(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that the State of Connecticut is releasing more than $5.1 million in state funding to make additional renovations and improvements to building infrastructure at the campus of the Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs in Rocky Hill.

These funds, which were approved last week at a meeting of the State Bond Commission, include:

• $4.3 million to build a critically needed second boiler for heat and hot water on the campus, which currently only has one operating boiler. This will cover contingency for design and construction of a high-energy, high-efficiency boiler and the implementation of a state-of-the-art energy management system.
• $801,440 for multiple safety and security upgrades across the campus that will be matched by $1,272,960 in federal grant funds from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. This combined funding will support:
  
  • New security gate arms at the campus entrance
  • New gate house to eliminate personnel cross traffic
  • New security cameras
  • Campus-wide mass notification system
  • Door locks and controls for residential facility wings
  • Panic alert systems
  • Security access systems
  • Operations/information center in building 2 to monitor all life safety and energy management systems

Services provided on the campus include residential care, long-term skilled nursing care, and other types of assistance needed by the state’s veterans and their families. More than 200 veterans and five families currently live on the campus.

“We need to do everything we can to improve education, health, housing, and employment opportunities for veterans,” said Governor Lamont, who serves as chairman of the State Bond Commission. “The campus in Rocky Hill has been supporting residential and nursing services to our state’s veterans since 1940, and it is incumbent upon us to ensure that these facilities remain in good repair so that our veterans and their families continue to have the support they deserve. They served our country with dignity and honor, and these investments demonstrate the state’s ongoing commitment to support veterans and service members.”

“It is important that we recognize and give thanks to our state’s dedicated veterans who have helped to maintain the freedom and liberties that are at the core of our democracy,” said Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz. “Together with our Department of Veterans Affairs, our administration is committed to serving those who have served for us, and our veterans deserve opportunity, recognition, and relief. The state funding to make these necessary renovations and improvements to the Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs campus will ensure that our veterans are getting the services and resources they need, efficiently and effectively.”

“My thanks to Director of Projects and Operations Joe Danao, Fiscal Administrative Manager Briana Mitchell, and their respective teams for all the hard work to make this happen,” Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Thomas J. Saadi said. “Also, many thanks to Governor Lamont and the members of the State Bond Commission for supporting these projects, and to Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes and her team for the extraordinary coordination with the Department of Veterans Affairs on the boiler and energy efficiency project funding.”

Since 2019, the Lamont administration has invested approximately $9 million in state funding for infrastructure improvements and renovations to facilities operated by Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs. In addition to the funding announced today, these investments include:

• $1,285,072 for Americans with Disabilities Act improvements to buildings 2, 3, and 4 of the Rocky Hill campus (September 2019)
• $800,000 in state matching funds for costs not included under a federal grant-in-aid for renovations to the Connecticut State Veterans Cemetery in Middletown (April 2019)
• $187,000 for additional costs associated with hazardous material abatement for the fire alarm and sprinkler project at the Rocky Hill campus (December 2019)
• $75,000 for emergency generator upgrades at the Rocky Hill campus (April 2020)
• $250,000 for the use of emergency capital funds as needed (April 2020)
• $282,285 to finance the design for the replacement of two central steam boilers for the Rocky Hill campus (April 2021)
• $285,000 for alterations, renovations, and improvements at the Rocky Hill campus (July 2021)
• $100,000 for roof repairs, leaking system repairs, and emergency items at the Rocky Hill campus (December 2021)
• $595,000 to fund the design and replacement of three condemned boilers at the Rocky Hill campus (March 2022)

 

Read on CT.gov