New London ― Since 2017, the city has proposed a multimillion dollar expansion of the Water Street Parking Garage but has been unsuccessful at attaining a grant.

The city is giving it another try.

The City Council Monday approved applying again for a $25 million grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation. The grant would allow the garage to add 250 parking spaces to the existing 910 spaces as well as add a transit hub and a cultural and tourism center.

Parking Authority Director Carey Redd said the need for more parking is driven by the construction of the National Coast Guard Museum which is already underway. The museum is estimated to bring hundreds of thousands of visitors every year.

This would be the fifth time the city is applying for a grant to fund this project. Redd said the New London Parking Authority first applied in 2017, then in 2018, 2020, and 2021.

The grants are highly competitive. Last year the U.S. Department of Transportation received 936 applications, totaling $13.3 billion dollars in requests, for the available $2.2 billion dollar appropriation by Congress. Only 166 applications were awarded the grant.

The expansion is part of an infrastructure project in downtown New London that will also see the construction of new pedestrian bridge above Water Street, a new high speed ferry terminal and the restoration of the Union Train Station.

A packet on the infrastructure project says the garage is a key asset of ferry and train systems and during peak periods during the year, the garage is filled to capacity and motorists are turned away.

The construction of the bridge, funded by the state, will be overseen by the Coast Guard Museum Association. Redd said the Cross Sound Ferry is funding the high speed terminal and Amtrak is taking over most of the restoration of Union Station.

Redd said it is not just about the expansion of the garage, it’s about making a viable transportation center.

Redd said more than 90% of the $25 million would go towards the expansion of the garage. He attributed the high price to the increased costs of concrete and steel and supply issues that have escalated over time.

The expansion would add spaces to the third, fourth and roof levels, with the addition built over the existing surface lot adjacent to Water Street. The ground level would serve as the transit hub for those taking public buses. Redd said the transit station would move buses off of Water Street.

Redd said the cultural and tourism center would be on the side facing Parade Plaza. The project packet says the center would provide the public a place to acquire information on destinations and tourism attractions, coffee and house offices for the local CT Tourism Bureau, New London Art District and New London Parking Authority.

A handicap accessible pedestrian bridge, that received funding from the state several years ago, would be connected to the parking garage, overlook Water Street and connect to the Coast Guard Museum.

Redd said the city has used the state-funded bridge as a match to the federal grant so no out-of-pocket costs would have to come from the city.

j.vazquez@theday.com