The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Officials: Cleanup to clear way for revitalization
Reclaiming riverfront for public use a 40-year dream
MIDDLETOWN — Visitors to Harbor Park may have seen the start of construction there, addressing brownfields, erosion and other issues as the first steps of the decades-long effort to revitalize the city’s precious riverfront begins.
In 2016, Middletown won a $2.6 million Urban Act Grant from the state Department of Economic Development to begin the planning, assessment and remediation, according to Amy Vaillancourt of Middletown-based Tighe & Bond.
She is an expert in brownfields remediation.
A brownfield is a property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant, according to the EPA.
Extensive permitting was required for work to begin at Columbus Point and the boathouses because they fall within a floodplain, Vaillancourt said. Renovations were sorely needed for the “fatigued” area.
“In front of the boathouse was notorious. It’s not paved, there was always erosion. The riverfront is fill material — it was made over time. It used to be water,” she said.
These efforts will “set the foundation for being able to reclaim the waterfront as a
community resource, gathering place and public asset,” according to John Hall, executive director of The Jonah Center. He said the Connecticut River waterfront was not always valued for its recreational and scenic purposes as much as it is today.
Pollution was rampant. “In years past, it was the primary means of transportation. In the industrial age, it became a waste disposal system,” for nearby industries beginning in the mid-19th century, Hall said.
Presently, grading, paving and the creation of an eight-foot-wide, handicap accessible walkway is taking place to better accommodate visitors.
“It’s all overgrown, you’ve got no good access to the water or views, but, yet, it’s got one of the nicest viewable spots in Middletown,” Vaillancourt said. Now, that the area is being cleared out, “it’s amazing,” she said of the transformation.
The river at Harbor Park, formerly an unsightly area, Hall said, is now used for fishing, and by bicyclists, walkers and other outdoor enthusiasts. “Our river quality has improved enormously in the past 30, 40 years.”
A report by the Project for Public Spaces was adopted by the Middletown Riverfront Redevelopment Committee into the city’s Plan of Conservation and Development about five years ago.
The New York-based agency, whose mission is creating and sustaining public places that build communities, according to its website, recommended the project begin with the boathouse land.
It is considered an “anchor” of the riverfront, Vaillancourt said. “The area has an industrial history and environmental challenges.”
Presently, bank stabilization is needed to fix erosion at Columbus Point. “It’s really bad,” she said.
In June, public works crews removed the Christopher Columbus statue into temporary storage ahead of the work. That happened to coincide with incidents across the nation at the time, during which statues of what some people perceive to be controversial were taken down.
Portions of the original bulkhead there, partially removed following the Flood of 1955, are still in place.
“We have a good base. All we have to do now, especially because it’s been so dry, is work the exposed portion of the bank. We’re using big revetment stones to build that up, and make it more able to take flooding, river action, and [withstand] the debris that sometimes floats down the river,” Vaillancourt said.
What’s now Harbor Park once had petroleum, gasoline and coalstorage facilities, as well as various mills, Hall said.
“Old timers would tell me, in the 20s, 30s and 40s, they would see dead animals floating down the river and all kinds of trash,” he said. That changed with the adoption of the Clean Water Act of 1972, when a national effort to clean up waterways was begun in earnest.
At one time, industrial businesses , dumped adhesives and petroleumbased cleaning solvents into the ground. Across the river in Portland, facilities that store oil and gas also tainted the water, Hall said.
Many factors led to the need for redress, Hall said. Tiny amounts of asphalt seep into the river, and vehicle oil drips from parking lots. Tires also leave minute amounts of rubber on the pavement.
“A lot is coming from the transportation sector these days,” Hall said.
All that washes into the water and is eaten by small organisms, such as shellfish, which are then consumed by larger fish and could pose a hazard to those fishing the area.
Nearby Sumner Brook contains petroleum-related contaminates, as well as arsenic, Hall said. There are also areas with broken-up concrete slabs that need to be removed.
There is a very steep slope at the brook, Vaillancourt said, requiring a need for permanent stabilization. Plans are for a little walkway to be built from the point, over the brook, and connecting to the Peterson Oil property around the corner on River Road.
The city Planning, Conservation and Development office will be taking bids for a consultant to create a master plan in the near future, including creation of maps and compilation of data, Hall said.
He expects public forums and charrettes to follow sometime next year. “We’ve got a ways to go.”
The city has become a blueprint for brownfield remediation throughout the state, Vaillancourt said. “Middletown has been the model for a lot of other municipalities for what it takes to plan and move forward.”
The city boasts several success stories, including the removal of contaminates at the old Remington Rand building off Johnson Street, she said.