Norwich breaks ground on $200 million sewage treatment plant

Claire Bessette

Norwich ― Superlatives dominated the remarks made at Wednesday’s groundbreaking ceremony to signal the start of construction of the city’s new $200 million wastewater treatment plant.

Norwich Public Utilities General Manager Chris LaRose called the plant the largest capital project in city history while Federal Environmental Protection Agency New England regional administrator David Cash said it is the largest sewer infrastructure project in the state. And Jason Nickerson, chairman of Torrington-based general contractor CH Nickerson & Co. said it is the largest project in his company’s 84-year history.

About 40 NPU employees, city, state and federal officials gathered at the plant entrance on Falls Avenue Wednesday morning for the groundbreaking ceremony, followed by a tour of the aging plant that will be replaced piece by piece over the next five years. The project had been under design for the past 20 years resulting in multiple revisions and cost escalations.

State Rep. Derell Wilson, D-Norwich, recalled that he did his high school senior seminar project in 2009 on environmental science and the workings of the Norwich sewage treatment plant.

“To see it now come to fruition, 20 years in the making, being a regional asset, an economic driver for both Norwich and our surrounding communities is amazing,” Wilson said.

Mayor Peter Nystrom stressed the regional benefit of the plant and the critical partnership between NPU and smaller surrounding towns, with the increased Norwich plant capacity allowing Norwich to attract new businesses and surrounding towns to extend sewer service to their residents and businesses.

The plant is located on the narrow man-made island that splits the east and west branches of the Yantic River as it feeds into Norwich Harbor. The plant shares Hollyhock Island with Southeast Area Transit’s main commuter bus terminal and the Thayer’s Marine boat sales and repair facility and its related marine retail business.

Construction will be tricky, with large buses, boats on trailers and dozens of workers traveling on Falls Avenue daily.

The plant must also remain in operation throughout the construction, as aging sewage digesters, wastewater treatment buildings, large sewage pipes and outflow pipes are replaced.

“Over the next five years, the island on which we are all standing will be transformed into a modern, efficient wastewater treatment plant that will dramatically improve water quality in the Yantic, Shetucket, and Thames rivers,” LaRose said Wednesday. “Every community between Norwich and Long Island Sound along the Thames River – Preston, Montville, Ledyard, Waterford, Groton, and New London – will benefit from this project.”

The project is being funded with a combination of grants and loans, with $72 million in grant funding through the state’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund and $128 million in low-interest, 2% loans from the state Clean Water Fund, to be repaid by NPU’s 10,000 wastewater customers over the next 20 years, NPU officials said.

Graham Stevens, bureau chief at the state Department of Environmental Protection, said the project provides an environmental and economic benefit for the city and southeastern Connecticut.

“No longer will we see the overflows of untreated and partially treated sewage to our rivers,” Stevens said. “We are going to be able to handle wet weather conditions, so when we have these intense rainstorms throughout the summer, this new wastewater treatment plant and its systems will be able to handle those flows.”

Danbury Proton renews push for cancer treatment center

Michelle Tuccitto Sullo

Danbury Proton LLC has filed a new certificate of need application with the state Office of Health Strategy to establish a proton therapy center for cancer treatment.

The estimated $90 million center, if approved, would be at 85 Wooster Heights Road, in Danbury.

The OHS previously denied Danbury Proton’s plan, citing factors such as the financial feasibility of the project.

Danbury Proton re-applied for the certificate of need, or CON, in documents filed Nov. 6.

Drew Crandall, a spokesperson for Danbury Proton, said communication between it and OHS has been “significantly enhanced,” under OHS’ leadership since Dr. Deidre Gifford took over as executive director.

“In connection with this re-application, we will continue to work with OHS staff to develop a proposal that OHS can support,” Crandall said. 

Proton therapy uses a high energy beam of protons to target cancer. Proponents say it allows for safer and targeted delivery of radiation, with less impact on healthy tissue and fewer negative side effects.

“The reduced side effects of proton therapy allow physicians to prescribe higher doses to tumors, resulting in improved control of the cancer,” the application states.

Crandall said the need for proton therapy in Connecticut is “huge.”

“Right now, the closest facilities are in Boston and New York City, and they are turning away patients,” Crandall said. “They cannot handle the existing regional patient need.”

The Yale New Haven Health system and Hartford HealthCare have secured OHS approval for an unrelated proton beam therapy center in Wallingford.

Crandall asserted there is enough demand in the state for both facilities.

"Our original estimate for Danbury Proton in April of 2020 was $80 million, but with the delays, inflation and construction cost increases, our current estimate is $90 million," Crandall said. "We do not have concerns about funding, which will be accomplished through bonds."

CT GOP pushes pedal to metal opposing mandated shift to EVs

Mark Pazniokas

Republican lawmakers in the General Assembly on Wednesday ramped up their opposition to regulations that would commit Connecticut to phasing out sales of most new gas-powered vehicles by 2035, a goal intended to reinforce market trends toward zero-emission vehicles.

The presentation comes two weeks before the legislature’s Regulation Review Committee is to consider regulations implementing the latest revisions to California’s clean air standards, which require manufacturers to curb emissions by weaning the new vehicle market off gasoline from 2027 through 2035.

While the regulations proposed by the Democratic administration of Gov. Ned Lamont stem from a law passed in 2004 under a Republican governor, Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, says they reflect the desires of “unelected bureaucrats.”

“The majority wants to believe that California is better for Connecticut than Connecticut. Nobody represents us in Sacramento,” Kelly said.

House Minority Leader Vincent J. Candelora, R-North Branford, said Republicans are staking out a policy position, not framing a wedge issue for the 2024 legislation session or reelection cycle.

“It’s certainly going to be an issue that continues to be on people’s minds, but this is not about the introduction of the 2024 campaign,” Candelora said. “This is about protecting the residents of Connecticut and providing them choice.”

Adoption of the regulations is uncertain, at best. The 14-member Regulation Review Committee is unusual in that the majority and minority parties have equal representation, meaning that a negative vote by a single Democrat and the promised unanimous opposition by Republicans would kill adoption.

Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, a member of the committee who expressed doubts about the regulations in a Connecticut Mirror interview last month, said Wednesday, “I’m still less than enthused.” 

The 2004 law committing Connecticut to the California emission standards for cars was not controversial, with unanimous passage in the Senate and by a vote of 143-1 in the House. But a 2022 law expanding the commitment to light- and medium-duty trucks had only a single Republican supporter.

Republicans insisted Wednesday they remain committed to clean air, even as issues of climate change and decarbonization have became sharply partisan in Hartford and in Washington.

“I think it goes without saying that everybody here this morning loves Connecticut, loves the beauty of our state, loves its environment,” Kelly said. “And we all want clean air. We want better communities. And we are not opposed to those issues. The question, however, is how do we get there? We think that choice rests with the General Assembly. The administration believes it rests with the bureaucrats.”

The administration’s position is that the regulations offered by Commissioner Katie Dykes of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection do reflect the will of the General Assembly, as expressed in the 2004 and 2022 laws.

The Republicans say setting a goal of eliminating new sales of gasoline-powered vehicles, whether or not it was authorized by the 2004 and 2022 laws, is a major policy decision that deserves another look by the full General Assembly. 

House Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, said he favors passage of the regulations, but believes the new car market in Connecticut will be dominated by electric vehicles by 2035 regardless of whether the regulations are adopted, simply because the manufacturers will tailor their offerings to the huge markets of California and New York.

New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts are among the states complying with California’s advanced clean car standards.

“The shift to zero-emission vehicles is already here,” Lamont said. “Consumers and car companies are both embracing the change, with manufacturers significantly increasing electric vehicle sales and families choosing to purchase those vehicles in increasing numbers. Following the legislature’s direction and our neighboring states’ decision to adopt the latest California emissions standards will help ensure a predictable, orderly transition to a cleaner and healthier future.”

Ritter said the trucking industry has raised legitimate concerns about the feasibility of shifting to zero-emission trucks by 2035. So far, electric long-haul trucks have not proven practical. Diesel engines can be adapted to run on clean hydrogen that would meet the new standard, but the infrastructure for hydrogen fueling does not exist.

Dennis Lyons, who oversees the coach and tour group business for Dattco, a New Britain bus company, said electric vehicles make sense for its school bus business, with relatively short distances and ample time to recharge between morning and afternoon runs.

One of its clients is requiring all-electric buses next year. Another has shifted from buses powered by diesel to propane, which is a fossil fuel but produces fewer emissions.

But Lyons said they are impractical for its coach business: The distances are far too great, and the batteries are so large that the coaches could not accommodate luggage.

Connecticut Republicans also questioned whether the electric grid, as well as the network of charging stations, would be sufficiently robust by 2035. 

“Right now our electric grid can’t handle if every car were electric. We don’t have the capacity,” Kelly said.

2019 to adopt a framework for modernizing the grid, though the utilities have complained that PURA has shown little sign of approving rates that would allow the utility companies to make the necessary massive capital investments.

Republicans said they are wary of the cost of a shift to EVs or what it would require in grid modernizations.

“I see it as a kind of a reverse Robin Hood, because we have to subsidize the vehicles, we have to subsidize the grid,” said Rep. Patrick Callahan, the ranking House Republican on the Environment Committee. “And it’s forcing our middle and lower class to bear the brunt of the cost. And until we have a real system where we can get cheap, clean electricity in Connecticut, you’re simply trading tailpipe for smokestack.”

Connecticut generates about 95% of its electricity from plants fueled by nuclear power or natural gas. It no longer burns coal.

Charles Rothenberger, a climate-and-energy lawyer with the environmental group Save The Sound, said even in states that burn coal to generate electricity, a switch to electric vehicles still offers a net gain in cleaner air.

He said Republicans were engaging in fear-mongering, especially when they suggest that gas-powered cars would disappear in 2035.

The regulations only would apply to new vehicles sold by manufacturers and would not bar the continued use of gas vehicles or their purchase in Connecticut. Also, plug-in hybrids, which burn gas after their batteries are expended, are defined as zero-emission vehicles under the California standards.

Rothenberger said the concerns raised by Republicans, including unavailability of easy access to overnight charging by homeowners or renters who have no off-street parking, are being addressed by the state. 

The Republicans say there is no guarantee the current planning will produce the necessary infrastructure by 2035.

Connecticut is one of 17 states that chose to adopt California’s emission standards over the more permissive federal rules, an option that reflects the policy initiatives of two Republican icons, former Presidents Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon, and a time when environmental issues crossed party lines. It is one of nine states that have either adopted or are in the process of adopting the 2035 deadline.

Reagan was governor of California in 1967 when the state created the California Air Resources Board to set emission standards and curb the choking smog generated by the state’s car culture. Nixon signed the Clean Air Act in 1970 and agreed to a provision that let California’s older rules stand and gave other states the option of adopting them.

Former President Donald J. Trump attempted to end the so-called California waiver.

Monroe Tractor Brings Case IH to New England

Monroe Tractor is adding Case IH's red equipment to Westborough and Woburn, Mass., and South Windsor, Conn., locations.

With 72 years as a Case and Case IH dealer in New York and Pennsylvania, Monroe Tractor has provided customers with red equipment to handle their equipment needs. Now, it is offering its New England customers more equipment choices with the addition of the Case IH Farmall series, Maxxums, Vestrums, Puma 150, and round and square balers.

With horsepower ranging from 25 to 150, chores can be tackled on everyone's to-do list, from hauling and mowing to loading and towing and then some.

"We are proud to bring back the iconic Case IH brand to Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Our knowledgeable staff looks forward to helping customers get into the right size machine to fit their needs," said Dan Duhn Westborough / Woburn branch manager.

"We take pride in this exciting opportunity to introduce Case IH equipment to the entire state of Connecticut and western Massachusetts," said Rick Bisesto, Connecticut branch manager. "We look forward to providing another line of equipment, top-notch parts and service to our valued customers for years to come."

Monroe Tractor has 18 locations across New York State, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Vermont. It carries everything from tractors, balers, skid steers, wheel loaders, backhoes, excavators, portable screen machines, demolition attachments, precision products, and many other fine brand names for any large or small construction site or farm. Its late-model, low-hour construction equipment is available to purchase or rent by the day, week or month.

"We're here to keep you working."

NYC tackles overdose deaths in construction

Sebastian Obando

City agencies in New York are taking proactive measures to address the alarming trend of overdose deaths among construction workers, according to a New York City Department of Buildings release.

Staff from the Health and Building departments will be visiting construction sites to educate workers on substance abuse, the dangers of fentanyl, proper use of naloxone for overdose prevention and overall work site safety.

At least 269 construction workers died of an overdose in 2020, by far the most of any occupation included in the analysis, according to the release. The initiative aims to directly provide critical information to construction workers to enhance their safety both on and off construction sites.

The decision to target the construction industry follows data revealing construction workers accounted for the highest number of overdose deaths among various occupational groups. 

That mirrors national trends, as construction workers remain particularly susceptible to fatal overdoses, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The construction industry’s 162.6 deaths per 100,000 workers were significantly higher than the 117.9 in food preparation and serving-related occupations, which had the second highest rate, according to the CDC. 

“We know that an injury on the construction site is sometimes just the first chapter of a tragedy, and along with our partners at the Health Department we are committed to promoting the safety of our fellow New Yorkers, both on and off the construction site,” said Jimmy Oddo, DOB commissioner. “Through mandatory drug and alcohol awareness classes to qualify for site safety training cards, and direct outreach on major work sites, we are letting the industry know that help is available.”

DOB requires all construction workers on the larger and more complex work sites in New York City to complete at least 40 hours of site safety training courses provided by a DOB-approved training provider. The training also requires construction workers to take a two-hour drug and alcohol awareness class, in order to learn about the harms associated with chemical dependence and how it may adversely affect lives.

To date, a total of 335,244 individuals in the construction industry have taken the drug and alcohol awareness class as part of their mandated safety training requirement. DOB will also conduct outreach to contractors and site safety professionals in the city, asking construction firms to include drug and alcohol safety information during morning meetings.

Hearing Turns Testy as Developers Seek Approval for 508 Apartments Along Merritt in Stamford

Angela Carella

STAMFORD – This week’s public hearing on a developer’s plan to build multi-family housing in a largely vacant office park got testy all around.

Residents said the developer’s representatives “browbeat” them with false information about the effects of the 508-apartment complex proposed for 900 Long Ridge Road, and fudged a study to make it look like the added traffic won’t be bad.

The developer’s representatives said residents have no facts, only opinions, and charged that the residents’ stated aim to protect the “character” of their neighborhood may mask an ulterior intent.

Residents told Zoning Board members they should represent the people of Stamford, not the developers. The Zoning Board chair chastised residents for referring to apartment renters as “transients.”

And so the three-hour public hearing went. About 40 residents spoke, all of them opposed, with more watching on Zoom.

Joanne Mangione of Loughran Avenue said a complex with 508 apartments is “highly incompatible” with the neighborhood on the edge of woodsy North Stamford.

“I moved here seven years ago with three children to live in a quiet single-family home neighborhood where children could ride their bikes and play ball with their friends,” Mangione said. “Please do not ruin my family’s neighborhood. Are we only concerned about the developer making money, and not the residents who live here?”

Miten Marvania of Maltbie Avenue addressed Rick Redniss of Redniss & Mead, the land-use consulting company representing the developer, Monday Properties, which wants to replace two four-story office buildings with four buildings of similar height.

The new buildings, which will house 56 studios, 235 one-bedroom apartments, 202 two-bedrooms and 15 three-bedrooms, will be set on 36 acres just south of the Merritt Parkway. The site once was home to Combustion Engineering and Nestle Waters, now BlueTriton Brands. Today BlueTriton occupies one building and the other is vacant.

“I live right across the street from this project,” Marvania said. “It takes me 30 minutes to get to the train station. … This is not about making money. This is about people’s lives. You are not understanding what you are doing to people’s lives.”

Looks like L.A.

In Stamford, where several thousand apartments have been built in the last dozen years, traffic is becoming unbearable, residents said.

It’s not safe, said Martin Munitz, who lives on River Oaks Drive, a mile from the development site. Long Ridge is a big state road, but the neighborhood streets are the opposite, Munitz said.

The developer’s traffic study is “self-serving” because it looks only at the volume expected to be generated by the project, Munitz said. “We’re not talking about where else these cars are coming from and where they’re going. We’re not talking about all the FedEx and DHL and Amazon delivery trucks coming through these small intersections and going on these narrow streets.”

The neighborhood “roads are becoming cut-throughs for people trying to get where they are going,” said Human Khan of Shadow Ridge Road. “It’s because Long Ridge is so congested. I lived in L.A. for a few years, and this is starting to look like L.A.”

Long Ridge Road is a raceway, said Madge Kellick of Hunting Lane, a cut-through to Wire Mill Road.

“Nobody does the speed limit on Long Ridge Road. From there, we get tons of traffic flying through the residential streets,” Kellick said. “I can’t get out of my driveway … what are these 508 apartments going to do to help me get out of my house?” 

Sarah Thalheim lives on Vineyard Lane, which motorists use to avoid traffic backed up at the Merritt Parkway entrance.

“The aggressive driving reminds me of the Long Island Expressway,” said Thalheim, a former New Yorker.

Counting car trips

Residents had many questions about the traffic study Monday Properties commissioned from Kimley Horn, a design consulting firm. Redniss said the firm’s report shows that the proposed development will generate about the same number of trips as the office complex.

Residents on the Zoom meeting balked.

Patrick Kazley of Vineyard Lane said he read through the study and found a footnote that says it is in the developer’s “vested interest” to compare the number of trips that would be generated by the apartment complex to what was generated when the office park was fully occupied – not the number of trips since the offices are mostly vacant.

“Based on that, they are coming up with a number and saying it will be the exact same traffic load,” Kazley said. “They disclosed that the client’s commercial interest, not accuracy, drove the results of the study.”

His neighbors didn’t accept the results, either.

“I find it very challenging to think that a half-empty office building has the same traffic as a 500-unit apartment building,” said Julie Vasile of Vineyard Lane. “We need a completely independent company to look at the actual traffic. I just don’t believe data from a company hired by the developer.”

Redniss said the data is accurate and verified by the city’s Transportation, Traffic and Parking division. It is based on an analysis by the highly reliable Institute of Transportation Engineers, Redniss said.

But residents weren’t the only ones with questions. Morris of the Zoning Board asked whether the data is based on actual number of trips counted or an ITE projection. Redniss said the ITE numbers held up when they were compared to traffic at a nearby development.

“The problem we have on the Zoning Board is that the number can be wrong … but nobody ever wants to address that issue,’ Morris said. 

“There are predictives,” Redniss said. 

“I understand what you’re saying – we’re supposed to accept that as reality. We hear, ‘Oh, we talked to [the city] and we talked to traffic engineers and this is what it is,’” Morris said. “And then we hear from residents.”

The ‘runaway train’

Vicki Wray of Hunting Ridge Road said residents have little recourse other than the three minutes they are allowed to speak during the limited public participation portions of Zoning Board meetings.

“I feel like I’ve spent this time being browbeat by Mr. Redniss, in favor of any kind of development anywhere in Stamford,” Wray said. 

Development is “a runaway train,” said Paula Waldman of Old North Stamford Road.

“The boards don’t listen to residents. Many can no longer afford to live here. Condos don’t work for developers so they don’t build them. Young people will never be able to own a home because they’re always paying high rents,” Waldman said. “It’s baked in the cake … much of Long Ridge is owned by a big developer, so this is just the beginning.”

The scene for the tense meeting was set two years ago, when the Zoning Board changed the regulations to allow multi-family housing in the city’s five office parks. They are largely vacant, so city officials have been seeking ways to allow developers to repurpose them. The problem is that most of them are situated along High Ridge and Long Ridge roads, surrounded by single-family neighborhoods.

The distrust exhibited during the zoning meeting didn’t just come from residents.

Redniss said residents “just make stuff up.” Some residents said, for example, that 2,000 people would live in the apartment complex. In fact, the project would have 748 bedrooms, so if 2,000 people live there, there will be 2.7 people per bedroom, which makes no sense, Redniss said.

“It’s just amazing that we can be criticized for presenting data verified by the city, but people can make blanket statements without backup,” he said during the meeting. “If there’s an independent study, will they say, ‘Oh, yeah, this is correct?’ No. They’ll think of other reasons not to do it. … Facts don’t matter; people’s opinions matter.”

People, he said, “are not always right. That’s why this board has listened and why most of the time housing gets approved.” 

A call for decorum

Resident Maria Perez of Pepperidge Road said developers or their representatives should not address taxpayers that way. 

“It’s jarring to hear how they speak to the people of the city,” Perez said. “We should have a say. We are educated about what we need. We should not be spoken to like we have to be told that two plus two equals four.”

Board member Gerry Bosak Jr. agreed.

“I really find it a little bit offensive, the sarcasm,” Bosak said. “Members of the public are nervous, they fumble around to get their points across in the three minutes they get to speak. It takes courage to get on a call and talk about this. We need to encourage that. We need to be mindful of how we represent ourselves on this board.”

The Zoning Board typically approves the large projects that come before them. But when Chair David Stein asked board members to share their thoughts about the Monday Properties plan, they showed they are leaning against it.

“This is the type of building I expect to see downtown,” Morris said. “To put it on this site is like a travesty.” 

Member Rosanne McManus said she liked that the project would use only 30 percent of the land, but “it’s not exactly what I had imagined in a beautiful parklike setting.”

“I can’t imagine why anyone would want a studio out here,” McManus said. “Maybe townhouses or single family homes.”

Board member Racquel Smith-Anderson agreed.

“I would like to see if the applicant could give us options outside just apartments – if there is a pathway for home ownership,” Smith-Anderson said.

But land-use attorney Bill Hennessey admonished the board for thinking of their role in that way.

“It’s not appropriate for the Zoning Board to dictate the form of ownership, condo or townhouse or co-op,” Hennessey said. “You have to deal with the structures and the use, not the user. That’s important to remember.”

The board also should not consider “character,” Hennessey said. A state statute says projects cannot be rejected for incompatibility with neighborhood character, since it has been used to discriminate against certain populations, he said.

“The policy of the state is to create more housing, period,” Hennessey said. “The reason housing is so expensive is because there’s such a limitation on it and competition for it. The only solution is to provide more product, and that’s what the statute addresses. We ask you to think long and hard about everything you’ve heard.”

The Zoning Board did not vote on the project during the meeting. They tabled it until after Thanksgiving. To see the schedule, click here.