... at the University of South Florida, scheduled for a 2010 completion, and a $35-million, 234,549-sq-ft Interdisciplinary Science Teaching and Research Facility, now in preconstruction, at the same school. The science building includes two 300-seat classrooms and two smaller classrooms.

Charles Perry Construction of Gainesville, Fla., received a design-build contract from USF for the $15-million, 73,538-sq-ft Dr. Kiran C. Patel Center for Global Solutions. The research center will provide space to develop models with local, national and global applications that contribute to improving the human condition.

Seaports and airports Hardin is building a $15-million, 130,000-sq-ft replacement cargo facility at Tampa International Airport on a 46-acre site.

The airport received $8 million in ARRA dollars, which it will apply toward a $52-million Taxiway B reconstruction and bridge project. The aviation authority anticipated the federal funds would allow it to start construction in the fall, moving the project forward by three years. The airport also plans to start construction on a $26-million infrastructure project at the North Terminal Complex.

Batson-Cook Co. of Tampa began working on a $75-million project for the Tampa Port Authority to build a 140-acre container terminal facility. The 10-phase, three-year project consists primarily of sitework, paving and extension of the gantry crane rails. The scope of work includes upgrades to the existing container facility.

Highway Projects Hardin Construction recently branched into highway construction and is working on the design phase of a design-buiid project replacing rest stops along Interstate 75 near State Road 54 in Pasco County for the Florida Dept. of Transportation.

Lane Construction of Cheshire, Conn., is working on a $32-million project lengthening and widening interstate bridges at I-75 and SR 54 in Pasco County. It is scheduled to complete the work by late summer 2010.

A joint venture of Flatiron Constructors of Longmont, Colo., and Tidewater Skanska of Virginia Beach, Va., continues working on the $214-million Tampa Airport Interchanges project, with its 21 bridges, collector/distributor roads and retaining walls.

John McShaffrey, spokesperson for the Florida Dept. of Transportation, says the job is ahead of schedule. The joint venture has already earned $7.5 million in incentives tied to achieving key milestones before the 2009 Super Bowl.

PCL Civil Constructors of Tampa also is tracking ahead of schedule on its $109-million Interstate 275 improvements project in Hillsborough County. The job entails reconstructing northbound lanes from Himes Avenue to the Hillsborough River. The four-lane, 2-mi section will likely open this fall with five lanes between ramps.

Prince Contracting of Tampa began work in November on a $61-million widening of U.S. Route 301 to six lanes in Hillsborough County. It is scheduled to finish in March 2012.

In Pinellas County, Flatiron is working on the northbound spans of the $76.7-million Johns Pass Bridge replacement project. The southbound bridge has opened and is carrying both lanes of traffic. Completion is scheduled for January 2011.

Also in that county, Archer Western Contractors of Jacksonville expects to wrap up construction by December on an $89-million U.S. Route 19 bridge project, spanning both 110th and 118th avenues.

The state plans to move up construction of two large projects in the Tampa area, using stimulus funds: $156.5 million in construction improvements to U.S. Route 19 in Pinellas County, scheduled to be awarded in November, and the approximately $446-million Interstate 4/Lee Roy Selmon Expressway Interchange, with construction letting anticipated in September.

Both projects are “build-finance” jobs, says FDOT spokesperson Kristen Carsen, meaning the agency will give the contractor a down payment, the contractor secures other funding and FDOT later will pay them back. The down payment for these two jobs comes from the stimulus funding and is $45 million for U.S. 19 and $105 million for the I-4/Lee Roy Selmon connector.

Private Work Activity Skanska’s Cardinal says health-care facilities are modernizing rather than building new centers or hospitals, and the American Hospital Association agrees. It reports that 82% of hospitals it surveyed have put capital projects on hold and 13% have stopped capital projects already in process.

However, Brasfield & Gorrie of Lake Mary, Fla., continues work on the $300-million, 750,000-sq-ft All Children’s Hospital project in St. Petersburg, which includes a 10-story, 259-bed replacement hospital, a seven-story Outpatient Care Center and a central energy plant, all scheduled for a December finish. The project features a helicopter pad built to withstand landings by a military helicopter, impact-resistant glass up to the seventh floor, isolation rooms for use during a bioterrorism attack, a back-up water system with a desalination plant and 100% utility redundancy.

Bovis Lend Lease of Orlando is still building its $142-million, 350,000-sq-ft St. Joseph’s Hospital-North project in Lutz. The hospital expects completion in 2010. And Bovis’s Tampa office has completed about two-thirds of the $105-million, 906,000-sq-ft Aqualea Beach Resort and Residences for NRJ Development Co. on Clearwater Beach. The 250-unit condominium hotel includes 18 private residences. Hyatt Corp. will manage the resort.

Beck Group is building a 30,000-sq-ft, LEED-silver certified regional headquarters for itself overlooking the Hillsborough River and Waterworks Park in Tampa. The tilt-up concrete building features exterior green screens to decrease solar heat gain, a white roof with a high solar reflectance index and a green roof deck with a rainwater harvesting system.