Hartford Business Journal

6 Hartford Business Journal • October 3, 2016 www.HartfordBusiness.com TOP STORY Aer Lingus' Bradley-to-Ireland nonstop takes flight Aer Lingus' nonstop flight from Bradley International Airport to Dublin, Ireland launched last week bringing to fruition a long-awaited debut aimed at furthering trans-Atlantic travel for Connecticut's business community. Aer Lingus is bringing travelers from the U.S. to Dublin, Ireland, and back, but since Dublin is a major European hub, the extension of travel through it is a vital new Bradley service, said Kevin Dillon, Bradley's CEO and executive director of the Connecticut Airport Authority, which over- sees the Windsor Locks airfield. "We have spent a fair amount of time educating the business community on the benefits of utilizing this flight," Dillon said. "It's precleared, [meaning] when you return to the U.S. you actually clear U.S. customs in Dublin while waiting for the flight, so it's a huge time saver and a huge selling point." Dublin's link to other European hubs makes the flight valuable for business travel, he added. The flight launches travel seven days a week until Nov. 1. From then through March the flight will have a more limited schedule, and then resume the full schedule in late spring, he added. BY THE NUMBERS 20.5% The percentage of Connecticut homes sold via cash sale in the month of June, which was down 6.3 percentage points from a year earlier, according to CoreLogic. 276 The number of new Connecticut housing permits issued in August, up from 241 permits issued in the year-ago period. 43rd Connecticut's 2016 U.S. business climate ranking, according to the Tax Foundation. 8.5% The percentage drop in violent crime in Connecticut last year, which was the second largest decline in the country. TOP 5 MOST READ on HartfordBusiness.com ■ CT's Dillion finalist for Fla. airport slot ■ Capital Workforce Partners CEO resigns ■ Aetna, Apple collaborate on wellness programs, products ■ Aer Lingus' Bradley-to-Ireland nonstop takes flight ■ CT promotes medical marijuana research 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 GOVERNMENT & POLITICS Lawmakers approve $220M Sikorsky incentive deal State lawmakers last week approved the $220 million incentive package for Sikorsky Aircraft, which will ensure the Stratford-based company maintains a significant presence in Connecticut through at least 2032. Under the agreement, which received House and Senate approval during a Sept. 28 special session, Sikorsky Aircraft will stay in Connecticut to produce nearly 200 CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopters for the U.S. Navy through at least 2032. The deal requires Sikorsky parent Lockheed Martin Corp. to keep Sikorsky's headquarters in the state and maintain Connecticut as a primary production facil- ity for its government-based helicopter business; grow its full-time employment in Connecticut to more than 8,000 by the end of year 14; and nearly double its spend- ing of $350 million per year with local Connecticut suppliers throughout the state. Lockheed Martin will incur penalties if the company fails to meet the terms. Tax Foundation: CT's business climate ranks 43rd in nation Connecticut ranks 43rd in the country in the right-leaning Tax Foundation's 2017 State Business Tax Climate Index, a slight improvement from 44th a year ago. This 13th annual index measures how well-structured each state's tax code is by analyzing more than 100 variables in five tax categories: corporate, indi- vidual income, sales, property, and unemployment insurance. Wyoming continues in first place with the most competitive tax code in the country, while New Jersey maintains a long-standing position at the bottom. Connecticut remains in the bottom 10. The breakdown of Connecticut's rankings this year is as follows: Overall tax cli- mate: 43; corporate tax structure: 32; individual income tax structure: 37; sales tax structure: 27; property tax structure: 49; unemployment insurance tax structure: 21. HEALTH CARE Aetna, Apple collaborate on wellness programs, products Hartford health insurer Aetna is planning to provide exclusive Apple-based health apps for its 46.3 million customers and free Apple Watches to its nearly 50,000 employees, the companies said. Consumers using health apps on the iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch will be able to monitor and manage their health and increase wellness outcomes using Aet- na's analytics-based wellness and care-management programs, the insurer said. Beginning this fall, Aetna will make Apple Watch available to select large employ- ers and individual customers during open enrollment season, and Aetna will be the first major healthcare company to subsidize a significant portion of the Apple Watch cost, offering monthly payroll deductions to make covering the remaining cost easier. Additionally, Aetna employees using the Apple Watch will participate in the company's wellness reimbursement program, Aetna said. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & CONSTRUCTION CT's Dillon finalist for Fla. airport slot Kevin A. Dillon, chief executive officer overseeing Connecticut's network of airports, is vying to run a pair of airports on Florida's Gulf Coast. Dillon is one of four finalists to become executive director of the Lee County Airport Authority, which runs Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort My- ers, Fla., authority spokeswoman Victoria Moreland confirmed. Salary for the post ranges from $200,000 to $285,700. By comparison, Dillon, as executive director of the Connecticut Airport Au- thority, oversees Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks and five more smaller, general aviation airfields in the state. In an interview, Dillon confirmed that he is vying for the Florida job, but de- clined offering further details. According to Moreland, Dillon and the three other finalists are scheduled to meet in mid-October with the authority board. A job finalist is expected to be chosen around December. Contractor hired to complete Hartford ballpark Arch Insurance has tapped Baltimore-based Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. to complete work on the unfinished Dunkin' Donuts Park, according to Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin and a published report. Arch, the company guaranteeing completion of the stadium, has said work could resume next week, according to a report in the Hartford Courant. The Yard Goats, who played their entire season on the road, hope to resume play in Hartford by April 13, 2017. Capital Workforce Partners CEO resigns After 15 years at the helm, Thomas Phillips, president and CEO of Capital Workforce Partners (CWP), has resigned. His last day was Sept. 23. It's not clear why he quit, but an announcement said Phillips has decided to pursue "other opportunities." Chief Operating Officer Alex Johnson will serve as acting president and CEO. As the state's regional workforce development board for north central Connecti- cut, CWP's programs aim to close the gap between skills and business hiring needs. BANKING & FINANCE Dutch Point, MidConn CUs merging Two Hartford area credit unions say they are merging. Wethersfield's Dutch Point Credit Union and the smaller MiddConn Federal Credit Union in Middletown say MidConn's members recently approved the merger that will create a combined member-owned credit cooperative with about 23,500 members and more than $280 million in assets. State and federal regulators, too, have blessed the union, officials said. Post merger, Dutch Point will have seven branches to go with its main office at 195 Silas Deane Highway in Wethersfield. ENERGY & UTILITIES Eversource holds off on credit reporting pilot Eversource is delaying a move to implement monthly credit reporting of resi- dential payment activity, part of a proposed one-year pilot program approved by state regulators in May. In mid-September, the state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) de- layed a decision to go forward on the pilot, which was to have started in late August. The utility had been pursuing the pilot as a way to address residential payment delinquencies, which had been on the rise over the past three years. In the Sept. 12 PURA decision to hold off on the pilot implementation, Ever- source said it needed to delay the program because it was still negotiating a data-release agreement with credit rating agencies. Aer Lingus' Bradley Airport flight is using the Boeing 757 to carry passengers to Ireland. 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