3.2M-sq.-ft. Amazon facility to start construction at Waterbury-Naugatuck site after $2.5M land sale

Michael Puffer

APennsylvania-based development group has purchased 157 acres from the city of Waterbury for $2.5 million, setting the stage for construction of a roughly 3.2 million-square-foot logistics center. 

Waterbury and Naugatuck officials, on Monday, confirmed the sale of the site – which stretches over the city’s southern border and into Naugatuck – to Bluewater Property Group.

“They want to start site work immediately,” Waterbury Mayor Paul Pernerewski said. “We are looking forward to it because of the potential it has to bring 1,000 jobs to the area that are much-needed. It will also increase the tax base. It will be a huge boon for Waterbury and Naugatuck.” 

The sale marks a key milestone in a years-long effort to get the massive Amazon warehouse built. 

In 2021, Bluewater representatives joined Waterbury-area officials and Gov. Ned Lamont at a news conference announcing plans for the project. 

The city has tried to lure development to the site for decades, with prior proposals for a dog track, casino and mall failing partly due to steep topography on much of the property. That difficulty was overcome, in part, thanks to new cooperation between Waterbury and Naugatuck to facilitate access through the borough.

The two municipalities have agreed to evenly split tax revenue from the development.

“We are all thrilled to have reached this critical milestone,” Naugatuck Mayor N. Warren “Pete” Hess said. “Naugatuck and Waterbury remain fully engaged in a cooperative effort with Amazon and Bluewater to bring this exciting project to life.” 

“Waterbury and Naugatuck are great places to live and work, and we’re pleased to be establishing local operations here,” said Glendowlyn Thames, a senior manager of economic development with Amazon. “We’re excited that construction on this state-of-the-art Amazon robotics fulfillment center is slated to start soon.”

Christina Bernardin, vice president of Bluewater Property Group, credited both municipalities with being “incredible partners.” 

“After 3 years of collaboration, planning, engineering and dedication, we're proud to begin construction on a project that reflects the shared vision of both municipalities and our team,” Bernardin said. 

Of the sale proceeds, $392,932 will be split between the Waterbury Development Corp. and the borough of Naugatuck in payment for a parcel the two bought to facilitate access to the development site.

Separately, an Amazon-affiliated limited liability company — Amazon.com Services LLC — paid $4.8 million in 2022 for a 55,349-square-foot, 1980-vintage industrial building on 8.5 acres at 191 Sheridan Drive in Naugatuck.

A conceptual plan Bluewater shared at that time showed access driveways pushing through that property.

Under its purchase agreement with Waterbury for the 157-acre site, Bluewater is required to begin site work within one year. The contract gives the developer three years to complete the project, but also allows for two extensions to add up to 18 months to the construction schedule. 

If Bluewater fails to make adequate progress within these timelines, the purchase agreement it signed with the city has provisions that could force a sale, either to another developer or back to the city. 

The project is expected to support more than 300 construction jobs and, once operational, could create up to 1,000 full-time equivalent jobs with benefits. 

Former Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary, who reached the agreement with Hess that opened up access through Naugatuck, said he is “incredibly proud” of his role in the effort. 

“What began as a shared vision between two municipalities has now become a regional success story,” O’Leary said. “This is a win not only for Waterbury and Naugatuck but for the entire Naugatuck Valley.”

Mother of DOT worker killed on the job asks Connecticut motorists to slow down and pay attention

Ken Dixon

MERIDEN — Shari DiDomenico wiped away tears on Monday morning as she recalled the tragic death last year of her 26-year-old son Andrew, a state Department of Transportation road maintenance worker who was struck by an alleged drunken driver on Interstate-91 in Wallingford.

She stood on a dirt construction site before about 100 neon-vested and hard-hatted DOT workers, highlighting the theme for National Work Zone Awareness Week as nearby traffic whizzed by on I-91. She cried a little, recalling that morning of June 28. By 9:15 a.m., she and her husband Sal got word that Andrew DiDomenico was dead, struck while picking up litter for a grass-mowing detail.

"We had no idea that it would be the last time that we would see his face or hear his voice," DiDomenico said of that morning. "Our lives were shattered in an instant. No family should endure this kind of loss. No parent should have to bury their child because someone made a choice to drive recklessly or impaired through a work zone. Andrew was simply doing his job, helping to maintain and improve the roads that we all use every day. He deserved to be protected while doing that work. All roadside workers do. We must do more to protect those who work on our highways and roads."

The DiDomenicos have been joining advocates pushing the General Assembly for tougher penalties for motorists caught speeding through work zones or ignoring warning signs. "We need stronger enforcement, better driver education, especially for new drivers and a serious look at what additional safety measures could be implemented to help prevent tragedies like this from happening again, because this was a preventable tragedy," she said. "Our son had his whole life ahead of him, yet one driver made a bad decision."

Top state officials including Gov. Ned Lamont, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal and DOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto joined workers, law enforcement officials and a federal transportation representative in underscoring the importance of this year's theme, which is "Respect the zone so we all get home."

 During a news conference in the shadow of recently erected elevated highway platforms in the $500 million I-91/I-691/Route 15 interchange project, Eucalitto pointed out the traffic and the nearly around-the-clock work of DOT crews and contractors. "He worked hard every day, taking the opportunity to learn something new," Eucalitto said of DiDomenico. "He should still be with us here today if not for a reckless driver through a work zone."

Eucalitto said that on average, there is one work zone crash in Connecticut every 40 hours. "Almost every day we are seeing crashes in our work zones," he said. "It happens, sadly because drivers don't obey the orange," he said. The alleged operator of the vehicle that killed DiDomenico, Denise Lucibello of East Haven, remains in jail pending a pre-trial hearing Friday in Meriden Superior Court on charges of manslaughter and operating under the influence.

Eucalitto cited recent statistics that indicated since 2023, 2,000 work zone crashes and six fatalities occurred in Connecticut work zones. This calendar year, there have been 61 such crashes. He said that the trial program of work zone speed cameras proved highly effective, indicating that state motorists understand there are consequences. He expects more construction zone cameras to be installed later this year.

Recently, state lawmakers have voiced support for speed cameras throughout highways and a pending bill would support a study of the issue.

"Safety isn't seasonal," said Brad Oneglia, vice president of O&G Industries, a chief contractor for the three-part I-91/I-691/Route 15 project, aimed at handling traffic transition among the three highways. "It's a shared duty and it begins with a commitment to make sure than every single worker makes it home. Work zones are more than just orange barrels and caution signs. There where our friends, our family members and our neighbors go to earn a living, often just feet from speeding vehicles."

"These kinds of safety violations have to be stopped," Blumenthal said. "We're here for a call to action and it's an action about enforcement, about voluntary compliance with the law." He remembered a letter that Shari DiDomenico wrote to him after Andrew's death, in which she hoped that something greater would come from her son's death. "With stronger enforcement we can make 'slow down, move over' more than just a slogan or a mantra. That's what it requires: simple moral clarity."

"We've got all these amazing men and women who are working their heart out every day to make our roads just a little bit safer for each and every one of you," Lamont said. "They're wearing their safety vest and they're wearing their hard hat and that's not enough. These are all people just like us. This is a brother, a sister, a father, a daughter, just out there doing their job. I need each and every one of you to remember what your responsibilities are behind the wheel and make sure that Andrew and these other deaths mean something and don't happen again."

West Haven to get an increased financial boost from UNH, documents reveal

Brian Zahn

WEST HAVEN — As the University of New Haven plans further growth in West Haven, including expanding the private university's campus and new construction, the city expects to earn additional revenue from that growth.

A signed agreement between the two parties obtained by the Register revealed that the city and university have agreed to negotiate an increased financial contribution from the University of New Haven to the city within the next two years.

Last month, city and university officials announced that they'd agreed to expand a program offering free tuition to West Haven first responders citywide and to make a half-off tuition program applicable to all West Haven resident high school graduates. Officials also announced that the University of New Haven had agreed to purchase North End Field, a blighted city-owned athletic field that the city said has been a challenge for Public Works and police, for $500,000.

Currently, the university voluntarily contributes $100,000 to the Allingtown Fire District budget, which responds to calls made on UNH's campus. Because the university is tax-exempt, it doesn't pay property taxes on city real estate that it owns and uses for academic purposes. The state's payment in lieu of taxes program offers municipalities some portion of missed revenue, but it is common for Connecticut cities to negotiate additional financial contributions from university to support town-gown relations; in 2021, New Haven and Yale University announced a six-year, $135 million voluntary contribution agreement.

According to an agreement signed by West Haven Mayor Dorinda Borer and UNH President Jens Frederiksen, the university will contribute its $100,000 contribution to the Allingtown Fire District through fiscal years 2026 and 2027, but has committed to negotiating an addendum to the agreement before Dec. 31 for additional contributions. Those annual contributions will "increase in alignment with UNH's financial growth through a formula based process," the agreement stipulates. This is because of rising service costs that require more funding "to ensure a fair and sustainable partnership," the agreement said.

Last last year, UNH announced it would purchase a shopping plaza across from its main campus on Campbell Avenue. West Haven Economic Development Director Steve Fontana told the City Council Monday that the city received no respondents when it put North End Field out for bid, and the property itself is difficult to market in part because it can only be accessed from the parking lot of the shopping plaza purchased by UNH.

"It's of significant value to the adjacent property value owner," he said, therefore West Haven officials brought the potential sale to the attention of UNH officials.

The sale of the field has yet to go through; at the City Council meeting this Monday, council members referred the matter to the Planning and Zoning Commission for its review.

In addition to the expected escalating financial contribution, the agreement stipulates that UNH will provide a $10,000 annual contribution to the city to promote local events and activities.