Connecticut Gov. Lamont Tours Merritt 7 Train Station Being Built in Norwalk

Connecticut's governor was given an update on the major renovations of Norwalk's Merritt 7 train station by the state's Department of Transportation (CTDOT) on Sept. 10, a project set to be completed in fall 2022.

Gov. Ned Lamont learned that the station, a stop on the Danbury branch of the Metro-North Railroad, will be equipped with a high-level, 500-ft.-long platform, 105 parking spaces and heated platforms to prevent snow and ice accumulation, according to CTDOT Public Transportation Chief Rich Andreski.

In addition, it will have tower structures on the east and west side of the station with elevators and stairs as well as a pedestrian overpass across the tracks, a passenger information display system, PA and security system, canopy and bike shelter, according to the transportation agency.

The goal of the reconstructed Merritt 7 station, along with expediting travel to New York, is to create a more commuter-friendly environment, where residents can live, work and shop in the same area without the need for car travel, Lamont said.

Additionally, the new Merritt 7 train stop will meet all Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards.

Designs of the new station's platforms aim to improve accessibility for customers and reduce boarding time by providing access to all the cars on the longest trains traveling up and down the line, CTDOT spokesperson Kevin Nursick told the Hour. The existing platform only allows a few doors to open for boarding.

When finished, though, the new Merritt 7 will serve 28 trains daily, eight of which are direct to New York's Grand Central Station, Andreski noted. Parking at the Norwalk station will increase from 88 to 105 spots, some of which will be in a newly built and paved lot just across the street from the whistle stop, located along Glover Avenue close to the Norwalk-Wilton border.

The Merritt 7 is the final stop on the Danbury Branch before it connects with the New Haven Line in south Norwalk.

Connecticut first authorized funding for the project in 2017, when $21 million was approved to borrow for the upgrades to the Merritt 7 stop and design work for a proposed station servicing Orange.

Monies from the Connecticut State Bond Commission put in motion the two projects that had sat idle on the books for several years.

Finally, construction work on the Merritt 7 station began in September 2020.

Better Connection to Be Built to Adjacent Developments

The improved station's walkway bridge will also lead to the Merritt 7 offices, the largest corporate park in Fairfield County, according to the compound's website.

Merritt 7 Corporate is home to IBM, Xerox, MassMutual and Frontier Communications, among other companies. Hearst Connecticut Media Group (which includes the Norwalk Hour) also has office space in the complex.

"They want to give it a village effect and you can get everything you need," Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling said of the area's new condominium and apartment complexes being developed. "There are all kinds of things that can be done here to get things running smoothly and traffic flowing."

The new stairs and overpass will provide access to riders coming from the adjacent development. They currently face a long walk to the station or a car ride.

The Merritt 7 train station currently consists of a small shelter and a narrow parking lot on the north and south sides. It also has the only low-level platform on the Danbury branch.

According to the Hour, the new footbridge and improved train station will open at a time when Norwalk is rapidly growing. The city experienced the seventh-largest population increase in the state during the last decade, and third-largest growth among big cities, according to 2020 census data, with approximately 90,000 residents.

Developers propose partially pre-fabricated housing complex in New Haven's Quinnipiac Meadows 

Mary E. O’Leary

NEW HAVEN — Developers proposing to standardize construction of affordable housing have a plan for a partially pre-fabricated complex in Quinnipiac Meadows that also requests a unique taxing structure.

Vessel Technologies LLC, with headquarters in New York, is looking to build a three-story, 27-unit building at 136 Hemingway St. on 1.3 acres, only a portion of which is able to be developed because of a floodplain and wetlands, according to the developer and the city.

The property, taken by the city through foreclosure, has been vacant and off the tax rolls for some two decades.

Vessel Technologies LLC, owned by CEO Neil Rubler and Executive Vice President Josh Levy, is promoting an approach to affordable housing as a way to streamline design, but still build quality.

The company has proposed a similar project in Stratford that is going through planning and zoning review in that town , while another is under construction in Trenton, N.J.

The New Haven property is appraised at $147,400, according to the assessor’s website.

Livable City Initiative staff member Evan Trachten said its Property Acquisition and Disposition Committee has approved selling the Hemingway parcel for $40,000.

The developer is considering gifting the wetlands to the Land Trust, which owns adjacent property known as Hemingway Creek, according to the PAD July meeting minutes.

The sale still would have to be approved by the Livable City Initiative board of directors and the Board of Alders.

Separately, the taxing structure would go before the city’s Low Income Supportive Housing Tax Abatement Committee.

Discussions among the alders have centered on having LISHTA follow more structured rules when it comes to agreements with affordable housing developers, as the amounts paid have varied.

Vessel presented its plans to Alder Rosa Santana, D-13, and Alder Gerald Antunes, D-12. Antunes approved the sale as part of PAD.

“I think it is a good project,” Santana said.

The alder said they suggested the developer add three-bedroom units and offer it to tenants with lower incomes than proposed, which are renters making 80 percent of the area median income.

Santana said she liked the emphasis on energy-efficient components.

Vessel is proposing 24 one-bedroom units and 3 two-bedroom units and a 1-1 parking ratio. The building wold be approximately 80 feet wide, 85 feet long and 35 feet high.

The pre-fabricated unit is a manufactured product, but the developers said they would use local labor for the on-site work — walkways, parking, clearing and grading.

They also would look locally for the trades, such as plumbers, HVAC installers and electricians.

As for property management, Vessel, in its material submitted to alders, said they would train a community member who would become “our local partners and receive the surplus cash flow from the building’s operations.” The position could be part-time.

They referred to them as the “caretakers,” but didn’t elaborate when asked how the system would work.

Vessel said the building would be 100 percent steel non-combustible construction and have energy-efficient appliances, integrated smart home technology and services for hearing and visually impaired tenants.

From the beginning of the site work, estimated to occur in March 2021, if plans are approved, the project would be completed two months later in May.

The proposed tax structure could be the most unusual component. They are proposing taxes based on a percentage of revenue. This would be 6 percent for the first 10 years, 8 percent for the next 10 years , and 10 percent for the 10 after that.

If the tax arrangement were kept to 17 years, Vessel offered 5 percent of revenue for the 17-year term. In the document submitted to alders it says “revenue is defined as the money collected by the property, without deductions for expenses.”

Rubler founded Candlebrook Properties, which operates real estate development in seven states with a portfolio of $2 billion in properties, according to its submission to alders.

Levy was managing director of Candlebrook Properties and co-founder of its subsidiary, CB-Cubed LLC, which focuses on affordable housing.

The package sent to the alders also says that Vessel has “re-thought the traditional ownership structure for housing and created the first-ever franchise system for multifamily real estate.”

Asked in an email, what that system meant, Rubler said they are still working on the concept.

As for where else they hope to build, Rubler said “we are working with partners in states up and down the eastern seaboard to achieve our mission,” but they did not give specifics.

Members of the Quinnipiac East Community Management Team are expected to weigh in on development on the proposal because of regular flooding in the area.

Opposition is percolating from the team, which has a trail vision for the area and also objects to any disturbance of the wetlands along the Hemingway Creek.

Patricia Kane, a resident of the area, said she has concerns about use of the property. “It is necessary to handle flood waters,” she said.

How should 'incredibly problematic intersection' be fixed in Middletown? Officials seek public input.

Cassandra Day

MIDDLETOWN — The state project to reengineer two traffic lights on Route 9, as well as the removal of a yield sign at Route 17 that acts as an on-ramp, is awaiting a traffic study that will help shape future work.

Decades-long safety concerns as well as frequent motor vehicle crashes along the city’s portion of the highway have driven this project for some time.

State Department of Transportation Chief Communications Officer Kafi Rouse said public comments at previous meetings will drive the next iteration of the proposal.

“A traffic simulation of each alternative is being performed,” she said. “This included initially performing an origin/destination study to determine current traffic patterns. This is used to ensure there is a better understanding of traffic patterns as the traffic analysis is performed and completed.

“Once all analysis is completed and alternatives reviewed, depending on the results, next steps will be considered at that time,” she continued.

She said a public meeting will then be considered “to move any project alternative forward,” she said.

The DOT is seeking various opportunities for public outreach in Middletown with the goal of making representatives available to answer questions and present the design, Rouse added.

The project calls for work on exits 13 (Route 17 South), 15 (to Route 66 West) and 16 (Route 17 north to Route 66).

Exit 13 has a yield sign rather than an on-ramp, which has led to numerous accidents, officials said. Mayor Ben Florsheim said it is “an incredibly problematic intersection.”

In fact, he drove past a rear-end crash there on his way to work Friday morning, as he has “on many days,” Florsheim said.

He and his staff meet with DOT officials on a monthly basis, most recently to coordinate construction, now complete downtown, and work that continues on the Arrigoni Bridge.

Stakeholders have also been discussing upcoming Route 9 work “and how it dovetails with the riverfront (master plan),” the mayor said.

“One of the things that has kept it in a holding pattern is, they’re doing a traffic study of cars getting on and off of Route 9 in Middletown and coming through Middletown — where are they coming from, what is their destination and what do they take to get there,” he said.

This examination is key to the project, Florsheim said.

“One of the problems with the last couple of plans the DOT brought forth is they didn’t reflect the actual usage of people coming on and off of Route 9 through downtown and the traffic impact on downtown Middletown in the plan they proposed.”

“They’re taking a real objective look at that impact,” the mayor said.

There have been some delays attributable to the pandemic, the mayor said. “It’s a hard thing to do virtually, and a hard thing to do outdoors, because you need those materials to present. It seems to me they are really taking this time to really take a deep look at the traffic patterns, the engineering — what didn’t work about the previous plan. Using that process to rule out things that are not going to work,” Florsheim said.

The off-ramp that earlier DOT plans had proposed for Rapallo Avenue was met with public criticism, especially among residents of the densely populated historic North End.

“The analysis [the DOT has] done has caused them to rule out some of old proposals,” Florsheim said, after the community widely “panned” the idea.

What the next iteration will look like has yet to be determined, Florsheim said. “I feel good about the communication we’ve been able to establish with them.”

Timing will also work to the city’s advantage, he added. “We’re going to be able to plan Route 9 in coordination with the planning of the riverfront and making sure those things are complementary to one another.”