Ted Lazarus, a principal of the Litchfield-based Park Lane Group, said Friday remediation at 90 Garfield Ave., former home to the Edward Bloom Silk Co business, is about 90% complete and he expects construction of 87 apartments ― 20% of which will be set aside as affordable housing ― to be finished by the first quarter of 2026. The Park Lane Group, operating as Garfield Mills LLC, bought the 97,000-square-foot mill building, which has sat unused for decades, for $239,000 in 2019. The company, with the aid of a $1 million state brownfield remediation grant, began cleaning the property about eight months ago. Lazarus said the former factory was rife with contaminants, including lead-painted walls and chemical-laden caulk in window sealants. The mill, also known locally as the Faria Mill, is located in the city’s Tax Increment Financing Garfield Mills District, an incentive zone created by the council in 2022 that allows a portion of any increase in tax revenues from rising property values to be set aside for infrastructure improvements in that area.

https://www.theday.com/local-news/20241110/garfield-mills-owner-expects-to-begin-apartment-construction-in-coming-weeks/

The Southington Public Library is almost ready for the community to enjoy an improved experience as it moves into a new state-of-the-art building in the next few weeks. The move from the current library location at 255 Main St. to the nearly 30,000-square-foot new building next door will begin on Nov. 18, with the reopening scheduled for Dec. 2. The Library Building Committee had planned an original opening date of Nov. 28 or even a little sooner but decided to hold off until after the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, according to Town Council Vice Chair Jim Morelli. “I think the architect (DRA) and the building manager (Whiting-Turner) did a phenomenal job,” Morelli said. “They worked really well together for the town, and Turner managed the budget like it was their own money. They were able to really get a lot more things into the building than we thought we would originally, and it’s still all on budget.”

https://www.ctinsider.com/recordjournal/article/southington-library-new-building-move-reopen-19897591.php

The completion date of a project to rebuild a bridge on Cedar Heights Road has been pushed back, again. The goal was to get the bridge, rated in “Serious” condition by the Connecticut Department of Transportation, rebuilt by the end of November after a string of delays. However, City Engineer Lou Casolo said the hope now is to open the bridge to traffic by April 2025 after it was discovered the new bridge was built too low. Tony Vitti, president of A. Vitti Excavators, which is building the bridge, said his company will pay to fix the height discrepancy. Completing the project any later could delay replacement of a bridge on Wire Mill Road, which is completely supported by federal funds. The Wire Mill Road project must be completed by the end of 2025 or those federal funds could be reduced or revoked, Casolo said. Bids were put out for contractors to take on the Wire Mill Road project with a commitment from the city to get work started on it April 1. Casolo said A. Vitti Excavators will work through the winter to make sure the replacement for the more-than-90-year-old bridge on Cedar Heights Road can be completed.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/stamford-ct-cedar-heights-road-bridge-delay-19900424.php

The Board of Mayor and Burgesses last Wednesday approved a work order for Parcel B, Phase 1 construction services and Phase 2 design services in the amount of $42,920. Pennrose, a real estate development company from Philadelphia, and Cloud Co. of Hartford are set to develop 7.75 acres at the corner of Maple Street and Old Firehouse Road, known as Parcel B. The development is broken into three phases that will include three four-story buildings with 60 units in each structure, consisting of 29 one-bedroom and 31 two-bedroom units. Phase 1 would be closest to Maple Street, phase two closest to the Naugatuck Event Center, which is also being repurposed into another apartment complex, and phase three in the middle as Department of Transportation would need staging area for the new proposed train station that is expected to move from near The Station Restaurant to the middle of Parcel B. The borough board also approved to enter into an agreement with Down-To-Earth Consulting for an amount not to exceed $155,200 for environmental services for remediation of Parcel B. The town previously received a $1.3 million Department of Economic and Community Development grant for the downtown revitalization project which will cover the costs of remediation, Stewart said.

https://www.rep-am.com/localnews/2024/11/10/naugatuck-moves-forward-with-downtown-revitalization/#google_vignette

Officials have narrowed the sites they are considering for a new federal courthouse in Hartford to two, a 2.2-acre Allyn Street parking lot and a 10.2-acre site at the corner of Asylum Avenue and Woodland Street now occupied by 74-year-old state government office building. The U.S. General Services Administration has issued a 381-page draft Environmental Impact Statement on the courthouse project, for which Congress has appropriated $335 million. The GSA is seeking public input on the siting issue at a hearing Wednesday and in written comments that can be submitted until Dec. 16. As to the renovation options, the draft says, Ribicoff building tenants not affiliated with the court would need to be removed temporarily to provide “swing space” for the court during the project, which would involve “major structural work.” Wednesday’s public hearing is to run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at The Lyceum Center, Conference Center 1, 227 Lawrence St., Hartford.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/hartford-new-federal-courthouse-ct-allyn-asylum-19900977.php

Bristol officials announced Wednesday that the city is accepting requests for proposals from developers and others for the sale and development of a remediated brownfield property located across the street from ESPN’s campus. The property, at 894 Middle St., encompasses three contiguous parcels owned by the city. Combined, the parcels make up an approximately 15-acre site. The city said it invites proposals that enhance economic development through the “best use” of this site. It is specifically interested in commercial/industrial prospects that will “enhance the local economic base through a redevelopment project that meets high standards of design, exhibits high market feasibility, offers employment opportunities, and that can offer other benefits to the community.”

Bristol issues RFP for ‘prime development property’ near ESPN

Residents can look forward to the construction of a new Hillcrest Middle School after a majority of residents voted to approve it Tuesday. Unofficial results from the Registrar of Voters Office show the town’s referendum ballot question get over 13,000 “yes” votes. The Hillcrest project costs approximately $142,375,000. Democratic Registrar of Voters Jean Rabinow shared the unofficial totals of votes to-date — 13,268 residents voted yes and 6,628 residents voted no. Semmel said he’s ready for the project to start and appreciates the support of the residents. Jeff Wyszynski, principal at Hartford-based Tecton Architects. designed Trumbull’s District Master Plan, which breaks down structural issues among all 13 schools and lists each one by order of greatest need. Hillcrest Middle School was selected as the first building that was in the worst physical state.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/trumbull-hillcrest-middle-school-referendum-19891029.php

Officials with the Waterbury Inland Wetlands Commission approved developer Bluewater Property Group’s plan to build an Amazon fulfillment center on the Naugatuck line, after hearing opposition from a handful of residents with environmental concerns. Located on a wooded hilltop in the Waterbury-Naugatuck Industrial Park just off Route 8, the Amazon facility would support between 500 and 1,000 jobs depending on seasonal needs, along with construction jobs as the fulfillment center gets built. Several members of Connecticut State Building Trades unions attended in a show of support for the project. Naugatuck Mayor Pete Hess has projected that taxes from the Amazon fulfillment center would add about $2.5 million in revenue for each city.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/ct-amazon-waterbury-naugatuck-bluewater-19893129.php

Principal Bryan Rickert said the 117,000-square-foot building is bursting at the seams and staff are forced to convert various spaces into other uses against their original design. There is referendum vote looming on Tuesday to decide if the town can build a new school. The question on the ballot says “Shall the $142,375,000 appropriation and bond authorization for the planning, design and construction of a new Hillcrest Middle School be approved?” If the majority of residents vote yes, the project can move forward and officially begin. And if not, construction can’t happen and the process would have to start all over again. According to the town charter, a referendum vote is required for projects that exceed $15 million. The Hillcrest project costs approximately $142,375,000 and the town would pay around $82.5 million.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/trumbull-hillcrest-middle-school-project-19879816.php

Organizers are confident a project that includes bringing an MLS Next Pro soccer team to Connecticut will have a transformative effect on the region. But a year after the pitch was made public, questions remain regarding just how much money the project could cost taxpayers, and whether a stadium will come to fruition in time for the team to play its first games in Bridgeport in 2026. Last week, the Bridgeport Planning & Zoning Commission tabled for the time being any consideration of the stadium and larger development while the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection assesses the project under a coastal review procedural process. Swanston has invested more than $1 million himself in the project to date. But far more than that will be required to underwrite the cost of the stadium and additional development like apartments, a hotel and other recreational draws like restaurants to have the project pay off for investors. The stadium facility alone could cost $75 million according to a budget document from earlier this year reviewed by CT Insider, not including “soft” costs like design work or any cost overruns during construction.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/ct-united-bridgeport-swanston-mls-soccer-altchek-19829047.php