Hartford Business Journal

14 Hartford Business Journal • March 20, 2017 www.HartfordBusiness.com Once-delayed Radisson room-to-apt. conversions resume By Gregory Seay gseay@HartfordBusiness.com F ollowing a delay caused by a legal dis- pute, interior renovation has resumed on the upper eight floors of the 388- room Radisson Hotel in downtown Hart- ford, construction officials say. But the estimated $6.5 million conver- sion of 200 hotel rooms into 96 apartments, some of which overlook Dunkin' Donuts Park, won't be ready by opening day — as originally planned, according to nationwide building contractor Greython Construction. Kyle Klewin, CEO for Greython, based in Stonington, which took over the project from another contractor, says the comple- tion date has been pushed back to summer. When finished, the 18-story Radisson will have 188 hotel rooms remaining plus its one- and two-bedroom market-rate apartments, ranging in size from around 800 to 900 square feet, Klewin said. Hartford's Crosskey Archi- tects is the project's designer. "Things are really on track now,'' Klewin said. "We've got significant manpower on the project. I think it's going to be great for down- town. It's going to be great for the ballfield.'' Occupancy will occur in phases, as each floor is finished, he said. The new apartments will feature amenities such as washers-dryers and granite countertops. Each will be individ- ually metered for electricity use. The hotel also houses a restaurant and underground parking. The hotel's rooms-to-apartments con- version got off to a rocky start. On Jan. 27, the hotel's owner, 50 Morgan Hospitality Group LLC, sued in Hartford Superior Court its original contractor over- seeing the conversion work. The suit, now pending in federal court, accuses Arizona- based Excel Hotel Services Inc. of breach- ing its $6 million services contract. In its suit, the hotel owner, which is seeking more than $500,000 in damages, says Excel Hotel Services failed to adopt or follow the construction schedule and didn't provide sufficient manpower to hit key proj- ect deadlines and milestones, including required inspections. Excel also failed to pay subcontractors or adequately document work it allegedly completed, the lawsuit states. Three "stop-work'' orders from the state Department of Labor (DOL) against several previous subcontractors haven't slowed things, Klewin said. "Work is aggressively commencing and has been since late January,'' he said. The Radisson's new apartments are part of downtown Hartford's expanding hous- ing pipeline. As of last October, the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) had provided supplemental financing for some 800 units of downtown apartments with a development value topping $192 million. It was also work- ing on five new housing proposals that would add an additional 264 units to the center city. Owners of the Radisson received a $6.5 million construction loan from CRDA for the makeover. The new projects, which have a collec- tive development price tag of at least $53.4 million, come as rental-housing demand remains strong, with downtown's vacancy rate hovering around 3.5 percent. It's a trend that could continue with the influx of more than 2,000 UConn students, faculty and staff next year, as the state's flagship university moves its West Hartford satellite campus to downtown Hartford. Of the $192 million in private funds com- mitted to downtown's apartment conver- sions, CRDA has provided $48 million in supplemental loans. n The Radisson Hotel, 50 Morgan St., downtown Hartford. P H O T O | H B J F I L E 5 ways the GOP bill could change your health insurance By Tami Luhby CNNMoney I f the Republicans' bill to repeal Obamacare becomes law, it could affect millions of people across the employer, individual and Medicaid markets. The headline figure out of the Congressio- nal Budget Office's review of the American Health Care Act was that 24 million people would lose their coverage by 2026. But the non-partisan agency also detailed the sweep- ing changes that could be felt across the health insurance landscape. Here are five ways the bill could impact your coverage: Fewer employers would offer insurance Roughly 7 million fewer people would be enrolled in job-based health insurance by 2026, CBO predicts. That's because the legisla- tion rescinds both the individual and employer mandates. Workers would not feel compelled to sign up for coverage since they would no longer have to pay a penalty. At the same time, fewer companies would offer health benefits since they also would not face penalties. Dropping health insurance would allow them to increase other forms of compensation, such as wages. Meanwhile, more Americans would qualify for federal assistance to buy policies in the individual market. This may prompt them to shop there, rather than select their employers' plan. However, CBO has previously overesti- mated how changes to the individual market would affect employment-based coverage. The agency thought more employers would drop health benefits once the Obamacare subsidies became available, but that did not actually happen. A lot less money for Medicaid The Republican bill calls for eliminating the extra federal funding for Medicaid expansion and curtailing support for the entire program. By 2026, federal Medicaid spending would be about 25 percent less than it would have been under Obamacare, according to CBO. The agency projects that Medicaid would have 14 million fewer participants — or about 17 percent — than if Obamacare remained the law of the land. More high-deductible plans on the individual market A little-known provision in the bill would eliminate the Obamacare requirement that insurers cover a certain share of the costs in individual-market policies. That means carriers could offer more plans with higher deductibles and lower premiums. However, the days of $10,000 deductibles, which were more common prior to Obam- acare's passage, would not return — at least not yet. That's because the bill retains the health reform law provision capping how much people must pay out of pocket for healthcare services. (For 2017, that limit is $7,150 for an individual and twice that for families.) But this change would also make it harder to shop and compare plans on the individual market. Under Obamacare, there are four tiers of coverage, and policies within each tier gen- erally cover the same share of the costs, on average. The American Health Care Act would do away with these levels, making it more dif- ficult to compare one plan against another. Middle-class Americans would get more federal aid The GOP plan would help more middle class and higher income people pay for their coverage in the individual market. Under Obamacare, individuals earning more than $47,500 and families of four with incomes above $97,200 don't qualify for sub- sidies. That's why many complain that the Affordable Care Act is actually unaffordable. The American Health Care Act would pro- vide refundable tax credits — ranging from $2,000 to $4,000, depending on age — to those higher on the income ladder. Individuals mak- ing up to $75,000 and families earning above $150,000 would get the full amount of the tax credit. After that, the tax credits start to phase out. Sin- gle folks earning more than $215,000 and families with incomes above $290,000 would no longer be eligible. This could help blunt the cost of coverage for more people. For instance, a 40-year-old earn- ing $68,200 in 2026 would only have to pay an average of $2,400 for insurance under the GOP bill, the CBO projects. But he would pay $6,500, on average, if Obamacare were to stay in place. Younger people could get cheaper policies The Republican plan would lower the premi- ums for younger folks on the individual market. Currently, younger Americans subsidize older ones. That's because insurers are only allowed to charge older enrollees up to three times more. But the GOP bill would widen that band to five-to-one. This would raise prices for those in their 50s and early 60s, but lower them for those in their 20s. (Americans age 65 and older are generally on Medicare.) Under the American Health Care Act, a 21-year-old would pay an average of $3,900 in annual premiums in 2026, the CBO projects. But he would have to shell out $5,100 if Obam- acare were still in effect. Overall, premiums would be 20 percent to 25 percent lower for a 21-year-old by 2026. Also, more younger folks would qualify for assistance under the GOP plan since its refundable tax credits are available to those with higher incomes. And some younger enrollees today actually receive little to no subsidies because their premiums are so low. (Obamacare subsidies reduce the cost of coverage to just under 10 percent of one's income for the benchmark silver plan. But if that plan's premium is already less than that threshold, an enrollee receives no assistance. The GOP plan, however, is not pegged to pre- miums so more people would receive help.) While some younger and healthier consum- ers would remain uninsured because they'd no longer be subject to a penalty, others would find getting coverage more appealing. The CBO expects that younger enrollees will make up a larger share of the individual market if the GOP plan becomes law, which would also help stabi- lize it since they are generally healthier. n P H O T O | C N N M O N E Y

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