Shortly before a highly anticipated public meeting Monday evening about its ideas for a sprawling residential development, Crown Equities abruptly dropped out — a decision that stops the project from advancing until September at soonest. The Minneapolis-based developer in mid-June showed preliminary plans for nearly 300 apartments and townhouses during an informal talk with the Farmington Planning and Zoning Commission. Last week, it put forward a revision with just 228 units, all rental or ownership townhouses and single-family homes. Commissioners on June 23 raised questions, particularly about the impact on school enrollments. Moderate-income Connecticut suburbs have grown increasingly wary of large residential projects likely to draw families, since the state provides relatively little education aid compared to what it gives poor suburbs and large cities. Farmington reported spending a little under $20,200 per pupil in 2022-23, and its enrollment currently hovers around 4,100. Last week, Crown Equities submitted a report from one of its consultants, Goman + York, concluding that the impact of the 228-unit plan would be about 50 new students.

Developer downsizes huge CT housing complex on river, drops out of talks

The $155 million reconstruction of Interstate 95 here has passed the halfway point, and in September it begins a new phase that shifts the current layout of the southbound lanes near Exit 74. Southbound traffic will then shift into what is now the project work zone, and vice-versa, Project Engineer Andrew Millovitsch said Thursday. Millovitsch said from July 28 until Aug. 11, the area of Flanders Road beneath and near the southbound I-95 bridge will be closed from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. to let crews safely install steel for the new bridge. After that two-week period, drivers can expect the two-week closure of the Exit 74 southbound off-ramp that drivers take to get to Costco. A detour will bring drivers to Exit 75, Millovitsch said. The project’s Resident Engineer James Therrien said the I-95 shift might sound like a big deal —and it is, especially to managers and crews —but to drivers, it won’t feel hugely different. The project is on schedule and largely on budget, with Millovitsch saying in March costs have risen about $6 million, relatively low for a project of this scope.

https://theday.com/news/766699/traffic-shifts-ramp-closures-coming-for-next-phase-of-i-95-project-in-east-lyme/

Plans last year for new transmission lines through two much bigger municipalities, Fairfield and Bridgeport, spurred the legislature to carve a role for local government and state lawmakers before the state’s Siting Council can approve a utility project. In East Haven, local activists opposing the expansion of Tweed airport, called into question the commitment of Democrats in Hartford to so-called environmental justice communities. This year the legislature passed a bill, House Bill 7004, to allow small towns with 16,000 or fewer residents to vote by referendum on state permitting of unwanted projects. A sponsor of the bipartisan bill told CT Examiner the legislation was a direct response to plans for a trash incinerator in Plainfield. But it could also prevent the construction of a second incinerator in Preston, and the third trash incinerator located in the immediate area. But a week later, on July 8, Lamont vetoed House Bill 7004. “Allowing permitting decisions to be overturned by referenda undermines the principles of objectivity embedded in our state permitting process, will discourage important investments in infrastructure, and will drive up the cost of living for residents,” Lamont said.

A Bill, a Veto, a Question of Where to Build What’s Unwanted in Connecticut

As residents near the Tilcon quarry continue to raise concerns over blasting vibrations, noise, and potential health impacts, town officials and local leaders are visiting the site Monday afternoon to observe a scheduled quarry blast. Members of the Plainville Town Council, town staff, and the director of the regional health district will be present. The blast, scheduled for 2:00 p.m., comes after Tilcon withdrew a request to expand its Plainville quarry by 83 acres, under pressure from neighbors concerned with the disruption and silica dust they say comes from blasting at the quarry on the town line with New Britain. The Plainville Town Council held a special meeting Thursday night aimed at addressing residents’ concerns. Paulhus said other concerns nearby residents have raised are the level of blasting, the vibrations and potential property damage, as well as health issues related to air quality and the quality of drinking water from an aquifer that sits below.

https://www.bristolpress.com/news/plainville-officials-observe-tilcon-blast/article_a5f86c99-b06a-4803-b094-bc8820587e97.html

Demolition started Monday on the last of the buildings in the complex to come to down, located at 270 Mansfield St. off Winchester Ave. The building being knocked down is on a three-acre site containing nine former factory buildings that have been unused and blighted since 1987. The tract it’s on will be redeveloped into at least 100 residential units or 100,000 square feet of commercial space, depending on market forces, officials said. It’s part of a larger multi-phase redevelopment effort by the Science Park Development Corp., which was founded in 1981 by the city of New Haven, the state of Connecticut, Yale and the Olin Corp. to redevelop the former Winchester Repeating Arms Company factory complex. The demolition, abatement and remediation is expected to end next June and is being done with the aid of $10.8 million from the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/new-haven-winchester-factory-science-park-20778128.php

The town has about all the sewage it can handle, and to accommodate expected development, it wants the sewer treatment plant in New London to grow by half. The expansion could cost between $50 million and $70 million and be split among the three communities based how much plant capacity they are allotted. For East Lyme, that would mean about $7.5 million, about 15%, while Waterford and New London would pay 30% and 55%, respectively. New London Public Utilities Director Joe Lanzafame said the three municipalities have been in talks about expanding the plant. Before any expansion, East Lyme is seeking an indefinite moratorium on new sewer connections for any housing developments with more than 20 multifamily or single family units, or which would produce more than 5,000 gallons of sewage daily. A public hearing on the moratorium is set for 7 p.m. Aug. 6 at Town Hall.

https://theday.com/news/766616/east-lyme-wants-nl-sewer-plant-to-expand/

A major warehouse complex is in the works along Barnes Road in Wallingford. The complex would be three separate buildings distributed across 1000, 1020, 1030, 1044 and 1080 Barnes Road, across a combined 47 acres. The developer intends to construct two 157,000-square-foot warehouses, with a third smaller 100,000 square-foot warehouse on the southernmost end of the property, according to documents recently presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission. While all clustered closely together, the three buildings would not make up one contiguous complex, and could be used by three separate tenants, self-sufficient from one another. Should the project proceed, it would be the one of the largest developments in Wallingford’s Industrial Development District in recent years, alongside the pending data center before the commission.

https://www.ctinsider.com/recordjournal/article/wallingford-warehouse-construction-barnes-road-20772153.php

Enfield and South Windsor are among 16 towns and cities to receive $57.3 million from the state Department of Transportation for trails and roadwork. The state DOT announced Wednesday that South Windsor was granted $4.1 million through the Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program, or LOTCIP, for reconstruction of Dart Hill Road between Neiderwerfer Road and the Vernon town line, including new drainage, pavement, and road base, as well as improved alignments and new sidewalks on the north side of the road that will lead into Vernon. Vincens said South Windsor is using about $300,000 to cover the sidewalk portion and other construction items that are not eligible for grant funding. He said the town did not use previously allocated American Rescue Plan Act funds for the project due to timing constraints associated with their use, and instead redirected the money to pay for sidewalks along Birch Hill and Ellington roads.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/journalinquirer/article/ct-transportation-grant-enfield-south-windsor-20774081.php

Trumbull residents will decide in November if the town will build a new senior center after the Town Council approved the most recent design. In an 18-3 vote, the Town Council approved the new cost of the proposed senior and community center at 5958 Main St. after 10 years of studying various locations, designs and budgets. The newest version, known as Option 7, costs $4 million less than the original and has smaller square footage. The new building design, created by QA+M Architects, is a condensed version of the original 30,000-square-foot project, which was estimated to cost about $32 million. The approved design is about 27,500-square-feet and is estimated to cost $27,115,000, with $21 million in hard construction costs and $6,115,000 in soft costs, like fees and contingencies.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/trumbull/article/trumbull-senior-center-town-council-approved-20768804.php

The Connecticut Department of Transportation held a news conference at the location of the new train station in the middle of the vacant Parcel B lot on Old Firehouse Road. Construction is expected to take two years. The current train station is just north of The Station Restaurant at 195 Water St. and serves about 34,000 riders annually. DOT Commissioner Garrett T. Eucalitto said the $33.2 million project for the new train station will include a 2,300-square-foot building with a 350-foot platform. The station will have built-in heated elements in the platform to eliminate the need to salt it during winter. In addition, the station will improve accessiblility for individuals who have mobility impairments.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/waterbury/article/naugatuck-new-train-station-ned-lamont-dot-20771348.php