May 10 , 2008: Redding Meeting's focus is on new Georgetown Train Station

Georgetown Land Development Company will be meeting with the town’s land use agencies on May 28 for a pre-application discussion on the new Georgetown Train Station. The station, already approved by the state Department of Transportation, includes a 515-foot platform that could accommodate eight cars and a café-type facility. The site would also be home to a proposed parking garage and potentially a health club. The station and otaher facilities would be located at the company’s former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site off Route 107. The station has already been designed, said Stephen Soler, GLDC president. After the May 28 meeting, he said, the company would also meet with Wilton’s Board of Selectmen and zoning commission for a pre-application review since a portion of the platform would lie within that town’s borders. “We may have to apply there, too,” said Mr. Soler. A formal application would be submitted to Redding appropriate land use agencies most likely in June.

May 8 , 2008: Wire mill developer confident
By FRANK MacEACHERN, Wilton Villager

The man behind a massive redevelopment in Georgetown just outside Wilton's town line said he's confident the project will go ahead even in a real estate market downturn. "Like any market, if it's priced right it will sell," said Stephen Soler about the redevelopment at the former Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill in Georgetown.

Despite the delays and the fall in the housing market locally and nationally, Soler is confident the concept of developing a village-like housing development will attract homebuyers. He said the amenities, including having the Wilton YMCA construct a second facility there will make it convenient for people to live and work. "There's a reason why we're putting in the train, there's a reason why we invited the (Wilton) Y, there's a reason why we're encouraging people to walk," said Soler.

Soler said more than 1,000 people are interested in the housing units. There are 416 housing units, comprising single-family homes, townhouses and loft-style apartments planned for the development. Of those 55 are reserved for rent as affordable housing.

April 6 , 2008: Redding officials face tough budget decisions
By Susan Tuz Staff Writer, Danbury News-Times

While most towns are arguing about budget increases, Redding's selectmen are looking at a 2008-09 municipal budget that is $447,500 less than the present year. Because it won't get some $900,000 in expected revenues from permits for development at the old Gilbert & Bennett Wire mill site in Georgetown, the town is making deep cuts in the coming fiscal year's budget. Not only that, it is looking for $350,000 in additional savings to meet expenses this year.

"As we continue in the process and get closer to June 30, we have the possibility of more savings," said Larry Hutvagner, town comptroller. "We're getting to where we can cut back on fuel deliveries. Heat won't have to be on in town buildings. We're buying less motor oil at the Highway Department. It's a small savings, but every savings helps."

Georgetown Land Development, which was expected to be under construction this fiscal year, had permit delays at the state level, so the town won't have its building permit fees. Steven Soler, manager of Georgetown Land Development, said Friday that he received the permits from the state in February and will start putting infrastructure at the site in the next 60 days. "The earliest Redding will see building permit revenues from us is in the fall, once roads are in here," Soler said.

Town revenues are also down because people are slow in paying their current taxes, which are also below projected figures. Selectmen met March 31 and made cuts for this year and next. Hiring an officer and a records clerk for the Police Department has been put on hold until 2009, and a part-time zoning enforcement officer will not be added either.

January 26, 2008: Gilbert & Bennett redevelopment earns recognition for planning
By Susan Wolf, Redding Pilot

The planning process for the Gilbert & Bennett redevelopment project in Georgetown has been recognized by the Connecticut Chapter of the American Planning Association. The 2007 Community Development Award recognizes the commitment to the sustainable redevelopment of the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site off Route 107. Technically, Georgetown Land Development Company, the redeveloper, was cited for the award, but Stephen Soler, company president, asked that the award be presented to the town of Redding.

“One of the things cited (at the award ceremony) was the public/private partnership aspect of it, the fact the town and the developer worked together on planning goals,” said Rob Dean, Redding’s Planning Commission vice chairman. He said Mr. Soler “felt the town was key in the planning efforts, and the fostering of the public/private partnership was something for which the town deserves equal credit.”

Mr. Dean recalled how the company used a charrette-based approach in planning for the project, getting input from all of the stakeholders. “There was virtually no opposition by individuals or groups to the redevelopment,” said Mr. Dean.

“It is really a model of how to take a complicated site with complicated issues and do something that meets the approval of all of the stakeholders,” he said. “The fact the Connecticut Chapter of the APA gave this special recognition reflects the fact that the planning community has begun to recognize the importance of including not only the town government, but also the people at large in the planning process, and the great importance of a public/private partnership that keeps the priorities of the town in view.”

January 17, 2008: Starting this year: G&B project goes ‘vertical’
By Susan Wolf, Redding Pilot

It was seven years ago that Steve Soler first set foot on the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site; this year, he will finally see building construction and light at the end of the tunnel. Mr. Soler is president of Georgetown Land Development Co., which is redeveloping the former industrial site into a pedestrian-friendly village. A mix of residential and commercial and retail uses is planned at the site, along with affordable housing for the elderly, a community theater, a health club, a Norwalk Hospital medical center, and a new railroad station. The environmental problems on the site are being remediated.

“I told the town I would get the entitlements (state and local permits) and, as is my business model, sell to a vertical developer who would build what we planned,” said Mr. Soler. “We are now in the final phase of negotiating terms with third-party vertical developers so the project can get built,” he said. He explained that with every element of the project, his company is identifying the parties it thinks “are appropriate to go vertical on the site. By the end of January, we should have a group or groups identified for the entire site.” He is referring to companies that might build a residential component or a commercial building or the theater or the affordable housing. “We are looking for the right people to treat the property the way we believe it should be treated,” he said. At this point, Mr. Soler expects infrastructure work to begin this spring. Detailed plans are ready to go. Building is expected by late summer or early fall. “Our goal is to put in the infrastructure and then sell the development rights to third parties,” he said. “We expect all of the infrastructure to be in by the end of 2008. I would like to be optimistic and think all [the build-out] will be in by 2011, but what will drive this is the state permitting process.”

Third-party developers will not have free rein at the site, Mr. Soler indicated. They must adhere to the zoning code for the property in terms of what is permitted to be built at the site, and to the design code, which specifically deals with how buildings will look. Both were approved by the town’s Zoning Commission. “The third party has to build what we designed,” he said. The third element that comes into play, said Mr. Soler, is the covenants in the land record that say how the village will operate.

December 19, 2007: Norwalk Hospital Building in Georgetown
By FRANK MacEACHERN, Stamford Times

Norwalk Hospital President and Chief Executive Officer Geoffrey Cole could barely contain himself as he rhymed off the services the hospital is providing. But even as he recited the list of achievements and programs the hospital offers, he said hospitals have to remember they are serving individuals. "We're making a big priority over the next couple of years to significantly de-institutionalize the hospital," said Cole.

The hospital is in the midst of an ambitious expansion of its services and facilities, said Cole, and is working not only at the main hospital site but is expanding its reach throughout Norwalk and in the Georgetown area in North Wilton and Redding.

In Georgetown Norwalk Hospital is working on a 30,000 to 50,000 square feet building on the site of the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill factory. The area is being redeveloped as a mixed used residential and commercial site. Construction on the first buildings is expected to begin next summer. "That's going to be important to people who live there, in Wilton, Redding, Ridgefield," said Cole, who is a Wilton resident.

December 13, 2007: Wilton YMCA talks expansion
By FRANK MacEACHERN, Wilton Villager

The Wilton Family YMCA will know by the spring whether it will go ahead with a second site at the Gilbert & Bennett wire mile, a breakfast meeting heard Thursday. Robert McDowell, the Y's executive director, said the Y's board of directors will look at financial and marketing reports at a meeting next week to chart the organization's course.

He agreed with a comment from an attendee at the meeting that the softening housing market is delaying the development at the Gilbert & Bennett wire factory site in Georgetown. "That's our understanding," said McDowell. In comments after the meeting he said the YMCA has had ongoing discussions with Stephen Soler, president of Georgetown Land Development Company, and that Soler is still enthusiastic about the project.

Construction will start soon

Soler said there isn't any problem with the housing market and expects to "go vertical" in the summer with construction on the site. "We are ready to go," said Soler Thursday afternoon. "All the approvals have been granted [by the state]," said Soler. The company had been waiting for those approvals, he said. The company will be working on the infrastructure in the New Year and then expect to start construction in the summer.

Soler said more than 1,000 people who are interested in the housing units. There are 416 housing units, comprising single-family homes, townhouses and loft-style apartments planned for the development. Of those 55 are reserved for rent as affordable housing.

Proposed YMCA in Georgetown

Putting a 36,000 square foot YMCA in Georgetown at the Gilbert & Bennett wire mill is the best option for the organization, said McDowell. "We've looked at a half dozen buildings and that's the best site for us," said McDowell. The development's plan is to convert the site into a mixed use site with a large residential component. . McDowell said many of the Wilton Y's current membership lives in North Wilton, Redding and part of Ridgefield and building a satellite YMCA would better serve them. Membership is around the 9,600 mark, said McDowell.

December 7, 2007: Road work expected to start soon at Gilbert & Bennett site
By Sue Wolf, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

On-site road work is expected to begin at the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site off Route 107 next month following the recent state approval of the Georgetown Land Development Company’s remedial action plan.

On Nov. 5, Stephen Soler, company president, said the plan’s approval means his company can now put in roads and infrastructure. The first phase of roads will include North Main Street, the new Station Place and the “front door” to the project, the intersection of Portland Avenue with Route 107. Off-site road work is not planned until spring.

While the road work is in progress, said Mr. Soler, the slab over the Norwalk River would be pulled out. This is part of the process to “daylight” the river, which was covered over in places while the mill was in operation. Another slab that remains after a building’s demolition would also be removed and would be recycled on the site. Mr. Soler said the state’s environmental protection department has granted its approval to recycle and reuse this slab. His company is awaiting approval on the second slab.

The company has also redesigned the new Bennett Street that is to go by the park service (Weir Farm) building, the senior housing planned at the site and the performing arts center. Bennett Street is contained within the property and will be off Portland Avenue.

November 26, 2007: Shays touts his bill to relocate Weir Farm offices to G&B site
Hersam Acorn Newspapers

Mr. Shays testified on Oct. 30 and later submitted a written statement of his testimony to the press on H.R. 1836, his bill, declaring, “Currently, Public Law 105-363 only authorizes land acquisition of property ‘contiguous to’ the park, which includes the towns of Ridgefield and Wilton. This bill would change this clause to ‘within Fairfield County,’ thereby allowing the NPS to consider facilities across the county.”

He said, “Weir Farm contributes to Connecticut’s rich culture and history. It is the only National Park Service site in Connecticut, and the only park in the country dedicated to an American painter... Weir Farm hosts approximately 15,000 to 17,000 visitors annually. These visitors come to enjoy the farm’s (60) acres and the studios that are a living monument to Julian Alden Weir’s work.”

The Park Service’s recommended location for a new administrative facility at the former Georgetown wire mill is two miles from Weir Farm, the congressman noted. His bill “would grant the Park Service the authority to expand the Weir Farm facilities into Redding. This measure has received support from the superintendent of Weir Farm, and the Wilton and Redding local communities,” he said.

November 8, 2007: Remedial action plan is in hand, on-site road work begins soon
By Sue Wolf, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

On-site road work will begin at the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site off Route 107 next month thanks to the recent state approval of the Georgetown Land Development Co.’s Remedial Action Plan.

The company is developing the site into a pedestrian-friendly village of mixed uses. The project will include housing, commercial and retail spaces, restaurants, a performing arts center, a new Georgetown campus for the Wilton Family Y, a new Georgetown train station on the Danbury branch of the Metro-North line with service to Norwalk, Stamford, Greenwich, and New York City’s Grand Central Terminal, and a medical facility for Norwalk Hospital. It was notified of the remedial action plan approval on Oct. 5.

Remedial action plan The state Department of Environmental Protection approved the remedial action plan for the redevelopment of the site. The approval means that work necessary to implement the approved master plan for development may begin. “This will address the remaining environmental concerns that were the result of previous manufacturing at the site,” the company said in its release.

September 24, 2007: Park eyes Georgetown for support functions
By Macklin Reid and Robin Walluck, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

An aspect of Weir Farm’s envisioned expansion that has long worried neighbors in Ridgefield — plans for a 10,000-square-foot building housing a variety of support functions — may be moved off Old Branchville Road and out of town. Weir Farm officials say they’re looking into a variety of possible solutions, including a land swap in which they would gain a building on the old wire mill site in Georgetown, while giving up some land off Old Branchville Road in Ridgefield.

An amendment to the federal legislation creating The Weir Farm National Historic Site is now being considered in Washington. It would allow the park management to consider a wider variety of options in trying to solve the problem posed by the need for support facilities — from woodworking to storage — in the residential neighborhoods surrounding the farm.

“It doesn’t find a solution, it allows us to look at other alternatives,” said Linda Cook, supervisor of the Weir Farm Historic Site. “Until we go through that looking process we won’t know if we have a different alternative.”

Among the alternatives to be studied is the potential land swap in with the Georgetown Land Development Company, which owns the former Gilbert and Bennett Wire Mill site in Georgetown.

September 14, 2007: Sewer plant, other work underway at former Gilbert & Bennett site
By Susan Wolf, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

Infrastructure work at the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site in Georgetown is progressing, and the expansion of the wastewater treatment plant is nearly complete. By about mid-September, said Mr. Soler, the plant will be at least at 125,000-gallons-per-day capacity (capacity is now at 75,000 gallons per day), and by the end of October, at its full capacity (of 245,000 gallons per day). Diagnostic tests will be run before the plant is turned over to Redding, said Mr. Soler, who estimated that could happen by the end of the year. A phosphorous treatment system will be installed at the plant next month, once a changeover order has been signed, said Mr. Soler.

September 4, 2007: Board OKs grant application to help clean up lagoon site
By Susan Wolf, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

The selectmen passed a resolution Monday night that paves the way to a federal Small Cities program grant to help cover the cost of remediating the lagoon site at 15 Main Street. The lagoon is on the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site off Route 107. The resolution allows First Selectman Natalie Ketcham to apply for a $775,000 grant on behalf of the town. At an Aug. 9 public hearing, there were no objections to the town applying for the grant. Although the town had conducted a public hearing on the application in 2005 in compliance with the grant program, because of the lapse in time it had to conduct another public hearing.

Birdseye View of Georgetown in 2004

August 19, 2007: Small Cities Block Grant for Redding: Town to apply for remediation funding

The public agreed at last Thursday’s meeting that the former dumping site for industrial waste from the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill needs to be remediated. Now it is in the hands of the Board of Selectmen to apply for a grant to help fund the project. The industrial lagoon is near the new sewage treatment plant. When the factory was open, the area had been filled with metal-rich sludge. (see below: lower right)

Informational meeting set on G&B remediation plan
By Susan Wolf, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

Georgetown Land Development Company is remediating the site as part of its redevelopment project, which includes the creation of a pedestrian-friendly village with mixed uses, such as residential and commercial. Plans also call for a community theater, a health club, a facility for Norwalk Hospital, a new railroad station, and a parking garage. The remedial action plan applies to the manufacturing area of the former wire mill facility north from Route 107 to the top of Factory Pond off Portland Avenue. It also includes the southern parcel, which is south of Route 107, where the Georgetown sewer plant is located.

Regional dispatch gets $300,000 from feds
By Chipp Reid and Susan Wolf, Hersam Acorn Newspapers

A multi-town emergency dispatch center took one step closer to reality last month thanks to a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. The center would set up a communications system linking emergency responders in Redding, Ridgefield, Weston and Wilton.

The House passed a bill July 26 that includes $300,000 to centralize police, fire and EMS service dispatch in a state-of-the-art facility. Redding and Weston would see the most immediate benefit of the center, if approved. Redding Police Chief Douglas Fuchs said he and First Selectman Natalie Ketcham “are monitoring the progress and are very hopeful (of getting the grant).”

The new facility would operate at the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site and would combine fire and police dispatch for Redding and Weston. Wilton is also considering putting police and fire at the new facility. “We are seeking to develop an infrastructure whereby Redding, Ridgefield, Wilton and Weston would be linked through the Redding Police Department Communications Center,” Chief Fuchs said.

July 20, 2007, Grant for Redding lagoon remediation heads to a new public hearing on Thursday August 9th, 7:30pm:
By Susan Wolf, The Redding Pilot

The town must go through a “do over” on a grant application through the federal Small Cities program to help cover the cost of remediating the lagoon site at 15 Main St. The lagoon is on the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site off Route 107. Although the town conducted a public hearing on the application in 2005 in compliance with the grant program, it must now conduct another public hearing.

The remediation plan for the site is to cap the metal-impacted soil with appropriate monitoring and institutional controls. GRC has a $200,000 federal Environmental Protection Agency grant through its Brownfields Cleanup Grant Program, in addition to a $100,000 Targeted Brownfields Assessment Grant from the EPA. The corporation also has cash it received when it took title to the property. The remainder to remediate the site and cover the grant administration fees would come from the proposed grant.

The hearing is set for Thursday, Aug. 9, at town hall at 7:30 p.m.

July 9, 2007: Air Quality and Health Concerns:
By BRIAN GIOIELE, The Redding Pilot

Georgetown Land Development Co. (GLDC) officials are continuing efforts to ease health concerns related to recent demolition work at the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site.

Company attorney Richard Gibbons told the Zoning Commission last Wednesday that state health department officials have confirmed that dust that emanated from the location during the blasting process did not pose any medical threat to nearby residences, specifically Landmark Academy, located at neighboring 20 Portland Ave.

“The people at Landmark Academy are panicking right now,” said Mike Pilato, who leases the 20 Portland Ave. property to the academy. Mr. Pilato said parents of students attending Landmark Academy voiced concern about the dust in the building from the nearby work. He added that 20 families have since removed their children, and the academy has “lost $200,000.”

Mr. Gibbons said GLDC acted quickly to alleviate health concerns, having state health department officials even come to the academy to speak to parents and school officials. “They even sent a letter stating that there was no health concern here,” said Mr. Gibbons.

Regarding the bond, the commission has ordered GLDC provide a $500,000 bond to the town prior to the demolition work, with 50% released six months after a particular phase was complete.

June 19, 2007: Old Gilbert & Bennett Plant Going Green
By Robert Miller, Danbury News Times

In its past, the Gilbert & Bennett wire factory in Georgetown provided people jobs. It gave them a life. But it also polluted the Norwalk River and belched smoke into the air. In its newest incarnation, the plant will once again be filled with people -- folks living in factory space converted into lofts and condominiums, and working in its offices, stores and restaurants. It will be green -- built with new energy-efficient technology, boasting pedestrian walkways instead of roads, tied to mass transit through the construction of a new train station on the Danbury-to-Norwalk Metro-North line. Read More.

June 13, 2007: Gilbert & Bennett Renovation gets boost from state
By Dirk Perrefort, The News-Times

Legislation allowing developers of the abandoned Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill in Georgetown to issue $72 million in bonds for the project unanimously passed the state legislature.

The smart growth project has been lauded by officials throughout the world as a model for serving the community, the economy and the environment.

Read Redding Pilot article about bonds and upcoming projects.

Dam repair work starts June 11 at Factory Pond- Recent Update: DEP Monitoring Work

On Monday, June 11, repair work will begin on the Factory Pond dam located at the former Gilbert & Bennett Manufacturing Company. Factory Pond, an impoundment just above the dam, will be partially lowered to allow repairs to the dam’s masonry and to the foundation walls of the buildings adjacent to the dam. The work will consist of re-pointing the mortar of the stone masonry on the face of the dam and drilling and grouting the dam to curb water seepage.

The project is expected to take six weeks.

The engineering firm of Tighe & Bond developed the dam repair project. The project has been approved by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection.

June 7, 2007: Ridgefield (and Wilton) looks at regional police/fire dispatching in Georgetown
By Chipp Reid, Ridgefield Press Staff

Chief Burford said regional dispatch is becoming popular in many areas of the country. “It allows communities to combine their resources,” she said. “We don’t have unlimited numbers and we rely on mutual aid. This would give us the ability to know all the different resource types we need.” If a fire call went into the regional center, it would allow the immediate dispatch of mutual aid to a large fire or accident, potentially shortening the response time. “We would be enhancing our communication center through equipment upgrades that would allow the regional dispatch center to dispatch fire and/or police for the four municipalities,” The Wilton Bulletin quoted Redding Police Chief Douglas Fuchs as saying. Read More.

May 17 , 2007: Owners seek environmental designation
By SUSAN WOLF, The Redding Pilot

Stephen Soler, Georgetown Land Development Company president, the redeveloper of the former manufacturing site, said his project is among 360 applications for a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) pilot program. If approved, he said, his project would be designated a Gold LEED development, and the designation would apply to the entire development. Read More.

April 24 , 2007: Norwalk Hospital is coming to Georgetown: Norwalk Hospital prescribes expansion
By Alexander Soule, The Fairfield County Business Journal

Norwalk Hospital became the first institutional entity to commit to taking space in a massive brownfield redevelopment site in Redding, part of a large hospital expansion at three separate sites. Norwalk Hospital is reserving at least 30,000 square feet for urgent care services, and other clinical services such as laboratory, radiology and offices for primary care physicians and specialists. Read More.

March 8, 2007: Gilbert & Bennett site is ever-changing as project progresses
By SUSAN WOLF, The Redding Pilot

A visitor to the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site would see significant changes in the landscape — 20 buildings have been demolished with recyclable materials stacked in piles. The waterfall once hidden by buildings is now visible, and soon the portion of the Norwalk River covered by buildings or concrete will see daylight. Read More.

February 21, 2007: New train station is on track for 2011 At Gilbert & Bennett site
By MAR WALKER, The Redding Pilot

REDDING -- In late summer 2011, the blue and white HART bus on its regular Route 7 route may take its first spin around the bus loop in front of the new Georgetown Train Station. Train riders disembarking in Georgetown might be commuters arriving home after a hard day’s work in the city, some of them walking home from the station. Riders might also be tourists, desiring a little stroll along a pleasant walkway by the Norwalk River, lunch at a Main Street eatery, or to catch a scheduled shuttle bus to the Weir Farm National Historic Site, or an evening show at the performing arts center. These are among the future visions of the Georgetown Land Development Company (GLDC), which has left few stones unturned in its quest for cutting-edge designs for its redevelopment project and funding “opportunities” to match them. Read More.

February 5, 2007: Old buildings remain...photos from Redding Pilot

January 25, 2007: G&B redevelopment has role, along with a state mandate in town budgets
By SUSAN WOLF, The Redding Pilot

REDDING -- Town department budget requests for the next fiscal year are being driven by a number of factors — from the redevelopment of the Gilbert & Bennett site, to a mandated storm water management plan, to the cost of electricity, to a change in the paramedic intercept program. Read More.

January 23, 2007: From a Mill, A Village
By KATHLEEN SCHASSLER, Special To The Hartford Courant

REDDING -- The piercing whistle blasts that called three shifts of workers to the Gilbert & Bennett Manufacturing Co. have been silent for decades, but the complex could soon become a model for bringing new life to hulking, deteriorating vestiges of the state's industrial past. Read More.

January 16, 2007: Demolition Continues...photos from Redding Pilot

January 8, 2007: North Main Street closed for relocation

To accommodate a new train station and the parking garage that will accompany it, the rail crossing on North Main Street will be relocated. Additional other work will be conducted at several intersections along the road including at the the junctures of both Route 7 and Route 107.

December 28, 2006: Three Buildings Removed

The first industrial building to be demolished at the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site in Georgetown occurred at around 10:30 a.m. on Thursday morning. It was one of three interior buildings slated for demolition this week. All three have undergone asbestos abatement. While there are other buildings slated for demolition because they were determined unfit for renovation, many of the other historical buildings will be renovated for new uses.

Georgetown Land Development Company is spearheading the redevelopment of the site, which will be converted to a pedestrian friendly village with residential, retail and commercial buildings, as well as a health club and railroad station.

December 27 , 2006: North Main St. Closed Starting Jan. 8th

The Georgetown Land Development Company has announced that starting Monday, Jan. 8, North Main Street will be closed for road relocation. The work is part of the Gilbert & Bennett wire mill redevelopment project.

To accommodate a new train station and the parking garage that will accompany it, the rail crossing on North Main Street will be relocated. Additional other work will be conducted at several intersections along the road including at the the junctures of both Route 7 and Route 107.

October 22, 2006: Projects under way throughout state
by Susan Tuz, Danbury News Times

Smart growth is defined as development that serves the economy, the community and the environment. That's the definition used by the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which supports the concept with grants and technical help. Redding was one of five communities in the country chosen by the EPA for a Smart Growth award in November 2005. Read More

September 28, 2006 At Gilbert & Bennett site: Traffic plan is approved Stage is set for development
by SUSAN WOLF, Redding Pilot

A major hurdle has been crossed for the redevelopment of the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site in Georgetown. State Traffic Commission approval is now in place; once the requirements are met, the developer can get his traffic generator certificate from the commission and begin “to pull building permits in town.” That means, said Stephen Soler, president of the Georgetown Land Development Company (GLDC), the redeveloper, that his company may sell or finance property. “We need this to develop.” GLDC owns the 55-acre wire mill site off Route 107. Read More

August 21, 2006 DEP: Pond drain illegal
By James Nash, Wilton Villager

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection recently served notice to the Georgetown Land Development Company [GLDC] stating that an inspection conducted by the company on Aug. 3 was illegal. According to the DEP, the inspection, which concluded a drawdown of water through a dam at the Factory Pond on the Gilbert and Bennett property, violated state water diversion law. Read More

August 21, 2006 Seeing gold in Fairfield County brownfields
By Alexander Soule, Fairfield County Business Journal

To the naked eye, the ruins of the Gilbert & Bennett wire mill are much as Steve Soler first observed them in 2001. Broken window panes, likely the work of well-aimed rocks from teens, stretch the length of the brick mills. The factory pond, listed as a Superfund site in 1999, still glows in the setting sun.

But Soler’s senses pick up what many others do not. The lead and zinc sludge has been carted away, 3,000 cubic yards of it, replaced with lime kiln dust and a protective earthen cap. He can already visualize the scenic waterfall that will cascade into the 12-acre pond, rehabilitated to reflect the surrounding green hillsides. Soler can hear the train chugging into the adjacent station, dropping off residents from jobs down the line who crowd shops and cafes on a summer eve. Read More

August 17, 2006 Gilbert & Bennett Dam: Drawdown Causes Concern
By Jeff Yates, Wilton Bulletin

According to Dick Harris, a water quality monitoring expert with Harbor Watch/River Watch of Earthplace in Westport, the dam drawdown was discovered by chance on Thursday, Aug. 3, when two DEP officials happened to be inspecting the Norwalk River south of the dam along Old Mill Road. “When they got to Old Mill Road, a big wall of water came rolling down river,” he said of what the officials related to him in a phone call from the river. Mr. Harris told them to continue upstream until they found the source of the high water and they quickly discovered the dam at Gilbert & Bennett was being drained. “ Read More

July 20, 2006 Q & A With Georgetown Land Development President Stephen Soler
BuildingCTgreen.com

Within the next year, the green building community nationwide will know about Georgetown (Redding) Connecticut, if they don’t already. Green buildings will dominate the old Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill and create a strong sustainable community with a very hip town center. The project is being done by Georgetown Land Development Company (GLDC), a socially conscious real estate development firm in Georgetown. GLDC President Stephen Soler took some time to meet with us and discuss the project. Read More.

July 13, 2006 Streetscape plan inches closer
By MAR WALKER, Redding Pilot

Georgetown’s Streetscape project, with about $1.2 million in state and federal grants waiting to be spent, is one small step closer to getting out of the town’s land use office and into reality. According to First Selectman Natalie Ketcham, the town’s engineering consultants, Milone and MacBroom, have agreed to undertake a study of the Georgetown sewer plant’s capacity — a study requested by planners because of the increased density on Main Street that the Streetscape plan would entail. Because of the narrow right-of-way on Main Street, the plan gives a waiver of parking requirements and a “density bonus” of increased allowable lot coverage for property owners who ceded a portion of their frontage to the town. Increased density means more people are flushing. “The Planning Commission wants to make sure we either have the capacity, or could readily add it, if demand required it,” Ms. Ketcham said. The study, which is already under way, is of the sewer plant’s capacity apart from the plant expansion approved for the Georgetown Land Development Company project at the old Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site. Read More

July 6, 2006: In Superior Court DEP to defend Georgetown's sewer plant
By MAR WALKER, Redding Pilot

The Department of Environmental Protection will head to court over a permit it issued last November for the town’s Georgetown Sewer Plant expansion. The permit increases the plant’s allowable discharge to allow for the redevelopment project at the old Gilbert & Bennett wire mill property. Both the permit’s specifics and the DEP’s hearing process are being questioned by a Ridgefield resident, Vincent Giordano, who has filed an administrative appeal against the DEP in Connecticut Superior Court. Mr. Giordano is an environmental attorney for General Electric. He is GE’s grant liaison to EarthPlace, which sponsors the RiverWatch program for the Norwalk River and Long Island Sound. Read More

June 22, 2006: Regional 911 service?
By Susan Wolf, Redding Pilot

A regional 911 dispatch center that would serve four area towns, Wilton, Redding, Weston, and Ridgefield, is on the table, pending a successful grant application and agreement by the towns. Through Congressman Christopher Shays’ office, the town has requested $500,000 in federal funds to create a regional dispatch center in Georgetown. The state is also encouraging this regional approach, said Redding First Selectman Natalie Ketcham. Capt. Crosby said it’s unusual to see a regional dispatch center in southwestern Fairfield County. “It’s something that’s happening in other parts of the country,” he said. Read More

May 18, 2006: Zoners OK G&B Development
By BRIAN GIOIELE, Redding Pilot

Georgetown Land Development Company’s plans for the former Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site were approved, with conditions, by the Zoning Commission last week. The Zoning Commission gave its blessing to the largest project in the town’s history, one that calls for the redevelopment of the 55-acre parcel at an estimated cost of more than $22 million.

The decision was met with applause by those in attendance, including GLDC head Steve Soler, his attorney, Richard Gibbons, and First Selectman Natalie Ketcham. The town and the company have been working in a public-private partnership on the project. The commission’s approval brings an end to a process that included a public hearing continued over four separate meetings and three subsequent discussion sessions. Read More

May 4, 2006: Gilbert & Bennett is one step closer to final approval
By BRIAN GIOIELE, Redding Pilot

The Zoning Commission moved another step closer to a decision on the largest development project in the town’s history. Commission members spent less than an hour last Wednesday tossing out ideas on potential conditions that would be part of any approval of Georgetown Land Development Company’s proposal to redevelop the old Gilbert & Bennett wire mill site. Read More

April 27, 2006: Georgetown Special Taxing District: USDA loan will help finance expansion of sewer plant
By MAGGIE CALDWELL, Redding Pilot

The Georgetown Special Taxing District has received a $5-million, 30-year loan from the USDA Rural Development’s Water and Environment program to fund initial renovations for the Redding wastewater treatment plant. The Union Savings Bank of Danbury is providing the interim construction financing for the loan. Read More

April 18, 2006: Projects bring optimism to Georgetown
By James Lomuscio, Special Correspondent, Stamford Advocate

It's a small, sunken half-acre on the side of the road where Routes 57 and 107 meet, an out-of-sight parcel that few passing motorists would notice. The land was so out of view that the state Department of Transportation used it over the years as a place to dump mounds of concrete and asphalt left over from road repairs. Read More

April 15, 2006: Construction boom keeps mill rate at bay
Danbury News Times

REDDING — Construction of new upscale homes in Redding skyrocketed this year, boosting the town's Grand List 4 percent, to $1.51 billion. Although the municipal and schools budget for 2006-07 is up 8 percent, Redding officials say there will be no increase in the mill rate, now 22.74.

February 17, 2006: Governor Rell, Congressman Shays Announce $600,000 For Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mills Site in Redding

Governor M. Jodi Rell and Congressman Christopher Shays announced today that the state has awarded the town of Redding a $600,000 Small Cities grant for the demolition and cleanup of three buildings located on the old Gilbert and Bennett Wire Mills property. State funding will be used to contain the high amounts of lead, asbestos, and other hazardous materials that currently exist at the site. Read More

EPA 2005 National Award for Smart Growth Achievement

The Gilbert & Bennett wire mill redevelopment is a model for complex reuse projects. The strong public-private partnership invited community input in the design process, facilitated the remediation plan, and expedited adoption of the master plan.

When the neighborhood is complete, the Town of Redding expects that it will create over 1,700 permanent jobs and provide the town with $4.7 million in new, annual property tax revenues. Read More

Dodd, Lieberman, Shays Congratulate Redding on EPA Smart Growth Award

Washington, D.C. – Today, Senators Chris Dodd and Joe Lieberman and Congressman Christopher Shays congratulated the Town of Redding for receiving the National Award for Smart Growth Achievement from the Environmental Protection Agency. Redding was honored for its work with the Georgetown Land Development Company to develop the former Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill into a pedestrian-friendly neighborhood based on the principles of sustainable development. Read More

*And just a note of interest...Gilbert & Bennett's factory in Toccoa, GA is also being renovated:

ITR Industries Inc., headquartered in Long Island, N.Y., will open a steel bathroom partition plant in Toccoa, Ga., this year bringing 60-plus jobs to the local market, said Mitch Griggs, with the Stephens County Development Authority.

The company is buying the former Gilbert and Bennett building on GA 145 and will spend $5 million to renovate the facility. The plant could employ up 100 people as the market grows, Mr. Griggs said.

The Toccoa, GA location is where G&B relocated operations to in 1989.

Georgetown Sewage/Water Treatment Plant Information (off-site link: HVCEO)

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