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A union electrician and Navy veteran has entered the Democratic primary race to challenge incumbent Rep. Chris Smith, bringing a working-class perspective and labor advocacy experience to the congressional campaign in New Jersey.

IBEW Local 280's new $5 million union hall in Redmond is approaching completion, providing modern meeting spaces, training facilities, and administrative offices to better serve electricians and members in the region.

Spinnaker Real Estate Partners is completing a major $67 million adaptive reuse project in Hartford, transforming a vacant office building into residential housing units as part of the city's downtown revitalization efforts.

The new $199 million Bullard-Havens Technical High School facility in Bridgeport is approaching completion, featuring state-of-the-art technical education spaces and modern infrastructure to serve Connecticut's technical education students.

Local residents are voicing opposition to a proposed 96-unit apartment development planned along the New Haven municipal border, raising concerns about density, traffic, and neighborhood character in the suburban area.

The City of Shelton is moving forward with plans to develop a site located off Constitution Boulevard Extension, marking a new phase of commercial and infrastructure growth in this Connecticut municipality.

A historic factory building on Winchester Avenue in New Haven is being demolished, representing the ongoing transformation of the city's former industrial sites and making way for potential redevelopment opportunities.

A rally is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday at Shiloh Baptist Church in Bridgeport to protest United Illuminating's proposed monopole project. The controversial plan calls for installation of 195-foot tall monopoles carrying power lines through Bridgeport and Fairfield, potentially taking one-third of the church's property. The grassroots group Empowering Fairfield is calling on UI to come to the table with solutions acceptable to affected communities and businesses. Source: patch.com

The Connecticut Siting Council's consideration of United Illuminating's monopole project has sparked over two years of bipartisan opposition from lawmakers and Fairfield County residents. After a Superior Court judge ruled in April that the council wrongly approved the project without community input, the council voted again in September via straw poll to support the same plan. Governor Ned Lamont intervened asking for a delay, stating he wouldn't "let UI rush into a bad decision." The 195-foot monopoles would require utility easements from homes, businesses, and historical sites including the Pequot Library and Shiloh Baptist Church. Source: wshu.org

Mayor Roberto Alves and city officials announce over $100 million in public and private investments reshaping downtown Danbury. Projects include the $24.5 million Ives Bank development bringing 100 professionals to Main Street, Catholic Charities' 20 workforce housing units at 68 Main Street, and 79 senior units on Boughton Street by Connecticut Institute for Communities. The city is also advancing a $9 million state-funded Streetscape Renaissance Project adding fiber optics, underground utilities, and pedestrian-friendly enhancements. New businesses including Blend and Brew coffee bar and Escapology escape rooms have opened downtown. Source: patch.com

New Haven won approval from the Community Investment Fund 2030 board for $6.75 million to help convert the vacant 155,000 square foot Goffe Street Armory into a new vocational-technical school. The State Bond Commission must still approve the funds before they become final. Mayor Justin Elicker says the grant, years in the making, will fund rehabilitation work including exterior brownstone stabilization, roof repair, asbestos removal, ADA compliance upgrades, and reactivation of the historic drill hall. The project also includes plans for new housing units and other community uses. Source: newhavenindependent.org

The Elicker administration plans to sell George Street parking lots to a public-private partnership between Glendower Group and NYC-based developer LMXD for construction of 171 new apartments in New Haven's Ninth Square. The seven-story, 156,000-square-foot building will include 51 affordable units with income limits ranging from 30 to 80 percent of area median income, ground-floor retail space, and rooftop solar panels powering amenities including a fitness center and co-working area. The developers aim to secure financing by Q2 2026 with full completion projected for 2029. Source: newhavenindependent.org

United Illuminating is preparing for six months of new remediation work addressing PCBs, petroleum hydrocarbons, and arsenic-contaminated soil at the old English Station site at 510 Grand Ave. Mayor Justin Elicker continues defending his controversial proposal to convert the contaminated 8.6-acre former coal and oil-fired power plant into a public park and outdoor pool. At Tuesday's mayoral debate, Elicker argued the capped site would be safe and provide swimming opportunities for young people, while Republican challenger Steve Orosco called for the site to become a "revenue-generating machine" with manufacturing jobs. Source: newhavenindependent.org

IBEW International President Kenneth W. Cooper warns that recent legislation eliminating tax incentives for wind, solar, and hydrogen projects will cancel many clean energy initiatives putting IBEW members to work while also increasing electricity bills for American families. Cooper calls the "One Big Beautiful Bill" irresponsible for its impact on working families and union jobs. Source: ibew.org

International Secretary-Treasurer Paul A. Noble highlights how the IBEW/NECA Family Medical Care Plan addresses rising healthcare costs that now consume 18% of the U.S. economy. The plan, designed by IBEW members for IBEW members, operates without bloated overhead or millionaire CEOs, covering over 190 locals and 450 employers with premiums below industry average while adding or improving benefits 135 times since inception. Source: ibew.org

IBEW Local 11 celebrates a major victory as the LA Convention Center expansion project moves forward after years of effort. The project will create dozens of immediate job calls ramping up to several hundred positions over the coming months, with completion targeted for the 2028 Olympics. Business Manager Robert Corona credits the powerful labor and business coalition for getting this project across the finish line. Source: ibew11.org

Melissa Reyes of Charlotte Local 379 shares her unconventional journey from running away at 15 to becoming a respected organizing leader in North Carolina. The daughter of immigrants, Reyes led a major organizing effort at a Westinghouse nuclear fuel plant and now serves as an organizer for Local 379, using her energy, persistence, and commitment to justice to advocate for working families in one of the least union-friendly states. Source: ibew.org

The Jonesboro Electrical Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee, in partnership with IBEW Local 1516 and the National Electrical Contractors Association, celebrates the opening of a new 10,200 square foot training facility in Jonesboro, Arkansas. The facility provides additional classrooms and hands-on learning labs, coinciding with the apprenticeship program's approval to reduce from a 5-year/900-hour program to a 4-year/720-hour program. Source: kait8.com

IBEW Local 1 members banner the new Hampton Inn in Festus, Missouri, protesting the hotel's use of Bates Electric, a non-union contractor paying substandard wages and benefits below Local 1's established rates. Members Rich Niehaus and Dominick Zimmerman take the union's message directly to the public at 1331 Shapiro Drive. Source: labortribune.com

AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler condemned the Trump administration's Office of Management and Budget directive instructing federal agencies to prepare for permanent reductions in force if a government shutdown occurs October 1. Shuler stated that federal workers who keep essential government services running have already suffered immensely from Project 2025 and DOGE agenda chaos, declaring they are not pawns for political games. More than 201,000 civil servants have left the federal workforce, with massive cuts at agencies including Labor, Education, and EPA affecting electrical workers and other union members in federal service. Source: aflcio.org