As the cost to redevelop the New London State Pier continues to escalate, lawmakers are being asked to approve another $20 million in bonding to fund the project – which now carries a price tag of $255.5 million. Hailed in 2019 as a $93 million project to redevelop the pier into a hub for offshore wind construction – with the offshore wind partnership of Eversource and Ørsted paying $57.5 million of the cost – the state’s investment now stands at $160.5 million, and the State Bond Commission will decide Thursday whether to approve another $20 million in funding. The cost of the project has increased repeatedly since it was first announced in 2019 – jumping to $157 million after a redesign to accommodate the Cross Sound Ferry, then to $235.5 million as officials said the design was completed. The cost of the project was most recently estimated in March at about $250 million – an increase blamed on permitting delays that sped up the construction timeline. Asked what caused the increase to $255.5 million, and if that was the guaranteed maximum price of the project, Connecticut Port Authority spokesman Andrew Lavigne said the Authority’s board would be discussing the price at its meeting at noon on Tuesday.
State Pier Costs Continue Upward as Port Authority Officials Race to Meet March Timeline