Connecticut State Council on Environmental Quality

Environmental Monitor
June 21, 2016
  1.  Rehabilitation / Replacement of Saugatuck River Bridge # 01349 at Route 136, Westport
 
     No Post-Scoping Notice has been submitted for publication in this edition

Environmental Impact Evaluations

  1.   EXTENDED COMMENT DEADLINE! New Parking Garage at Union Station, New Haven
  2.   Installation of Wildlife Hazard Deterrent Fence at Groton - New London Airport
 
     No State Land Transfer Notice has been submitted for publication in this edition.
                     
 

The next edition of the Environmental Monitor will be published on  July 5, 2016.

 
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Notices in the Environmental Monitor are written by the sponsoring agencies and are published unedited. Questions about the content of any notice should be directed to the sponsoring agency.
 
Scoping Notices

"Scoping" is for projects in the earliest stages of planning.  At the scoping stage, detailed information on a project's design, alternatives, and environmental impacts does not yet exist.  Sponsoring agencies are asking for comments from other agencies and from the public as to the scope of alternatives and environmental impacts that should be considered for further study.  Send your comments to the contact person listed for the project by the date indicated.

 

The following Scoping Notices have been submitted for review and comment.
1. Notice of Scoping for Major Rehabilitation or Replacement of Bridge No. 01349 (William Cribari Memorial Bridge): Route 136 over the Saugatuck River

Municipality where proposed project might be located: Westport

Possible Project Location:  Bridge No. 01349 (William Cribari Memorial Bridge) carrying Route 136 over the Saugatuck River 

Project Description: The current phase of this project involves completion of the Rehabilitation Studies Report (RSR) for the subject project historic swing bridge, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  This bridge project was originally initiated under the presumption that it would require rehabilitation work, primarily to vehicular collision-damaged truss elements and corroded pile cross bracing. The on-going findings in the RSR have revealed substantially more structural deficiencies and significant highway functionality deficiencies.  The cost to address the structural deficiencies may require major rehabilitation of the structure at a much greater construction cost than originally estimated.  Due to a projected high cost of major bridge rehabilitation work, a complete bridge replacement option is also being studied in the RSR, to provide a base line cost comparison between bridge rehabilitation and bridge replacement.

Project Map:  Click here to view a map of the project area.

Written comments from the public are welcomed and will be accepted until the close of business on:  Friday July 1, 2016

There will be a Public Scoping Meeting for this project at:

DATE: Wednesday June 15, 2016

TIME: 7:00 p.m.

PLACE: Westport Town Hall Auditorium, 110 Myrtle Avenue, Westport, CT 06880

NOTES:The hearing location is accessible to persons with disabilities.  Deaf and hearing impaired persons wishing to attend this hearing and requiring an interpreter must make arrangements by contacting the Department of Transportation's Office of Communications at 860-594-3062 (voice only) at least five working days prior to the hearing.

Written comments should be sent to:

Name: Mr. Mark W. Alexander, Transportation Assistant Planning Director
Agency:
Connecticut Department of Transportation
Bureau of Policy and Planning
Address:
2800 Berlin Turnpike, Newington, CT 06131
Fax: 860-594-3028
E-Mail: dot.environmentalplanning@ct.gov

If you have questions about the public meeting, or other questions about the scoping for this project, contact:

Name: Ms. Priti S. Bhardwaj, Transportation Supervising Engineer
Agency:
Connecticut Department of Transportation
Bureau of Engineering and Construction
Address: 2800 Berlin Turnpike, Newington, CT 06131
Phone: 860-594-3311
E-Mail: Priti.Bhardwaj@ct.gov
 
Post-Scoping Notices:  Environmental Impact Evaluation Not Required
 
This category is required by the October 2010 revision of the Generic Environmental Classification Document for State Agencies. A notice is published here if the sponsoring agency, after publication of a scoping notice and consideration of comments received, has determined that an  Environmental Impact Evaluation (EIE) does not need to be prepared for the proposed project.

 

No Post-Scoping Notice has been submitted for publication in this edition.
 
 
 After Scoping, an agency that wishes to undertake an action that could significantly affect the environment must produce, for public review and comment, a detailed written evaluation of the expected environmental impacts. This is called an Environmental Impact Evaluation (EIE).
The following EIE Notices have been submitted for review and comment.
1. Notice of EIE for New Parking Garage at Union Station

Municipality where project is proposed: New Haven

Address of Possible Project Location: Union Avenue, New Haven, CT 06519 

Project Description:  The Connecticut Department of Transportation (Department) is proposing to construct a new multi-level parking facility for Union Station in the City of New Haven.  The project area is State of Connecticut property located north of the station and is currently being used as a commuter parking lot.  The proposed parking facility will accommodate approximately 1000 parking spaces, thereby expanding commuter parking at the station to address existing and future parking needs.  The facility will be designed with consideration to the historic significance, scale, and aesthetic quality of the station building.  Stairtowers and a pedestrian bridge (proposed under another project) will allow passengers to access railroad platforms via an overhead route or via the existing route through the station and tunnel.  All work will be performed while the existing garage is kept in operation.  Occasional modifications to traffic flow at the garage driveways will be necessary to accommodate construction. 

Project Map:  Click here to view a map of the project area.

Comments on this EIE will be accepted until the close of business on: Tuesday, July 5, 2016
The public can view a copy of this EIE at: This document is available for public inspection at the Connecticut Department of Transportation Bureau of Policy and Planning (Room 2155), 2800 Berlin Turnpike, Newington, CT; New Haven Town Clerk's Office, 200 Orange Street, New Haven, CT 06510; New Haven Public Library, 133 Elm Street, New Haven, CT 06510; Connecticut State Library, 231 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT 06106; and the South Central Regional Council of Governments, 127 Washington Avenue, 4th Floor West, North Haven, CT 06473. 
 
The EIE is also available online at: www.ct.gov/environmentaldocuments
There is a public hearing scheduled for this EIE on
 
DATE: Monday, June 6, 2016
 
TIME: 6:00 p.m.
 
PLACE: Gateway Community College, 20 Church Street, New Haven, CT 0651
 
NOTES: The hearing location is accessible to persons with disabilities.  Deaf and hearing impaired persons wishing to attend this hearing and requiring an interpreter must make arrangements by contacting the Department of Transportation's Office of Communications at 860-594-3062 (voice only) at least five working days prior to the hearing.

 

Send your comments about this EIE to:

Name: Mr. Mark W. Alexander, Transportation Assistant Planning Director
Agency: Connecticut Department of Transportation, Bureau of Policy and Planning
Address: 2800 Berlin Turnpike, Newington, CT 06131
E-Mail: dot.environmentalplanning@ct.gov
If you have questions about the public hearing, or where you can review this EIE, or similar matters, please contact:
Name: Mr. Keith A. Hall, Project Manager
Agency: Connecticut Department of Transportation, Bureau of Engineering and Construction
Address: 2800 Berlin Turnpike, Newington, CT 06131
E-Mail: Keith.A.Hall@ct.gov
Phone: 860-594-3301
2. Notice of EIE for Installation of Wildlife Hazard Deterrent Fence at Connecticut Airport Authority's (CAA) Groton-New London Airport

Municipality where project is proposed:  Town of Groton

Address of Possible Project Location:  Groton – New London Airport, 155 Tower Ave, Groton, CT 06340

Project Description:   This DRAFT Environmental Assessment (EA)/Environmental Impact Evaluation (EIE) was prepared to satisfy the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Connecticut Environmental Policy Act (CEPA) to address potential impacts associated with the installation of a wildlife deterrent fence while providing the opportunity for public involvement and comments, since the project is partially funded by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).  The airport is a public-use General Aviation airport located entirely in the Town of Groton, Connecticut owned and operated by the CAA.

The purpose of the project was to enclose the entire Groton – New London Airport with an 8 foot chain link fence with a 3 foot horizontal burrowing deterrent chain link “skirt” attached to the bottom and 3 strands of barbed wire on the top, in accordance with FAA specifications. The need for the proposed project is to protect aircraft and their passengers from hazardous conditions at the airport as a result of medium to large sized wildlife, including deer, coyote, raccoons and woodchuck, from entering the airport property.  The airport is currently surrounded on the three landward sides by a wildlife fence.  The project would have included inspection of and repairs to this fence, as well as the installation of additional fencing.

The public can view a copy of the Project Map depicting the proposed action and alternatives, and a copy of the DRAFT EIE at: http://public.ctairports.org/dl/GON-Fence/

Written comments on this DRAFT EIE will be accepted until the close of business on:  Friday, July 1, 2016.

Written comments should be sent to:

Name:

Mr. Robert J. Bruno, Director of Planning, Engineering & Environmental

Agency:

Connecticut Airport Authority

Address:

334 Ella Grasso Turnpike, Suite 160

Windsor Locks, CT 06096

Phone:

(860) 254-5516

E-Mail:

environmental@ctairports.org

A formal public hearing has not been scheduled.  A public informational meeting has been scheduled for 7:00 PM on Thursday, June 23, 2016 at:

City of Groton Municipal Building Auditorium

295 Meridian Street

Groton, CT  06340

The sponsoring agency (CAA) shall hold a public hearing on the draft evaluation if twenty-five persons or an association having not less than twenty-five persons requests such a hearing by Friday, May 27, 2016.

If you have questions, contact Mr. Bruno above.

 
 
Connecticut General Statutes Section 4b-47 requires public notice of most proposed sales and transfers of state-owned lands. The public has an opportunity to comment on any such proposed transfer. Each notice includes an address where comments should be sent. Read more about the process.

 

No State Land Transfer Notice has been submitted for publication in this edition.

 
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