Public meeting to be held next week on $32.8M rehab of Mohegan-Pequot Bridge

Daniel Drainville

Montville ― The state Department of Transportation will hold a hybrid public information meeting next week where it will present its plans for a $32.8 million rehabilitation of the Mohegan-Pequot Bridge.

The meeting will take place Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Montville Public Safety Building at 911 Norwich-New London Turnpike. Participants can also join on Zoom.

Registration is required to access the meeting on Zoom. Anyone wishing to register can do so at https://portal.ct.gov/DOTMontville0085-0147.

According to a September release from the department, the meeting will feature a presentation on the project, followed by a question-and-answer session where people will be able to comment and ask questions about the project. The meeting will be recorded, and uploaded to the department’s YouTube page for later viewing.

“We encourage the public to attend this meeting to share their feedback with the CTDOT project team to incorporate into the design,” Project Manager James Barrows II said in a statement.

Mohegan-Pequot Bridge rehabilitation project

Mohegan-Pequot Bridge is a two-lane, steel girder bridge that spans the Thames River. It connects Montville and Preston via Route 2A.

According to Barrows, the project, which is expected to begin in spring 2028, will address “existing deterioration” on the bridge, and extend the service life for “another 20 years or more.”

DOT Communications Director Josh Morgan added the project will involve repairing critical steel components of the bridge to make sure they remain in “a state of good repair,” while milling and paving the road to make a smooth travel surface.

Morgan called it a “standard bridge rehabilitation project.”

He said the project does not include any changes to the travel lanes or shoulders on the span.

The $32.8 million cost is being funded 80% by the federal government and 20% by the state, according to DOT.

The construction will be staged, Morgan said, meaning the work will be done in sections with particular lanes closed at different times.

“This would not be a full closure or detour type of project,” he said.

Morgan said the rehabilitation is part of regularly scheduled, ongoing maintenance to the bridge and also part of a five-year capital plan that includes projects from around the state. The DOT inspects bridges every two years, he said.

“We forecast out projects to make repairs to keep structures in a state of good repair,” he said.

Members of the public who do not attend the meeting can submit comments and questions up to two weeks after the meeting, by emailing them to DOTProject0085-0147@ct.gov, or calling (860) 594-2020.

Preston First Selectwoman Sandra Allyn-Gauthier said officials from her town and from Montville attended a meeting with the DOT in August in which the department provided them with information on the plans.

“So what they’re really doing next is getting public input,” she said.

Allyn-Gauthier said the DOT is not adding anything to the bridge, but rather performing “preventative maintenance” to ensure that the bridge can continue to operate safely for a long time.

She said the bridge is in fair condition and once work begins, the DOT will provide updates for the affected towns.

Greenwich's North Street Bridge replacement will be done sooner but cost more, officials say

Andy Blye

GREENWICH — The North Street Bridge is on track to be replaced next summer, but doing the job on a shorter timeline is going to cost up to $700,000 more than originally expected.

The Department of Public Works originally projected it would cost $3 million to replace the century-old bridge over at least 18 months, but officials drastically shortened the timeline to just 10 months after residents bemoaned the prospect of facing a year-long traffic jam, among other concerns.

The new, shorter plan requires completely closing the road to traffic for up to 12 weeks next summer. Nearly all of the $3.7 million cost is expected to be reimbursed to the town through a state grant.

“In order to accomplish this modified design approach, DPW is anticipating additional costs,” officials wrote in a letter to the Board of Estimate and Taxation, the town’s finance authority.

The extra $700,000 cost has three components. First is $200,000 to hire police officers to work side jobs directing traffic, next is an extra $300,000 to cover longer construction working hours and finally is a $200,000 incentive for contractors to finish the job quicker.

DPW asked the BET budget committee for the extra $700,000 on Nov. 13. The request was approved by the budget committee, but it still needs authorization from the full BET and the Representative Town Meeting.

Officials originally planned to leave the bridge open to alternating one-way traffic, but that plan was scrapped after residents expressed a number of concerns, including traffic, timelines, flooding and safety.

Work is now scheduled to begin in March. The first phase, from March to June, will keep the bridge open to traffic with some intermittent disruptions as crews do pre-work, like relocating utilities. The second phase, from June to August, will see the bridge torn down and replaced. Drivers will need to take a detour during this phase as there will be no bridge.

The third and final phase, from September to December, will have the bridge reopened to traffic, with some disruptions as crews complete final restoration of the structure and roadway.

The bridge is small, originally built in 1909, over West Brothers Brook between Cotswood Road and Macpherson Drive in central Greenwich.

The new bridge will be two feet higher and longer — to span West Brother Brook below. The current opening beneath the bridge is about 11.5 feet long, but the new span beneath the bridge will be about 32 feet long. The roadway will also be two feet wider.

The original $3 million projection will be covered by a grant from the state government and DPW officials anticipate that $500,000 of the extra $700,000 will also be reimbursed by the state grant. The $200,000 speed incentive will not be available for reimbursement from the state, town officials said.

The contractor, who has yet to be selected, will be eligible for the full $200,000 incentive if the project is finished 10 days faster than expected.

The incentive payment will shrink by $20,000 each day the project encroaches into that 10-day window. So, for example, if the project finishes 9 days ahead of schedule, the contractor will be awarded $180,000.

“If they get it done on August 21 and reopen the road, then they would get the full $200,000 and that coincides to when school reopens for all the schools in the fall,” deputy commissioner of DPW Jim Michel told the BET budget committee on Nov. 13.

BET members also voted to add a condition to the funding, which will require DPW to come back to the BET with bid information before the extra money is released.

Harry Fisher, chair of the BET, said the board needs to apply extra scrutiny of the condition because of the unique and consequential nature of the project.

"This one's so different with an accelerated program and incentive payment," he said. "It's a good signal to the market that this is just a different animal."

Some nearby residents remain concerned about flooding on West Brothers Brook and want to see DPW address it. Michel said the department has, in its budget request for next year, included "significant budget line item for improvements of drainage." Town officials will set the budget, and decide what projects to include or cut, early next year.

New Fairfield’s old Consolidated School reduced to rubble; future use of site remains unclear

Kendra Baker

NEW FAIRFIELD — Following some setbacks and delays, the old Consolidated School has finally been reduced to rubble.

Demolition of the former elementary school commenced Oct. 30, following the approval of a $600,000 construction project budget transfer to address a shortfall in the Consolidated Early Learning Academy building project budget and allow for abatement and demolition at the old Consolidated site.

New Fairfield’s selectmen and finance boards approved the transfer during an Aug. 12 special joint meeting with the Permanent Building Committee. Delays with the bus lot proposal for the site, as well as increased building and abatement costs, were cited as reasons for the deficiency in the CELA project budget at the meeting.

The old Consolidated School — which served students in preschool through second grade — was replaced with the Consolidated Early Learning Academy, a 43,000-square-foot addition to Meeting House Hill School that opened at the start of the 2022-23 school year.

The $29.2 million Consolidated Early Learning Academy construction project was approved by taxpayers in October 2019 — along with $84.2 million for a new high school — with some costs offset by state funding.

With abatement of the old Consolidated School site complete, about two-thirds of the building had been knocked down as of Wednesday, Joe Vetro from O&G Industries said during the PBC’s Nov. 13 meeting.

“They’ve been using a water tanker for dust control and that type of thing. They’ve been doing a very good job out there,”  Vetro said. The rest of the former school building was expected to come down by the end of the week, he said.

First Selectwoman Melissa Lindsey told Hearst Connecticut Media that no decisions or plans have yet been made for the site’s future use.

Meriden gets $1.4 million state grant for new soccer fields at Columbus Park

Christian Metzger

MERIDEN — The state has awarded the city $1.4 million for two new soccer fields at Columbus Park, making way for MidState Medical Center to develop land currently home to grass soccer fields.

To resolve capacity issues at the 156-bed hospital over the past several years and make room for an expansion, MidState paid $1.7 million to break a 99-year lease with the city that allowed the public to use the two grass soccer fields on the property.

The $4 million Meriden Soccer Athletic Complex project involves tearing out two existing softball fields at Columbus Park, located at 208 Lewis Ave., and replacing them with two all-turf soccer fields. With the combined $3.1 million from the hospital and the state, the town only needed to invest $1 million to complete the project, which is expected to open to the public next year. 

The state money was provided through the Community Investment Fund. While previously denied, the town received the money upon reapplication. 

Mayor Kevin Scarpati said at a press conference Friday at Columbus Park, “Not only is this going to deliver a state-of-the-art facility for our youth by redoing the fields behind us to all-turf fields and revamping this entire park to benefit year-round sports for our kids in our neighborhoods, but it’s also going to give an opportunity right across the street at Hartford HealthCare Midstate Medical Center to offer quite the expansion at their facility.”  

The Columbus Park project is the latest in recent park renovations, including two baseball fields installed at North End Field last year and a new playscape in Columbus Park adjacent to John Barry Elementary. 

Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said at the press conference that Meriden's application rose to the top due to the mix of private and city funding involved and the economic benefit Meriden would receive through the hospital expansion.

Officials also touted the project for fulfilling the growing needs of soccer players in Meriden and surrounding communities, as the existing softball fields have fallen into disuse as interest in the sport has decreased.

State Rep. Michael Quinn, D-Meriden, said it was sad to see the fields go, as he played on them years ago. However, he was excited to see the opportunities the new sports complex would bring. 

“The first year we played, we actually won our championship on this field," he said, "but interests change. At one time, Meriden softball was the largest league in the country, and now, unfortunately, it’s just a fraction of what it used to be. But soccer is what the kids want to play, and we’re so glad to add to those soccer opportunities here in Meriden.” 

The project hasn’t been without controversy. When it was first put forward, representatives of the Hawks Fútbol Club, the Mexican Soccer League and the Meriden Amateur Softball Association were upset that their input on the project's development was not sought, especially since they use the current field. 

Councilor Sonya Jelks, Democratic majority leader, opposed the project on the same grounds and questioned why other locations weren’t considered. 

“We have over 25 parks in this city," she said during a Council meeting in May. "I don't know why that particular one is the one that was decided to be the one that was going to handle all of the soccer traffic. My concern is that kids who live in urban districts don't have a lot of green space. They may live in a multifamily home or a high-rise and don't get a chance to put their feet in grass.”

Other councilors who were initially opposed to the project later came around, saying that the benefit of MidState's expansion and the revenue it brings to the town would be a boon overall to Meriden. 

Councilor Joseph Scaramuzzo, who sits on the board of the Meriden Soccer Club, initially was against it, considering the club had invested $100,000 in improvements to the fields, which they believed would be used in the long-term.

“When this first came out, (the club’s) first reaction was ‘go pound sand; we want to keep our fields.’ But then, as they discussed it and discussed it internally, the right thing for the city is to increase the grand list,” he said. 

Bysiewicz added,  “The fact that this project allows Hartford HealthCare to continue to expand their footprint in Meriden is good for people who live in this area who will be able to access its expanded services, but it will also, hopefully, mean more jobs and more economic activity in the city of Meriden and this whole area."