Council of Governments: State DOT head outlines issues facing road work

GOSHEN — Road closures were the focus at the Thursday, July 13 meeting of the Northwest Hills Council of Governments (COG), which represents leaders from across the region.

Garrett Eucallitto, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Transportation, spoke to the group, some of whom were late arrivals to the meeting because of road closures. Others joined via Zoom.

“We’re working hard to ensure that the roads are reopened permanently and permanently repaired,” said Eucalitto.

Following the flooding, Eucalitto said DOT crews were primarily concentrated on repairs to Route 272 in Norfolk.

“The main focus was Norfolk because the road is completely gone essentially,” said Eucalitto.

He said a statewide shortage of maintenance workers has created a backlog of projects in need of completion.

“We’re a couple hundred people short, so everything is delayed,” said Eucalitto.

Eucalitto added that a sustainability and resiliency unit was recently formed at DOT to prepare for “the new rainfall events for the future here in Connecticut.”

“I think it’s going to become more and more frequent that we’re going to see what we have just encountered,” said Eucalitto.

He said the unit’s focus at this time is to locate and update failing culverts across the state, some of which date back to the 1940s.

“Many of our culverts are very old and undersized,” said Eucalitto.

COG members expressed frustration with DOT over road closures, delayed project approvals, and restrictive regulations.

“The rain over the weekend caused a major washout,” said Jean Speck, first selectman in Kent, who joined the meeting on Zoom. “I have a lot of very angry residents.”

Mike Criss, first selectman in Harwinton, said his town has been awaiting DOT’s approval for use of a bridge that was built in 2019.

“I can’t get anyone from DOT to sign off on it,” said Criss. “People have been traveling across this bridge for four years, so if it’s unsafe I’m sorry.”

Criss also spoke on the challenge of adhering to state highway quality standards when using state funds to repave small town roads.

“The standards you have are fine,” said Criss. “The money just doesn’t stretch far enough and small towns like ours aren’t eligible for any more money.”

Eucalitto explained DOT has “one standard” for road projects that utilize state funding.

“If you’re going to do work using state funds, unfortunately you’re stuck doing it to those standards,” said Eucalitto.

Eucalitto provided information on the status of Transportation Rural Improvement Program (TRIP) grant applications.

“We had a total of 26 applications for $33,000,000 submitted. Initially we had anticipated we’d only have $5,000,000 to distribute. Thanks to the effort of Representative Maria Horn, that was doubled to $10,000,000,” said Eucalitto.

TRIP grants are expected to be awarded this fall and applications will be selected based on project readiness.

Following the transportation discussion, Nancy Rebehn, executive director of Rebuilding Together of Litchfield County, presented information on her organization to the COG.

Rebuilding Together is a nonprofit entity that provides residential repair services for low-income households in Connecticut.

“We will come in and do necessary repairs for seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities,” said Rebehn. “Since 2003 we have been able to do repairs and modifications on 247 homes. It seems to be getting less and less each year.”

Rebuilding Together repaired nine homes for qualifying residents in 2022. Rebehn said over 30 applications were received last year, but due to limited funding many applicants were put on a waitlist.

“We were able to raise $150,000 last year,” said Rebehn. “If we can get some help from the individual towns... even just waiving fees is a big thing.”

Rebehn said few municipal social service agents have directed residents to Rebuilding Together, and most applicants found the organization online at rebuildingtogether.org

Before the meeting concluded, Henry Todd, first selectman in Falls Village, discussed the recent efforts to install fiber optic cable throughout the region.

“What we’re finding in a lot of towns is where they had promised to give universal coverage, there are a lot of areas that are not being covered,” said Todd.

Todd said there may be state funding available to ensure total high-speed coverage in each town, adding that fiber optic cable would lead to improved cell service for small towns.

“You need to have a fiber network that covers the majority of your town so that you can install small cell antennas,” said Todd. “It’s a real safety issue in some of our areas.”

Todd recalled a resident who had a heart attack and his wife drove to the center of town to get a cell signal to call for an ambulance.

“We’ve got to do something in this region,” said Todd on cell coverage. “It’s a huge issue.

Colin Griggs, a summer resident on Mt. Riga in Salisbury, standing in a washed-out area on the Mt. Riga road Friday morning, July 14. Photo by Charlie Collin

Garrett Eucalitto, commissioner of Connecticut Department of Transportation, spoke with members of Northwest Hills Council of Governments in Goshen, July 13. Photo by Riley Klein

Colin Griggs, a summer resident on Mt. Riga in Salisbury, standing in a washed-out area on the Mt. Riga road Friday morning, July 14. Photo by Charlie Collin