Construction bids open for Coast Guard museum building

John Penney

New London ― If a voice tone could convey a smile, Wes Pulver was practically grinning on Friday as he announced soliciting of construction bids began this week for the National Coast Guard Museum slated to rise later this year on the city’s waterfront.

“This is the big one and a great milestone for this project,” the retired Coast Guard captain and president of the National Coast Guard Museum Association said. “People are going to see steel out of the ground later this fall.”

Bids for the 89,000-square-foot, six-story museum building and its associated interior systems were put out Thursday by the North Stonington-based A/Z Corporation, which is overseeing the work.

The scope of the work at 1790 Waterfront Dr. includes concrete foundation, skeletal steel and flooring jobs, as well as exterior metal panel, glass curtain wall and roofing components. Companies are also invited to bid on elevator, fireproofing, plumbing and electrical work.

Pulver said 70% of the project’s anticipated $150 million price tag ― which includes the creation of a pedestrian bridge projected to connect the museum to the Water Street garage and building finishing work ― will be dedicated to main museum building construction.

The project is being handled through a phased construction approach that began with site preparation behind Union Station about 18 months ago and continues with the installation of roughly 240 micropiles.

“We’re about 50% done with the micropiles, which will effectively become the foundation for the museum,” Pulver said. “But the building work, that’s what the public is going to see.”

The project cost is being paid with a combination of federal, state and donated funds. Pulver said approximately 6,000 donors so far have contributed $46 million toward a $50 million capital campaign.

“Our goal is to reach that $50 million level this year,” he said.

The walking bridge and interior museum finishing work portions of the project will be bid out separately later this year in the hopes of awarding those contracts by early summer.

Pulver said a project timeline still calls for the museum building to be completed in 2025 before being turned over to Coast Guard officials who will set an official opening date.

The bridge will likely not be completed until 2026.

Pulver said he expects the museum will draw an estimated 300,000 visitors to the region annually, along with up to $20 million in new tourism revenue.

Mayor Michael Passero on Friday lauded the bid openings, noting it’s been about a decade since the city transferred the land where the museum will soon sit. He anticipated completion of the museum will dovetail with the culmination of an ongoing push to revitalize the nearby downtown area.

“Things are falling into place, timing-wise,” he said. “And downtown will be ready to welcome the museum.”

Tweed Airport Board Delays Addressing Expansion Questions, Citing Legal Concerns

Sophia Muce

EAST HAVEN — The Tweed New Haven Airport Authority Board delayed its response to questions regarding the costs and timeline of the approved airport expansion on Tuesday, pointing to an ongoing legal battle with the town.

In a Feb. 14 letter to Tweed Executive Director Tom Rafter, the five board members appointed by East Haven — Kenneth Dagliere, Joseph Ginnetti, Linda Hennessey,  Raymond Pompano and Mark Scussel — requested a discussion about a five-year expansion planning document at the upcoming meeting.

Included in the letter were nine questions about the expected schedule, funding mechanisms and total cost of the federally approved expansion — which includes a new 75,000-square-foot terminal, a parking garage and surface parking on the East Haven side of the airport. The town representatives said they need the answers before approving the draft “Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan,” as the estimated scope and cost of the expansion keeps changing.

But at the Tuesday meeting, the board — including the East Haven members — unanimously voted to instead refer the questions to its legal counsel, delaying the airport’s response.

According to Guilford First Selectman and board Chair Matthew Hoey, the airport first needs to determine whether the letter is legally appropriate, as it was originally sent to Rafter by East Haven town attorney Michael Luzzi. 

“An email from the town attorney to an employee of the authority is somewhat unusual, and could be perceived as interrogatories,” Hoey said.

In August 2022, Luzzi sent the airport authority a litigation hold, meaning the board had to preserve all documents associated with the expansion in case the town sues the board for “impermissible activities.” Particularly, the town said it worried that Tweed colluded with the city of New Haven and Avports, Tweed’s airport management company, to impose unfair financial burdens on the town and increase the environmental impacts of the expansion.

The town has not yet sued the board, but last week it filed a petition to appeal the FAA’s approval of the planned expansion with the federal Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. 

Hoey said on Tuesday that the board needs to ensure it can answer Luzzi, given the looming threat of litigation. But in a Friday statement to CT Examiner, Luzzi said the letter to Rafter has nothing to do with the 2022 litigation hold, and criticized the delay.

“The East Haven Tweed board members’ Capital Improvement Plan information request is not in any way related to the litigation hold letter sent by my office to Avports, the city of New Haven, and the authority, among others,” he said.

While Luzzi originally forwarded the letter to Rafter and Hoey, he said he did so on behalf of the East Haven members, not himself or the town.

Along with Luzzi, board member Dagliere separately sent the letter to Rafter and Hoey prior to the Tuesday meeting. Rather than delaying the response, Luzzi said the board could have simply answered Dagliere’s email instead.

“Let’s not allow legal intricacies overshadow the primary issue: East Haven members looking for answers to pertinent questions about the CIP. It’s fairly simple — respond to the questions posed,” Luzzi said.

Dagliere, who was appointed by East Haven Mayor Joseph Carfora in 2022, made a similar argument at the meeting.

Dagliere said all board members have an obligation to ask questions on behalf of the surrounding communities. The expansion will have a particularly significant impact on East Haven and its taxpayers, he said, and inquiries sent by the town’s representatives must be answered.

Asked on Friday why the East Haven board members later voted to refer the letter to counsel, Dagliere pointed to an assurance made by Hoey at the meeting. 

Because the board received Luzzi’s email before Dagliere’s, Hoey said, the board must first address the town attorney. The chair declined to specify a deadline, but said he doesn’t anticipate the inquiries to take months to respond to. He added that Rafter and other airport staff are likely already working on an answer.

“I got the chairman’s word and the executive director’s word that our questions will be answered,” Dagliere said. “We see it as a separate issue from our agenda request.”

Over the last six months, Rafter, Avports and the FAA have made adjustments to the five-year plan, updating cost projections and funding mechanisms as they clarified the details of the expansion. According to a recent draft of the capital plan, the work in East Haven and extension of the existing runway is estimated to total about $165 million.

In the Feb. 14 letter, East Haven board members asked for the final cost of the expansion, the cost-share between the FAA and Avports, an update on a noise mitigation program and the expected construction schedule. The members also asked about the expansion’s future if there was a change in ownership of the airport operator.

Luzzi said he was concerned by the delay but acknowledged Hoey’s commitment to getting the questions answered.

“Time will tell if our members receive the requested information,” he said.

Norwich seeks $16.5 million grant for industrial center: why the city might not get it

Matt Grahn

Norwich is looking for federal funding to help with the infrastructure of the second business park.

Norwich will apply for $16,560,357.94 in Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) federal grant funds, following a Norwich City Council vote Tuesday. If awarded, this money will fund upgrades for the Exit 18 ramp on I-395, and an access road for the Occum Industrial Center.

The city has already spent $4.6 million on the land purchase and other costs for the Industrial Center's creation, Mayor Peter Nystrom said.

The project includes adding signals for the access road on Route 97 for northbound and southbound ramps, new sidewalks along Route 97, and improved safety for acceleration and deceleration lanes on I-395.

“They’re short on and off ramps, and they don’t give you much time to get into a travel lane,” Nystrom said.

Status of business park's plans

The Occum Industrial Center’s subdivision plan received a 3-2 approval from the Commission on the City Plan on Jan. 23. While the Norwich Community Development Corporation made changes to the subdivision plans to appease neighbors, they still had concerns, including noise, traffic, and the disruption of nature the Industrial Center would cause.

The application includes a project labor agreement, as advised to the city by Senators Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy. The grant favors proposals with project labor agreements, which helps secure union shops in the bid process, among other things, Nystrom said.

“Small businesses would have a hard time handling a project of this size,” he said.

An operational Occum Industrial Center means more taxable property on the grand list. This is vital as the city is building the new school buildings, Nystrom said.

President Pro-Tempore Joe DeLucia asked Norwich Community Development Corporation President Kevin Brown about the Project Labor Agreement during the Tuesday meeting. Brown said NCDC reached out to trade councils, and they will supply letters of supports for the application. Brown pointed out that there is no commitment to the unions until the funds are awarded.

About the RAISE program

RAISE is funded for $1 billion, and will fund highway improvements across the country. Brown indicated that it has been challenging for Norwich to secure funds through the program, and this will be Norwich’s third attempt at securing federal funds for this project, Brown said Tuesday.

“We’re in no way failing,” he said. “We’re just fighting the entire country to get this grant through.”

The city needs to stay in communication with federal leaders to help secure funds, City Councilmember Swaranjit Singh said Tuesday.

West Hartford-based Verogy to convert 3 capped landfills in CT into solar energy farms

Andrew Larson

Asolar energy developer based in West Hartford, Verogy, has received approvals to convert former landfills in Deep River, Middletown and Montville into solar energy projects.

The company announced it has received permits from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to create the energy farms.

Verogy plans to install solar arrays on the capped landfills, which will produce a total of 2.15 megawatts of clean energy – enough to power 252 homes for a year. 

Verogy said the projects will give the contaminated parcels, which total 7 acres, “a new lease on life” by transforming them from environmental burdens into useful assets.

“These projects mark a dual victory for the environment,” said Will Herchel, CEO of Verogy.  “First, by generating renewable energy, these projects will significantly reduce carbon emissions, contributing to the fight against climate change. Second, the use of capped landfills for the projects represents an important achievement in land reclamation and sustainability.”

The projects are at 206 Winthrop Road, Deep River; 180 Johnson St., Middletown and 669 Route 163, Montville.