Economic Development Committee to discuss shovel ready projects

Monday's meeting of the Economic Development Committee will consider shovel ready projects for Middletown. This discussion occurs as the state is poised to receive nearly $3 billion through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, signed by President Obama on February 17th. On Friday, governor Rell said that these funds will "strengthen the state's economy, create dependable jobs, and invest in efforts that will help the state grow and prosper."

In their meeting materials, EDC members received a copy of Mayor Giuliano's December 29th letter to Governor Rell, with its list of shovel ready projects in Middletown. However, as reported in The Eye, this is not the only list of projects for stimulus dollars, the U.S. Conference of Mayors also has a list of Middletown projects. On Friday, Governor Rell announced a state website that would track the projects throughout the state that are being considered for stimulus package dollars. The three lists contain only two items in common, the reconstruction of the Melilli Plaza parking lot (between the central part of Main Street and the River), and the North End Homeowners Project, which Giuliano also described as including a “Health Renewal” component.

Finally, the Middletown Press reported (February 17th) that $2.2 million of stimulus package dollars would be used for reconstruction and drainage improvements to the intersection of Randolph and Old Saybook Roads. This project was submitted by the Midstate Regional Planning Agency, which works with the state Department of Transportation and municpalities.

In an interview in February, Giuliano told The Middletown Eye that it was not clear how specific projects would be chosen for funding by the stimulus package, "I don't think anyone really knows how this thing's going to work." He also expressed his frustration that the Federal dollars would be filtered through State agencies instead of going directly to munipalities, “If it goes through them, they're going to skim all kinds of administrative fees off the top."

In the same interview with the Middletown Eye, I asked Mayor Giuliano about the process by which the various lists had been assembled. He told me that his list had resulted from

 suggestions by department directors at City Hall. He did not seem sure how the list from the Conference of Mayors was prepared, but it was submitted by the City’s lobbyist in Washington. He said that all of the projects on that list had been discussed in Middletown at various points in the past few years.

The North End Homeowners and Health Renewal Project is by far the most expensive project on Rell’s list, at $10 million. The next most expensive project on this list, at $5.6 million, is described as a renovation of Middlesex Hospital; this project did not appear on either of the other two lists.

At its meeting on Monday, the Economic Development Committee will also hear details of a

 proposal by Mark Masselli to expand the Community Health Center onto land currently owned by the City. Detailed designs have been made for a new facility on the corner of Grand and Main Street, in the space currently used as a CHC parking lot, adjacent to Eli Cannon’s Tap Room. The EDC must approve the sale of any city-owned land.  

On Wednesday, the Preservation and Design Review Board will hold a hearing on the Community Health Center's proposal.  The Planning and zoning department has over a dozen different documents relating to the CHC proposal available on its website.