Bristol's regional planning slated to change

With a state order to consolidate planning oversight hanging over its head, the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency is in the process of splitting up.

Some of its member municipalities are going to shift into the Hartford regional planning agency – New Britain, for sure, and probably Southington, Plainville, Berlin and Burlington as well.

Bristol is eyeing Hartford, too, but hasn’t ruled out attaching itself to the agency serving Waterbury and the Naugatuck Valley.

Plymouth, the other remaining town, is more likely to sign up with Waterbury’s agency, but it is also weighing its options.

The state set a Dec. 31 deadline for decisions to be made or it would simply step in and tell communities where they’d be assigned.

There is still some hope that the Bristol-based CCRPA could get a reprieve on its pending demise, but officials aren’t counting on it.

The agency has been in Bristol since 1973.

Copyright 2013 All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

CCRPA seeking $1 million for study of rail and more

The Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency is looking to do a $1.25 million study of the area's transportation needs that may answer whether or not commuter rail is a viable option. For the story, click here.
*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

The wheels on the bus go round and round

The busway got a big boost last night when the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency once again backed the $573 million project. Read the hastily written story here. (My editor, Bill Sarno, got it into print despite the decision coming half an hour after deadline.)
Only two people on the agency voted against the move -- the two Bristol delegates who attended: Don Padlo and Tim Furey. Bristol's other representative, John Pompei, was absent.
Some of the things that didn't get in the story:
* Mayor Art Ward is going to meet today with New Britain Mayor Tim Stewart and the state's transportation commissioner, Joseph Marie. Marie pledged to try to find ways to relieve Bristol's isolation from the state's transportation system.
* Marie and other DOT officials warned that if the CCRPA refused to back the busway, all of the region's transportation projects that rely on federal cash would grind to a halt for two years.
* Marie said that if the state pulled the plug on the busway, it would have to repay to the federal government 80 percent of the $53 million it has already spent on the project.
When I get my notes off my laptop, I'll add more.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Rail vs. Bus feud breaks into the open

When regional planners gather next week, supporters of a proposal commuter rail line in Central Connecticut are hoping to derail the $579 million busway between New Britain and Hartford.

A taste of how bitter the debate has grown cropped up Thursday at the Central Connecticut Transportation Improvement Committee session in Bristol when officials on each side lashed out at the other.

New Britain Mayor Tim Stewart accused rail backers at the meeting of “disrespectful and extremely disingenuous” behavior in trying to ambush the busway plan at the ordinarily mundane transportation meeting.

The public works director of New Britain, Mark Moriarty, said “calls were made behind New Britain’s back” to try to round up rail supporters to “put a kink” in the busway’s progress at Thursday’s session. He described himself as furious at the effort.

But as advocates on both sides faced off, they agreed to leave what would ordinarily be a routine administrative decision to the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency, which meets next week. Read the whole story here.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

CCRPA snags economic development grant

Press release from U.S. Rep. John Larson, the East Hartford Democrat whose 1st District includes Bristol:

Larson: Local Regional Planning Agency Awarded a Federal Grant to Support Economic Development

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Congressman John B. Larson (CT-01) announced that the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency (CCRPA) was awarded a $64,000 federal grant from the Economic Development Administration to encourage regional economic development and job growth. CCRPA represents seven towns in Central Connecticut including Berlin, Bristol, and Southington which are located in the First District.
“In these difficult economic times, this funding will boost our economy in the short term, create jobs and invest in key industries that will lead to long term economic growth and investment in the region.” said Congressman Larson. “When President Obama came into office, our economy was on the verge of collapse. Because of the hard work of this Congress and the President, we can now say the economy is no longer on the brink.”
“There is still a lot of work to do to ensure that our friends and neighbors feel the impact of an improving economy. It is vital that we keep up investments in our local economic development, like this grant for CCRPA, in order to create jobs and put our economy on a solid foundation for the future.”
The investment from the Economic Development Administration will support CCRPA’s update of their comprehensive economic development strategy (CEDS) to leverage both the private and public sector to strengthen and diversify our region’s economy.
Since 1955, CCRPA has served as the chief regional planning organization of central Connecticut, providing a cooperative vision and technical assistance that supports the economic advancement of its partner towns. With the leadership of Executive Director Carl Stephani, CCRPA will position the Central Connecticut region on a path toward economic strength and stability for the future.
The Economic Development Administration, a division of the U.S. Department of Commerce, leads the federal economic development agenda of the nation, by serving as a venture capital resource that supports the economic growth of communities throughout the United States.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Regionalization or not?

Gov. Jodi Rell touted regionalization as a key way to save money in these hard times.

But she's also pushing for the elimination of the $1 million in annual funding from the state for regional planning agencies, including the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com