Congressman Himes has submitted funding requests for important community projects in Connecticut District 4 to the House Appropriations Committee.

Under guidelines issued by the Appropriations Committee, each Representative may request funding for up to 10 projects in their community for fiscal year 2023 – although only a handful may actually be funded. Projects are restricted to a limited number of federal funding streams, and only state and local governments and eligible non-profit entities are permitted to receive funding. Additional information on the reforms governing Community Project Funding is available here.

In compliance with House Rules and Committee requirements, Congressman Himes has certified that he, his spouse, and his immediate family have no financial interest in any of the projects he has requested.

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Projects Requested

NOTE: The projects are listed alphabetically by Subcommittee.

Financial Services and General Government

Small Business Administration, Small Business Initiatives
Project: Expansion of Technical Assistance and Microgrants to Women-Owned Businesses
Project Recipient: Women's Business Development Council, Inc.
Recipient Location: 184 Bedford St #201, Stamford, CT 06901
Requested Amount: $500,000
Project Summary: For the expansion of the Women's Business Development Council Technical Assistance and Microgrant Program, which provides technical assistance and the innovative Opportunity Fund Grant, Equity Match Grant, and Child Care Opportunity Fund programs to minority- and women-owned businesses in the district.
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Homeland Security

Emergency Operations Center Grants
Project: Emergency Support Function Teams Radio Interoperability Upgrade
Project Recipient: City of Bridgeport
Recipient Location: 999 Broad St, Bridgeport, CT 06604
Requested Amount: $2,000,000
Project Summary: For the City of Bridgeport to outfit the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Emergency Support Function Teams (ESF) with radio interoperability equipment to ensure seamless communications are obtained throughout all hazards emergency operations. The City of Bridgeport recently connected to the State of Connecticut Land, Mobile Radio Network (CLMRN) and these EOC agencies need to purchase equipment. 
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Interior and Environment

EPA State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG)
Project: Stamford Bioswales Initiative 
Project Recipient: City of Stamford
Recipient Location: 888 Washington Boulevard, Stamford, CT 06901
Requested Amount: $1,000,000
Project Summary: For the expansion of Stamford’s effective bioswales initiative across the community. This green infrastructure will remove motor oils, gasoline, antifreeze, brake dust, fertilizers, pesticides, and sediment from runoff before these contaminants reach the storm drain. The project will protect ecological and human health. Federal funding will assist the City with the siting, design, and construction of up to 50 bioswales over the next year. Carved out of public sidewalks (measuring 8-10 feet in width), bioswales (at 15-20 feet in length by 4 feet wide) will be located across the public realm.
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Project: Branchville-Georgetown Sanitary Sewer Infrastructure Study
Project Recipient: Western Connecticut Council of Governments
Recipient Location: 1 Riverside Rd, Sandy Hook, CT 06482
Project Location: Branchville section of the Town of Ridgefield and Georgetown section of the Town of Redding
Requested Amount: $200,000
Project Summary: For the development of sanitary sewer infrastructure serving the Branchville and Georgetown sections of the Towns of Ridgefield and Redding, respectively. An engineering feasibility study is required to facilitate this work and is the subject of this request. The proposed sewer infrastructure would allow Branchville to utilize available capacity at the Georgetown Waste Treatment Plant. This infrastructure is crucial to Transit-Oriented Development planning adjacent to the Danbury Branch of the Metro-North Railroad.
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Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education

HRSA Health Facilities Construction and Equipment
Project: Southwest Community Health Center at Madison Avenue Wakeman Boys & Girls Club
Project Recipient: Southwest Community Health Center, Inc.
Recipient Location: 1046 Fairfield Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06605
Requested Amount: $3,000,000 
Project Summary: For the construction and fit out of 10,272 square feet for the Southwest Community Health Center site within the Wakeman Boys & Girls Clubhouse. This site will serve as a community family health hub that will provide a full range of age-appropriate health care services including primary medical care, behavioral health, and dental services.
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Project: Stamford School-Based Health Centers Expansion
Project Recipient: Family Centers Inc. (FCI)
Recipient Location60 Palmer Hill Rd, Stamford, CT 06902
Requested Amount: $1,000,000
Project Summary: For the construction costs of expanding the School Based Health Center (SBHC) program sites at Stamford High School and Turn of River Middle School. The SBHCs are committed to delivering high-quality medical, dental, and mental health services to underserved students at eight public schools in Stamford and one in Greenwich. The program is vital to mitigating barriers to healthcare, particularly for those who are under or uninsured.
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Elementary and Secondary Education- Innovation and Improvement
Project: Norwalk Public Schools K-12 Marine Science Pathway
Project Recipient: Norwalk Public Schools
Recipient Location: 125 East Ave, Norwalk, CT 06852
Requested Amount: $1,323,660
Project Summary: For a new K-12 Marine Science Pathway in Norwalk Public Schools in partnership with the The Maritime Aquarium (TMA). Working together, NPS and The Maritime Aquarium (TMA) will create a sustained, relevant and motivating program that will deliver on core STEM educational goals while training children from a broad demographic mix, especially from lower-income families, to be better prepared to secure good, well-paying jobs in a critical sector of the local economy.
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Employment and Training Administration, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 
Project: ProjectRISE
Project Recipient: The WorkPlace 
Recipient Location: 1000 Lafayette Blvd Suite 501, Bridgeport, CT 06604
Requested Amount: $1,000,000
Project Summary:
For ProjectRISE to provide a new remote work credential and a wellness/resiliency model currently unexplored in workforce development services. This will provide primarily unemployed and underemployed women of color with the digital skills now required by many employers as well as a wellness program that will include behavioral health programming, nutrition, and strategies to address anxiety and stress common in job seekers. The WorkPlace will offer candidates its recognized workforce readiness curriculum to address resume development, job search, interviewing skills, communication, training for in-demand occupations, as well as, emotional support techniques aimed at helping build confidence in themselves and their employment outlook.
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Transportation and Housing and Urban Development

Economic Development Initiative
Project: Stamford East Side Library Branch  
Project Recipient: City of Stamford
Recipient Location: 888 Washington Boulevard, Stamford, CT 06901
Requested Amount: $3,000,000
Project Summary: Stamford’s disadvantaged East Side currently experiences a book desert. While the Ferguson Library manages a bookmobile that makes scheduled stops throughout the community, East Side residents face challenges accessing the main library branch in the downtown core. The recent closure of a community center on the East Side further limits public places where families can gather. Funding would be used for the design and construction of a new satellite of the Ferguson Library system on the East Side of Stamford. The 10,000 square-foot building will replace a dilapidated structure on Courtland Avenue that must be torn down. The new structure will serve as both a library and community center.
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Project: Norwalk YMCA Community Center
Project Recipient: The Riverbrook Regional YMCA
Project Location: 404 Danbury Rd, Wilton, CT 06897
Requested Amount: $2,000,000
Project Summary: The Riverbrook Regional YMCA is seeking $2,000,000 to provide their Y Without Walls services to the South Norwalk community.

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Project: Wilton High School Sports Complex Sewer Updates
Project Recipient: Town of Wilton Department of Public Works
Project Location:Wilton High School Sports Complex Resiliency Project
Requested Amount: $1,425,000
Project Summary: For the enhancement of the storm sewer system surrounding the stadium turf at the Wilton High School Sports Complex. The Sports Complex is adjacent to an intermittent stream, and the existing drainage system can only mitigate a 2- year and 5-year storm event. Upgrading the storm sewer system would make it capable of handling a 100-year storm impact. The proposed improvements include installing rip rap and a berm along the incoming stream and installing a 48-inch pipe from the incoming stream to the existing downstream pond.
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Project: Homes for the Brave
Project Recipient: Applied Behavioral Rehabilitation Institute, Inc.
Recipient Location: 655 Park Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06605
Requested Amount: $1,500,000
Project Summary: For the rehabilitation of the current Homes for the Brave (HFTB) facility.
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Project: Hanover Street Housing Construction
Project Recipient: Baldwin Holdings Inc. 
Project Location: 344-346 Hanover St, Brdigeport, CT 06605
Requested Amount: $1,976,691
Project Summary: For the construction of three/three-bedroom wood-frame townhouses at 344-346 Hanover Street comprising 9 units of housing that will be occupied by families that participate in the Housing Choice Voucher Project-Based Program.
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Project: Veterans Community Center
Project Recipient: Town of Trumbull
Project Location: 1 Veterans Circle, Trumbull, CT 06611
Requested Amount: $3,000,000
Project Summary: For a 5,500 square foot multi-use Veterans and Community Center for Trumbull and the region’s veterans, small businesses, civic groups, and residents. The VFRC would provide access to jobs, healthcare, workforce training and other services to over 30,000 veterans in the region.  It will serve as a facility for workforce training needs and as a space for local groups including the Chamber of Commerce, Economic and Community Development Office and Commission, and the Trumbull Rotary for business events and community engagement.
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Transit Infrastructure Projects
Project: Wall Street Corridor Improvement
Project Recipient: City of Norwalk
Recipient Location: City Hall Drive, Norwalk, CT 06851
Requested Amount: $5,500,000
Project Summary: For the revitalization of Norwalk’s City Center through the implementation of a more comprehensive and balanced transportation system that addresses this important east-west vehicular connection while prioritizing safety and multimodal accessibility. Funding would go toward improvements to convert Burnell Boulevard to a two-way roadway, improvements to the bus transit hub on Burnell Boulevard, a road diet and intersection improvements on Main Street, and betterments to the public right of way.
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