CT Governor Rell: Army Corps to Invest $5.6 Million in Connecticut Flood Control Projects

Will Create Jobs for Construction, Repairs, Inspections

May 6, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that several Connecticut lakes, rivers and other flood control areas will benefit from $5.6 million in federal stimulus funds as part of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ comprehensive civil works initiative that will create an immediate need for construction and maintenance jobs while preserving valuable natural and recreational resources.

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“The Army Corps’ investment in Connecticut will pay tremendous environmental and economic dividends,” Governor Rell said. “These are all important flood control projects that will benefit our state for generations to come by protecting and preserving irreplaceable natural resources.”

The Army Corps’ $4.6 billion civil works stimulus plan is expected to create or maintain more than 50,000 direct construction industry jobs nationwide and 64,000 indirect jobs for supportive services and businesses. In Connecticut, the Army Corps estimates that about 150 construction and related jobs would be created or retained.

Governor Rell said the Connecticut flood control projects met the criteria called for under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), including that they create immediate employment, be executed quickly and can be completed or have a key phase completed without additional funding.

Of the $5.6 million, the Army Corps will invest more than $2.5 million in dam safety improvements and repairs at Hop Brook Lake, which is spread over three communities, Naugatuck, Middlebury and Waterbury. The lake can store more than 2 billion gallons of water for flood control.

Other Army Corps projects in Connecticut include:

· Black Rock Lake, Thomaston and Watertown – bridge inspection, equipment replacement and repairs

· Colebrook River Lake, Colebrook – bridge inspections, equipment replacement and repairs

· Hancock Brook Lake, Plymouth – equipment replacement and repairs

· Mansfield Hollow Lake, Mansfield and Windham – archaeological evaluation, equipment replacement and repairs

· Northfield Brook Lake, Thomaston and Litchfield – bridge inspections, equipment replacement and repairs

· Stamford Hurricane Barrier, Stamford – repair barrier gates, replace equipment and tide gages

· Thomaston Dam, Thomaston – bridge inspections, replace equipment and repairs

· West Thompson Lake, Thompson – archaeological evaluation, equipment replacement and repairs

· Connecticut River Watershed – survey ecosystem restoration sites

To view the project list for the Army Corps of Engineers’ announcement and project list go to www.usace.army.mil/recovery or for more information on the ARRA in Connecticut, visit the state’s official stimulus Web site at www.ct.gov and click on the CT Recovery link.

Source: Connecticut Governor