industry news
Stay updated with the latest developments and insights from across the industry
Meriden highway construction progresses into second phase. Here’s what’s next
MERIDEN — Officials announced a recent update where the project stands for Meriden’s congested interchange, where state Route 15 and Interstates 91 and 691 meet. “We’re continuing to make progress on this important safety improvement project in Meriden,” said Eva Zymaris, spokesperson for the state Department of Transportation. The on-ramps for northbound Route 15 and Interstate-91 and eastbound I-691 from East Main Street will be closed as part of the ongoing construction in phase two, which began last year with some components starting in 2024. Paddock Avenue will have one-way alternating traffic controlled by a temporary signal, and be closed entirely during nighttime hours between Barr and Overlook Roads, though those hours were not posted. Roadwork will take place 6 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, with lane and shoulder closures on all three roadways during these times. The $500 million project is designed, when completed, to reduce congestion along one of the state’s busiest corridors, seeing around 260,000 vehicles pass through the interchange daily.
Developers proposes more than 430 apartments in upscale CT suburb town center
The developer building Heritage Park at the former UConn campus in West Hartford is proposing a project in another town. It’s 266 apartments just off Glastonbury’s Main Street, with nearly a third of them to be priced at state-designated “affordable” rents. Domenic Carpionato of Rhode Island wants to put up a series of three- to four-story buildings near Main Street at Griswold Street in what would become one of the largest residential complexes in town. It’s one of two major developments envisioned for Glastonbury’s Main Street: The Greenwich-based HB Nitkin Group is proposing about 170 apartments in a mixed-use project that would entail demolishing a pair of existing commercial buildings. The projects aren’t linked, but if both are built, they’d significantly change the appearance of the town center. Both developers are going before town environmental boards on Thursday to discuss their plans.
New Orleans developer buys Trumbull office building once approved for self-storage redevelopment
A New Orleans-based commercial real estate development firm plans to demolish a three-story office building in Trumbull that it purchased for $2 million, according to property records. Trumbull CT Development Company LLC, controlled by Gordon H. Kolb Jr. of New Orleans, purchased the 62,464-square-foot building, at 6 Cambridge Drive, in late December. Kolb is president of GHK Developments, a commercial real estate development firm that focuses on acquiring and developing commercial properties. GHK is working with the town on getting permits to redevelop the 4.54-acre property, but would not disclose what it plans to build there. “This is something that will be helpful to the community,” said William Henderson, co-founder of Texas-based commercial real estate firm AIE Partners who is partnering with GHK on the redevelopment. “Getting rid of this blighted property is very beneficial for the area.”
Middletown Details First Projects Under $42.5M Infrastructure Bond
MIDDLETOWN — The mayor and members of city staff announced initial plans to improve local infrastructure as a part of a $42.5 million bond referendum approved by voters in November. Mayor Gene Nocera, joined by city public works officials and the city water and sewer director, held a press conference on Tuesday to provide updates on plans to address upcoming improvements to city buildings, roads and sewers. Back in November, residents overwhelmingly voted in favor of a $42.5 million bond referendum, where $33 million will go toward improvements to city-owned buildings and roads and a separate $9.5 million toward improving the city water and sewer system. On Tuesday, Acting Deputy Public Works Director Brian Gartner said about $15 million will be spent on repairs for nine city buildings. Nocera identified the parks department building, the city yard and the tradesman building as projects the city will prioritize. While these are the initial plans for spending the bond money, all projects will need to be approved by a newly formed building committee that will oversee the process by establishing budgets and timelines. Members of this building committee are still being sworn in, and have yet to schedule a meeting, Gartner said. He emphasized that this will be a “very public process.”
https://ctexaminer.com/2026/01/14/middletown-details-first-projects-under-42-5m-infrastructure-bond/
Demolition of vacant and decaying CT building to start. It puts future development in spotlight.
An 8-foot high construction fence is starting to encircle the former data processing center. It’s near Hartford’s minor league ballpark, the first step toward a demolition that would make space for new development — including a potential, $90 million center for applied artificial intelligence. But passersby won’t notice walls tumbling down right away. Over the next two months or so, work will focus inside the 190,000-square-foot, bunker-like structure — vacant for nearly two decades and long the target of vandals and the object of thieves who stripped the concrete structure of anything of value. “What people will be able to see probably won’t start until April or May,” William Diaz, a project manager for the city’s department of development services, said. “Everything has to go down to the studs before they start taking the building down.” Diaz said metal structural beams, for instance, are sprayed with asbestos, which must be removed, and the lowest two underground floors are flooded. Leveling the now, city-owned data center is expected to cost $9.4 million, a combination of state and city funds, including a $6 million brownfields clean-up grant. The demolition is expected to wrap up by June 1, according to the city’s latest predictions.
Large-scale CT solar project looks to drill under popular trail. Residents concerned with its impact
Broadleaf Solar, a renewable energy supplier, is seeking to drill transmission lines under the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail in East Granby as part of a large-scale solar project on a former agriculture field. The New York based solar company paid nearly $10.2 million for the 600-acre Monrovia Nursery property in Granby and East Granby in 2021, officials said. Its plan includes building a 100-megawatt solar facility on 322 acres of the former agricultural property. As part of the plan, Broadleaf would use horizontal drilling to install transmission lines to connect 100 megawatts of electrical power to an Eversource 345 kilovolt transmission line near Route 20, according to the company’s project proposal. The project site is at 35 Floydville Road and 90 Salmon Brook St. The proposal calls for drilling under Salmon Brook River, Route 20 and under the popular “Rails to Trails” bike and walkway.
Offshore wind project to restart again off CT coast after Trump overruled in court
A federal judge on Monday restarted the Revolution Wind offshore energy project, handing the Trump administration another setback in its efforts to halt the wind farm under construction in waters off Rhode Island. “A federal judge has once again blocked Trump’s efforts to tank Revolution Wind, finding yet again that his actions are likely arbitrary and capricious and that our challenge is likely to succeed,” said Connecticut Attorney General William Tong in a statement. “This project is on the finish line to begin delivering clean, affordable energy to Connecticut families,” Tong said. “With yet another clear defeat, it is my hope that Donald Trump will drop his lawless and erratic attacks for good. We’re prepared to keep fighting — and winning — for as long as it takes to protect Connecticut ratepayers, workers and our environment.” The Trump Administration first issued a stop work order on Aug. 22 and Connecticut and Rhode Island sued in response. The project developer, Ørsted, sued separately and a federal district court issued an injunction, allowing work on Revolution Wind to proceed. But on Dec. 22, the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management suspended work for at least 90 days, citing undisclosed national security concerns. Ørsted sought a preliminary injunction to block the latest stop work order.
Costco project to face decisive vote before Plainfield zoning commission
Plainfield — Tuesday night’s Planning and Zoning meeting could make or break Costco’s controversial proposal for a massive distribution center on the Plainfield-Canterbury town line. The wholesale giant will appear before the commission at 7 p.m. to request a zone change that would transform more than 200 acres into an I-2 Industrial District that would permit the construction of any warehousing and distribution facility that passes a site plan review. Costco is also requesting amendments to the town’s Industrial-1 and Industrial-2 zoning regulations that would modify certain setback requirements, eliminate building design standards, and erase a 20-foot maximum height requirement for site lighting. The scheduled public hearing and regular meeting in Plainfield come just days after Costco’s plan to construct two 1.1 million-square-foot depot facilities on 443 acres off Route 12 in Plainfield and Butts Bridge Road in Canterbury cleared a major hurdle.
Meriden Green expansion plan scraps sensory garden
MERIDEN —The city has changed its plans for the northern corner of the Meriden Green and instead of building a sensory garden, officials are proposing a park on the four-acre site. The lot is now used as a staging area for construction equipment at the Center Street Bridge reconstruction, but a new federal grant could help complete the park in the next year, city officials said this week. The city’s Finance Committee voted Thursday to allow City Manager Brian Daniels to apply to the Environmental Protection Agency office of Brownfields and Revitalization for a $4 million grant by Jan. 28. The grant was announced in December and is narrowly focused on uses that turn brownfields into parks, Daniels told the panel. Design drawings are 60 percent complete, officials said, and the city has been waiting for state funding to complete the work but was rejected in several earlier rounds.
https://www.ctinsider.com/recordjournal/article/meriden-green-expansion-garden-21277611.php
Trump’s offshore wind project freeze draws lawsuits from states and developers
Offshore wind developers affected by the Trump administration’s freeze of five big projects on the East Coast are fighting back in court, with one developer saying its project will likely be terminated if they can’t resume by the end of next week. Norwegian company Equinor and the Danish energy company Orsted are the latest to sue, with the limited liability companies for their projects filing civil suits late Tuesday. Connecticut and Rhode Island filed their own request on Monday seeking a preliminary injunction for a third project. The administration announced Dec. 22 it was suspending leases for at least 90 days on the five offshore wind projects because of national security concerns. Its announcement did not reveal specifics about those concerns. President Donald Trump has been hostile to renewable energy technologies that produce electricity cleanly, particularly offshore wind, and has instead prioritized oil, coal and natural gas that emit carbon pollution when burned.
Connect with us
Contact us
If you believe you have been the victim of wage theft on a public works construction project, please feel free to contact our office. You can also visit the Connecticut Department of Labor’s Wage & Workplace Division’s website to file a complaint here.