year. It prioritizes aging or under-sized water mains.

CT Water replaces nearly 18 miles of water main in 2024

Last year ended with four Connecticut malls in Enfield, Meriden, Waterford and Waterbury losing tenants, a result of retailers either reducing their number of locations, going out of business or relocating stores. With high vacancy levels in those malls, retail and commercial retail experts have said 2025 could be the year that one of the malls shuts down or more likely, begins the process to redevelop for some other use. As malls like Waterbury’s Brass Mill Center, the Crystal Mall in Waterford, the Enfield Mall and the Meriden Mall struggle to fill vacancies and remain relevant, the idea of mixing residential and retail spaces, commonly known as mixed use development, continues to grow. By the end of 2025, the retail component of a mixed use complex in Cheshire, near the town’s border with Southington, will be open. The Shops at Stonebridge will be anchored by a Whole Foods Market, a Barnes & Noble bookstore, a Saybrook Home furnishings store, as well as a pet store, other retailers and several restaurants.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/ct-malls-mixed-use-lead-retail-growth-20018894.php

One of two downtown eyesores will come down this spring after the City Council voted Monday to include $2.6 million in its capital improvement budget to demolish 116 Cook Ave. The spending is offset by a $2 million state grant, leaving the city to pay $600,000. Monday’s council vote allows the city to hire a contractor that can begin the demolition as early as February. Phase one of the project is funded at $16.8 million. LaRosa Construction began work in October. The latest project consists of rebuilding three bridges and creating a waterfront linear trail that links to the Meriden Green. The demolition of 116 Cook Ave. clears the way for a planned new senior center in 2028, when the flood control project is expected to be completed. Phase two consists of channel improvements. Costs range from $10.6 million to $39 million based on a variety of factors. Site engineers proposed relocating the 23,000 cubic yards of dredged soil to the 116 Cook Ave. site to elevate it 4 feet out of the flood zone. However, the soil needs to be tested for hazards before engineers can determine whether it will be trucked out of state, at a significantly higher cost.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/recordjournal/article/meriden-116-cook-ave-demolition-flood-control-20019702.php

Russell will ask legislators when the 2025 General Assembly session starts Wednesday to cap the Special Transportation Fund’s emergency reserve so that once that safety net account tops 18% of the STF — nearly $412 million based on current spending — the state would have to put that money to work, paying down long-term debt. The plan centers on the transportation fund, which represents about 9% of this fiscal year’s $26 billion overall state budget. Besides covering operating expenses for transit programs and for the Departments of Transportation and Motor Vehicles, the fund also pays the debt service — principal and interest — on the hundreds of millions of dollars Connecticut borrows annually for highway, bridge and rail construction projects. The STF gets most of its funding from sales and fuel tax receipts, and the former has grown considerably in recent years, driven in part by inflation.

Treasurer: CT saves big by not stashing transportation funds

More than 700 former Torrington High School students took the opportunity to enjoy a final tour of the soon-to-be-demolished structures on Major Besse Drive on Saturday, Jan. 4. That was just 17 days before classes will begin for current students in the new crescent-shaped high school just yards away. Torrington-based O&G Industries led the construction of the new high school building, which is adjacent to the old one. Construction of the new high school building, which abuts the gym, began in 2022. The state of Connecticut will reimburse the city a total of 85% of its $179 million price tag, Longobucco said. Students will begin attending classes in the new building Jan. 21, Sullivan said. Classes in the adjacent new middle school building are slated to begin in September.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/torrington-high-school-demolish-tours-alumni-20016496.php

After more than a year of delay, developers advancing the roughly 400-unit “Concourse Park” luxury apartment complex in East Hartford say they expect to break ground this spring. The Council also approved several deed restrictions for the 25-acre development site off Silver Lane, which is currently held by the town. These provide a measure of security for the roughly $16 million investment of public funds into the site’s development. With these agreements settled, Krohn and Zelman expect to finalize the property acquisition later this month or in February, then begin work in April or May. The developers are also finalizing agreements with Eversource and the Metropolitan District Commission. Zelman, separately, expects to begin construction of a 93- or 94-unit, four-story apartment building on the site some time in 2025. This building will also take about two years to complete, he said.

$115M-plus East Hartford apartment development expected to launch this spring