For most of its 73-year history the Hartford landfill was called an eyesore. Soon it will be in the vanguard of Connecticut’s energy future.

The Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority has awarded an $11.6 million contract for the final phase of capping the 96-acre landfill. This final section – about 35 acres – will have photovoltaic panels mounted on top of a special artificial turf. The project is expected to generate about one megawatt of electricity, or enough to power about 1,000 homes at peak efficiency. Solar generation is impacted by weather and the sun’s position in the sky.

The Hartford landfill will be the first in the state – and one of only a handful in the country – to generate solar power. (Click here for the full news release and a link to other solar landfills.)

“When we began working with the City of Hartford on the future of the landfill, we wanted to find innovative ways to use the land,” said Thomas D. Kirk, CRRA president. “Solar energy was an idea we all agreed on right away.”

E. T. & L. Corporation of Stow, Mass., will install the cap and solar generators under the contract, which was approved May 30 by the CRRA Board of Directors. CRRA expects the solar cells to be on-line by Oct. 1 and to complete the closure project in 2014.

The City opened the Hartford landfill in 1940. In 1982, CRRA leased the landfill from the City and deposited trash there until it opened its Hartford trash-to-energy plant in 1988. Between 1988 and Dec. 31, 2008, CRRA delivered ash from the plant and waste that the plant could not process.

CRRA began closing and capping the landfill in 2007, shortly after the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection issued a permit to begin that work and more than a year before the landfill accepted its final truckload of waste. In 2011, CRRA applied for, and DEEP approved, a permit modification to allow the installation of solar collectors.

In 2012, the project was selected to receive zero-emission renewable energy credits, or ZRECs, which will be sold to Connecticut Light & Power. The ZRECs add 11 cents per kilowatt-hour to the price of electricity generated by the solar collectors. The cost of the project will be covered by a CRRA reserve dedicated to the cost of closing and capping the landfill.

When the closure project is completed the entire 96 acres will be encapsulated in a synthetic geomembrane. The six-acre solar field will sit atop a layer of sand and a layer of ClosureTurf, an impermeable synthetic grass designed for covering landfills, while the remainder will be covered with soil and appropriate vegetation.

The cap will leave intact the landfill’s environmental-protection systems, including its gas-collection system that virtually eliminates odors while using the methane created by decomposing waste to generate about 1.3 megawatts of power.

Mayor Pedro Segarra’s decision came after weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations between city officials and aides to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who is committed to drive the busway to completion by early 2015.

For more on this story, visit: Hartford Pulls Out Of Flower Street Busway Fight – CTnow.

The state will pay $3 million toward replacing rusted support beams and worn ties and braces on the bridge, which spans the Connecticut River a short distance upstream from the Bulkeley Bridge.

For more on this story, visit: Railroad On Verge of Rehabbing – Hartford Courant.

“While these projects will produce environmental and transportation benefits, they will also provide jobs and help spur economic growth,” Governor Malloy said.  “These local traffic improvement projects include computer-coordinated traffic signal systems that will help eliminate traffic bottlenecks and improve the flow of cars and trucks between traffic signals.  With less idling at signals and less stop and go between signals, there will be fewer exhaust emissions and less fuel wasted.”

The grant was awarded under the Federal Highway Administration’s competitive Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program, which funds projects that improve air quality and reduce traffic congestion.  To qualify, municipalities must demonstrate that their projects will result in reduced vehicle exhaust emissions and, at the same time, be cost effective.

The towns awarded the funding are:

• Bridgeport – $1.6 million to create a city-wide bicycle route network and “Bike-Share” project, which will allow participants to pick up and return bicycles at designated locations when needed.
• Glastonbury – $1.16 million to realign the intersection of Griswold, House and Harris streets.
• Greenwich – $2.75 million to install Adaptive Signal Control Technology along the Arch Street corridor. This technology will improve the flow of traffic between traffic lights.
• Hartford – $3.0 million to upgrade or replace 14 downtown traffic signals along Columbus Boulevard, Prospect Street and Main Street.
• New Haven – $2.87 million for a computerized traffic signal upgrade along Chapel Street, Elm Street, Wall Street and Grove Street.
• Norwalk – $3.0 million to complete the third phase of an ongoing traffic signal upgrade program on Route 1, Route 123, East Avenue and Strawberry Hill Avenue.
• Norwich – $2.08 million for the Regional Alternate Fuel Infrastructure and Clean Vehicle Project to construct two compressed natural gas fueling stations and  purchase alternative fuel vehicles.
• Plymouth – $86,524 to replace five municipal vehicles with hybrid electric vehicles.
• Waterbury – $3.0 million to improve the downtown traffic signal system bounded by Meadow Street on the west, West Main Street to the north, east Main Street to the east and Grand Avenue to the south.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation (DOT) will now begin working with the towns on final designs for their projects so that they are ready to go when the funds are released (expected in 2013). The FHWA money is administered through the DOT’s Bureau of Policy and Planning.

Last month, Governor Malloy was named Lead Governor for Transportation by the Coalition of Northeastern Governors (CONEG).  In this position, Governor Malloy serves as the chief coordinator for advocacy and policy advancement of transportation initiatives for CONEG, a non-partisan association of the governors of the seven northeastern states.

(contributed)

The South Meadow plant, which consists of eight aging jet turbine engines that burn jet fuel to generate electricity on days of high electricity demand, has been operating for 42 years with no air pollution control or monitoring equipment. In 2010, the CEQ determined that when the plant operates it emits more particulate pollution on an hourly basis than any other power plant in the state.

“With these changes,” said Council Chair Barbara C. Wagner, “the residents of Hartford and surrounding towns will be subject to less air pollution and will have more assurances that the plant is always operating in compliance. We commend CRRA and DEEP for changing the permit to accomplish these goals.”

The specific changes to which CRRA agreed include the following:

• The jets will burn only ultra-low sulfur fuel (i.e., fuel with no more than 15 parts per million of sulfur, in contrast to the previous maximum sulfur content of 500 ppm – a reduction of 97 percent).
• CRRA will have site personnel trained and certified to conduct testing for opacity, which is the density of visible emissions (i.e., smoke).
• CRRA will have certified personnel conduct opacity tests each time that a jet is operated.
• Additional “stack tests” for particulate pollution, which had been required only once every five years, will be conducted for each jet turbine whenever it exceeds 168 hours of operation.

Wagner added that the plant still will be a substantial polluter on the days that is called upon to produce electricity for the grid. “Those days of high electricity demand tend to be the hottest days of the summer when air quality already is at its worst,” Wagner said.

“We were very clear in our comments that we were not advocating the immediate shutdown of the plant,” Wagner said, “but the ultimate solution would be to phase out the plant or switch to a cleaner fuel such as natural gas. The plant is expensive to operate on jet fuel, so the economics do not seem to favor the plant’s future. But it is not clear that peak demand actually will go down unless state energy policies are effective in encouraging greater efficiency.

“The regulatory picture for these jets is complex,” Wagner concluded, “but there is a relatively simple step that Connecticut residents can take to reduce the pollution from these highly-polluting power plants: always purchase efficient air conditioners, refrigerators and other appliances, so the plants don’t have to operate as often. When you turn on an inefficient air conditioner on a steamy day, you turn on the air pollution. It’s a direct line. However, if we all use air conditioners that don’t waste so much electricity, we can stay comfortable, save money and breathe better air.”

For more on this story, visit: CEQ: August 20, 2012 News Release.

9 Town Transit Executive Director Joseph Comerford contributes the growth to expanded service hours and improved awareness of the service.

“I think we’ve really gotten the word out that our service is not just for seniors, and we’ve expanded our hours to make commuting to work a real possibility.  80% of our customers are now under 60, and about 50 % of those are going to work,” Comerford said.

Since 2009, 9 Town Transit has also expanded the reach of its services.  Public transit service is now available from Old Saybrook to New Haven, New London, Middletown and Hartford, and new service was recently added in Haddam.  And at a fare of $1.50, it offers a big relief from rising gas prices.

These factors contributed to a total annual ridership of over 94,000 passenger trips, the highest in 9TT’s 31 year history, and a three year increase of 80%.  Additional information, route maps and schedules are available online at www.9towntransit.com or by calling 9 Town Transit at 860-510-0429.

For more on this story, visit: The Park River: Exploring Hartford’s Underbelly | yourpublicmedia.org.

For more on this story, visit: $2 million in funding for the Greater Hartford Transit District – News – West Hartford News.

West Hartford residents and their sixth grade science classmates from Watkinson School in Hartford stenciled storm drains and distributed educational fliers in the Bloomfield neighborhood of Kenwood Circle, a service project aimed at protecting the Park River.

via Storm water provides service learning project – News – West Hartford News.

After considering the information presented at hearings, including testimony and exhibits admitted into the record, a DEEP hearing officer concluded that the work in the specified inland wetlands areas would not violate the state’s Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Act and recommended that the Commissioner of DEEP grant the application and issue the permit. The hearing officer found that “this dedicated bus rapid transit facility has been planned and designed to avoid or minimize impacts to wetlands or watercourses and there is evidence that the wetlands and watercourses that are presently of poor quality with little or no functions or values will be restored, enhanced and established through improvements such as the installation of stormwater treatment systems and the development of a wetlands mitigation site.”

DOT is proposing to construct a 9.4 mile long Busway corridor from New Britain to Hartford.  Under the state’s Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Act, the proposed activity requires an inland wetland permit from DEEP because it will affect approximately 2.11 acres of inland wetlands and 7,108 linear feet of watercourses and waters of the state.

The proposed final decision now goes to the Commissioner of the DEEP, or his designee.  Parties to this matter have the opportunity to file exceptions on or before February 15, 2012 and make oral arguments in front of the Commissioner regarding the proposed final decision.  After any exceptions and oral arguments are heard, the Commissioner will then make a final determination on the permit on behalf of the agency.

Additionally, thermal energy from the fuel cell will be harnessed to serve the hospital’s heating loads.  Fuel cells are one of the cleanest and quietest energy-generation sources available in the world and meet the strictest U.S. emissions standards.

By generating power on-site at the Mount Sinai campus with a PureCell Model 400, St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center will prevent the release of more than 383 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually – the equivalent of planting more than 88 acres of trees, according to a news release.

The reductions in nitrogen oxide emissions compared to a conventional power plant are equal to the environmental benefit of removing 84 cars from the road. In addition to the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, this PureCell System will allow Mount Sinai Hospital to save over 3.5 million gallons of water annually, enough water to fill nearly 5 ½ Olympic swimming pools. This is because unlike central generation and other fuel cell technologies, the PureCell System is designed to operate in water balance so there is no consumption or discharge of water during its operation.

Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center has been a pioneer in the successful incorporation of fuel cells. This will be Saint Francis’ second Model 400.  The first recently landed at Saint Francis’ main campus on Woodland Street in Hartford, which replaces their previous generation PureCell Model 200 system.

Work on the trail, which eventually is expected to run from the Barber Street Boat Launch to the Hartford city line, began about one week before Tropical Storm Irene struck.

For more on this story, visit: Storms Complicate Matters, But Work Continues On River Trail Project – Courant.com.

For more on this story, visit: Hartford’s Coltsville gets $5M boost | Hartford Business.

The State Bond Commission’s approval of $5 million for the Coltsville project is another positive step toward the site’s National Park designation, Hartford Mayor Pedro E. Segarra said.

For more on this story, visit: ShorelinePlus.com News – Segarra lauds approval of $5 Million for Coltsville project.

The grant, which was approved by the State of Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD), will be used for environment investigation and remediation of land at 40 Popieluszko Court and 110 Wyllys Street.

For more on this story, visit: StamfordPlus.com News – Hartford Mayor Segarra announces $450K brownfield grant.

For more on this story, visit: Hosp. of Central CT moves toward energy efficient lighting | Hartford Business.

The conversion included a complete redesign and renovation of the building with a 30,000-square-foot addition to adhere to the school’s new theme at a cost of $42 million. In addition to expanded parking, a new cafeteria and a convenient drop-off area for school buses, the upgrades consisted of a butterfly vivarium; a 30-seat interactive film theater; a laboratory with 50 freshwater and salt water aquariums for fish breeding; a weather station; a glass-shrouded lobby with a fish pond and a greenhouse, where students grow their own lunch vegetables.

The Mary M. Hooker Environmental Scienes Magnet School is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). Here students master the core curriculum of reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, art, music, physical education, and information technology. Moreover, students learn to apply their knowledge via in-depth investigation and experimentation using the Globe Learning Program developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). This comprehensive program includes studies in: Atmosphere Investigation, Hydrology Investigation, Soil Investigation, Global Positioning System (GPS) Investigation, Land Cover/Biology Investigation, and Seasons Investigation. An Outdoor Nature Center that encompasses a trail system and an amphitheater opens up a world of opportunities for our students to perform outdoor experiments throughout the four seasons. These studies prepare students for future scientific research, which can lead them to careers in environmental studies, medicine, and technology.

This integrated program employs a hands-on approach that allows students to emulate scientists. Students enjoy the use of a butterfly vivarium and full-featured weather station. The ability to communicate with scientists around the world via computer-video conferencing while studying environmental issues is another exciting component of our program.

The school offers a before- and after-school program. A program for English Language Learners whose primary language is other than English for grades K– 8 is provided.. Other academic related after school programs will become available as the school year goes on. If your child has shown interest in exploring the frontiers of environmental science, Mary M.  Hooker Environmental Sciences Magnet School is for him/her.

For more on this story, visit: Your Reader-Submitted Articles – Courant.com.

The grant will pay for improvements to a 1,620-foot stretch of Asylum and Farmington avenues. The upgrades will help create “safer, convenient and attractive routes to the station from surrounding residential, shopping and employment districts,” city officials said Wednesday.

For more on this story, visit: Hartford: City Gets $1.7 Million Federal Grant For Street Improvements Near Union Station – Hartford Courant.

In putting together the tours, do not worry about demographics. Offer it to student groups from UConn or church groups from Torrington. And this is crucial: Do not under any circumstances subsidize the tour with public or nonprofit funds. If people did not think they got their money’s worth, we need to know.

Read more here: Drive people to Hartford in a bus – Hartford Courant.

Read more here: Making Hartford and Connecticut Competitive – Hartford Courant.

English: The confluence of the buried Park River with the Connecticut River in Hartford, Connecticut. (photo: Elipongo, via wikipedia.org)

During the 1990s, a Canton company, Huck Finn Adventures, briefly led canoe trips before nervous lawyers from the city of Hartford put a stop to the organized outings, citing a danger of natural gas leaks, steam discharges, and the difficulty of rescuing stranded spelunkers.

Read more here: Artists Canoe Underground To Explore Buried Park River In Hartford. – Courant.com.

Read more here: Hartford’s iQuilt wins $150K NEA grant | Hartford Business.

Hartford, Connecticut (cjzurcher)

Connecticut’s cities just received some good news from what is usually a source of bad tidings — the U.S. Census Bureau.

For the first time since 1950, the state’s five largest cities all posted population gains in a decennial census. The population grew 5 percent in New Haven, 4.7 percent in Stamford, 3.4 percent in Bridgeport, 2.9 percent in Waterbury and 2.6 percent in Hartford from 2000 to 2010. It was the first gain Bridgeport had posted in 60 years and only the second in Hartford, which lost 13 percent of its population between 1990 and 2000.

Read more here: Good news: Cities are growing again – Courant.com.

The Park River runs through part of the University of Hartford campus, where 'Water on our Doorstep' is taking place.

Water on our Doorstep: The Park River Watershed: Past, Present and Future, takes place all day at March 22, 2011, at the Wilde Auditorium, University of Hartford.

The schedule is as follows:

9:00-9:30  Registration

9:30-10 a.m. Welcome

• Walter Harrison, President, University of Hartford
•  Sherry Buckberrough, Organizer, Water on Our Doorstep

10:00-11:45  Park River Watershed History

•  Imaging the Park Watershed—Hudson River School and Daniel Wadsworth, Nancy Noble, Adjunct Professor of Art History, University of Hartford and University of Massachusetts, Amherst
• A River Choked by Urbanization Andrew Walsh, Associate Director of the Leonard E. Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life at Trinity College
•  Legacy of the Clean Water Act, Roger Reynolds, Senior Staff Attorney,  Connecticut Fund for the Environment

Moderator –Elizabeth Normen, Publisher, Connecticut Explored, formerly The Hog River Journal

11:45 a.m. -2 p.m.  Lunch – student poster sessions and exhibition at Mortensen Library, Univ. of Hartford

•  Public Education Projects – Visual Communication Design, Hartford Art School
• Water Quality Research – Trinity College; CCSU; and Univ of Hartford

2 p.m.-3:45   The Park River Watershed Now

• Neighborhood Stormwater – Dr. Joseph Bushey, P.E., Univ. of CT, Storrs
• North Park Watershed Current Conditions – Erik Mas, P.E., Fuss & O’Neill with project participant Dr. Gourley, Trinity College Environmental Science
• Art and Ecology in the Park River Watershed, Sherry Buckberrough and Mary Pelletier

Moderator: Katharine Owens, Assistant Professor of Politics and Government, Univ. of Hartford

3:45-4:00  Break

4 p.m.-5:30   Future of the Watershed

• North Park Watershed Plan Implementation – MaryAnn Nusom Haverstock,  Bureau of Water Protection and Land Reuse, CT DEP
• Park River within Hartford — Roger O’Brien, Director of Planning, City of Hartford
• MDC improvements to the North Park River— Robert Moore, P.E., Chief  Administrative Officer, The Metropolitan District Moderator: Michael Crosbie – Chair, Architectural Engineering Technology Dept. Univ. of Hartford

5:30-7:30  Dinner

7:30-9:00  Mary Miss – Eco-Artist – Wilde Auditorium

REGISTER NOW

Space May Be Limited! Call or write Martha Whitehead (860-768-4742 or mwhitehea@hartford.edu).
Reservations for lunch at the University of Hartford’s 1877 Club can be made along with registration. Buffet for $10.50.

PLEASE TELL THEM YOU READ ABOUT IT IN CT ENVIRONMENTAL HEADLINES. THANKS!!

Early concept of the Ann Street busway station in Hartford.

CT Governor Dan Malloy went to bat for transportation during his administration’s first Bond Commission meeting on Friday, releasing over $250 million for transportation-related projects, with approximately $203 million of that going to transit and transit-oriented development initiatives.

The Commission released $5 million of the $10 million available for transit-oriented development pilot grants that have been sitting on its agenda for almost three years. It also agreed to bond $82 million for the remaining M-8 rail cars and about $60 million for station and parking upgrades at rail stations throughout the state.

Read more here: Fast Start for Malloy on Transit, Smart Growth | Mobilizing the Region.

via West Ender Swears He Saw Seal In Park River – Hartford Courant.

Joseph Bushey, left, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, and Chris Perkins, lab director for the Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering, work with water samples in their lab. Contributed photo by Jessica Tommaselli.

Like many U.S. cities, Hartford has a water infrastructure that is aging. The city uses a combined sewer system that routes all rain and wastewater through the same drainage pipes. And Hartford is not alone – urban areas such as New Haven, Norwich, Springfield, Mass., and even Minneapolis, Boston, and New York have traditionally used these systems.

But combined sewers present a problem: when the system overflows, which it often does during strong rainstorms, untreated waste – namely, sewage – can flow directly into streams and rivers, potentially harming plant and animal life. Now, Hartford is making strides to correct this problem, with some help from UConn.

Joseph Bushey, an associate professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, has been working with Hartford’s Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) over the past year to determine whether plans to improve the system could have unintended side effects on the environment and public health. By measuring with unprecedented accuracy the amount of waste that overflows during major storms, Bushey and his colleagues Christopher Perkins and Michael Willig from UConn’s Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering can help the city decide where and how to invest in improvements.

via Improving Hartford’s Wastewater System « UConn Today.

This award will go toward developing and implementing a bi-state Knowledge Corridor Regional Plan for Sustainable Development in the Springfield and Hartford regions. The bi-state Knowledge Corridor Consortium includes three planning regions: the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, the Capital Regional Council of Governments, and the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency, and many cooperating organizations. The three regional organizations will work together to use this grant to create a new opportunities for sustainability in housing, land use, environment, water infrastructure, transportation, employment, climate action, leadership development and food security. The consortium will update and integrate existing regional plans for land use, transportation, economic development, and clean energy, and add new plan elements to form a Knowledge Corridor Regional Plan for Sustainable Development.

The Regional Plan for Sustainable Development will include several innovative new elements: a green infrastructure plan for clean water, a regional climate action plan, a workforce development plan, an affordable and equitable housing element, a sustainable environment plan, and a food security plan. The plan will: (1) build off of major federal investments in the region, including the new Springfield-New Haven high speed rail line; (2) seek to create energy-efficient, affordable housing opportunities near transit and job centers in well-designed, mixed-use settings; (3) enhance opportunities for MA/CT cross-border communication and decision-making; and (4) establish imaginative new efforts such as a regional leadership training program for new generation of regional leaders, monitoring stations to measure and track improvements in the region’s greenhouse gas emissions, and a web-based Virtual Sustainability Concourse to share information on successful land use strategies and progress toward a more sustainable Knowledge Corridor.

The grant will also help fund engineering and design for several “catalytic projects” to support sustainable urban core redevelopment projects in Springfield, Chicopee, Holyoke, and several urban locations in Connecticut. In Springfield, the Court Square Center project will focus on renovation and substantial rehabilitation of the 120,000-square-foot historic Court Square building for mixed use. In Holyoke, the Depot Square Redevelopment project will create a master plan for redevelopment of Depot Square, the new train station, and the rehabilitation of the Silvio Conte Building. In Chicopee, design plans will be advanced for construction of the Connecticut Riverwalk and Bikeway, a pedestrian and bicycle path strategically positioned along the Connecticut River.

Timothy Brennan, Executive Director of PVPC, states, “This is an exciting and important moment for the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and all of its Knowledge Corridor partners. PVPC has a long history of creating plans, policies, and programs that support smart, sustainable, livable communities, and this grant will help put those plans into action. We look forward to working in concert with Capitol Region Council of Governments and the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency on this bi-state project to create a Sustainable Knowledge Corridor.” Christopher Curtis, Chief Planner for PVPC, shares this excitement, stating, “We are thrilled that the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and our partner regions have been selected for one of the largest planning grants ever awarded in the region at $4.2 million, through a highly competitive, national competition that awarded 45 regions out of 225 eligible applicants. Implementing the vision for a Sustainable Knowledge Corridor with the help of our bi-state consortium partners will no doubt make the Hartford and Springfield region a national leader in sustainable community development, creating a more vibrant, livable regional community for all of the Knowledge Corridor’s over 1.5 million residents.”

Congressman John Olver, who has long championed sustainable development projects in the region and who was a strong proponent of the Pioneer Valley’s grant application, points out, “For over ten years, these partners have focused attention on the interrelatedness of the regions as a single economic unit tied together by a wide range of regional assets. This funding will allow the Consortium to expand their goals to include cooperative efforts around housing and community development, environmental protection, and social equity concerns across state borders.”

Other consortium partners in this project include the cities of Springfield, Chicopee, Holyoke, Hartford, and  New Britain; University of Massachusetts; Regional Employment Board of Hampden County; United Way of Pioneer Valley; United Way of Hampshire County; Valley Development Council; Massachusetts Department of Transportation; Pioneer Valley Sustainability Network; Mass Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development; Central Connecticut State University; Town of Manchester; Town of Windsor; United Way of Connecticut; Partnership for Strong Communities; University of Hartford; University of Connecticut; 1000 Friends of Connecticut; Connecticut Fair Housing Center; Connecticut Housing Coalition; MetroHartford Alliance; Connecticut Economic Resource Center;  Greater Hartford Transit District; Goodwin College; Northeast Utilities; Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development; Connecticut Department of Transportation; Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection; Connecticut Housing Finance Authority; CT Main Street, Inc.; Local Initiative Support Corporation; Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness; and Transit for Connecticut Coalition.

For more information about the HUD grant award and related details, please contact Tim Brennan or Chris Curtis at the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission at (413)-781-6045.

For more information about New England’s Knowledge Corridor and the Hartford Springfield Economic Partnership, go to www.hartfordspringfield.com.

via Pioneer Valley Planning Commission – Press Release.

via Coltsville Suffers Setback, Losing House Vote, In Bid To Be National Park – Courant.com.

via The Hartford Informer > Park Water Arts Teams Up To Clean And Create.

What caused the coma? Ignoring Hartford’s financial interdependency with the suburbs; burying the Hog (Park) River so that its putrid waters flow beneath the city (talk about bad karma); building Blue Back Square, a movie set of a downtown, making the real downtown, Hartford, irrelevant.

via Seven writers weigh in on whether Hartford is a dead city or not – Courant.com.

Pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists share a well-designed, tree-lined street in Boise, Idaho.

Two New England state capitals are in a select group of only five nationwide, chosen by EPA to demonstrate high quality green community development practices and receive special technical assistance.

Through its new Greening America’s Capitals program, EPA will provide design assistance from private-sector experts to help Boston, Mass. and Hartford, Conn. use sustainable designs to create interesting, unique neighborhoods with multiple social, economic, and environmental and public health benefits.

Greening America’s Capitals is a new project of the Partnership for Sustainable Communities between EPA, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). HUD and DOT were involved in the review and selection process and will be providing technical expertise on relevant portions of each project. The other state capitals selected for this effort include Charleston, W.Va., Little Rock, Ark. and Jefferson City, Mo.

“New England is often at the vanguard of applying environmental principles to our lives, and striking a balance to promote healthier communities and a sustainable lifestyle. Boston and Hartford are continuing this tradition,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office.

Boston and Hartford were selected from a total of 38 letters of interest received following a solicitation of interest by EPA. The Agency will now organize teams of urban planners and landscape architects to provide direct, customized technical assistance as requested by each community. This design assistance will help selected state capitals envision ways to clean-up and recycle vacant lands, provide greater housing and transportation choices, reduce infrastructure and energy costs, and build civic pride in neighborhoods and the city as a whole. Longer-term, this assistance will help create models that many other cities can look to in creating their own sustainable designs.

Hartford, Connecticut

The City of Hartford will work to re-imagine a mile-long portion of Capitol Avenue, a focal point of the city that includes the Connecticut State Capitol and Legislative Building, the State Library, the Supreme Court, the State Armory, as well as residential and retail areas. The Greening America’s Capitals workshop will help Hartford staff and stakeholders create a redevelopment plan for the Capitol Avenue corridor and connections to nearby locations, such as the Frog Hollow neighborhood and a proposed Sigourney Street bus rapid transit station. Redesigns will focus on public open spaces, such as parks and state building grounds, as well as green street improvements that better manage stormwater, improve the pedestrian environment and aesthetic character of Capitol Avenue, and encourage future redevelopment. EPA’s Greening America’s Capitals work will complement the National Endowment for the Arts iQuilt project to link cultural assets and integrate new public spaces along the Capitol Avenue corridor.

“With this award, Hartford will, in partnership with the EPA, undertake the “Capitol Avenue Visioning” project, which will allow us to showcase the best and the brightest assets in the Capitol Area and connect it with the ‘iQuilt’ — our arts-based public realm strategy for economic growth in the Downtown area. This work further refines and brings to life our newly adopted ‘One City, One Plan’ for conservation and development. Combine this with the EPA expertise, and we will create a healthier, greener, and better connected Hartford, giving our historic city and 21st technology edge,” said Hartford Mayor Pedro E. Segarra.

Boston, Massachusetts

Boston City Hall is at the epicenter of one of America’s most historic and vibrant cities. The plaza surrounding Boston City Hall was originally conceived as an outdoor civic space, but today the seven-acre brick plaza has yet to realize its great potential as a public green space. With few trees and little vegetation, the plaza is unshaded and wind-swept and is hard to access or navigate, especially for those with disabilities. Mayor Thomas M. Menino has designated the larger Government City area that includes City Hall and City Hall Plaza as a beacon for green and sustainable growth to unlock development potential in downtown Boston.

“Our cutting edge green building, clean energy, and sustainable transportation programs have put Boston on track to become one of the greenest cities in the world,” said Thomas M. Menino. “Through the Greening America’s Capitals program we will develop a vision to transform government center into a showcase of efficiency that embodies Boston’s strong commitment to environmental sustainability.”

With EPA’s assistance, the City of Boston will work to create realistic greening options for City Hall Plaza that can be realized in the near-term. Goals of the redesign will be to create well-defined edges and entrances, provide more bike access and parking, connect the plaza to existing streets, increase green elements such as trees and vegetation for better stormwater management, and support energy efficiency and green building improvements in City Hall and nearby buildings.

For more information: http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/greencapitals.htm

via 09/09/2010: Boston and Hartford Selected by EPA as State Capitals Receiving Green Design Assistance.

via University of Connecticut Official Athletics Site – Football.

Preservationists were quick to point out that the structure was one of the few surviving neo-Classical Revival buildings in downtown Hartford. It was designed by Thomas W. Lamb, whose portfolio includes the old Madison Square Garden, as well as many of New York and Connecticut’s splendid old theaters.

via Tom condon column on 410 Asylum conversion – Courant.com.

State Senator John W. Fonfara (D-Hartford), who is co-chairman of the legislature’s Energy and Technology Committee, today joined Congressman John. B Larson (D-1st District), Harford Mayor Pedro E. Segarra, Connecticut Landmarks’ Executive Director Sheryl N. Hack and others at a ground- breaking ceremony at the Butler-McCook House & Garden in Hartford to celebrate the installation of a new closed-loop geothermal heating system at the Connecticut Landmarks’ Hartford Campus.

This geothermal system—in which shallow wells are drilled to extract geothermal energy from the ground—will replace the existing, inefficient heating and cooling systems and will save Connecticut Landmarks an estimated $3,833 per year in energy costs at the Butler-McCook House & Main Street History Center.

The new system will also replace a non-code compliant system in the Amos Bull House, which is attached to the Butler-McCook Carriage House, thereby providing additional energy savings.

“This new project is a perfect example of how energy-efficiency improvements can help cut costs for businesses, homes and non-profit organizations alike,” Sen. Fonfara said. “This project will serve as a beacon for other non-profits and institutions important to our community who want to use modern technology to protect and maintain pieces of our past and our history.’’

“As a member of the House Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, I believe that ending our dependence on foreign oil is one of our most important challenges,” Congressman Larson said. “We must invest and build these new sources of energy right here in America. In order to do that, we need efforts from organizations like Connecticut Landmarks to lead the way.”

“Hartford is one of America’s oldest cities but it is always looking to be on the cutting edge of energy efficiency,” Mayor Segarra said. “Through our school building projects and other renovations and retrofitting, the City is looking to be environmentally responsible and sustainable as part of our ‘One City, One Plan’ for conservation and development.”

The Connecticut Landmarks’ campus—which includes the Butler-McCook House & Garden, the Amos Bull House and the Main Street History Center—has received a $120,000 grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism to complete the geothermal HVAC renovations. This $120,000 grant is being matched by an additional $120,000 from the William and Alice Mortensen Foundation.

Eight geothermal wells and related equipment will be installed to support heating and cooling needs for the Hartford site’s multiple buildings; Energy Star-certified equipment will also be placed on the property as a backup. Connecticut Landmarks’ offices will be relocated into the Amos Bull house after the renovations are complete.

“Installation of this system is evidence of our commitment to create a new 21st century model for sustainable historic preservation,” said Connecticut Landmarks’ Executive Director Sheryl N. Hack.

Connecticut Landmarks is a statewide private nonprofit organization that owns and operates a dozen historic properties across Connecticut, including the Butler-McCook House. The organization seeks to spread knowledge and appreciation for Connecticut history through its museums and collections.

For more information about Connecticut Landmarks and its work, please visit: http://www.ctlandmarks.org.

via Connecticut Landmarks Awarded $100,000 Hartford Foundation Grant – Courant.com.

The confluence of Park River conduit and Connecticut River in Hartford, an image from the pages of the report.

“Unseen and often forgotten by many, the North Branch of the Park River flows along the boundaries of Hartford’s West End, Asylum Hill and Blue Hills neighborhoods,” according to a recent report on the Park River watershed.

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (CTDEP) with Fuss & O’Neill, th eFarmington River Watershed Association, the Park River Watershed Revitalization Initiative, and New England Environmental, have prepared a Watershed Management Plan for the North Branch of the Park River in Hartford County, Connecticut. The Watershed Management Plan is being developed in cooperation with the CTDEP, other governmental entities, stakeholder groups, and the general public.

The watershed management plan is a planning document for the protection and restoration of water resources in the North Branch Park River watershed. It characterizes the watershed conditions, through a process that has identified current and emerging issues facing the watershed, and that have the clear potential to affect on-the-ground change within the watershed.

According to a report titled “Baseline Watershed Assessment: North Branch Park River Watershed” the overall assessment of the watershed during the study period is good, especially when comparing results to similar water analyses in the South Branch of the Park River.

The report states that “The majority of the sub-basin’s area drains rural to suburban landscapes with only the most downstream reaches flowing though urban neighborhoods.

“The historic relationship of the Park River to the urban fabric of Hartford is an indication of the opportunity for improvement – or degradation of the river – through future urban revitalization projects.

“The North Branch Park River also has the potential to serve as a tremendous asset and a focal point for urban/suburban community collaboration. It can be perceived as a natural feature that could help define the character of the urban/suburban nexus.”

To download the entire report, click here: Baseline Assessment.