Hartford Business Journal

6 Hartford Business Journal • January 25, 2016 www.HartfordBusiness.com ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & CONSTRUCTION Bronin, Centerplan, Yard Goats reach Hftd. stadium settlement Hartford mayor Luke Bronin announced last week that the city has reached a settlement with the developer of Dunkin' Donuts stadium and its Double A tenant baseball team, the Hartford Yard Goats. It sets a May 17 stadium construction completion date, with the first pitch likely being thrown as early as May 31. The settlement calls for the Yard Goats to put up $2 million and for the devel- oper, DoNo Hartford LLC, to put up $2.3 million in the form of higher payments in lieu of taxes to help eliminate an estimated $10.4 million in construction cost overruns. DoNo Hartford will also pay approximately $225,000 per year in ad- ditional taxes on the DoNo development for the life of any bonds issued by the city or the Hartford Stadium Authority. Hartford taxpayers initially will have to shoulder $5.5 million in addition- al debt to fill the cost gap. However, the additional annual tax payments from DoNo will offset that amount to $3.5 million, leaving the city on the hook for about a third of the funding gap. The stadium's original pricetag was $56 million, but the project developer, Middletown-based Centerplan Cos., revealed in December that the project was about $10 million over budget. BDL once again gets nonstop LAX flight Less than 18 months after stopping nonstop service, American Airlines will once again offer direct flights to Los Angeles from Bradley International Airport. The difference this time, according to Kevin Dillon, executive director of the Connecticut Airport Authority, is much lower fuel prices and better timing for launching the flight. He said the 2013 service, which was discontinued in Aug. 2014, began at the end of summer. This new flight starts at the beginning of June, which provides a full summer of traffic to boost the numbers. He said the decision to end the flight last time after only a year of service was largely based on winter performance. Dillon said the flight was also evaluated as part of the ongoing merger between U.S. Air and American in 2014. That merger has since completed. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said the resumed service should be good for both busi- ness and tourism. ECONOMY & LABOR CT top 10 state for living paycheck to paycheck A new study says Connecticut is the 10th highest state for its residents living paycheck to paycheck. High food and housing costs were the culprits. The study by GoBankingRate.com said Connecticut residents need almost all their paycheck to get by because of the relatively high cost of food (the second highest in the U.S. at $353 per paycheck) and the high cost of housing ($738 per paycheck). The average Connecticut resident has less than a quarter of their paycheck left for other expenses, or about $663. The wages are based on the state's me- dian income of $70,161, which is fourth highest in the country. According to the Department of Economic and Community Development, the state's per-capita income in 2013 was $37,892, second highest in the country behind the District of Columbia. Forbes IDs Hartford's richest person Forbes is out with its report on the richest people in America's 50 largest cities. Hartford's richest person is the head of one of the city's largest insurance companies but he's also the poorest person on the list. The distinction goes to Mark Bertolini, chairman and CEO of Aetna. The divorced father of two has a net worth of $180 million, which Forbes said comes from being self-made, in addition to his work at Aetna. The website said he is the poorest person on the list. Comparatively, Bill Gates tops the list at $77.2 billion. HEALTH CARE Smoking in CT carries high price tag Smoking is an expensive habit, not to mention a potentially deadly one, and Connecticut is one of the most expensive states in which to light up, according to a new study. A smoker's direct and indirect costs over a lifetime exceed $2.1 million in Connecticut, according to a WalletHub analysis. The study calculated the potential monetary losses — including the cumula- tive cost of a cigarette pack per day over several decades, healthcare expendi- tures, income losses and other costs — brought on by smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke. Only Hawaii, Alaska, Massachusetts and New York cost more for smokers over a lifetime. GOVERNMENT, POLITICS & LAW Three CT cities among top 20 for unfunded pension liabilities The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College has determined three major Connecticut cities are among the top 20 for highest pension liabilities. The survey looked at 173 major cities across the United States. New Haven has an unfunded actuarial accrued liability (UAAL) of $505 million and a UAAL relative to own-source revenue, which measures the city's pension funding without state aid factored in, of 173 percent. The national average is 86 percent. That ranks New Haven 14th. The center said in a statement new accounting provisions — GASB 68 — require localities in state cost-sharing plans to report their share of the plan's unfunded liability on their books. This change severely increases the unfunded liabilities of the affected cities, though the state's unfunded liabilities drop by a corresponding amount. New Haven is followed closely by New Britain, which has a UAAL of $254 million. Its UAAL relative to own-source revenue is 167 percent, which gives it a ranking of 15th. Hartford has a UAAL of $526 million. Its UAAL relative to own-source revenue is 159 percent, which ranks it 18th. Bridgeport also made the list, ranking 60th with a UAAL of $252 million and a UAAL relative to own-source revenue of 78 percent. Dairy trucks get exemption from CT weight limits U.S. Reps. Joe Courtney and Elizabeth Esty hailed the passage of new federal regulations that permit Connecticut dairy trucks to travel at full capacity. Until the approval, the trucks could only travel at 80 percent capacity. Courtney, who co-chairs the Congressional Dairy Caucus, said he advocated for its passage because small-and medium-sized dairy farmers couldn't fully use the container space in their milk trucks. He said it would also reduce truck traffic on state roads. The new weight exemption will allow haulers to transport the same volume of fluid milk in four full milk trucks compared to the five partially filled milk trucks used to meet existing weight restrictions, Courtney said in a statement. BY THE NUMBERS $450,000 The total value of the wage and benefit concessions agreed too by members of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, to prevent the Symphony from dissolving amid financial woes. 87% Connecticut's 2015 high school graduation rate, which is up 5.2 percentage points since 2010, according to the state. $14,769 The state pension liability per Connecticut resident, which is the third highest in the country, according to a CNBC analysis. $42B The additional revenue that would be raised over the next 30 years if the new tax hikes and tolls proposed by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's Transportation Finance Panel were adopted. TOP 5 MOST READ on HartfordBusiness.com ■ Forbes IDs Hartford's richest person ■ West Hartford, Simsbury top work-life balance rankings ■ Bronin, Centerplan, Yard Goats reach Hftd. stadium settlement ■ CT top 10 state for living paycheck to paycheck ■ Three CT cities among top 20 for unfunded pension liabilities STAY CONNECTED For breaking and daily Greater Hartford business news go to www.HartfordBusiness.com. HBJ on Twitter: @HartfordBiz HBJ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HartfordBiz HBJ on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ the-Hartford-Business-Journal Daily e-newsletters: HBJ Today, CT Morning Blend www.HartfordBusiness.com/subscribe Weekly e-newsletters: CT Green Guide Weekly, CT Health Care Weekly www.HartfordBusiness.com/subscribe WEEK IN REVIEW Hartford Symphony Orchestra Music Director Carolyn Kuan agreed to a pay cut to keep the organization afloat. TOP STORY Symphony approves musicians' contract The Hartford Symphony Orchestra has approved major union conces- sions, but still must work on short-and long-term financial goals, an ex- ecutive said. Steve Collins, Hartford Symphony Orchestra director of artistic operations and administration, said the union has agreed to $450,000 in annual con- cessions over the duration of the organization's new four-year contract that expires in Aug. 2019. He would not provide specifics on how union pay was affected. Collins did say union members' hourly rate would not decline but the number of guaranteed performances would. Ten new positions will also be added to the musicians' ranks. The symphony has also committed to reducing expenses and increas- ing fundraising by $700,000, Collins said. He said cost savings could be achieved in part by renegotiating vendor agreements and looking at em- ployee efficiencies, which currently do not include layoffs. The remainder of the 2015-2016 symphony season will proceed as planned, but there may be some modifications to specific programs, he said. P H O T O | C O N T R I B U T E D

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