CT Construction Digest Wednesday January 20, 2021
Cuomo announces $306B infrastructure plan for New York
- New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced a $306 billion spending plan as part of his 2021 infrastructure agenda.
- In what Cuomo called "the largest, most ambitious plan put forward by any state in the nation,” the initiative will focus on a $51 billion transit-oriented redevelopment of Manhattan's Midtown West area and the continued modernization of New York airports and transportation. It also earmarked billions for upstate New York transportation projects that will spur economic growth.
- The Midtown West projects — which Cuomo said would create 196,000 jobs — include an extension of the High Line linear park to the new $1.6 billion Moynihan Train Hall; replacement of the Port Authority Bus Terminal; a $15 billion expansion and renovation of Penn Station; 20 million square feet of retail; 1,400 new affordable housing units; a new waterfront park; and a continuation of the $1.5 billion expansion of the Jacob K. Javits Center.
Transportation projects included in the package are:
- Further investment in the new $8 billion LaGuardia Airport, where the state will build a $2 billion AirTrain pending federal approval.
- The $13 billion John F. Kennedy International Airport redevelopment.
- A $100 million renovation of upstate airports.
- Further work on the Second Avenue Subway extension.
- A continuation of the $2.6 billion expansion of the Long Island Railroad.
- Other highway and bridge projects in the upstate region.
Cuomo’s announcement won praise from the heads of organizations like the New York Building Congress and the Building Trade Employers Association.
The plan, said Carlo Scissura, president and CEO of the NYBC is “the forward-thinking investment” needed to help New York rebound from the challenges posed by the pandemic. Likewise, Lou Coletti, president and CEO of the BTEA, said that the projects included in the infrastructure initiative will “jumpstart the economy and create good middle-class jobs.”
While the Associated Builders & Contractors Empire State Chapter applauded the “green” aspects of the governor’s program, Brian Sampson, the association’s president, said in a statement that it disagrees with Cuomo’s intention to mandate prevailing wage rates and project labor agreements. Sampson said they will restrict contractor competition for the new projects and will increase overall costs.
Elsewhere in New York, the $306 billion initiative will also pay for:
- Completion of the $287 million Binghamton University health sciences campus.
- Further work at the $548 million Mohawk Valley Health System hospital in Utica.
- Completion of the $1.3 billion Long Island Belmont Park redevelopment, which includes a new 19,000-seat New York Islanders hockey arena.
- The $1.2 billion Bay Park reconstruction in Nassau County.
- The Riverway Rochester development in Rochester.
- LEGOLAND in Orange County.
- A $14 million mid-station lodge on Whiteface Mountain in Wilmington.
Dredging underway at DEEP Marine Headquarters in Old Lyme
Sean D Elliott Old Lyme — Workers with Patriot Marine LLC marine contractors are dredging the dock area at the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Marine Headquarters on the Connecticut River.
The project includes removing 5,200 cubic yards of materials from the river bottom and replacement of all floating docks and related infrastructure at the site.
The tugboat Camdyn was pushing a barge of dredged materials south on the Connecticut River on Tuesday, bound for the central Long Island Sound dredging disposal site off New Haven.
How much longer Newtown, Southbury can expect concrete smashing at Rochambeau Bridge
Rob Ryser NEWTOWN — The crashing sound of concrete smashing will continue through Valentine’s Day at the border with Southbury, where the Rochambeau Bridge carries Interstate 84 over the Housatonic River, a top state transportation official said Tuesday.
The concrete smashing, which has been the subject of complaints from both sides of the river in the last week, is part of the $53 million replacement of the Rochambeau Bridge which began this summer. Workers began the new year stripping the deck of the westbound bridge, while traffic is routed in both directions to the eastbound bridge.
“We’re working on the westbound bridge to strip off the black tar and use the hoe ram to crush the deck and break it apart,” said Chris Zukowski, the project engineer for the state Department of Transportation. “This will continue to happen through the third week of February, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and on Friday we end a little sooner.”
Zukowski acknowledged complaints and inquiries about the noise have come into the DOT office from Southbury and Newtown. He directed residents to the bridge replacement project website, https://www.rochambeaubridge.com for updates and contact information for further questions.
Once the concrete deck is broken up and hauled away for recycling, workers will take down the steel, which is not expected to be as noisy for neighbors, the DOT said.
Residents of Newtown and Southbury heard plenty of pounding last summer when workers were driving piles into the riverbed to support a temporary bridge between the eastbound and westbound spans, Zukowski said. That temporary bridge is what feeds traffic to bypass the construction work, which is expected to be complete by 2024.
“The good news is there are no traffic backups because there are two lanes both ways on the eastbound bridge,” Zukowski said. “The bad news is as soon as we’re done with the westbound, we do the same thing with the eastbound, so it takes twice as long.”
A Newtown public works official agrees that backups have not been a problem, but added that accidents have increased since construction began.
“The signs are up to reduce your speed,” said Anthony Capozziello, general supervisor for the Newtown DPW and a volunteer with Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire and Rescue, which responds to I-84 accidents. “But people are going too fast.”
The Rochambeau Bridge replacement project was controversial in 2019, when it was part of an unpopular plan by Gov. Ned Lamont to use overhead tolls to fund infrastructure projects.
The toll plan was scrapped early last year.
New Britain receives grant to help build recreation trail connecting city to Plainville
Catherine Shen NEW BRITAIN – The city received a $600,000 grant to help build an off-road multi-use trail with the goal of connecting Downtown New Britain and CTFastrak to Plainville in the near future.
Gov. Ned Lamont announced late last week the state is awarding $5 million in funding to 10 towns and cities across the state under a competitive grant program administered by the Department of Transportation for projects that support improved mobility and accessibility, as well as pedestrian and bicycle safety.
The governor said it is important to ensure all residents have equitable and safe access to get to their schools, their work and can support the state’s small businesses.
“That is why it is critical that we continue to make smart investments that will further enhance our state’s quality of life,” Lamont said in a released statement. “These projects will not only make our neighborhoods safer, but will support the growth of the economy while also becoming more pedestrian-friendly and more environmentally-conscious.”
Under the Community Connectivity Grant Program, it is an infrastructure improvement program that seeks to provide construction funding for local initiatives that will improve the safety and accessibility for bicyclists and pedestrians in urban, suburban and rural community centers, according to the state. These community centers serve as places where people can meet for employment, educational, social and recreational activities.
For New Britain, the multi-use trail project was identified as part of a grant funded transportation study and the first phase from the Downtown CTFastrak Station to W. Main Street is currently in the design phase.
The second phase of the project will include the section from W. Main Street to Corbin Avenue. The project location is a trail that will connect W. Main Street and Corbin Avenue on the south side of the Route 72 right of way, according to the project.
“New Britain residents and visitors have long wished for more recreational trail options,” Mayor Erin Stewart said. “This Community Connectivity Grant from the Connecticut Department of Transportation will help fulfill that need through a unique pedestrian trail that connects our city to the surrounding central Connecticut community.”
Lamont: ‘I don’t want to build Killingly’ Energy Center
Jan Ellen Spiegel Gov. Ned Lamont on Tuesday said the words out loud more straightforward than he ever has: “I don’t want to build Killingly.”
He was referring to the now five-year battle waged by environmentalists and others against building the proposed Killingly Energy Center, a 650-megawatt natural gas power plant. Those who oppose it have argued it flies in the face of Lamont’s executive order for a 100% zero-carbon electric sector by 2040, it does not support his broader commitment to fighting climate change, and it just isn’t needed.
And while he’s hinted that he’s not thrilled with the prospect of the Killingly power plant, he’s never been quite that blunt. His comments were made to more than 300 environmental advocates attending the opening sessions of the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters annual legislative priorities summit, held over Zoom this year.
The governor hinted at slowing permitting and being able to “play some games there.” He also hinted that market forces may ultimately take over.
“I’m not positive you’re going to see Killingly built at all,” he said.
Recent analysis by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection shows electricity demand down 18 percent in the state, though many believe it will come back up as more items, such as heating, become electrified and more people purchase electric vehicles, which will need charging.
The plant has received siting council approval, after two rejections. DEEP has issued an air discharge permit and a water quality certificate for impacts to wetlands.
Still pending is a wastewater discharge permit, which is also needed, and Eversource’s water quality certification for a pipeline to bring the natural gas to the plant. “As a natural gas distribution company, we work to provide service to various potential customers — like the developer of the proposed Killingly power plant,” said Eversource spokesman Mitch Gross.
Samantha Dynowski, state director of Sierra Club Connecticut, which has led much of the opposition to the plant, said the Eversource water quality certification have to address impact on clean water and wildlife. “That permit we believe can and should be rejected,” she said.
The governor’s words were in the right place, Dynowski said: “But they really need to be followed up with action. We can’t just rely on market forces to prevent climate disaster.”
The governor’s office declined to comment on what further action he was willing to take.
DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes, who also spoke at the summit, addressed Killingly as well, noting that she hears from stakeholders frequently. She reiterated points she has made in the past that because the grid operator, ISO-New England, has committed to buying the power from Killingly, the state is kind of stuck unless the plan does not meet permitting standards.
“I believe that we have to change the system that brought us this plant in the first place. We’re doing that by working with other states to reform the ISO-New England,” she said. “That is the place we can have the greatest and most lasting impact.”
ISO-New England spokeswoman Ellen Foley said an obligation from them doesn’t guarantee Killingly will be built. “Each New England state controls what is built in their state. The ISO has no jurisdiction over those decisions,” she said. “We are committed to harnessing the power of competition to reliably plan and operate the grid as the region transitions to clean energy.”
DEEP did, however, supply a letter of support to the siting council in June 2018, when the council finally approved Killingly.
Since then, the state has come down much harder on the issue of climate change mitigation, and the effort to reform ISO-New England has become a six-state effort, not Connecticut alone, as it was just a year ago.
Killingly’s developer, NTE Energy, declined to respond directly to the governor’s comments but maintained that it will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by replacing old coal and oil plants.
“It will also enable the addition of more wind, solar and other renewable energy sources to the electric grid,” said Jennifer Logue, NTE’s director of communications. “When the sun stops shining or the wind stops blowing, natural gas-fired plants can ramp up quickly and provide instantaneous, reliable power.”
There is also a legal challenge to the siting council approval pending in state Supreme Court. It contends that council approval was issued without all the permits in place.