State Pier

Governor Lamont pushes back on criticism of his administration’s handling of the State Pier project in New London.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Stefanowski, during a visit to New London on Thursday, called out the Connecticut Port Authority and Governor Ned Lamont over the scandalous process of turning State Pier into a hub for the offshore wind industry.

Speaker of the House Matt Ritter took swift action on Saturday after a WSHU report identified Don Frost as the Connecticut Port Authority board member who received illegal gifts from a vendor seeking business. Now, his replacement has also drawn criticism.

Lawrence McHugh, the chairman of the University of Connecticut Board of Trustees for nearly a decade, will replace Donald Frost of Fairfield on the Connecticut Port Authority’s board of directors — after a WSHU investigation.

The identity of the Connecticut Port Authority board member who accepted illegal gifts from a vendor seeking business has been revealed in documents obtained by WSHU through a freedom of information request.

The names of two Connecticut Port Authority employees who received illegal gifts from a vendor seeking business in 2017 and 2019 have been revealed in a letter to state legislators.

A rival road salt company has criticized Gateway Terminal’s expansion to serve eastern Connecticut. Last winter, Gateway had long delays because they were the only facility supplying road salt to the entire state.

The Connecticut Office of State Ethics has entered into an agreement with a New York-based maritime company after they flouted state laws on gift giving to the Connecticut Port Authority.

The chairman of the Connecticut Port Authority has acknowledged that officials knew it would cost more to upgrade the State Pier in New London than what the Lamont administration had proposed in 2019.

Ulysses Hammond starts immediately to replace the current executive director, John Henshaw, who will leave on May 5. He is expected to lead the port authority’s redevelopment of the State Pier in New London to be a hub for the offshore wind industry.