Kiewit’s Denver Union Station Transit Improvements project is officially one of the country’s most significant construction projects of 2014, according to the Associated General Contractors of America, which honored it with a first-place Alliant Build America Award as well as a Merit Award for its partnering efforts.

Photo courtesy of Kiewit

Union Station's transit components include an underground regional bus facility with 22 bays and an eight-track commuter rail hall with five platforms.

At $374.8 million, the Denver Union Station Transit Improvements project was the largest transportation project in the U.S. in 2014. Spanning 20 acres and seven city blocks, the project was also the largest multimodal project ever to receive LEED-Gold certification.

Design-build contractor Kiewit effectively transformed 20 acres of blighted former rail yards into the centerpiece of a vibrant, bustling downtown Denver neighborhood by anchoring connections between the region’s transit systems.

The project served multiple public and private agencies and was delivered under a design-build contract model—an extremely rare combination due to the need for intensive collaboration and trust between owner, architect and contractor on a public project.

The Alliant Build America Awards highlight the nation’s most significant construction projects. A panel of judges, representing all areas of construction, evaluated an impressive number of submissions this year, assessing each project's complexity, use of innovative construction techniques and client satisfaction, among other criteria.

The awards, which were announced last week during the association’s annual convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico, are considered by many to be the most prestigious recognition of construction accomplishments in the U.S.

The AGC Build America Marvin M. Black Partnering Award is presented annually to construction projects that epitomize the principles of partnering. Inspired by AGC’s Past President Marvin M. Black, the inclusion of partnering into the Build America Awards represents a timely and unified celebration of the construction industry's finest.

“These projects exemplify the best characteristics the construction industry has to offer—craftsmanship, creativity and dedication,” said Al Landes, the association’s president and president and chief operating officer of Herzog Contracting Corp. “These contractors have completed projects that demonstrate an unparalleled level of innovation and excellence in our industry.”