Bond commission approves state funding

Borrowing plan will fund projects such as libraries, affordable housing, tree removal, police body cameras

The State Bond Commission met Wednesday to approve borrowing to finance dozens of state and local projects, ranging from upgrades at libraries to new units of affordable housing.

It was just the fourth time the commission, chaired by Gov. Ned Lamont, has met this year. Under the administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, the commission usually met every month and with far larger agendas that included local projects pushed by individual legislators.

But Lamont has advocated a so-called debt diet to reduce state borrowing, saying only essential projects can be funded as the state looks to steady its finances. At Wednesday’s meeting, Lamont pointed to news from credit rating agencies over the past year that he says reinforces his point that cutting back on state bonding has helped improve Connecticut’s financial image.

“As hard as this year has been, that work is showing results, and Wall Street is taking notice,” he said.

Here are some of the items that were approved at Wednesday’s meeting:

■ Libraries: About $3 million in grants were approved to fund upgrades at public libraries across Connecticut. The largest grants — $1 million each — went to New Milford, where the library is being expanded to accommodate an increase in population, and Putnam, where a new library is being built.

■ Hartford development: A total of $13.5 million in loans will fund work at two developments in Hartford. A $1.5 million loan will be used for the redevelopment of a former school that is part of the historic Colt factory complex into 26 apartments. The other $12 million will go toward converting commercial buildings at 196 Trumbull St. and 99 Pratt St. into 129 apartments as part of a larger, $100 million plan to redevelop Pratt Street.

■ Connecticut Convention Center: Also in Hartford, the Connecticut Convention Center will benefit from $2 million in state bond funds used to replace the waterproofing system, pavers and protection membrane on the plaza that connects the Connecticut Convention Center, its adjoining hotel and parking garage and the Connecticut Science Center.

■ Preserving open space: The commis

sion approved $5 million to provide grants to municipalities, nonprofit land conservation groups and water companies to acquire land to preserve it as open space. Properties acquired under the program will have restrictions from development and must be accessible to the general public.

■ Energy efficiency: Also approved was $1 million to conduct energy audits of larger state facilities to develop plans to reduce the state’s energy use. The money follows an executive order issued by Lamont earlier this year that set a goal of reducing the state’s greenhouse emissions to 34% below 2014 levels by 2030. An additional $12 million was approved for energy efficiency projects at state prisons.

■ Affordable housing: The bond commission approved $33.3 million in grants for various housing projects across the state including in Bristol, Greenwich, West Hartford, Enfield and Litchfield under the state Housing Department’s Flexible Housing Program. The McKinney Shelter in Hartford will receive $931,800 for a variety of needed renovations. The largest single grant, of just more than $3 million, went to an 86-unit project in Norwalk.

■ Small town economic assistance: A total of $15 million was approved for the state’s Small Town Economic Assistance Program, which provides grants of up to $500,000 a piece for local projects. It’s been several years since the state allocated money for the program and municipal leaders cheered the release of the funds. Additional state aid for road repaving and snow removal that has been delayed is expected to be approved as part of a larger bond package in January.

■ Tree removal at state parks: The commission approved $1 million to finance the removal of damaged, decayed and distressed trees in state parks. The popular Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden was closed for more than a year after a May 15, 2018 tornado tore through the area and brought down thousands of trees.

■ Police body cameras: Three towns will be reimbursed for the cost of police body cameras under an ongoing program. North Branford will receive $54,707, Southington will receive $41,288 and Stratford will receive $4,498 for a total of $100,493.