City leaders promise a new fire station for the growing west side, a program to improve city roads and upgrades to the police department’s aging camera system, if voters approve a $49 million bond question on November’s ballot. Mayor Roberto Alves said the proposal addresses what he called a “decades-long need” for faster emergency response times in the city’s west side. It also allows the police department to upgrade its aging closed-circuit TV system with new technology. Danbury’s top firefighter said recently that the west side has not only become dense with housing, but increasingly heavy traffic on Interstate 84 is also challenging first responders’ ability to respond to emergencies to the areas between Exits 1 and 3 in a timely manner. Those who had opposed advancing the bond proposal to a referendum at the time cited what they referred to as its lack of specifics, including the proposed site of the fire station, along with the unavailability of other details around the costs to acquire land and build that station.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/danbury-ct-bond-question-november-election-19827305.php

State construction workers reopened a stretch of Route 34 on Wednesday that had been closed since severe flooding in August caused more than $300 million in damage. Gov. Ned Lamont heralded the completion of the bridge work in a Facebook post, saying it was completed two weeks ahead of schedule. Oxford arguably took the most damage from the storm — two of the three people killed were Oxford residents swept away by floodwaters that overwhelmed the Little River along Route 67, and dozens of Oxford businesses and homes were damaged or destroyed. The damaged section of Route 34 became a roaring river during the height of the flooding. As much as 16 inches of rain fell within seven hours in some areas on Aug. 18. Several roads in other municipalities also remain closed as of Oct. 9, including Route 67 between Kettletown Road and Community House Road in Southbury.

Stretch of Route 34 Reopens in Oxford After August Floods

The state Bond Commission is scheduled to meet next week to vote on $1.3 billion in general obligation and revenue bonds for dozens of projects across the state. The agenda includes $5 million for improvements to the Department of Labor’s central office in Wethersfield, and $1.5 million for the city of Hartford’s streetscape improvements along Farmington Avenue. The proposed bond authorizations also include $74.4 million for projects under the Department of Economic and Community Development’s (DECD) Community Investment Fund, which supports downtown revitalization, brownfield remediation and upgrades to cultural assets such as Hartford’s Stowe Center for Literary Activism. The Department of Transportation is also requesting $44 million in special tax obligation bonds for continued improvements to the Mixmaster in Waterbury, which serves as the junction of Interstate 84 and Route 8, and the rehabilitation of the Gold Star Bridge in New London.

State Bond Commission to consider $1.3B for statewide projects

The city of Waterbury has received multiple proposals for redevelopment of a roughly 16-acre brownfield that used to house the Anamet brass manufacturing company, and officials hope to pick a preferred developer by the end of this year. This is the city’s third search for a development partner for 698 South Main St. in a little more than two years. Over the past seven years, the city has invested about $9 million from federal, state and local coffers to prepare the long-blighted site for redevelopment. Waterbury Development Corp. Executive Director Thomas Hyde confirmed this week a selection committee will be formed to sort through responses, hopefully picking a preferred developer by the turn of the year.

Waterbury receives proposals to redevelop 16-acre brownfield

The Connecticut Port Authority has recommended bonding $10.3 million for local harbors and marinas through the Small Harbor Improvement Projects Program, more than double the amount given during the last round. Of the 17 proposals received before July 1, only one — a Guilford dredging project — was rejected. This year’s recommended $10.3 million exceeds previous rounds, which awarded $4 million in 2017, $3 million in 2021 and just over $5 million in 2023. The largest grant recommendation in the latest round was $3.5 million for a Norwalk project to renovate Veteran’s Memorial Park and Marina. If approved, it would be the biggest SHIPP grant since the program began. East Hartford’s $1.5 million request for Great River Park improvements to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act was also among the top recommendations, along with Middletown’s nearly $1.5 million proposal to replace and relocate an aging harbor emergency response dock and a public recreation dock.

Port Authority Recommends $10.3M in Grants for Harbor Improvements

Two major projects at Bradley International Airport — including $185 million for streamlining baggage checking and screening — are expected to be completed by early 2026, setting the stage for future expansion at Connecticut’s largest commercial airport, officials said Wednesday. The CAA Wednesday opened up construction areas in Bradley’s terminal during a media tour, putting on display $243 million worth of work at the airport. The $58 million project aims at the relieving the congestion at the existing central stairwell and will create a new lounge areas for people waiting for and seeing off travelers at Bradley. The central stairwell will be eliminated, allowing for an expansion of the Transportation Security Administration, or TSA, passenger checkpoint. Both the projects broke ground in early 2023, with the additions expected to be completed in the fall of 2025 and the baggage handling system soon after in early 2026. Both are about 50% finished, as of Wednesday, Dillon said.

https://www.theday.com/state/20241016/243m-in-projects-underway-at-bradley-international-airport/

With both institutions on more stable financial ground, the colleges in July tapped the bond market for a combined $47.1 million. Some proceeds are being used to refinance debt Goodwin took on to complete its UB acquisition. KeyBank and Liberty Bank helped finance the purchase, while the state Department of Economic and Community Development provided a $7.5 million low-interest loan, which remains active and current, according to DECD. Goodwin will also invest $10 million in new programs and infrastructure upgrades at both campuses, with a focus on addressing the state’s key workforce shortages in manufacturing and nursing. In Bridgeport, funding will be used to make improvements to School of Engineering labs, adding capabilities related to artificial intelligence, robotics, automation, green technology, biomedical engineering and 3D printing. There will also be renovations to an existing 8,000-square-foot building on campus that will be converted into a new welcome and admissions center. Upgrades will be made to sports science and nursing program spaces, parking areas and athletic fields.

Three years after joining forces, Goodwin University, Univ. of Bridgeport eye campus upgrades, program expansions with $47M in bond funds

The Connecticut Siting Council will reconsider a petition for a previously rejected solar facility on South Road following a series of design revisions. Bridgeport-based Santa Fuel Inc. submitted its first petition for the Somers project in January, detailing a 22.1-acre development at 159 South Road originally designed to generate 3.85 megawatts of electricity. Santa Fuel Inc. stated in its six-page motion, dated Sept. 12, that the proposed facility has been reduced in size, now designed to generate roughly 3.575 megawatts of electricity using 21.6 acres of land, and shifted overall to the north with other changes to its layout and design. At a meeting Thursday afternoon, the Siting Council voted unanimously to accept the motion and to hold a hearing on the revised petition. Other changes listed by the company include sound barrier walls adjacent to the facility’s inverters, intended to reduce noise levels at the eastern property line, and a reduction in clearing necessary for the construction of the facility.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/ct-somers-solar-facility-petition-reopened-19836051.php

For about five years, officials with ConnCORP, a subsidiary of the nonprofit ConnCAT, have planned the $200 million development of a new Dixwell Plaza called the ConnCAT Place on Dixwell to replace the existing faded shopping plaza, Elks Club building and Stetson branch library. After the demolition of those buildings last year, officials launched the start of the first of two phases of construction Tuesday. The first phase of the project, which began Tuesday, will deliver a workforce training center, a child mental health and family clinic, a daycare facility, a grocery store, a food hall for local restaurants, a 65,000-square-foot outdoor plaza and 186-unit apartment tower. The second phase is expected to bring a 350-seat performing arts center, a 60,000 square-foot office building and up to 15 townhomes. The state has contributed $10 million to the project’s costs as well as a $6 million grant for remediation. Elicker said the project was “a long time coming” and supplements the work that has already been done, including a new Q House across the street that broke ground under Elicker’s mayoral predecessor Toni Harp.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/200-million-dixwell-revitalization-project-19836567.php

Springside Middletown, a $100 million, 486-unit luxury apartment and townhouse community situated on a 48-acre site, is just about at the halfway point of construction. The campus is located at 494 Newfield St. / Route 3, near Middletown High School. The project is being developed by Newfield Residential Partners, a joint venture of PB Ventures and Harbor Group International. The project also includes an economically disadvantaged business set aside for minority contractors, Marshall said. Stakeholders, community members and local dignitaries gathered for a tour Tuesday afternoon to herald Discover Middletown, which is intended to support the local economy, promote local businesses, and enhance the economic vitality of Middletown, according to officials. The campus includes co-working spaces, private offices, conference rooms, a fitness facility, swimming pool with splash pad and sun deck, pickleball courts and nature trails.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/springside-apartments-middletown-luxury-housing-19838840.php