ENR Texas & Louisiana's 2017 Best Projects
Diverse Projects Named Region’s Best
Eight entries honored for safety; three finalists for Project of the Year
A 588-seat performance hall at West High School doubles as a collegiate-style lecture hall.
PHOTO BY TRUITT ROGERS/HUCKABEE
Contractors, design firms, owners, subcontractors and other project stakeholders across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas submitted a total of 108 entries for this year’s ENR Texas & Louisiana Best Projects competition.
An independent jury of industry experts pored over the entries for six weeks and chose to honor 37 projects across 17 categories, including 16 Best Projects and 21 awards of merit.
All projects were completed between July 1, 2016, and June 30, 2017.
Factors that played a role in the judging included collaboration and teamwork as well as project challenges and solutions. Also considered were safety records, innovative design and construction solutions, contribution to the construction industry and community, as well as design quality and construction craftsmanship. Entries were not accepted for projects with a construction-related death.
The 16 Best Projects winners will now advance to the national level to be considered for ENR’s Best of the Best awards, judging for which will begin in the coming months.
To avoid conflicts of interest, if a judge worked for a firm directly involved in a submitted project, that panelist did not participate in the scoring for that category.
Judges also selected a Project of the Year for the region. The three finalists were: West High School/Middle School (Best Project in K-12 education), Ford Center at The Star and Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters (Best Project in sports/entertainment), and West Bank and Vicinity Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction, Mississippi River Levee (Best Project in water/environment).
In addition to the main competition, judges determined the regional Excellence in Safety awards. Two safety experts reviewed more than 60 entries, ultimately selecting one winner and seven awards of merit. Key factors considered included lost-time and recordable incident rates versus total man-hours worked as well as execution and quality of jobsite-specific safety and health programs.
Each of the winning project teams will be honored at an awards luncheon in Houston on Oct. 18.
- Best Projects Judges 2017
- Project of the Year Sports/Entertainment Best Project: The Star
- Airport/Transit Best Project: United Airlines' New Terminal C North at IAH (Houston Intercontinental Airport)
- Cultural/Worship Award of Merit: Witte Museum
- Energy/Industrial Best Project Excellence in Safety Award: DOW CME "Crack More Ethane"
- Energy/Industrial Award of Merit Excellence in Safety, Award of Merit: Petra Nova Post-Combustion Carbon Capture Sequestration Project
- Energy/Industrial Award of Merit: Phillips 66 Terminal Expansion
- Excellence in Safety, Award of Merit: Cypress Park High School
- Excellence in Safety, Award of Merit: Harmony Hill Luxury Apartments
- Excellence in Safety, Award of Merit: Memorial Hermann Cypress New Hospital Campus
- Excellence in Safety, Award of Merit Health Care, Award of Merit: North Central Baptist Hospital Orthopedic Addition
- Government/Public Building Best Project: Seguin Public Library
- Government/Public Building Award of Merit: McKinney Aquatics Apex Centre
- Health Care Best Project: Lackland Air Force Base Wilford Hall Ambulatory Care Center - Phases II and III
- Health Care Award of Merit: St. Anthony Shawnee Hospital Expansion
- Higher Education/Research Best Project: The University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Academic Office Building and Parking Structure
- Higher Education/Research Award of Merit: Abilene Christian University Science Facilities
- Higher Education/Research Award of Merit: Health Learning Building at The University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School
- Interior/Tenant Improvement Best Project Excellence in Safety, Award of Merit: Memorial Hermann Cypress Hospital Interiors Build Out
- Interior/Tenant Improvement Award of Merit: Stryker Regional Distribution Center
- Interior/Tenant Improvement Award of Merit: Fort Bend Children's Discovery Center
- K-12 Education Best Project: West High School / Middle School
- K-12 Education Award of Merit: Ray Braswell High School
- Landscape/Hardscape/Urban/Development Best Project: Dallas Zoo Simmons Hippo Outpost
- Manufacturing Best Project: Daikin Texas Technology Park
- Manufacturing Award of Merit: Farmer Brothers Headquarters
- Office/Retail/Mixed-Use Development Best Project: 1920 McKinney Office Building and Parking Garage
- Office/Retail/Mixed-Use Development Award of Merit: Granite Place at Southlake Town Square
- Renovation/Restoration Best Project: Moody Gardens Aquarium Project
- Renovation/Restoration Award of Merit: WATERMARK Baton Rouge, an Autograph Hotel
- Renovation/Restoration Award of Merit: Vantage State Building
- Residential/Hospitality Best Project: T. Boone Pickens Hospice and Palliative Care Center
- Residential/Hospitality Award of Merit: Houston Marriott Marquis Hotel
- Residential/Hospitality Award of Merit: Pinnacle Bank Place
- Small Project (under $10 million) Best Project: The New Orleans Advocate
- Small Project (under $10 million) Award of Merit: Desire Street Ministries
- Small Project (under $10 million) Award of Merit: Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC)
- Specialty Construction Best Project: Chickasaw Nation Cultural Center and National Recreation Bridge
- Specialty Construction Award of Merit: The Driskill Hotel Balcony Repair and Restoration
- Sports/Entertainment Award of Merit: Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
- Water/Environment Best Project: West Bank and Vicinity, Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction (HSDRRS), Mississippi
