2023 | 27th Annual Project Team Awards
The Connecticut Building Congress recognizes outstanding building projects that exemplify project team excellence and represent the best practices in teamwork by project owners, architects, engineers, constructors and trades. Each year, CBC recognizes projects whose team members have met or surpassed goals and achieved higher project quality through this close collaboration.
Congratulations to all the winning team members, including Owners, Architects, Engineers, Subconsultants, Contractors, Subcontractors, Service Providers, Suppliers and more! It’s through mutual respect and team work that these teams and projects stand out from the rest.
PTA & Scholarship Awards Event Photos can be viewed here.
Scroll below to view the complete project team winners, a brief description of the project and the team’s approach to the challenges it faced as well as project photos.
Special thanks to the judges:
Matt Hart, Executive Director, Capitol Region Council of Governments
Namhun Lee, PhD, CM-BIM, Professor, Central Connecticut State University
Allen Rossignol, CEO, Edge Architecture and Project Executive at Edge Building & Construction
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Multi-Family/Mixed Use (Large)
First Place
Rocky Neck Village | East Lyme, CT
Rocky Neck Village is a mixed-income, redeveloped, affordable rental community in East Lyme, Connecticut. It has 50 three-bedroom, two-story townhouses and six ADA-compliant one-story townhouses.
Built during the pandemic, the LaRosa team experienced the usual supply shortages and delivery delays. But it was incorporating Passive House standards into their first large-scale Passive Housing project while maintaining the aesthetics highlights the benefits of teamwork. Through the proactive pre-planning, creative coordination, and flexibility of the team, the tenants of Rocky Neck Village not only enjoy the financial advantage of affordable housing but are also the beneficiaries of extraordinarily low electric bills.
*Indicates CT CBC Member
| LaRosa Building Group, LLC. (Submitting Firm)* | Wallace Architects |
| Smith & Boucher Engineers | Crockett Engineering Consultants |
| F.A. Hesketh & Associates, Inc. | MRC |
| LaRosa Earth Group | Peter Harding |
| Home Energy Technology | H3 Development Group Services |
| A.M.E. Plumbing and Heating | Hope Plumbing LLC |
| D. DuBaldo Electric Co. LLC | Do-All Drywall Operations, Inc. |
| Meriden GlassCo LLC | Axela Kitchens LLC |
| Olson Backman LLC | Intus Windows LLC |
| KAMCO Supply, Inc. | Fairfield Testing Laboratory |
| Nayelie Drywall Construction | McGrann Group |
| Marsh USA (Agent) | Shipman & Goodwin LLP |
| Empire Paving | Arrow Concrete |
| East Lyme Building Dept | Killingly Engineering |
| Eagle Fence and Guardrail, Inc. | JAMI Wholesale LLC |
| Burrell Associates LLC | Collins and Company |
| Lyon and Billard Co. Inc. | Hatcity Maintenance Inc. |
| Mystic Air Quality | East Coast Sign and Supply |
| Maynard Road Corporation | Intelligent Signage |
| Stately Stairs Co. Inc. |
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Civic (Small)
Award of Merit
East Haven Veterans Memorial Ice Rink |
East Haven, CT
As an integrated Design-Build firm, SLAM worked with the Town of East Haven to evaluate, design, and build the best solution for the resurrection of the Patsy DiLungo Veteran’s Memorial Ice Rink.
To meet the town’s budget and schedule, the team developed a hybrid option to reopen the rink for seasonal operation. Early in the design process we engaged our delegated design subcontractor our consultants to fast track the ice making equipment while concurrently working to complete the design. The team worked creatively to overcome unpredictable supply chain issues and the additional project enhancements that the owner wanted to include in the final project.
| The S/L/A/M Collaborative (Submitting Firm)* | SLAM Construction Services |
| Consulting Engineering Services | EMCOR: New England Mechanical Services Inc. |
| Cisco Site & Environmental | State-Wide Electric |
| Connecticut Mason Contractors, Inc. | Mackenzie Painting Company |
| ARC Mechanical | Wonderland of Ice |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Commercial / Industrial (Large)
Award of Merit
Paragon Medical | Southington, CT
When jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney shuttered its Southington campus over 25 years ago, it left behind an expansive 500,000-sf manufacturing plant, and the long-abandoned property was in poor condition when Paragon Medical first identified the building as a potential expansion site for its Southington, CT operations. A global medical equipment engineering and manufacturing company, Paragon Medical saw potential in the neglected complex to accommodate its ambitious expansion plans. Due largely to the relentless teamwork among all the project team members, Paragon Medical’s $15-million, 230,000-SF modernization was fully realized. The team completed the project on schedule and within budget parameters, and met all of the owner’s goals. Design of the project began in 2018 with construction completed in 2021.
| Bartlett Brainard Eacott, Inc. (Submitting Firm)* | QA+M Architecture |
| Van Zelm* | Paragon Medical |
| New England Mechanical Services Inc. | JA-MA |
| Interscape Commercial Environments* | AFS Fire Protection |
| Conference Technologies, Inc. | Acoustics Inc. |
| Central Connecticut Acoustics Inc. | Anderson Glass Co., Inc. |
| Tull Brothers | Commercial Flooring Concepts, Inc. |
| Total Communications | SIFCO, Inc. |
| Stanley Convergent Security Solutions |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Healthcare (Small)
First Place
Emergency Department Annex | New Haven, CT
The Hospital developed an immediate need for additional emergency department space to accommodate patient care overflow. A project of this complexity performed in such a short time frame required expedited coordination, meetings, and site walk-throughs. To meet the aggressive schedule, field employees worked seven days a week, 16 to 20 hours a day, of staggered trade activity with the only days of no activity being Christmas and New Year’s Days. Through the extraordinary efforts made by all of the companies and their employees, the completed 10,000 square foot addition was delivered in an amazingly short duration of 84 calendar days.
| Petra Construction Corporation (Submitting Firm)* | BAM Creative LLC |
| CENTEK Engineering Inc.* | Shepard Steel Co. Inc. |
| F & F Mechanical Enterprises | Fortin Electric Co. |
| B & G Enterprise, LLC | Builders Hardware |
| Campbell’s Painting Co. Inc. | Carrano’s Railing & Welding LLC |
| Central Connecticut | Cherry Hill Const. Inc. |
| CSNE LLC | Elite Construction Rentals LLC |
| Elmore Associates Inc. | F.J. Dahill Co. Inc. |
| Final Klean Inc. | Goody’s Hardware and Paint |
| Johnson Controls Inc. | Kamco Supply Corp. of New England |
| M. Frank Higgins & Co. Inc.* | Mackenzie Company LLC |
| Materials Testing Inc. | Mobile Fencing, Inc. |
| Partitions Inc. | Stanley Access Technologies |
| Synergy Fire Systems, LLC | United Site Services Northeast |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Healthcare (Small)
Award of Merit
Connecticut Children’s Westport
Pediatric Specialty Care Center | Westport, CT
Connecticut Children’s sought a standout, flagship space for their first foray into the Fairfield County market. This pediatric specialty care center provides an all-inclusive care experience spanning multiple disciplines to the vibrant community of Westport (and beyond). In partnership with C.E. Floyd and a variety of regionally respected consultants and contractors, this adaptive reuse project delivered a top-tier pediatric experience to further develop the region as a national destination for quality healthcare. With a close partnership developed between client, designer, and contractor from the very beginning this project achieved remarkable success in the eyes of the client and their community.
| Phase Zero Design (Submitting Firm)* | CT Children’s |
| C.E. Floyd* | Long Consulting |
| Michael Horton Associates, Inc.* | Encore Fre Protection |
| USA Mechanical & Energy Services | Red Thread |
| Illuminate | East Coast Wall Systems |
| East Coast Environmental | Architx, LLC |
| Champagne Drywall | Partitions Inc. |
| Zavarella Woodworking | Park Roway Inc. |
| Spectrum Flooring | APG Glass |
| Painting & Decorating, Inc. | SRM Security |
| Martin Laviero Contracting | Arch In-house |
| TriState Material Testing | Independent Materials Testing Lab |
| TPC Associates | Builders Harware |
| Charter Oak Building Maintenance | Commercial Flooring Concepts |
| CT Laminates & Millwork | Digital Network Services, LLC. |
| Division 5, LLC | Door & Security Solutions |
| Draperies, Inc. | Eastern Glass Company |
| Fire Rated LLC | Inpro Corporation |
| M. Brett Painting Company Co. Inc. | Mechanical Plumbing & Heating |
| N.T. Olivia Inc. | NEWS, LLC |
| Rock’N Crab Aquatics LLC | T&T Electrical Contractors, Inc. |
| Vizient Inc. | Westport 191 Post Road Landlord |
| Westport Building Department | Interscape Commercial Environments * |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Higher Education (Large)
First Place
Fairfield University Leo D. Mahoney Arena |
Fairfield, CT
Located in the heart of the Fairfield University campus, the new Leo D. Mahoney Arena is home to the University’s basketball and volleyball teams (Go Stags!), as well as concerts, commencements, and other large campus events. The project team worked through challenges including complicated site enabling, demolition adjacent to an indoor pool, early buy-out packages, and rolled steel installation and shoring – all on a bustling campus. The Leo D. Mahoney Arena celebrated its grand opening on November 18, 2022 to a sold-out crowd, marking the culmination of a truly successful project for the team of Gilbane, Centerbrook Architects, and Fairfield University.
| Gilbane Building Company (Submitting Firm)* | Fairfield University |
| Centerbrook Architects | The Huntington Company |
| Gilsanz Murray Steficek | Kohler Ronan |
| Welti Geotechnical | The Skyline Group |
| Cline Bettridge Bernstine Lighting Design | Town of Fairfield |
| Materials Testing Agency | Philip R Sherman |
| Rick A Sevieri + Associates | Acentech Inc |
| Stamford Wrecking Company | Fabcon Precast |
| Ralph Camputaro and Son | Connecticut Mason Subcontractors |
| Beauce-Atlas | United Steel* |
| Wright Architectural Millwork | Barrett Roofing |
| Ken Whitney | Cherry Hill Glass |
| Conn Acoustics | MF Higgins* |
| Dalene Flooring | Irwin Seating Company |
| Spectrum Service Co. | Kilcourse Specialty Products |
| Elite Construction Rentals | Robert H Lord |
| Johnson-Lancaster and Associates | Draperies |
| Otis Elevator | Blackwater Services Group |
| Modern Mechanical | East Coast Sheet Metal |
| Automated Building Systems | McPhee Electrical |
| Opticom | Metinteractive |
| Dalling Construction | Horizon |
| Daktronics | BVH Integrated Services* |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2022 CBC Project Team Awards
Higher Education (Large)
Award of Merit
Gant Science Complex at the University of Connecticut | Storrs, CT
The Gant Sciences Complex project transforms a tired and underutilized 1970’s brutalist building into a vibrant, flexible hub of teaching, research, and collaboration. Renovating a 290,000sf, 50-year-old science building, while occupied, is a massive and complex undertaking. Through three phases of construction, two additions, and six enabling projects, the comprehensive collaboration between our team of 25 consultants, 52 subcontractors, and the core team members from the University of Connecticut’s Planning, Design and Construction group, Goody Clancy, Mitchell Giurgola and Whiting Turner has been a constant throughout its nearly decade long transformation and has been the lynchpin of the project’s success.
| Goody Clancy (Submitting Firm) | UConn – University Planning Design & Construction* |
| Mitchell Giurgola | Whiting Turner* |
| Gilbane* | BVH / Salas O’Brien* |
| Silman | Towers Golde |
| PR Sherman | Acentech |
| Atelier Ten | Vermeulens |
| Coastal Safety | WilSpec |
| Haley & Aldrich | Tighe & Bond* |
| Glezen Fisher Group | Colliers Engineering |
| Eversource | Authority Having Jurisdiction |
| Tri State Materials Testing | Ferguson Mechanical Co. |
| Ferguson Electrical Co. | Mather Corporation |
| L and P Gate Co. | Sil/Carr Corporation |
| P & D Mechanical Inc. | Universal Preservation Group |
| A.A.I.S | Conn Acoustics Inc. |
| Schneider Electric | Flow Tech* |
| Shepard Steel | Accurate Door and Window |
| Capital Carpet & Flooring Specialists | Connecticut Carpentry Corporation |
| Scholar Painting | Acranom Masonry |
| Adtech Systems | Barber Firestop Systems LLC |
| Barall & Kanover Floors, Inc. | New England Laboratory Casework Inc. |
| DePaoli Mosaic Company | Joseph Cohn & Son,Inc. |
| Environmental Testing & Balancing Inc. | Ernest Peterson Inc. (EPI) |
| Harris Environmental | Orissa LLC. |
| Otis Elevator | Legere Group, Ltd. |
| OC River | Massey’s Plate & Glass |
| Archer Corporation | Managanaro |
| MJ Daly* | Sign Pro, Inc. |
| Silktown Roofing, Inc. | Island International |
| Mercury | Interscape Commercial Environments* |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Higher Education (Small)
Award of Merit
Quinnipiac’s Admissions Visitors Center |
Hamden, CT
There is only one chance to make a first impression. Quinnipiac University’s Admissions Visitor Center is just that for incoming parents and students. Overlooking Quinnipiac’s scenic quad at the base of Sleeping Giant Mountain, this renovation project was highly customized and presented a one-of-a-kind result. Wohlsen Construction served as the general contractor and Amenta Emma as the design team. The project featured a complete renovation of the first floor, including the installation of a unique Arktura ceiling panel system with customized lighting, a new curtain wall with an exterior canopy, redesigned heating and plumbing, and a 60-foot-long video display wall.
| Wohlsen Construction Company* (Submitting Firm) | Amenta Emma Architects, P.C. |
| Quinnipiac University | Enterprise Electrical Contractors, Inc. |
| AcuMark Utility Locating, LLC | Eagle Fence and Guardrail |
| Langan Engineering & Environmental Services* | LVI Facility Services of CT, Inc. |
| Martin Laviero Contractor, Inc. | ACV Concrete, LLC |
| Mid-State Mason Contractors, Inc. | Petruniti Design & Woodworking |
| New England Glass & Mirror Co. | Draperies Inc. |
| Orissa, LLC | Nero Air Conditioning Heating & Refrigeration Inc. |
| All American Waste, LLC |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Pre-K-12 Schools (Large)
First Place
John F. Kennedy Middle School | Enfield, CT
The John F. Kennedy Middle School addition and renovation project featured a “like-new” renovation of the 179,000-SF existing school, encompassing 36 classrooms, 12 science spaces, 10 special education classrooms, and gymnasium. The 18,610-SF new addition includes an auditorium and public access lobby, a new cafeteria, kitchen, and administrative offices.
The Gilbane, JCJ Architecture, and the Town of Enfield team worked cohesively to deliver the project $2 million under budget using project management techniques and technology to ensure work remained on schedule. Trades were coordinated transparently despite challenges, such as working on an occupied school campus and supply chain disruptions.
| Gilbane Building Company*(Submitting Firm) | JCJ Architecture |
| BVH Integrated Services* | Michael Horton Associates, Inc. * |
| Langan Engineering & Environmental Services, Inc.* | Acentech, Inc. |
| Fuss & O’Neill, Inc.* | CMK LEED |
| Construction Solutions Group, LLC | Design Professionals, Inc. |
| Innovative Engineering Services | Independent Materials Testing Laboratories Inc. |
| WS Curtain Wall, Inc. | AAIS Corporation |
| Capasso Enterprises, Inc. | Noble Construction & Management Inc |
| QSR Steel Corporation LLC* | Proiron LLC |
| Legere Group, Ltd. | Silktown Roofing |
| Lockheed Architectural Solutions fna Lockheed Window Corp* | Okee Industries, Inc. d/b/a Builders Hardware |
| GDS Contracting Corp | Acoustics Inc |
| Barall & Konover Floors Inc | M & P Painting LLC |
| Sign Pro, Inc. | R.M. Borski & Son Inc. |
| CB Seating Inc | Hartford Elevator, LLC |
| Blackwater Services Group, LLC | Ferguson Mechanical Company Inc |
| Ferguson Electric Company, Incorporated | Net Services LLC |
| Milton C Beebe & Sons Inc | Costa & Son LLC |
| Horizon Services Company | L & S Builders LLC |
| GO Services LLC | Interscape Commercial Environments* |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Pre-K-12 Schools (Large)
Award of Merit
Bristol Arts and Innovation Magnet School (BAIMS) | Bristol, CT
The goal was to restore and expand an elegant and beloved historic building to house an innovative arts school and contribute to downtown Bristol’s revitalization. Our team of well-known and seasoned experts covered every aspect of the project, working as a unit from the outset. We examined each task through the lens of each member before choosing our actions. Biweekly meetings of all members kept us goal-focused and on track. Each organization brought highly creative people to the table, but the synergistic creativity of the whole was greater than the sum of the parts and perfectly served this project.
| Alfred Benesch & Co. *(Submitting Firm) | Bristol Board of Education |
| QA+M | Office of School Construction |
| CT State Historic Preservation Office | D’Amato + Downes Joint Venture |
| RZ Design Associates | TO Design @ FHI Studio |
| Akustiks | NextStage Design |
| Loureiro Engineering Associates, Inc.* | Interscape Commercial Environments* |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
2023 CBC Project Team Awards
Transportation (Small)
Award of Merit
Davis Avenue Bridge | Greenwich, CT
Replacing the 1930’s-era Davis Avenue bridge—situated over a causeway/dam spillway adjacent to Long Island Sound—was challenging. The Town of Greenwich utilized support from the Local Transportation Capital Improvement Plan (LOTCIP) administered by the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) to fund the project.
Led by prime consultant/inspector, Alfred Benesch & Company (Benesch), and comprised of—geotechnical engineer/environmental consultant, GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc.; landscape architect, Didona Associates; materials testing firm, Independent Materials Testing Laboratories; and contractor, A. Vitti Excavators—the Benesch Team achieved the Town’s vision of maintaining aesthetics, upgrading infrastructure, and improving pedestrian access to Bruce Park.
| Alfred Benesch & Company*(Submitting Firm) | Town of Greenwich |
| A. Vitti Excavators | GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc.* |
| Didiona Associates | Independent Materials Testing Laboratories, Inc. |
| A & J Construction |
*Indicates CT CBC Member
