Zoning Headwind Slows Renewable Energy Project

Development and Zoning, News and Events15 Comments

From Brian Lockhart CT Post

Previously heralded by local leaders as “more than a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform the city with thousands of jobs and more than a billion dollars in direct investment,” the Park City Wind renewable energy project’s construction phase has suffered a setback due to a local zoning change.

As reported recently, despite an announcement in May 2021 that Park City Wind had leased some East End harborfront property from the Bridgeport/Port Jefferson ferry company as a temporary staging area for its offshore wind farm, that deal is not finalized.

The exact reasons were at the time not made clear. But this week representatives with the ferry company and Avangrid Renewables, owner of Park City Wind, acknowledged a municipally-approved zoning change to the former’s 18-acre Seaview Avenue land–dubbed Barnum Landing–complicated the situation.

Bridgeport Economic Development Director Tom Gill’s department over the past couple of years spearheaded Zone Bridgeport, an overhaul of the city’s zoning regulations and map resulting from the updating of Bridgeport’s 10-year master plan. There was first lots of public outreach, with the recommended changes finalized last year by the mayoral-appointed zoning commission and implemented Jan. 1.

… “That’s still the project we’d like to see,” Gill said, adding, “We are working with Avangrid. We want to see that (Park City Wind) coming into the port, also.”

Full story here.

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15 comments

  1. The message here is unclear.
    It sounds like a recent zoning change acts as an impediment to progress.
    Fortunately, what’s been done can be undone.
    But as long as a Coming Soon sign appears over the Majestic Theater,
    I will encourage the Mayor to appoint Local Eyes as Bridgeport’s Economic Director!

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      1. You’re hopeless!
        The project I was referring to was The Park City Wind project not the new zoning rules.
        Bridgeport is full of winners — when will you join their ranks?

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          1. You called me a vulgar name — you know that that means ?
            It means you’re not invited to my next birthday party!
            No tears, okay?

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  2. John, to touch on or piggyback on Jeff’s comment about the Port being a “failed city” The Port has a finite of prime waterfront property yet outside forces (Jeff’s it could be that Gold Coast you speak or) along with generally self-serving politicians who don’t give a rats ass about the Port or its best interest who push projects like this that used that prime waterfront land as a staging area or should I say a storage/junkyard.

    Out of all the available locations along the upper East Coast that are better suited for these projects, does anyone think this project picked the Port as its “staging area” because it has the best interest of the Port and its future for that land’s development? Please.

    They wrap it up in nice job creation and an environmental package that gives sounds of the silence of the approval of a job well done. .JS

    P.S speaking of sounds, the Sound on the Sound music festival name is lacking. It should have been the.” Sounds on the Sound” Sounds (music, plural) on the Long Island Sound (singular) . Thus, The Sounds on the Sound. It is more appealing to the ear. However, the Port expects nothing less than half-hearted shit. 🙂

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAEppFUWLfc

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  3. Just think: Bridgeport Harbor — where ships would arrive from around the world, bringing music aficionados to the most-expensive plastic-bubble orchestra-pit-on-the-tracks in the Western Hemisphere — set against 18 acres of waterfront dock space crammed full of behemoth wind-turbine constituents and moving equipment…

    What a sight! And what economic vision!! Harbor full of tethered and untethered, overloaded barges (Let’s rename it Barge Harbor! Maybe it’s also time to rename the city Barge Harbor?!). Dockside terminal space crammed full of cranes and behemoth rollers, unable to otherwise accommodate passenger or freight traffic… (But don’t fret, those passenger ships weren’t coming to the Plastic Bubble anyway… Gang warfare on Bridgeport’s streets discouraged any real numbers of visitors…)

    And the jobs? Why, the jobs for Bridgeporters created by this project could number in the TENS! And the municipal tax base will expand by almost as much as it costs the city to accommodate the project! (An added bonus for Bridgeport is that it would get to host more permanent, electric-utility infrastructure on its waterfront, even as Bridgeport ratepayers help to pay for it with ridiculously higher rates that essentially cedes ownership of the wind and ocean to electric utility companies. And the added energy supply for the region will certainly help the down-county economy…)

    Yep. Things are sure looking up in Joe Ganim’s Bridgeport (Barge Harbor, CT) — the Music Capital of the World!!

    But, in all seriousness; let’s hope that this stupid deal goes out with tide. Let’s turn economic development planning over to one of the Bridgeport magnet schools’ 6th-grade classes and see if they can’t come up with a few dozen ideas of real merit for the use of Bridgeport’s numerous natural assets. They can only do better than what has been presented by the “professionals” over the past 50 years…

    Cheers!

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    1. I hear you, Jeff.

      The site seems willfully inadequite, not to mention the logistics to the particle building of the wind farm itself. The practicality seems retarded to me that this site is any staging for the construction of the wind farm. These turbines are humongous. What are they planning to stage on the site? The odds of any of the main components seem retarded to ber transported to this site for staging, deep into Long Island Sound just to be transferred to the actual location is beyond beleif.

      Can’t see these large components being shipped to the Port by 95 to this site for staging. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uz5KCjyISM

      The site itself is not fitted to load or unload these components. I guess that is why Park City Winds make the claim the site is to provide “critical services for the project’s long-term operations”

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDvS7tizetg

      So when you ask way the Port tends to be a failed city? It shit like this, putting its limited water front property on ice for 20 years to service a wind farm off of Martha’s Vinyard. But with billions in federal funding icing Port’s property for meaningful development is feasible with its pols with their hand out. JS

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  5. A final point on the subject. While the concept is cool in the technology and employment aspect of offshore energy. but the Port to uses its finite front water property for something like these is why the Port is a failed city. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0jIkg12P6k

    It is clear, will to me, that they have already tested the waters on upper East Coast offshore wind farming. Besides teh fact the Port being deep into Long Island Sound they seem to have already established an infrastructure much loser to the actual site. There is no question in my mind between Rhode Island and Mass they have all the docking needs that are much better to facilitate this project. Even New London is better suited for the temporary installation of this project than the Port.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moEnjBBO6_w

    Since this seems to be long-term use of the land the Port is just being used on one aspect while demising the potential of or waterfront property in its future to service Mass, because if you think the project benefits Connecticut for its energy needs, Please. JS

    Marcus M. This is where you can call out Brown that I can agree with, outside of political ploys. It appears he followed the money. Not sure if this is all entertainment. But even so, it is on the wrong side of the Port’s best interest in its future. I am out of here, good luck Port. you are going to need it.

    P.S, You make me sad, people, more than missing Blind Motherf$%ker’s birthday party. 😥

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQoFrRq6Ds8

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