The hearing on the Carpionato Group’s plans for a 40,000-square-foot Whole Foods in Old Saybrook begins at 7 p.m. on Monday. The application for the high-end supermarket includes a larger makeover of the Oyster River Shopping Center, which is at the intersection of Spencer Plains Road and Route 1. The plans for the shopping center makeover include space for a 3,600-square-foot medical office and four retail spaces that are between 4,100 and 8,100 square feet. Because homes and businesses in Old Saybrook use septic systems to dispose of sewage, the supermarket and all of the other businesses that are part of the Oyster River shopping center will be served by an on-site leaching field. The store, if approved, would be Whole Foods’ first among the well-heeled communities that are part of Connecticut’s shoreline east of New Haven.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/whole-foods-old-saybrook-ct-19945732.php

The Planning and Zoning Commission is considering a proposal to build a 96-room hotel and 100 units of housing at an existing narrow five-story office building at 24 Belden Avenue. The 44,000-square-foot office tower would remain as is, as well as the 30,000-square-foot ground level commercial space. The project is being proposed by local developer Jason Milligan of Milligan Realty. On the housing side, Milligan said, the apartments would be smaller with fewer amenities to make them more affordable for students and young professionals. Cost savings could be in the form of smaller cooking surfaces and Murphy beds, he said. Milligan said that the cost of the project is expected to be in the $30 million to $50 million range for both towers and that it could be two years before either project is open. Approvals, he said, are probably three months away.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/norwalk-hotel-apartments-office-tower-19937025.php

Local officials are weighing spending $16.7 million to build a large floodwall encircling the town’s sewage treatment plant, an effort aimed at protecting the riverside facility from destructive storms. On Monday, the Water Pollution Control Authority voted to authorize the project and the town council unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance issuing $16.7 million in bonds to fund the construction work. The project is expected to start as soon as this spring and take about two years to complete. The yet-to-be-built structure would be about five feet taller than the highest point on the existing dikes, ensuring the treatment plant would be protected from flooding brought by a 500-year storm, Barstow said. According to data from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the sea level of the Long Island Sound at Stratford is on the rise and is projected to increase between 0.4 feet and 2.2 feet by 2065. Barstow said his team is aiming to get authorization to move forward with the project from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection by March and start construction in May. He noted the work is expected to take two years to complete.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/education/article/stratford-weighs-16-7m-floodwall-protect-sewage-19944557.php

The bridge on Fairfield Avenue over Interstate 95 will open Monday, seven months after its predecesor was critically damaged in a fiery crash, officials said. The bridge was demolished following a fiery crash involving an oil tanker May 2, which compromised the structural integrity of the overpass. The crash happened after a sedan cut off the tractor trailer on I-95 south, forcing the driver of the truck to swerve to avoid a collision. In doing so, the back of the tanker was ripped open, spilling gasoline and causing the fire. Even though the old bridge was demolished and cleared within 80 hours of the crash, the incident caused massive traffic, delays and detours throughout the Northeast. By June 1, engineers completed a design for the bridge, and work had started by mid-summer.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/norwalk-fairfield-avenue-bridge-over-i-95-opens-19952801.php

The Eastern Connecticut Housing Opportunities (ECHO) group has submitted plans for a four-story, mixed-use complex with 46 apartments to be built at 66 Union St., the former location of the demolished First Congregational Church. Plans for the estimated $30 million project, set to be discussed by the Planning and Zoning Commission on Dec. 5, show commercial space at ground level with apartments on the upper floors. The building’s total area includes 3,487 square feet of office/commercial space with a State Street entrance. Another 52,025 square feet of residential space on the building’s upper floors will be filled with a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging in sizes from 946 square feet to 1,465 square feet, plans show. A coastal site plan document states the wood-frame complex will be built over an 18-to-24-month period with construction anticipated to begin in the fall of 2025.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20241125/30m-apartment-complex-proposed-for-new-london-church-collapse-site/

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney stood at the edge of a neatly cut 4-foot-deep trench on Asylum Street Monday morning and watched as Norwich Public Utilities and contractors maneuvered a segment of new 8-inch-diameter natural-gas main into place. The Asylum Street replacement project runs from the area in front of the Norwich dog park to the West Main Street intersection. Work is being done during the day, with the road closed to all but emergency vehicles and school buses, each 200-foot section backfilled and covered with temporary pavement upon completion, Barry Ellison, NPU gas division integrity manager, said. Throughout construction, natural-gas service is not interrupted, Ellison said. The existing gas line runs parallel and undisturbed about 2 feet from the new trench. Courtney said the funding, through the $1.2 trillion 2021 federal infrastructure law, was meant to improve public safety by upgrading aging structures such as Norwich’s.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20241125/courtney-views-20-million-gas-line-replacement-work-in-norwich/

Town officials set aside $43 million to rebuild Old Greenwich School earlier this year but were told that was never going to be enough to cover the expected cost to rebuild the 122-year old school. The building committee, an all-volunteer group coordinating the pre-construction tasks, is now seeking $1.96 million, a roughly $700,000 increase from the request made in March, to fund the “owner’s contingency” — money held in reserve to pay for unforeseen issues or cost overruns. The building committee is working with Downes Construction Company and others to rebuild the school. Owners contingencies on projects like this typically range from a minimum of 5 percent to 10 percent, officials said. The $1.96 million request would put the Old Greenwich School project contingency at 7 percent, if approved. The building committee plans to take the project out to bid in February and start construction in the summer. That timeline, however, is contingent on BET and RTM approving the funding at their next meetings in December and January, respectively.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/old-greenwich-school-contingency-fund-19934873.php

The site of the former Nathan Hale School, which closed in 2017, is being sold to a private developer who aims to redevelop the property to include residential units, an athletic facility, and a day care facility. Members of the Town Council voted unanimously on Monday to sell the property at 5 Taylor Road to Enfield-based The Court LLC for $750,000, which would place the property back on municipal tax rolls while providing more options for homes and recreation. Demolition of the school and construction of the new sports facility is expected to take between one and two years. Following completion, residential construction is expected to take roughly three years. Over the years, the building has deteriorated and the property has remained under the ownership of the school district and then the town, meaning it was not taxed as part of the town’s grand list.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/ct-enfield-nathan-hale-school-19931798.php

The Representative Town Meeting, at its meeting Wednesday, approved spending $5.5 million to repair the failing structure, work on which would begin next October and be finished in mid-2026. Funds to cover the cost will come from the town’s remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds, some $3.3 million, with the balance covered with bond and note authorization to the Municipal Improvement Fund Account. The ARPA funds, according to the federal government, must be under contract to projects before Dec. 31, 2024, or the funds revert back to the government. The funds must be spent in two years. For the tide gate and walkway work, Director of Public Works Pete Ratkiewich said most marine structures that involve pilings or concrete in the water last 20 to 25 years. He believes that because the town has performed maintenance on the tide gate each summer, workers were able to expand the life by 11 years.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/westport-approves-5-5m-repair-40-year-old-pond-19929445.php

The Connecticut Port Authority said Friday it is working with State Pier contractor Kiewit to remedy what appears to be substandard soil used on a portion of the newly-constructed offshore wind facility. The remedy for the problem, the cost to fix it and who might pay remains in question. The problem was discovered by routine soil testing of the 100-foot long section at the south end of the pier where fill was used to expand its size. The area was once two piers. The soil contains excessive silty material and is not in compliance with the port authority’s contract with Kiewit, said Paul Whitescarver, chairman of the board of directors of the Connecticut Port Authority. Despite the problem, Whitescarver said operations at State Pier remain unaffected. The pier is loaded with parts ― wind turbine blades, nacelles and towers ― that are bound for the waters off Rhode Island as part of Orsted’s Revolution Wind project.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20241122/contractor-discovers-substandard-soil-at-state-pier/