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State grant to clear two Thermos buildings in Norwich for solar array
Aug. 31—NORWICH — When Gerald Dillenbeck looks out his window at the Thermos on the Thames condominium complex, he sees a rundown, blighted former factory building and a sliver of a view of the Thames River.
Dillenbeck, president of the condo owners' association, said two of the issues condo owners have discussed is what to do about that blight and how to address high energy bills.
Dillenbeck made the comments during a news conference Wednesday to celebrate a $2 million state brownfields mitigation grant that will be used to demolish and clean two former Thermos factory buildings, making way for the installation of solar panels to provide power to the 16-acre complex.
"This public-private partnership to get this grant was exactly what we needed," he said. "And, in fact this was the only thing we could access to help us move forward."
The state Department of Economic and Community Development awarded the grant to the Norwich Community Development Corp. to oversee the project. NCDC will go out to bid for a solar contractor for the project. The electricity generated will power the complex first, with any excess power sold to Norwich Public Utilities. The condo unit association owns the property.
NCDC President Kevin Brown noted the "amazing history" at the Thermos factory that came to Norwich in 1913 after the city agreed to provide the 27 acres of land for free to the company which went on to manufacture a world famous product.
Brown said it's now time to create a future for the property and the entire Norwich waterfront. NCDC has applied for additional state grant funds to improve the entire city waterfront from Norwich Harbor down to the Thermos complex.
Mayor Peter Nystrom, who had worked at the Thermos complex, said cleaning up the 16 waterfront acres will make the entire waterfront more inviting to other developers and residents along the waterfront. Nystrom thanked the state and legislative leaders for supporting the grant funds for the Thermos site and other projects in the city.
Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said the goal of brownfields money is to encourage private developers to invest in properties once they are cleaned up.
"The projects happening here in Norwich are building back Norwich to its grandeur, brick by brick by brick," state Sen. Cathy Osten said, D-Sprague. "And that's what we're trying to do there, to make sure the differences we make here are visible, so that people have confidence in seeing an end in sight."