General contracting and construction management firm, E.W. Howell of Woodbury, New York recently broke ground on its ninth construction project for the giant do-it-yourself retailer; Lowe’s located at 661 Veterans Road West in Staten Island.

The new building will feature 117,000sq ft of retail space with an additional 22,000-sq-ft garden center. In addition to this latest project, E.W. Howell has constructed Lowe’s stores in Brooklyn, Garden City, Farmingdale, Hicksville, Clarkstown, West Bay Shore, and Stony Brook, New York and in Union, New Jersey.

Having carved a strong presence into the retail construction market, E.W. Howell has also constructed more than a dozen stores in the New York area for Target over the last decade, and recently built two Century 21 Department stores in Rego Park, Queensand in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

“We are proud to be a valued partner with one of the largest home improvement retailers in the world,” said E.W. Howell Vice President Dominic Paparo Jr. “Long term associations of the kind Howell enjoys with Lowe’s are a hallmark of our success, and an objective in all of our relationships.”

The new Lowe’s store is slated to be completed in the late fall of 2010.