Department
of Public Works
At a Glance
RAEANNE V. CURTIS, Commissioner
Jonathan Holmes, Deputy
Commissioner
David O’Hearn, Deputy Commissioner
Established - 1987
Statutory authority – CGS
Chapters 59 and 60, 4b-1 et seq.
Central office - 165 Capitol
Avenue,
Hartford, CT 06106
Number of permanent full-time
employees – 168
Recurring operating expenses
– $53.7 million
Organizational structure -
Office of the Commissioner; Facilities Management; and Design and Construction.
Mission
To be
the leader in providing quality facilities and in delivering cost-effective,
responsive, timely services to state agencies in the areas of planning, design,
construction, facilities management, leasing, property
disposition and security.
With our diverse, competent workforce, to partner with our customers
and industry providers, to make the best use of the state’s resources.
Statutory
Responsibility
The Department of Public Works (DPW) is responsible for the design and construction of nearly all major state facility capital projects, leasing and property acquisitions for most state agencies, facility management, maintenance and security of state buildings in the greater Hartford area as well as certain properties outside of the Hartford area, and the administrative functions of establishing and maintaining security standards for certain state facilities and surplus property statewide.
The department also assists agencies and departments with long-term facilities planning and the preparation of cost estimates for such plans.
DPW provides facility-related services to the majority of Connecticut’s state agencies and commissions. Many DPW services, such as fire protection, preventive maintenance, building improvements, recycling, housekeeping, security, parking and snow and ice removal, also benefit members of the public who visit the facilities. It is the policy of DPW to work in close cooperation with its client agencies to ensure that the finished product reflects the needs of the agency and facilitates the delivery of their services for their clients.
Improvements/Achievements
2009-10
Construction Services
During fiscal year 2009-10, DPW completed several significant construction projects including:
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Additions and renovations at
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Additions and renovations at
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Renovations and improvements at
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Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory Phase
III addition in
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A new Police Facility at
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A new
DPW’s largest construction project
on-going is the planned new campus for Gateway Community College on Church
Street in downtown New Haven. Estimated
at a construction cost of $152 million, this state-of-the-art
360,000-square-foot higher education project will be the state’s first
gold-certified LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) public
building. As a LEED project, the new
campus will feature an environmentally friendly design, sustainable building
construction, and utilize renewable and alternative energy technologies. Energy sources will include solar, hot water,
and photovoltaics, reducing carbon dioxide emissions
and lowering the demand on existing energy utilities. The project also includes a 600-car parking
garage, and DPW has also completed an agreement to lease 700 spaces in
In addition to Gateway Community College, another key DPW project underway in construction is the $61.7 million Public Health Laboratory in Rocky Hill.
The site is located adjacent to the
Veterans Home and Hospital and across the street from Dinosaur State Park. This modern laboratory facility will replace
the existing out-dated Public Health Lab in
Additional major DPW projects that entered the construction phase during the fiscal year are the $38.3 million Norwalk Community College, Phase II, West Campus Development, known as the Center for Science, Health and Wellness, in Norwalk; the $27.5 million (federally funded) Connecticut Army National Guard Regional Training Institute, Phase I, at Camp Rell in Niantic; a $16.2 million parking garage at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic; the $3.2 million additions to the New Haven Regional Fire Academy in New Haven; and the $3 million (includes $1 million in federal funding) Silver Sands State Park/Walnut Beach Boardwalk in Milford.
The Department signed four substantial architecture contracts during the year. Firms were contracted to design a new Academic Laboratory Building at Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven estimated at $44.8 million; a Middle College High School at Quinebaug Valley Community College in Danielson estimated at $17.9 million; new space for the Judicial Branch at 80 Washington Street in Hartford estimated at $2.2 million; and a new Group Home for the Department of Developmental Services in Putnam estimated at $883,800.
During the year, four key DPW-administered projects for the Department of Veterans’ Affairs started construction at the Veterans Home and Hospital in Rocky Hill. The projects, totaling $9.1 million, are 65 percent federally-funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The work consists of roof replacements, ramps, and bathrooms at Buildings 2, 3 and 4; heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) upgrades, and fire suppression renovations at Buildings 3 and 4.
During the fiscal year, the DPW Technical Services Unit continued to implement projects under the $5 million U.S. Department of Energy, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, State Facilities Energy Conservation grant. DPW completed nine projects during the fiscal year and has several others under construction or development. These energy conservation projects are calculated to save state facilities over $600,000 annually. DPW plans to complete this program in early 2011.
The projects are also expected to create business for energy-related installers, engineers and suppliers, and help produce jobs.
Energy upgrade contracts signed during fiscal year 2009-10 included projects at the Danbury Superior Courthouse, state offices at 410-470 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, the state Department of Environmental Protection headquarters at 79 Elm Street in Hartford, and at Bullard Havens Technical High School in Bridgeport. The work consists of boiler and cooling system replacements, converting to more efficient lighting, pump motors and fans, HVAC system control automation, and humidifier repairs.
The DPW Technical Services Unit has also utilized funding from the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund to provide energy-saving retrofit opportunities in various state buildings. Measures involve lighting replacements, installation of occupancy sensors and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system controls, and replacement of major HVAC equipment. Seven projects are currently in construction or development.
The DPW Technical Services Unit has been operating the Capitol Area Energy System (CAS) since June 2009. The system currently serves ten state-owned and four private facilities in the vicinity of the Capitol, including the Bushnell Theater, with hot and chilled water for space heating and cooling. During the fiscal year DPW put in place an aggressive maintenance program and has completed several significant improvement projects; including the replacement of the existing 30 year-old control system with a state-of-the-art computer-based system. This system will provide the operators, as well as DPW management staff, real-time access to the system operation information. The state has realized significant cost-savings from its operation of the system during the year.
Also during the fiscal year, the state received rebates worth more than $400,000 for three DPW construction projects aimed at making state buildings more energy efficient. The state received a check from Norwich Public Utilities for $79,219 for energy improvement projects at the Uncas-on-Thames complex in Norwich, $298,103 from the Connecticut Light and Power Company for the newly constructed additions and renovations at A.I. Price Technical High School in Hartford, and $32,750 from the CL&P for an energy upgrade at the University of Connecticut Health Center’s 65 Kane Street facility in West Hartford. The funds were awarded through the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund. The energy improvements at Prince Tech included more efficient heating and cooling systems, transformers and windows built into the design of the new additions. The other buildings’ improvements consisted of energy efficient lighting inside and out, low wattage LED installation, and occupancy sensors.
On March 25, 2010, at the request of the
Japanese Consulate, DPW’s Bureau of Design and Construction (BDC) met with a
delegation from Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The meeting was designed to provide the
visitors from
The ten-member group consisted of senior managers in Japan’s Bidding System Planning Office, and representatives from Japanese construction corporations, associations, and insurance companies. The presentation was conducted by DPW’s managing attorney and DPW’s design and construction managers. In the CMR delivery system, the selection process is based on aspects other than total cost, and the CMR contract typically sets a guaranteed maximum price. The CMR holds the trade contracts and takes on the performance risk. The architect and CMR have separate contracts with the state.
Legal Services
During the fiscal year, the Legal Services Division reviewed some 172 contract documents, involving consulting contracts, design build contracts, and construction manager at risk contracts with a total value of $245.1 million. They consisted of 12 contracts valued at a total of $25.8 million; 79 task letters valued at $2.7 million; 24 commission letters valued at $0.73 million; 10 amendments valued at $3.1 million; 45 on-call contracts valued at $19.9 million, and 2 construction manager at risk contracts valued at $192.7 million.
The legal unit also reviewed design-bid-build contracts, real estate agreements, leases, license agreements, easements, and professional service agreements. The legal unit was also responsible for performing legal research, assisting in the preparation of legislation and processing requests under the Freedom of Information Act.
During the fiscal year DPW issued Requests
For Proposals (RFPs) for the sale of four surplus
properties: Nathan Hale Hall, 833 Main Street, Willimantic; Seaside Regional
Center, 36 Shore Road, Waterford; Bristol Armory, 61 Center Street, Bristol;
and Litchfield Jail, 7 North Street, Litchfield. Three of the properties, Nathan Hale Hale,
Facilities Management
During fiscal year 2009-2010, the Facilities Management division implemented various measures to produce savings. Cost-cutting reported by the Department’s Financial Office included a reduction in hours that state buildings remain open during the work week and closing buildings on weekends; changing the hours cleaning services are performed; and modifications to the security services.
Additional savings were achieved through reductions in the purchases of supplies and equipment; and repairing rather than replacing infrastructure systems and equipment. In addition, some cost savings were realized by merging property management contracts, and using Department trades personnel to make repairs that were previously performed by contracted services.
The pilot phase of the division’s computer-aided facilities management system (CAFM) was completed during the year. The new system is designed to automate space planning, leasing and work orders. In addition, the division’s building drawings were converted into the automated computer-aided drafting format (ACAD) to integrate with CAFM.
Facilities Management took on care and
control of newly-acquired 129 Lafayette Street in Hartford, the former Second
Church of Christ, Scientist. The division is assisting in the design and
development of the facility to transform the 1920s Georgian revival church
building into a performance center. During
the winter, the division is supporting the City of
Facilities Management also took on care and control of Cedarcrest Hospital in Newington, a closed state-owned psychiatric facility. The property consists of 12 buildings on 75 acres of land. The state is currently exploring re-use options for this surplus site.
During the year, the division worked closely with DPW’s energy group to complete the installation of lighting energy retrofits at Sigourney Street, 79 Elm Street, and 410-474 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, and at the Uncas-on-Thames Campus. Work also included replacing the fire alarm systems at the Mystic Campus in Groton, and upgrading elevators at state offices at 410-470 Capitol Avenue in Hartford.
The division also completed numerous repairs
involving preventative maintenance, indoor air quality resolutions, and environmental,
fire and safety code issues. In
addition, space re-utilization planning was completed for the
During fiscal year 2009-2010, DPW staff
members participated in continuity of operations pandemic drills conducted by
the state Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security
(DEMHS). Staff also updated the DPW
pandemic manual. Members of DPW’s
Incident Management Team participated in a major influenza pandemic statewide
simulation exercise for
DPW’s security unit continued to improve the overall level of security for state employees, clients, visitors, and assets of the State of Connecticut in both state-owned and leased facilities.
In 2009–10, the Leasing and Property Transfer section’s portfolio consisted of approximately 2.6 million square feet of office space for 80 state agencies. There are 181 leases (a reduction of four leases from the previous period) and another approximately 70 lease-outs for a total of 251 lease agreements. During the fiscal year, four state leasing agents handled the unit’s numerous projects. The Leasing Unit continues to reduce the amount of square footage leased by collapsing leases when possible and placing agencies in state owned space.
The Leasing Unit continued its series of informational sessions for the agencies it serves, explaining the leasing process from start to finish. The unit’s goal is to facilitate future leasing needs by ensuring that agencies know the proper procedures.
During the year, DPW Leasing completed more than 18 agreements for a variety of state agencies.
The DPW Property Transfer unit was engaged in procedures involved in disposing of eight state surplus properties. The unit has also commenced the process of acquiring real properties for the Commission on Fire Prevention and Control and for the Connecticut State University System.
Information Reported as Required by Statute
The DPW 2009 Affirmative
Action Plan was brought into compliance with state regulations during the
fiscal year.
The Commission on Human
Rights and Opportunities’ (CHRO) approved the plan at the May 12, 2010
Commission meeting. Required revisions were implemented and submitted to CHRO
on June 9, 2010. During DPW’s last Affirmative Action Reporting Period, the
agency’s workforce consisted of 167 employees. Of those represented, 58.1
percent were white males; 22.8 percent were white females; and 19.2 percent
were minorities.
The Department’s contract
compliance record during the past year exceeded the goals set for both Small
Business Enterprises (SBE) and Minority/Women-Owned Business Enterprises
(MBE/WBE). DPW achieved 158 percent of the SBE goal and 147 percent of
the MBE/WBE goal. In dollar amounts, the DPW goals were SBE - $16,709,484
and MBE/WBE - $4,177,371. Of the year’s
total expenditures, $26,461,796 went to SBE and $6,143,199 went to MBE/WBE.
The Department is committed to the principles and practices of affirmative action and strives to increase the representation of women and minorities through providing opportunities for upward mobility, and promoting small and minority-owned businesses through a strong contract compliance program.
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