CT Construction Digest Wednesday March 11, 2020
Legislature to consider $7 million funding for Norwich Hospital cleanup
Claire Bessette
Preston — The town’s request for $7 million to finish the cleanup of the former Norwich Hospital property will be included in a bond package that could be voted on by state legislators Wednesday and be placed on the next state Bond Commission agenda, state Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague said Tuesday.
Preston town officials and leaders of the Mohegan Tribe requested the funding in October after environmental cleanup crews discovered extensive coal ash contamination throughout the former state mental illness hospital. The state had used coal ash as a subsurface material for roadbeds and beneath parking lots, complicating the final cleanup before the town can turn over ownership of the 393-acre property to Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment. The final cleanup is estimated at $9 million, including a $2 million low-interest loan the town had secured earlier from the state.
The $7 million grant request was stalled in the monthslong discussion of transportation funding and whether the state legislature should consider tolls to fund transportation improvements.
Preston’s agreement with MGE calls for transferring property ownership once the cleanup is completed. MGE has proposed a $400 million to $600 million development with a possible theme park, indoor water park, synthetic skiing, upscale camping and RV park, recreational and sports complexes, retail, hotels and senior housing.
“I really think this is a great thing,” Osten said Tuesday. “It’s a good economic development strategy and will benefit the whole region, which is why I’ve been fighting so hard for it.”
Tribal leaders had met with Gov. Ned Lamont on March 2 and received assurance that the governor was aware of the request and would include funding in the next bond package. The Mohegan Tribal Council is expected to receive a development plan from its hired development consultant by early April for the former hospital property, called Preston Riverwalk.
“Obviously, we’re thrilled, and we’re looking forward to when it gets approved and signed,” Preston Redevelopment Agency Chairman Sean Nugent said. “I really have to thank (Osten) tremendously. Sen. Osten drove it from the beginning.”
Nugent and First Selectwoman Sandra Allyn-Gauthier also thanked state Sen. Heather Somers, R-Groton, and state Rep. Mike France, R-Ledyard, both of whom represent Preston, and state Sen. Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, who worked with Osten on the request. The two sent a joint letter to Lamont last week and France attended meetings town officials held on the cleanup needs with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the Department of Economic and Community Development.
The funding would be part of DECD’s bond package, according to Osten.
"We’re looking forward to moving forward," Allyn-Gauthier said. "It’s a step in the process. We will have to work through the process."
“We are greatly appreciative of the legislative bicameral and bipartisan support, led by Senator Osten, that has shown they share our vision for this transformation project in Preston,” Mohegan Tribal Chairman James Gessner said in an email statement to The Day on Tuesday. “Governor Lamont told me at our first meeting that he was committed to this project, and this is clearly a demonstration of that commitment. We are grateful.”
Bethel approves $2.24 million water tank
Julia Perkins
BETHEL — Voters approved a plan to build a $2.24 million tank that is meant to increase storage and ensure water is cleaner.
Residents voted 660 to 240 in favor of the 500,000-gallon Chestnut Ridge tank in Tuesday’s referendum, according to unofficial results.
“I’m delighted,” First Selectman Matt Knickerbocker said.
Money for the project would come from water customer rates, not taxpayer funds. Grants and low-interest financing may be available from the state.
With the tank, the town will be able to increase water pressure to the eastern side of town and further reduce how much reservoir water it uses, officials have said. Reservoir water requires chemicals to treat, so it is not as clean as well water.
“This lets us improve our water quality, fire safety, pressure delivery,” Knickerbocker said. “This is a critical part of our improvements to meet state guidelines.”
The town will be able to halt a practice where it lets water flow out of a hydrant by St. Mary’s Church to keep the water clean, Knickerbocker has said. This prevents chemicals from building up in the pipe, he said.
Water storage capabilities will increase with the tank, which would be helpful in the case of major fires.
Officials have said the 750,000-gallon Eureka tank was critical when firefighters battled a massive blaze in the Clarke Business Park in May.
That tank went online in 2016 and is in Danbury, but serves Bethel customers. It is among various projects the town has embarked on to improve water quality. After voters rejected a 2013 plan to sell the town’s system to Aquarion Water Co., town officials said upgrades would be necessary.
But the state ordered the town improve quality in 2016 after the Chestnut Ridge Reservoir violated standards for a chemical called trihalomethane. The consent order was lifted about a year ago after the town refurbished the well fields and upgraded pump stations, among other projects.
The tank would be installed in the woods between Long Meadow Lane and Briar Cliff Manor, despite slight opposition from some residents.
Construction could start in the spring, with the tank going online in nine to 12 months, the public utilities director has said.
Five new hangars at Meriden airport exepected to be ready by fall
Claire Bessette
Preston — The town’s request for $7 million to finish the cleanup of the former Norwich Hospital property will be included in a bond package that could be voted on by state legislators Wednesday and be placed on the next state Bond Commission agenda, state Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague said Tuesday.
Preston town officials and leaders of the Mohegan Tribe requested the funding in October after environmental cleanup crews discovered extensive coal ash contamination throughout the former state mental illness hospital. The state had used coal ash as a subsurface material for roadbeds and beneath parking lots, complicating the final cleanup before the town can turn over ownership of the 393-acre property to Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment. The final cleanup is estimated at $9 million, including a $2 million low-interest loan the town had secured earlier from the state.
The $7 million grant request was stalled in the monthslong discussion of transportation funding and whether the state legislature should consider tolls to fund transportation improvements.
Preston’s agreement with MGE calls for transferring property ownership once the cleanup is completed. MGE has proposed a $400 million to $600 million development with a possible theme park, indoor water park, synthetic skiing, upscale camping and RV park, recreational and sports complexes, retail, hotels and senior housing.
“I really think this is a great thing,” Osten said Tuesday. “It’s a good economic development strategy and will benefit the whole region, which is why I’ve been fighting so hard for it.”
Tribal leaders had met with Gov. Ned Lamont on March 2 and received assurance that the governor was aware of the request and would include funding in the next bond package. The Mohegan Tribal Council is expected to receive a development plan from its hired development consultant by early April for the former hospital property, called Preston Riverwalk.
“Obviously, we’re thrilled, and we’re looking forward to when it gets approved and signed,” Preston Redevelopment Agency Chairman Sean Nugent said. “I really have to thank (Osten) tremendously. Sen. Osten drove it from the beginning.”
Nugent and First Selectwoman Sandra Allyn-Gauthier also thanked state Sen. Heather Somers, R-Groton, and state Rep. Mike France, R-Ledyard, both of whom represent Preston, and state Sen. Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, who worked with Osten on the request. The two sent a joint letter to Lamont last week and France attended meetings town officials held on the cleanup needs with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the Department of Economic and Community Development.
The funding would be part of DECD’s bond package, according to Osten.
"We’re looking forward to moving forward," Allyn-Gauthier said. "It’s a step in the process. We will have to work through the process."
“We are greatly appreciative of the legislative bicameral and bipartisan support, led by Senator Osten, that has shown they share our vision for this transformation project in Preston,” Mohegan Tribal Chairman James Gessner said in an email statement to The Day on Tuesday. “Governor Lamont told me at our first meeting that he was committed to this project, and this is clearly a demonstration of that commitment. We are grateful.”
Bethel approves $2.24 million water tank
Julia Perkins
BETHEL — Voters approved a plan to build a $2.24 million tank that is meant to increase storage and ensure water is cleaner.
Residents voted 660 to 240 in favor of the 500,000-gallon Chestnut Ridge tank in Tuesday’s referendum, according to unofficial results.
“I’m delighted,” First Selectman Matt Knickerbocker said.
Money for the project would come from water customer rates, not taxpayer funds. Grants and low-interest financing may be available from the state.
With the tank, the town will be able to increase water pressure to the eastern side of town and further reduce how much reservoir water it uses, officials have said. Reservoir water requires chemicals to treat, so it is not as clean as well water.
“This lets us improve our water quality, fire safety, pressure delivery,” Knickerbocker said. “This is a critical part of our improvements to meet state guidelines.”
The town will be able to halt a practice where it lets water flow out of a hydrant by St. Mary’s Church to keep the water clean, Knickerbocker has said. This prevents chemicals from building up in the pipe, he said.
Water storage capabilities will increase with the tank, which would be helpful in the case of major fires.
Officials have said the 750,000-gallon Eureka tank was critical when firefighters battled a massive blaze in the Clarke Business Park in May.
That tank went online in 2016 and is in Danbury, but serves Bethel customers. It is among various projects the town has embarked on to improve water quality. After voters rejected a 2013 plan to sell the town’s system to Aquarion Water Co., town officials said upgrades would be necessary.
But the state ordered the town improve quality in 2016 after the Chestnut Ridge Reservoir violated standards for a chemical called trihalomethane. The consent order was lifted about a year ago after the town refurbished the well fields and upgraded pump stations, among other projects.
The tank would be installed in the woods between Long Meadow Lane and Briar Cliff Manor, despite slight opposition from some residents.
Construction could start in the spring, with the tank going online in nine to 12 months, the public utilities director has said.
Five new hangars at Meriden airport exepected to be ready by fall
MERIDEN — Construction of five new hangars at Meriden Markham Airport is expected to be finished by fall. The $3.3 million project adds three hangars to the city-owned airport and demolishes and rebuilds two other existing, deteriorated hangars. The new hangars will provide space to store approximately 33 more aircraft, officials said. One of the new hangars has been completed and the two deteriorated hangars have been demolished, according to City Manager Tim Coon, who recently drove past the airport on Evansville Avenue to check on the progress. “It’s pretty impressive,” Coon said. “… It’s a lot better than coming around the corner and seeing there are Quonset huts that are all rusted out.” Aging Quonset huts were used as hangars at the airport. Coon expects construction will be done by fall, possibly sooner.Meriden Markham Airport is one of the last municipally-owned airports in Connecticut. Proponents backed the investment, saying many of the hangars were built during World War II and had long exceeded their useful life. Adding the hangars will also help attract people to Meriden and generate revenue through lease payments the city will collect from pilots looking to store their aircraft, proponents said. Former airport director Wilma Petro said last year that Meriden Markham had a list of about 70 pilots waiting for storage space. Based on the lease rates, the project is expected to pay for itself within the 20-year period that the city will pay the $3.3 million bond. "It's been said at several meetings that not often can a city help make revenue for itself, and that's exactly what we're doing today in building these hangers that are long overdue," Mayor Kevin Scarpati said during a groundbreaking event for the project in October.