There’s a $592 million project coming for a bridge on a CT interstate. It won’t be done until 2029.

ED STANNARD

It’s a $591.9 million, multi-year project on a Connecticut interstate.

The northbound deck of the Gold Star Memorial Bridge needs to be replaced, and a public information meeting will be held April 30 to provide the details and offer an opportunity for questions.

The bridge links New London and Groton across the Thames River on Interstate 95.

“The Gold Star Bridge is a vital structure for New London and Groton residents, major employers, and freight movement along the I-95 corridor,” said state Department of Transportation Project Manager Tracey Brais in a statement.

“This project will address existing bridge deterioration, increase the bridge’s load carrying capacity, and extend its service life,” Brais said. “We encourage the public to attend this meeting to share their feedback with the CTDOT project team to incorporate into the design.”

The project will replace the deck and strengthen the steel superstructure to improve freight travel across the Thames.

It will increase the structural capacity of the bridge, improve safety and continue to meet the traffic demands for the region, according to the statement. The U.S. Naval Submarine Base, and the United States Coast Guard Academy are both nearby and I-95 is a major corridor through New England.

Construction will begin in summer 2025, assuming funds are available, rights of way are acquired and permits are approved.

The estimated construction cost is $591.9 million, including $158.2 million in Bridge Investment Project Grant funds, 90% federal funds and 10% state funds. It is scheduled to be completed in March 2029.

The Gold Star Memorial Bridge was originally constructed in 1943, and a major superstructure rehabilitation was performed in the 1970s.

In the 1990s, multiple rehabilitation projects were completed to improve bridge conditions. In 2014, there was a bearing replacement project for half of the expansion bearings on the approach spans. In 2018, improvements were completed on the southbound span. In 2020, the project on the northbound span began.

The hybrid meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at the Groton Municipal Building, 295 Meridian St. It will be offered on Zoom as well. To register for Zoom, go to https://bit.ly/gold-star-bridge. The meeting also will be livestreamed on YouTube at portal.ct.gov/ctdotvpimarchive. No registration is required for YouTube.

A question-and-answer session will follow the presentation, which will be recorded. For instructions on accessing the meeting and ways to provide comments and ask questions, visit https://portal.ct.gov/DOTGoldStar94-235VPIM.

Members of the public can submit comments and questions during the two-week public comment period after the meeting, which ends May 14. Send them to DOT.GoldStarBridgeProjects@ct.gov or call 860-594-2020.

West Hartford approves 4-building, 322-apartment complex on part of former UConn site

David Krechevsky

After a five-hour public hearing and another hour of discussion Monday night, the West Hartford Town Council granted final approval to a controversial four-building, 322-unit apartment complex on Trout Brook Drive and Asylum Avenue.

The council voted 8-1 to approve the project, which will transform a massive parking lot across the street from a former University of Connecticut branch campus, over the objections of a majority of about 50 residents who attended the meeting — including one who threatened a lawsuit.

The application by WeHa Development Group East LLC, which owns the 23.78-acre property at 1700 Asylum Ave., sought approval for a zone change for 14.9 acres of the northern portion of the lot from the existing R-10 single-family zone to an RM-MS multifamily-multistory residence district zone with a Special Development District (SDD) overlay.

The property includes not only the massive parking lot but also three baseball fields for the town’s youth league and the West Hartford Miracle League, which provides opportunities for children with physical disabilities or cognitive challenges to play baseball. The project will retain the ballfields and add a 100-car parking lot on about 9 acres on the southern portion of the lot.

The applicant was represented during the public hearing by attorney Robin Pearson of Alter & Pearson LLC in Farmington, as well as by Matthew Bruton, a principal with Meriden-based BL Companies, an architectural and engineering firm; traffic engineer Robert Battramaitis; and Michael Lawson, a principal with Minno & Wasko, a New Jersey-based architectural and planning firm. 

Also in attendance was Eli Pechtold, a principal with Stamford-based Garden Homes Management Corp., which is under contract to own and operate the apartment complex. 

According to the presentation by the applicant, the plan is to erect four buildings with a total of 322 apartment units, including 115 single-bedroom units and 207 two-bedroom units. Twenty-six of the units will be designated as affordable housing.

Buildings A and B will contain 72 units, Building C will have 42 units, while Building D will have 113 units and house the main lobby and clubhouse.

Each of the buildings is five stories high, though the fifth floor is set back 30 feet to lessen the impact of the height of the buildings compared to the surrounding neighborhood of single-family homes.

A total of 558 parking spaces will be created, or about 1.75 spaces per unit, which is more than the minimum requirement of 1.5 per unit. The total also significantly reduces the amount of paved area from what exists now.

In discussing the 700-page traffic study report he submitted, Battramaitis drew a laugh by stating that the project will not have a significant impact on traffic in the area. He defended the report, stating that traffic study is an “objective science.” Pearson also defended the study, saying a study done for a similar project in the area was found to be entirely accurate by a followup study.

The project also will extend sidewalks along Trout Brook Drive, and add a community green and walking trails through the property, which will be open to the public. The plan also will preserve a massive white oak tree, the largest of its kind in the state, as well as add other trees and plantings. It received approval from the Inland Wetlands and Watercourse Agency in January.

“The idea here is to really enhance the meadow quality of the site,” Lawson said. “We think of this as an extra amenity to the residents who will call this place home.”

Pearson noted that the applicant had made “many, many changes” to the plans to address concerns raised by town officials and abutting property owners, and noted that both the town Plan & Zoning Commission and Design Review Advisory Committee had provided letters stating “the appropriateness of the design for this location.”

A majority of the residents who attended the public hearing disagreed with that assessment, with many stating the project is too large for the neighborhood and raising traffic and safety concerns. 

That included Christopher Heneghan, who owns a home on Asylum Avenue and presented the council with a 10-page petition signed by abutting property owners demanding the project be rejected. If certified, the petition also would require a supermajority of the council to vote to approve the project. 

The council allowed Heneghan to collect additional signatures during the hearing.

“We are prepared to take legal action” if the project is approved, he added.

Following the hearing, during the council’s special meeting, Corporation Counsel Dallas Dodge said the town clerk and town planner had worked during the public hearing to verify that the petition signers all owned property within 500 feet of the site, and that all owners of each property had signed, as required by the town charter. 

Dodge said 34 lots were represented by signatures on the petition, or 13.2% of the abutting property owners, but that only 29 of those lots, or 11%, had signatures of all owners. He said that did not meet the 20% required by the town charter, so a supermajority vote was not necessary.

Another speaker who objected to the project during the public hearing was Mike Michaud, executive director of The Miracle League of Connecticut. He said the plan to create 100 parking spaces was not nearly enough for the baseball complex, given the number of players who participate, and especially when special events that attract a large crowd are considered. 

Pearson said the developer has had conversations with the University of St. Joseph, which abuts the property, about the possibility of providing parking and shuttle bus service for such events. University President Rhona Free attended the meeting and spoke in support of the application.

Deputy Mayor Ben Wenograd summed up a majority of the council’s position on the project, stating that he believed “this is a very strong plan with a benefit to the town as a whole.” He cited the affordable housing, the estimated $1.6 million in annual tax revenue, and the improvements to controlling and treating stormwater runoff, among other benefits.

Mayor Shari Cantor agreed, noting that one-third of the property is dedicated to recreational and green spaces. “This is private property that the public is being invited to walk” on, she said. “It is a very good use of providing homes where a parking lot stood.”

The lone dissenting vote was cast by council member Mary Fay, who said simply that the project “doesn’t fit.”

“This is very much a single-family neighborhood,” she said. “This is too big. Come back with a three-story and I’d probably say yes. But this is too big for the site, and I’m really concerned about the Miracle League.”

The council concluded by approving the application with a dozen conditions.

The 1700 Asylum Avenue project is the first piece of the redevelopment plan for the former site of the UConn branch and UConn School of Law. The site has been vacant since 2017, when the school relocated to Hartford. 

An initial proposal to create a mixed-used development on the 1800 Asylum Avenue parcel was withdrawn from the Inland Wetlands and Watercourse Agency in December. A new plan has not yet been submitted.

National developer with growing CT presence eyes 153 apartment units in Rocky Hill

Hanna Snyder Gambini

Anational real estate development company with a growing Connecticut presence is planning a pre-application meeting this week with the Rocky Hill Planning and Zoning Commission for a multi-building apartment complex proposal.

Pennsylvania-based A.R. Building Company is proposing 153 units in three, four-story buildings on 22 acres at 200 Capital Blvd.,  in the town’s office park district. 

The complex would have parking, a clubhouse and pool. A.R. Building would need a zoning change to allow residential in the office park area.

“We believe the site is well-suited to a multifamily development given its access to the main transportation corridors, nearby services and existing infrastructure,” the application reads. The site is at the intersection of Capital Boulevard and Enterprise Drive, close to West Street, Route 3 and Interstate 91.

A.R Building was started in Pittsburgh in 1968, and now owns and manages more than 9,000 luxury rental units, including apartments, townhomes and single-family homes nationwide, with thousands more in development. The company serves as owner, developer and manager of its projects.

The company has 373 units online over three communities in Connecticut, with 762 units in development, including 99 units proposed for Bee Street in Meriden; 225 units planned in Newington; and 201 units pitched in Windsor.

Worst road in Milford? Residents name work at Route 162, Old Gate Lane longest-running 'nightmare'

Nick Sambides,

MILFORD — If they had to pick the worst stretch of road in Milford, C.J. James and Kristie Harris would pick the one closest to their places of business: Route 162 near Old Gate Lane.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation has been installing a new bridge and wider culvert just slightly east of the Old Gate Lane intersection as part of a $3.93 million project. One of Milford’s busier roads, New Haven Avenue gets funneled from two lanes to one with the construction and backs up regularly, but especially at rush hour. For the people who have to be there, the project is a nuisance and source of tension.

“It took forever for them to get started. They are just taking way too long. It’s a little crazy, especially when school buses drive by,” said Harris, an office worker at Neuro-Spinal Professional Building at 531 New Haven Ave., which abuts the road work. “The whole building was shaking earlier this morning. It was that machine (a backhoe) over there. It was picking up and dropping stone and pieces of road all morning. The whole building was shaking every time they dropped one.”

"It's been going on for years," said James, owner of CJ's Small Engine Repair, 588 New Haven Ave. "We have no clarity with what's going on with all the traffic buildup, and it's affecting the businesses in the area. It's always backed up with traffic, with more cars and always flooding out down there."

"There's going to be multiple accidents there, sooner or later," James added.

DOT hopes to finish the work this summer, said Samaia Hernandez, a spokesperson for the agency. Originally budgeted at $3.65 million, work began in fall 2021. It hasn't been an easy job, said City Public Works Department Director Christopher Saley.

Saley empathizes with the state's problems: It's probably the worst stretch of road because it is in just about the worst spot in Milford to have to do road construction work. Yards away from wetlands and the northeast end of Gulf Pond, the road is low-lying and has Turtle Creek running under it. Between that salt and fresh-water confluence and rain, the area is almost always wet, Saley said.

"When you are working in and around water, it is a nightmare," Saley said. "You have to put drains in to pump the water out. It is in a tidal area so at high tide there, at a full moon, the water is actually in the road."

Construction workers must create bulkheads and trenches to keep the water out of their digging and deploy pumps. The road probably gets more than 12,000 vehicles worth of traffic a day, which doesn't help, Saley said.

"People are complaining about it, but they really don’t understand the challenges," Saley said. "It is a very big project."

To limit disruptions to motorists, state traffic officials planned the work in stages, but it suffered delays due to things outside of the state's control, "including the relocation of utilities, including utility poles, overhead power and communications lines, underground utilities, gas and water mains," Hernandez said in an email.

"The new bridge will include larger culverts to ensure water can flow freely underneath the structure. Additionally, new sidewalks are being installed that will improve safety and mobility for pedestrians. We appreciate the public's patience as this important project nears completion during the 2024 construction season and ask drivers to slow down and stay alert in work zones," Hernandez said. 

Businesses along the road have seen construction deadlines come and go with this project, James said.

"They (state officials) have been saying that it is going to be opened by May. I don't believe them."

Lyme and Old Lyme voters approve extra $880K for senior center renovation

Elizabeth Regan

Voters in Lyme and Old Lyme on Monday decisively approved spending $880,000 more than the $5.3 already approved for the Lymes’ Senior Center renovation project.

Old Lyme is responsible for $660,000 of the supplemental cost, while the smaller town of Lyme is responsible for $220,000.

In Old Lyme, officials counted 175 voters at the special town meeting in the Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School auditorium. They approved the appropriation with only one vote in opposition.

Lyme Town Clerk Linda Winzer said there were 86 voters at Lyme’s special town meeting in the Town Hall, also with a single vote in opposition.

Officials in the two towns were scrambling earlier this year after learning the project was about $1.3 million over budget. But the committee in a project update said architecture and construction management firms assigned to the project have identified about $600,000 in savings.

Old Lyme First Selectwoman Martha Shoemaker said a final decision has not been made about how to fund the town’s portion of the expense.

“There’s definitely enough money in the reserve fund if we need to use it,” she said.

Finance Board documents show the town’s undesignated fund balance, or rainy day fund, was estimated at $13.1 million, or 32.8% of the total operating budget, as of June 30, 2023.

According to minutes from Lyme’s special town meeting, the project is currently slated to break ground on May 6. Doors are estimated to reopen at the renovated facility on March 1, 2025.

Old Lyme tackles affordable housing

In Old Lyme, voters unanimously approved the transfer of two, roughly 3-acre parcels to Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut. The nonprofit organization will build and manage one single-family house on each parcel.

The Board of Selectmen last June voted to partner with the nonprofit affordable housing organization. A $150,000 grant through the town’s $2.16 million allocation of COVID-19 relief funds will be used to offset costs incurred by Habitat for Humanity.

The land to be developed comprises six acres at the end of Flat Rock Hill Road set aside for affordable housing as part of a 2019 open space deal. The $600,000 purchase resulted in the creation of the 312-acre McCulloch Family Open Space trail system on the eastern side of Whippoorwill Road extending north of Interstate 95.

Affordable Housing Commission Chairman Michael Fogliano said the partnership will require no additional money from the town.

Fogliano in a presentation to voters said the goal is to target homebuyers who make less than 60% of the median income in the area. According to a scale set by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, a family of four making $68,820 or less would qualify.

He said the commission would like to encourage families who live or work in Old Lyme to apply for the homes. But he emphasized the project must comply with fair housing and fair lending laws.

“You can’t steer these things, but there are ways you can make sure word gets out to folks that could benefit from it locally,” he said.