Beacon Falls road project receives green light to seek funds

BEACON FALLS — The town has received the final approval to obtain state funds for the reconstruction of Burton Road.

The Board of Selectmen unanimously approved at its Sept. 12 meeting to authorize First Selectman Gerard Smith to sign the Burton Road reconstruction letter from the Department of Transportation for the final authorization to receive money from the state.

The town on Dec. 24, 2020, closed the section of Burton Road from Wolfe Avenue to North Main Street to traffic due to structural issues and fears the road could fail. The closed section of the road, which has a sidewalk on one side and a stone wall on the other, goes over a brook that runs behind the Beacon Mill Village apartments. The road has shifted due to erosion of its foundation from the brook.

The state Department of Transportation has committed to give the town $2.9 million to fix the road through the Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program. The funds are administered by the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments.

Smith said the funds are available as needed for the project and the town is opening up the bid.

The town is looking for bids from qualified respondents for the street restoration which includes the removal and installation of a concrete retaining wall, full-depth reconstruction, paving, installation of new concrete curbing, driveway aprons, monolithic concrete sidewalks, storm drainage modifications, new signs and pavement markings, according to a post on the town website.

Bid respondents must have experience in completing similar work. The bid submission deadline is Oct. 12 at 10 a.m., the post states.

Some work has already begun to get closer to the reconstruction of the road and, eventually, reopen one of the main travel arteries in the downtown area.

Aquarion Water Company workers replaced roughly 1,000 feet of a water main on Burton Road on July 12. The water main was an estimated 100 years old.

Hiltbrand Construction workers installed 1,500 feet of a new sewer line to replace the roughly 70-year-old sewer line on Burton Road on Aug. 24.

Smith said he expects some more work to be done this year and is hopeful to have the project completed by late spring of 2023.

Developer of Danbury apartment complex who missed 2 completion deadlines promises not to miss a 3rd

 Rob Ryser

DANBURY — The developer of the most anticipated residential development in downtown Danbury blames the “unprecedented circumstances” of the coronavirus for missing two completion deadlines and promises not to miss a third deadline at the end of this year.

Developer Dan Bertram of BRT says the 149-apartment complex on Main Street that was supposed to be completed in 2021 and missed a second completion deadline in August should be finally finished by the end of this year.

“BRT has been diligent in its efforts to complete the project, and has already received certificates of occupancy for 90 of the 149 apartments, but the devastating pandemic and resulting supply chain shortages and other shocks to the economy have caused major disruptions to our construction schedule,” Bertram wrote in a letter to Danbury Mayor Dean Esposito. “Therefore, we have been unable to complete all the improvements by the Aug. 15, 2022 deadline.”

Bertram is referring to a 5-story apartment complex with shops and a second-floor rooftop pool overlooking Main Street that will connect the back of the project with a bridge over the Still River to an existing BRT apartment building called Brookview Commons. The new apartment complex at the former headquarters of The News-Times is across the street from the 374-unit Kennedy Flats complex.

Although the exterior of the new apartment building looks relatively complete from the vantage point of Main Street, the 3-acre lot it sits on does not — with large mounds of construction material visible from neighboring properties. 

Bertram and the city negotiated a completion timeline under a tax break agreement that had to be renewed once already when BRT missed the 2021 deadline. On Thursday, the City Council will vote whether to renew that tax break agreement for a second time, until Dec. 31, 2022.

Esposito, a Republican, urged the GOP-controlled City Council to “take expedited action.”

“This project is an important component of the city’s efforts to revitalize the central business district,” Esposito wrote to the council.

The city’s central business district, also called the Main Street corridor, was the heart of Danbury’s civic life for decades until economic forces such as the construction of the Danbury Fair mall on the west side shifted attention away from the downtown to areas where residential growth was booming.

An extension of the incentive package would keep in play the agreement for Danbury to defer taxes BRT would have to pay based on the improvements to the property for seven years. After seven years, BRT’s property taxes would be based on the full assessment of the apartment complex.

The property at 333 Main St. is currently assessed at $1.1 million, for an annual tax bill of $31,000. BRT is investing at least $13 million into the project, according to city records.

Thursday’s vote about whether to renew BRT’s tax break package comes at the same time that the City Council is poised to approve a similar seven-year tax incentive for a bank that has proposed to build a $14 million office building at Main and White streets.

Similar to the BRT incentive package, the request by the Savings Bank of Danbury to defer increases in property taxes on its proposed office building means the bank would pay taxes on the current assessment of the property, and would only pay taxes on the increase in property value that the new construction would bring after seven years.

Under the deal, the bank would pay $19,000 a year in taxes for seven years, and pay an estimated $165,000 annually in taxes after that.

The city gives tax breaks to developers to encourage economic development, leaders said.

Last month, for example, the City Council granted a New York-based moving company a seven-year tax break for its $25 million commitment to build a 196,000-square-foot warehouse headquarters on the west side, with 130 full-time jobs.

That deal means Clancy Moving Systems will pay $142,000 in annual taxes on the 29 acres in question for seven years, and then pay the full amount of the increased assessment after that.

Stamford mayor withdraws proposed sale of vacant Glenbrook Community Center at 11th hour

Brianna Gurciullo

STAMFORD — Mayor Caroline Simmons has pulled a proposal to have the closed Glenbrook Community Center redeveloped into affordable housing, saying the plan doesn't have enough support to pass the Board of Representatives.

The board was set to vote on the proposed sale of the building Monday night. For months, elected officials, members of Simmons’ administration and residents have clashed over the proposal to allow JHM Financial Group and Viking Construction develop 51 income-restricted apartments, preserve the former community center’s facade and set aside space for public use.

"My administration has said consistently that the 35 Crescent Street project is about affordability, inclusion and building a stronger workforce in support of our local economy," Simmons said in a statement Monday afternoon. "It is clear that a vote on this project will not be successful based on those merits and the proposed contract as written will not be successfully approved by the Board of Representatives.

"While disappointed, I remain focused and intent on working with partners throughout our city to make Stamford more affordable for all its residents. The administration does not have any immediate plans for the 35 Crescent Street property," she said.

The debate over the potential sale came to a head last month in the form of a rally to "Save Our Center." Last week, after a discussion that lasted more than four hours, the Board of Representatives' Legislative and Rules Committee voted 5-3 against the proposal.

"This could be the best plan in the world — it does not matter to me because it doesn’t matter to my constituents that I’ve spoken to,” Rep. Sean Boeger, D-15, said during the meeting. “I don’t care if it’s a three-ring circus giving away free ponies to everybody that walks through the door. That’s not what the people want. The people want their community center, and there is nothing wrong with that.”

Before the committee met, the board received a petition calling for the city to “restore the GCC as a community center.” An accompanying letter stated that more than 1,100 residents had signed the petition.

Board members questioned how much it would cost to get the community center back up and running, how "affordable" the proposed apartments would be and whether the city should receive a cash payment larger than $700,000 from the developers.

Simmons also came under fire for recently saying at a convention in Chicago that her administration was "working to get an affordable housing project passed" and there was "a lot of NIMBYism" in response to it and "abhorrent language from some of the community members around 'Are there going to be background checks for the people living in this facility?'" Simmons didn't say where exactly she had heard or seen such language.

Winsted's Rowley Street bridge reopens after summer closure

Emily M. Olson

WINSTED — After months of construction and traffic detours, the Rowley Street bridge once again is open to through traffic. 

The bridge was closed in May for the project, which was overseen by the state Department of Transportation. Traffic was detoured to Main Street and drivers were told to find alternate routes. 

A few weeks after the bridge was closed, business owners put up signs along Main and Rowley streets near the closed area, reminding them to visit local businesses and to use detours to access them. 

Rowley Street is also Winsted Road, which ends at the corner of Rowley and Main streets. The town's athletic fields and playground are near the bridge, as well as numerous businesses. The bridge crosses the Mad River. 

State Terminates Agreement to Sell Mystic Oral School to Respler Homes

Cate Hewitt

GROTON — The state has terminated its contract to sell the Mystic Oral School to Respler Homes LLC, a deal that a number of residents have opposed since its inception in 2019.

“Governor Lamont has directed DECD to terminate the contract for the sale of the Mystic Education Center to Respler Homes, LLC. The State of Connecticut looks forward to working with the Town of Groton on a suitable development that cleans up this site and restores the property to productive use in the future,” said Anthony M. Anthony, spokesman for the Office of Governor Ned Lamont, in an email to CT Examiner late Monday afternoon. 

John Burt, manager of the Town of Groton, confirmed that the state had terminated the purchase agreement, which would have sold the 37 acres at 240 Oral School Road to Respler Homes LLC for $1. 

Burt said the status of the development agreement between Respler Homes and the town has not been determined. The agreement included a proposal to build 750-900 homes and rehabilitate several buildings on the site.

“The agreement is still intact. We’re waiting to see the termination letter from the state to Respler [as] to whether there is an impact on the agreement,” Burt wrote in a text to CT Examiner. 

Also unknown is the status of the State Contract Standards Board investigation into Jeffrey Respler and the status of the Blue Lotus Group, which has said it would buy Respler Homes LLC and develop the Mystic Oral School Property.

State Sen. Heather Somers (R-Groton) said she had not spoken to Gov. Lamont about his reasons for terminating the contract. But, she said she sent a letter last week to the offices of the Attorney General and the Governor “asking very specific questions as to whether the process had adhered to our statute” and requesting a closer look at the contract. 

“They made the decision to terminate the contract and then reassess, come back together with the Town of Groton and go out for another RFP when it is appropriate, but making sure that the town is on board with what is developed on that property site,” she said. “This original proposal was way out of line, scope wise and size wise, with what any of us feel was appropriate for that particular parcel of land.”

Somers said the state made it clear they want to sell the property and see it developed. 

“But they want to make sure that the property is developed in a way that the Town of Groton and citizens are happy and satisfied with it,” she said. 

Somers said development had been controversial and she was in favor of exploring new options for the site. 

“Having this split in the town where so many residents living next door to it were going to be absolutely unhappy is not a good approach. So I applaud the decision to stop and regroup and to move forward in a slower, more measured way.”