CT Construction Digest Monday October 7, 2024
Last of Stamford's original Conair building near Greenwich border torn down to make way for ice rink
STAMFORD — An indoor ice rink sponsored by the family of the late co-founder of Stamford-based Conair Corp. is one step closer to completion.
Multiple excavators tore down the last of the remaining Conair Corp. office building at 23 Barry Place on Oct. 3. Behind the machines, workers moved loose pieces of debris among large piles of rubble that were left from the destruction.
The demolition of the building makes way for the creation of an indoor ice rink facility at 50 Barry Place, which will sit behind the now-torn down Conair Corp. building. The facility will host youth ice hockey and figure skating clinics, educational programs, leagues and tournaments.
The Zoning Board unanimously approved the 35,500-square foot structure in the city’s Waterside neighborhood near the Greenwich border in March 2023. The Planning Board unanimously recommended the site plans and special permitting to the Zoning Board during a meeting the month before.
The project was sponsored by the family of late billionaire businessman Leandro Rizzuto, whose family founded Conair Corp. in 1959. Rizzuto died in 2017 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.
Headquartered in Stamford, Conair Corp. is known for its personal-care products and Cuisinart culinary items.
Conair Corp. occupied the now-torn down office building starting in 2014. The company moved out of the building in 2019 and about 400 employees worked at the new office on 1 Cummings Point Road, according to previous reporting.
Manhattan-based American Securities, a private equity firm, acquired Conair Corp. in 2021, but the 11.7 acres of property on Barry Place — which borders the Metro-North Railroad to the south — remained with the Rizzuto family, according to previous reporting from February 2023.
The property also sits across from Innis Arden Golf Club in Greenwich, where creating a new ice rink became a hot topic in recent years.
Greenwich town officials have resubmitted a plan to tear down the existing Dorothy Hamill Ice Rink in Byram and build a new rink. The Planning & Zoning Commission has been studying the plan since May with no movement on the project immediately expected.
The contentious project has been the focus of debate since it was first proposed in 2017 and now includes replacing the Hamill rink and rebuilding a baseball field that is currently next door. The current Dorothy Hamill Ice Rink was built in 1971 and is long past its serviceable life span.
DEEP uses Meriden as an example of using nature to control flooding as it expands climate program
MERIDEN — Unlike the devastation caused by August's historic flooding, flood control efforts are not always visible and can be a tough sell to the public, state officials said.
There are also steep match requirements that prevent many municipalities from applying for state and federal grants on proactive projects that could protect their communities.
To counter those challenges and others, state and municipals officials recently called for information from councils of governments and the public on ways to shore up their infrastructure before another catastrophic weather event using the Climate Resilience Fund.
“The costs of climate change are being felt by communities and consumers around our state, and most acutely for those who were in the direct path of the devastating floods last month,” said Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes. “DEEP is committed to helping Connecticut communities compete for every federal dollar available to fund a more resilient Connecticut that can withstand, adapt to, and recover faster from future events."
Dykes was joined by members of several council of governments, DEEP staff, educators, and municipal leaders at the site of the Meriden Green resilience project, a 14-acre flood control initiative that used natural features capable of withstanding severe flooding events.
Part of the project meant joining three brooks, removing narrow or bent culverts and channel deepening and widening. The city also built a submersible amphitheater and purchased a steel and concrete bridge to move people from one side of the city to the train station should flooding prevent car travel.
"Our nationally recognized Meriden Green, which opened in 2016, has added vibrancy to our city, but more importantly, it has been a critical component in the city’s commitment to flood control and climate resiliency,” said Mayor Kevin Scarpati.
The city has been devastated by floods before.
“During the 1990s, two of the floods that overwhelmed downtown Meriden resulted in nearly $30 million of damage and forced multiple businesses to either close or relocate,” Scarpati noted. “However, ongoing flood resilience projects, such as the Meriden Green, are helping to revitalize our community."
The flood control work continues in the west side where it is tied to building a new senior center and building a skate park. The city is still looking for funding to complete the job.
DEEP wants feedback for the DEEP Climate Resilience Fund, including from municipalities, Councils of Government, tribes, electric companies, academic partners, private entities and nonprofit organizations.
DEEP also seeks public input on ideas for how the department can reduce the administrative burden for local governments, including whether the agency should create a program that provides in-kind assistance from contractors DEEP gets.
At a roundtable discussion following a tour of the Meriden Green, stakeholders suggested ideas such as maps of problem areas, microgrids, regional stormwater authorities, access to grant writers and engineering services to design projects ready to be funded. Several suggested rainwater maintenance programs, and getting the public onboard with something they don't see until it's too late.
DEEP wants to know ways it can potentially use state bond funds to structure a Climate Resiliency Revolving Loan Fund, which was authorized by the legislature in the 2024 session. This fund is for low-interest loans to municipalities and private entities for infrastructure repairs and resiliency projects in response to unplanned climate events.
Two public hearings will be held in October. A final deadline for written comments is Nov. 8.
Dyke and others hope municipal leaders will apply regularly to give the state an idea of how much it needs from the federal government.
"This will help them get on a routine, so towns can plan," Dyke said. "We want to make sure that is predictable."
DOT pours concrete deck on Norwalk's new Fairfield Avenue bridge as crews race winter weather
NORWALK — Crews rebuilding the Fairfield Avenue bridge spanning Interstate 95 in Norwalk finished pouring its concrete deck Thursday and will install parapet retaining walls in the coming weeks, according to a Connecticut Department of Transportation spokesperson.
Ideally, the crews will also be able to pave the bridge before November — what DOT generally considers the start of winter, or when cold wintry weather puts an end to roadwork for the year, DOT spokesperson Josh Morgan said.
“Hopefully we can beat the winter weather shutdown,” Morgan said.
But with climate change and the milder weather Connecticut has seen in recent winters, Morgan said, DOT will continue the “day-by-day” work to rebuilding the bridge, which was damaged in early May in a fiery crash and torn down. Too-cold weather and excessive snow and rain will halt the construction project, he said.
“We’re thinking dry thoughts,” Morgan said, noting that August’s heavy rains and flooding in parts of Connecticut did not delay the Norwalk bridge project. Similar wet weather, out of DOT’s control, would be the biggest obstacle in completing the project in a timely manner, he said.
Before crews could pour the bridge’s concrete deck, “every utility line you could think of,” including water, fiber, gas and electric lines, was installed in the last two weeks of September, Morgan said. Both hurdles are major milestones in the project, which has caused traffic delays in the area.
Crews are “really making some good progress” on the Fairfield Avenue bridge rebuild, the DOT spokesperson said.
“Demo was the easy part,” Morgan said of the work to remove the damaged old bridge in the days after the fiery crash. “The rebuild is a little more complicated because you can’t shut down traffic.”
DOT shut down I-95 in Norwalk, crippling the flow of traffic, for about 80 hours to demolish the bridge that was rendered structurally unstable when a gasoline tanker caught fire underneath it in after a crash on May 2.
The bridge is slated for construction closeout in early spring — consistent with previous estimations so far, Morgan said. Before reopening, sidewalks will also be installed, he said.
The state Department of Transportation is proposing to redesign the Route 44 intersection at Main, High and Ely streets in Hartford, located one block north of Dunkin’ Park.
The project would improve the poorly aligned intersection and replace an antiquated traffic signal, which has reached the end of its service life and lacks the ability to detect vehicles.
The intersection has four crosswalks and sidewalks on all sides, which have deteriorated. Some of the crosswalks are not compliant with the American with Disabilities Act, according to the DOT.
The redesign would bring the intersection into compliance.
About 44,000 vehicles pass through the intersection each day.
The intersection is prone to crashes. Between 2020 and 2022, there were 150 crashes at the intersection, 56% of which involved injuries, along with two fatalities, according to the DOT.
Designs for the new intersection will be finalized over the next three to four years. The DOT is also studying the possibility of converting the intersection into a roundabout.
Construction would take another one to two years after the design is finished. The total cost of the project is estimated to be $9 million, using state and federal funding.
Preliminary plans show shorter pedestrian crossings, reconstructed sidewalks and parking spaces on either side of Route 44.
The intersection at Route 44 and Pleasant Street, which runs along the side of Dunkin’ Park, may also be improved as part of the project, with a formalized loading and unloading area in front of the stadium.
The DOT is accepting public comments until Oct. 8. For more information about the project or to submit comments, visit portal.ct.gov/DOTHartfordPP063-0015 or email info@hartfordmobility.com.