Local Officials Cheer as South Fork Wind Begins Churning Out Electricity

Francisco Uranga

Anthony Nolan caught sight of a turbine at South Fork wind farm for the first time, and smiling like a kid at a science fair, pointed out the ferry window.

“There we can see it. I’m going to get my camera,” said Nolan, a state representative from New London, and a Democrat. “It’s not the same seeing it in pictures on the Internet as coming in person here. It helps us to understand the impact.”

The turbine blades turned slowly, the image of calm as the ship shuddered in the open sea, far beyond the protection of Long Island Sound. Breaking waves wet the windows but it was otherwise cloudless and sunny.

CT Examiner joined a number of state and local officials, employees of Eversource and Ørsted, and union officials aboard the 143-foot Cecelia Ann for what was for most their first look in person at South Fork Wind.

With a maximum generating capacity of 132 megawatts, South Fork is the only commercial-scale offshore wind farm operating in the United States, producing about 6% of the electricity currently generated by Connecticut’s only operating nuclear power plant, Millstone. 

South Fork, which went online in March, is the first offshore wind farm to be assembled and staged off the New London State Pier, a project that dates to 2022.

Offshore wind energy development is a priority for the Biden administration’s green agenda which incentivizes a transition to an electrified economy and renewable energy. On the state level, the project is a small step toward fulfilling Connecticut’s goal of net carbon-zero energy for the grid by 2040.

The sight of South Fork in operation is also a rare piece of good news for a project that has been plagued with cost overruns, and which so far has produced few local jobs.

“I could never say the project was excellent,” said Nolan. “But it’s paying off. It’s bringing in millions in taxes, creating local jobs and bringing more activity to our businesses.”

After two hours underway, the Cecelia Ann paused close to South Fork Wind’s 12 turbines. Each tower extended out of the water 788 feet, about 56 stories or the height of the Woolworth Building in Manhattan – taller than any building in Connecticut, according to a voice over a speaker, with blades 319 feet long, longer than a football field. 

Spaced a mile apart to ease navigation, the turbines seemed closely spaced against an infinite empty blue plain. 

Also visible is a substation that raises the voltage for sending the electricity all the way to Southport, Long Island.

On deck, passengers took selfies like tourists. The mood was joyful and triumphant.

State Rep. Anthony Nolan (far right) and various officials posed for photographs of South Fork Wind (CT Examiner)

“If you can build this, you can build anything you want,” an Eversource employee told one of his colleagues.

For Ørsted, the photo opportunity was a milestone, allowing the world’s largest developer of offshore wind to show an audience of stakeholders the first tangible achievements of the work out of State Pier, according to David Ortiz, Ørsted’s head of Government Affairs and Market Strategy for the Northeast.

“There were very few jobs and almost no economic activity at New London State Pier before the state decided to make this investment to turn it into an asset for the offshore wind industry,” said Ortiz. “The residents who are being employed as a result of South Fork Wind, now Revolution Wind, Sunrise Wind and projects to come for decades. That is a massive scaling-up of jobs and economic opportunity at New London State Pier that didn’t exist before.”

Port Authority Chair David Kooris expressed pride in the work done, after years of criticism for the project cost and delays.

“I am impressed to see the result of years of effort,” Kooris said. “The turbines, the substation, the transmission lines, all the engineering in a place that 99 percent of Americans will never visit, yet we all benefit from what is done there.”

As the ferry returned to New London harbor, new turbine towers for Revolution Wind could be seen arrayed on State Pier. The towers arrived two weeks earlier and are part of the second Ørsted project to be assembled at State Pier and installed offshore in 2024 and 2025. The first blades are scheduled to arrive on May 23.

Revolution Wind will be constructed and installed at a significantly greater scale – 65 turbines for a generating capacity of 880 megawatts. By 2026, Ørsted plans to start Sunrise Wind, an 84-turbine, 924-megawatt project.

In addition, in March, Ørsted presented yet another project, Starboard Wind, at a wind energy auction held jointly by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. If awarded, the 1,184-megawatt wind farm would also be staged out of State Pier. 

Offshore wind has the support of labor leaders, who are currently in talks with developers to negotiate labor conditions, according to Ed Hawthorne, president of the AFL-CIO Connecticut.

“As a labor movement, we are looking at it as the new industrial revolution, where there are going to be good union jobs,” said Hawthorne. ” We need to look at it as an investment in the future because, in our eyes, climate justice and economic justice are one and the same.”

Removal of Route 9 traffic signals at dangerous Middletown exits could begin in spring 2027

Cassandra Day

MIDDLETOWN — The gravity of removing traffic lights that bring Route 9 traffic to a halt in downtown Middletown was evidenced during a state Department of Transportation informational hearing late last month.

CTDOT Project Manager Stephen Hall delivered a presentation April 30 at Wesleyan University on the draft proposal to reconfigure exits in the often highly congested area near the Arrigoni Bridge and densely populated North End.

The cost of the project aimed at easing the large number of crashes in the area is estimated at $143 million. Eighty percent of the project cost would be borne by the federal government and 20 percent by the state.

The state has been working on the effort to remove the signals since the early 2000s, Hall has said.

Last month’s presentation on the draft proposal was similar to one held over two days at City Hall in February.

Over the past three years, in that short stretch of highway at exits 23C southbound and 23 northbound, 500 crashes have resulted in 161 injuries, Hall said. "It's a crash every other day, an injury once a week," caused by wrong-way entrances, driver distractions and other factors.

Removing the left turn from Route 9 North is the "crux" of the design, Hall said. 

Drones recorded traffic there during a two-hour stretch in the middle of one day. In footage shown as part of the presentation, a motorist travels slowly east on Washington Street toward Route 9. The individual takes an erroneous, left-hand turn and heads north in the southbound lane of deKoven Drive. After stopping just past the intersection and using a dangerous maneuver, the motorist backs up and travels onto Washington Street heading west.

"When you pull up to this intersection, that's confusing," Hall told attendees at the Wesleyan presentation. "That's not a normal intersection to see over a rail crossing.” 

The motorist eventually made their way in the right direction, Hall said. “How many times has this happened and we don't see the result? How many near misses? How many wrong ways?"

The traffic signals are the only ones located on a state highway in Connecticut, according to the CTDOT. 

Monitoring the area has been a crucial element of the plan, Hall said.

The CTDOT has eight cameras in Middletown near routes 9 and 66 streaming footage 24 hours a day, which staff observe at the Newington operations center. "If there is an incident, then we know about it and alert drivers with message signs,” the project manager said. 

Several downtown CTDOT projects have been completed or are underway, such as the pedestrian bump-outs on Main Street, reconfiguration of St. Johns Square, work on the Route 17 on-ramp to Route 9 North, and closing access to Route 9 at Miller Street, Hall said.

A new, right-hand off-ramp will be built south of the Route 17 interchange and north of Walnut Street at the intersection with River Road, with a roundabout to reduce traffic flow and prevent accidents, according to Hall.

Other elements include turning Rapallo Avenue in the North End into a one-way street going toward Main Street.

"While we had shown Rapallo Avenue as two-way during our February workshops," Hall said Wednesday afternoon, "we received feedback from the city and the business community that one way is more desirable. The department agrees that a one-way configuration is most appropriate to retain all on-street parking and improve pedestrian safety on Main Street while maintaining efficient operations." 

The much-heralded pedestrian bridge over Route 9 will reconnect the downtown to the riverfront, an area undergoing long-term redevelopment as part of the Return to the Riverbend project.

The Route 9 project’s next steps include a Connecticut Environmental Policy Act assessment, Hall said. It would determine potential environmental impacts, evaluate alternatives and solicit public involvement, according to the presentation.

The project has physical, natural and socioeconomic impacts, Hall said. These include air quality and greenhouse gas emissions; noise, traffic and energy use; erosion or sedimentation, ground and surface water, wetlands, fisheries, plants and wildlife; public health and safety, environmental justice and recreational resources.

If the public supports the proposal, Hall said, federal design approval could be granted as early as December. Construction, expected to take four years, could begin as early as spring 2027. 

For more information, visit bit.ly/4bjjhF1. To watch the presentation, go to bit.ly/4dFnrsy

West Hartford is 'refining' its town center redesign, moving forward with major roadway projects

Michael Walsh

WEST HARTFORD — Additional feedback from the public, as well as more discussions with business owners, has the town reconsidering its previously proposed plans to redesign West Hartford Center.

The decision was noted in the most recent Department of Community Development report prepared by the town planner and town engineer, stating that town staff and its consultant are "incorporating public feedback and refining the conceptual design plans for the reconstructions of LaSalle Road and Farmington Avenue."

The response came after the town presented new plans in April that some residents felt favored cars over pedestrians and cyclists after the designs walked back plans to reduce on-street parking.

Original plans presented in November showed the town was ready to shift all street parking from angled parking to parallel parking, which would decrease the amount of street parking but mean more of the streetscape could be used for wider sidewalks, expanded outdoor dining, and other amenities like street furniture. Those plans also showed a buffered sidewalk-level bike lane on Farmington Avenue that has also since been removed from designs.

Town Manager Rick Ledwith said on Wednesday morning at the Town Council's Community Planning and Economic Development committee meeting that the town has heard feedback from residents preferring the original plan known as option A over the redesigns that were presented in April.

"After feedback and follow-up with some of the business owners, we looked at potentially modifying that plan," Ledwith told the committee members. "Since then, we’ve also received feedback from the community expressing a strong interest in maintaining that original plan — option A — from November."

Ledwith said it's likely that more details about the plans will come at June's committee meeting. The town is expected to finalize plans this year with the hope of starting construction in 2025.

"We’ve asked the consultant to pause on the redesign as we continue to assess both of those options and we would be back with the council with the recommendation probably for the June meeting," Ledwith said.

Other major roadway projects

West Hartford Center is not the only busy commercial area receiving potentially transformative redesigns.

Park Road, which last year was the subject of the town's first Vision Zero road safety audit, is set to also be redesigned in a way that would make the roadway safer.

Greg Sommer, the town engineer, said at Wednesday's meeting that design plans are moving along, utilizing feedback they've received from stakeholders. Previously, Sommer told CT Insider that the town wants to make the area, which is a blend of residential and commercial uses, more walkable. Construction on Park Road could begin in 2025.

"We had previously met with the Park Road Association and got some preliminary feedback on an early concept," Sommer said at the meeting. "We’re in the process of developing a full concept for that whole corridor that we’ll then take back to that stakeholder group and eventually the public to get comments and feedback before we progress to a full design."

On New Park Avenue, the town is giving attention to what's become a growing hotbed of new commercial and residential activity. Plans are still in the works to give the street a road diet, which would bring the number of travel lanes on part of the road down to two from the four currently there. The town has also been planning on incorporating protected bike lanes and a two-way cycle track that would make the roadway more accessible for cyclists.

Sommer said a stakeholder meeting will be held in June, with construction hopefully beginning in 2025.

"We’re excited to pilot that and see how that will unfold," Sommer said about the cycle track on Wednesday. "We have good support from the business community and the pedestrian bicycle commission so we’re eager to see that project through."

East Windsor looks at several options to renovate or reconfigure its schools

Jamila Young

EAST WINDSOR — With buildings built in the 1950s and '60s and a declining student population, town and school officials are currently looking into how to renovate or even reconfigure the town’s schools.

In February, a facilities study done by the Construction Solutions Group determined that Broad Brook Elementary, East Windsor Middle School, and East Windsor High School are too large for their current enrollment sizes based on state construction standards and guidelines.

Superintendent Patrick Tudryn said regardless of their sizes, the current school buildings are in need of major renovations.

"Our middle school and high school were both built in 1966. Our elementary school was built in 1959," he said. "Heating and ventilation, roofing, electrical all need updating. The costs of these updates to our existing buildings, according to the facilities studies, are likely to be more expensive than if we were to build new buildings.”

There are several options laid out in the study to address the renovation issues, in addition to the building sizes. The options range from renovating all three schools as new and “right sizing” the buildings; consolidating the middle and high schools by using either building and moving the fifth grade to the elementary school; constructing three brand-new schools; renovating all three schools with their current sizes; or doing the needed renovations without changing the size of the schools.

The costs range from $94 million to consolidate the middle and high schools using the high school building, to $196 million to renovating all three existing schools as new with their current square footage. Each project would be partially funded by the state.

Tudryn said that a team of district administrators will study all of the options but no timeline has been set on the discussions.

CT roads need 38 new and expensive noise barriers. Why there’s no money to pay for them.

ED STANNARD 

A study of noise along Connecticut’s roadways has recommended that the state Department of Transportation erect 38 new noise barriers along its interstate highways and state roads.

However, according to a DOT spokeswoman, there is no federal or state money to pay for them at this point.

The study was conducted to bring the state up to date with the Federal Highway Administration’s noise regulations.

“Most of our highways were built in the ’50s and that was before they really took environmental impact into consideration the way that they do now,” said DOT spokeswoman Samaia Hernandez. “So noise impact on communities was not looked at in the same way when those highways were first designed. 

“The National Environmental Policy Act came about in the ’70s. And so now, this is what the Federal Highway Administration requires. We realize that there are some areas where noise is impacting communities,” she said.

“This is essentially a major first step to go back into these areas and figure out what a priority list or heat map of … the worst would look like,” she said.

The No. 1 priority is on Interstate 84 East in Manchester, 20 points above the No. 2 barrier, according to the report. The east end would be at Slater street.

“Now the challenge is, there’s really no federal funding for it and this program is completely optional for the Federal Highway Administration,” Hernandez said. “It’s not required. So this is Connecticut taking some major first steps.” For one thing, the assessment, known as a Type II study, doesn’t take topography into account.

“If we wanted to go back and add barriers to some of the places that were identified on this list, we’d have to go back and do another study, which is considered a Type I study, to actually do that,” Hernandez said. “So this is kind of a major overall look at the issue.”  

According to the report, prepared by Harris Miller Miller & Hanson of Burlington, Mass., and Fuss & O’Neill of Manchester, the DOT started a noise-abatement program in 1973 but suspended it in 1982 for lack of funds.

The agency reevaluated the program in 1985 and created a priority list based on citizen complaints and population density, but that is outdated, the new report states.

The study included 38 interstates and principal arterial highways, covering 645 miles in all eight counties.

Half of the noise barriers recommended are located in Fairfield County, 12 along Interstate 95. The other seven in that county are along Route 7 in Norwalk, Route 8 in Shelton and Bridgeport and Interstate 84 in Danbury.

Seven barriers are recommended for New Haven County: along Route 8 in Ansonia, Derby and Naugatuck, I-95 in West Haven and Milford, I-84 in Waterbury and Route 15 in Milford. 

Five barriers are recommended for Hartford County:  two along I-84, in Manchester and West Hartford, one along Interstate 384 in Manchester, one along Interstate 91 in Windsor Locks and one along Route 15 in Wethersfield.

Four noise barriers are recommended for Middlesex County: along I-95, Route 9, and Route 17 in Middletown and along Route 9 in Cromwell. 

Three noise barriers are recommended for New London County:  along I-95 in Waterford, Interstate 395 in Montville and Route 2 in Colchester. 

The DOT also has a program to replace existing noise barriers that have exceeded their service life, Hernandez said.

At 6 p.m. May 23, the DOT will hold a virtual informational meeting about the report, where the public can ask the experts about their conclusions.

“You’ll really understand from the experts that have been digging into this,” Hernandez said. “The people who publish this report, they’re going to break it all down for the public. It’ll be a virtual public involvement meeting, which is basically a public town hall.”

To register for the meeting, which will be held on Zoom, go to https://bit.ly/noise-meeting.

For instructions on how to access the meeting and ways to provide comments and ask questions, go to https://portal.ct.gov/TypeIINoise.