Lamont 'angry' over indictments, arrests, guilty pleas in school construction money office

Ken Dixon

HARTFORD — In his first public reaction to the arrest of a former top deputy in his budget office, Gov. Ned Lamont on Monday said he was angered by what he read in the federal indictment of Kosta Diamantis, a former state lawmaker who now faces multiple felony charges including extortion in federal court.

"I'm very disappointed and angry," Lamont told several reporters after an unrelated news conference in the Legislative Office Building. "I think it's a breach of the public trust. We worked hand-in-glove with the feds to get down to the bottom of this as soon as we could. I didn't hire him, but I did fire him. We'll see if there's any criminality involved. It's in the courts. We tried to make changes to make it a little less likely that this can happen in the future, but if it is corruption, corrupt individuals can work around. There's no amount of change that will make sure this never happens again. That's the nature of individuals and criminality."

During the previous administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Diamantis, now 68, a former member of the state House of Representatives was hired by the state Department of Administrative Services to supervise state reimbursements for school construction projects. Shortly after Lamont became governor in early 2019, school construction was transferred to the state budget office known as the Office of Policy and Management under then-OPM Commissioner Melissa McCaw. With the transfer of the duties and a title of deputy OPM secretary, Diamantis also took over criminal justice policy in that office.

"I generally thought, at that stage, it was very early in the administration, that I hire the best commissioners I can and they had the right to put together their own team," Lamont said. "So I didn't get as involved in that, in hindsight, as we should have."

Diamantis was arrested on 22 charges last Thursday and pleaded not guilty is U.S. District Court in Hartford. 

Building projects listed in the 35-page federal indictment charging alleged bribes, conspiracy and extortion include Horst Engineering of East Hartford, New Britain High School, Weaver High School and Bulkeley High School, both in Hartford, Birch Grove Primary School in Tolland, and the New Britain Board of Education.

"The allegations suggest the corruption started when he was over there in DAS in 2018 or something," Lamont said on Monday.

Evidence in the indictment includes a series of text messages, with Diamantis allegedly soliciting payments of up to $70,000 from executives at two companies, Acranom Masonry of Middlefield and Construction Advocacy Professionals of Preston, in exchange for construction work that he would assign to them. Three executive of those companies pleaded guilty last week to federal bribery charges.

Lamont said that since the issues in school construction procedures surfaced a couple years ago, those projects have been shifted back to the DAS, along with a separate unit auditing those projects. 

"Little ways that we can do a better job of keeping an eye on these projects in real time," said Lamont, who  previously headed a company that wired colleges for cable TV. "Checks and balances are important, especially in the public sector. Just more independent eyes looking at the process."

The General Assembly recently approved a provision that would end a ban on project managers bidding on subcontracts for local building projects receiving state funds. The provision is buried in a $400 million package making long-term state bonding available for building projects, and since it does not include any funding to lift the ban, Lamont can not perform a line-item veto when he reviews the package for his likely signature, according to

Lamont said he plans to speak with DAS Commissioner Michelle Halloran Gilman to look for other possible recommendations. 

"We've managed things I think with integrity, and keeping an eye on the taxpayers' dollars at the same time," he said of the school building projects, some of which were considered emergency construction. "You want to be able to move fast and you also want to maintain the checks and balances."

CT to award $122 million in air quality grants to 48 school districts. See if your town cashed in

Alex Putterman, Jacqueline Rabe Thomas,

Connecticut has awarded local school districts $122 million for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning upgrades, the state's Department of Administrative Services announced Monday.

Norwalk received the most funding of any district — more than $21.5 million to be spent across six schools — followed by Montville ($15.5 million), Waterbury ($9.3 million), Thompson ($8.8 million) and Stamford ($6.8 million). Altogether, 48 districts received state money, funding more than 100 HVAC projects.

In a news release Monday, top lawmakers praised the HVAC grant program, as did several advocates and the superintendent of one district receiving funds.

"A healthy physical environment in a school is foundational to learning," said Fran Rabinowitz, executive director of the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents. "These grants promote healthy air for our students and staff. Although there is much more work to be done, we are all very appreciative of the continuing support that this funding provides."

Thomas Anderson, superintendent of the East Hartford school system, said his district will use its $773,000 grant to construct a new ventilation system for 25 elementary school classrooms and replace rooftop HVAC units at the local high school.

"This is the type of facilities work that often goes unnoticed but is crucial to keeping our teaching and learning spaces safe and comfortable so our students and staff can do their best," he said.

Per the terms of the grant program, funds may be used to replace, upgrade or repair HVAC systems or otherwise improve air quality in schools.

The new round of funding follows an initial round last year that was plagued by complaints from districts who felt they were unfairly denied and advocates who wanted to see the money distributed faster and more equitably. CT Insider reported last June that 80 of 130 project applications during the first round were not awarded funding — a data point lawmakers cited in a recently passed bonding bill — and that wealthy districts were more likely to receive grants than poorer ones.

That reporting sparked calls from lawmakers to accelerate the grant program and distribute more money to a wider range of towns.

This time, the state appears to have allocated somewhat more funds to low-income districts, with New Britain, Waterbury, New Haven, East Hartford and Meriden among the districts receiving money. In total, the state says 41 percent of the $122 million total went to "Alliance" districts (a category that includes 36 of the state's lowest-performing school systems) and more than half went to districts below the state's median wealth level.  

Unlike last round, when the state awarded less than 40 percent of the money school districts applied for, this time they awarded nearly 90 percent of the $137 million requested.

As with many other grants, towns and cities are required to supplement the state HVAC grant money with local funds — a condition some low-income districts may struggle to meet.

Efforts by educators and some legislators to attract state money for air-quality upgrades in schools has been slow since the pandemic began. Gov. Ned Lamont's administration initially resisted such a program, saying districts should use federal pandemic-relief funds for infrastructure improvements, before ultimately agreeing to spend state COVID money on such projects. Legislators later approved routing other state money to the program as well.

With Monday's announcement, DAS has committed to spending $178 million on HVAC improvements — about three-quarters of the $225 million available. Another $150 million is expected to become available for future grants. State lawmakers this year rerouted an additional $75 million that was earmarked for this grant to cover other state priorities.

Air quality in schools has drawn increased scrutiny since the pandemic, when some teachers reported feeling unsafe in school due to a lack of adequate ventilation. As of a 2021, a review conducted by the state found, only 40 percent of school facilities for which responses were submitted had central air conditioning for their entire building and only 53 percent had HVAC or high efficiency boilers no older than their expected useful life.

Teachers unions in Connecticut have regularly cited air quality as a top concern and have asked the state to do more in that area. Kate Dias, president of the Connecticut Education Association, said in the DAS statement Monday that the new funding was "not a silver-bullet solution" but was welcome nonetheless.

"These grants are a step towards helping municipalities provide cleaner, healthier air in schools that need it the most, and that’s a breath of fresh air for all of us," she said. 

Groundbreaking held for expansion of Lymes Senior Center

Elizabeth Regan

Old Lyme ― A ceremonial pile of dirt awaited dignitaries at the Lymes’ Senior Center Monday for the groundbreaking of a $5.5 million expansion project designed to accommodate an aging population who are greeted each day by a youthful staff.

Senior center Director Stephanie Gould rallied the crowd of almost 100 people with an exuberant “woo!”

“Wow, this day has finally come,” she called out. The applause was generous from residents of Lyme and Old Lyme, where those over age 50 comprise about half of the citizenry.

Seniors since October have been spread out across the two towns while churches, libraries and municipal buildings host activities that had previously taken place at the center, which was closed. Delays related to grant funding, insurance coverage and higher-than-expected construction costs left the building silent and empty for longer than anticipated.

The project, designed by Old Lyme-based Point One Architects, is managed by Newfield Construction of Hartford. A construction trailer was set up behind temporary fencing, while Tyvek was exposed on the south-facing wall that will expand to help accommodate an additional 3,265 square feet. In front, shingles were removed where a covered entry tall enough to accommodate buses and emergency vehicles will be constructed.

Lyme First Selectman David Lahm acknowledged the work being done to provide all the same programming in new locations.

“But we’ve lost the synergy,” he said. “The members don’t get the sense of community, and we’re working very hard to get that back to you.”

Martha Shoemaker, the first selectwoman in Old Lyme, said the project will revitalize a building that first went up in 1996.

“We believe this renovation will keep it going strong for another 28 years or more,” she said. “And if all goes as planned, we anticipate reopening the center in March of next year, fingers crossed.”

Officials including selectmen of both towns, state Rep. Devin Carney, R-Old Lyme, and state Sen. Norm Needleman, D-Essex, were among those who donned white hardhats and grabbed shovels to signal the start of construction.

In the middle of them was Lymes’ Senior Center Building Committee Chairwoman Jeri Baker. She’d noted earlier that it had been four years, seven months and one day since the building committee was first formed.

Shoemaker handed Baker the same shovel that had been used three decades prior to break ground on the original senior center.

“Jeri, I think you should be the one to use this shovel,” she said, crediting Baker with leading them into the future.

CT Innovations considers tax exemptions for major medtech, food manufacturing projects

Andrew Larson

Connecticut Innovations, the state’s quasi-public venture capital arm, is set to vote on requests for sales and use tax exemptions for three major projects, including the state’s first proton therapy center in Wallingford.

The developers are seeking tax benefits under the state’s Sales & Use Tax Relief Program, which exempts companies from Connecticut’s 6.35% sales tax, up to a certain amount, for capital equipment and/or construction materials.

On Tuesday, CI’s Loan Committee will consider approving up to a $5 million tax exemption for construction costs related to the Connecticut Proton Therapy Center’s 25,000-square-foot facility.

Yale New Haven Health, Hartford HealthCare and Proton International have partnered to develop the $75 million proton therapy center, which is under construction.  

Also, the committee is set to consider a $700,000 tax exemption for Home Market Foods Inc.’s expansion and renovation of the former Carla’s Pasta’s facility in South Windsor.

Home Market Foods, based in Norwood, Massachusetts, has proposed a $71 million upgrade and a 28,000-square-foot addition to the existing facility for a new frozen food manufacturing plant. The company produces frozen meatballs and other foods, including hot dogs.

In addition, the committee will consider up to a $500,000 tax exemption for New England Cell Therapeutics Inc.’s construction of a new biotechnology research and development facility in Windsor.

New England Cell Therapeutics has proposed a 50,000-square-foot facility at 2195 Day Hill Road. The company is owned by Japan-based Nipro Group, which makes medical equipment and test- and diagnosis-related products.

To qualify for the Sales & Use Tax Relief Program, a project must be valued at more than $4 million.

CI requires a letter of credit so the agency can force repayment if a company falls short of its requirements or moves out of state within 10 years. Full or partial clawbacks have occurred.