Contractors, developers and designers face a new sort of project backlog across the New York region today: many hundreds of stalled sites that loom as a steep challenge to the industry. But while dormant sites stand as grim reminders of a weak economy, it is the jobs that are set to restart that are posing new problems. “I don't think we've ever seen the phenomenon at this scale,” says Richard Anderson, president of the New York Building Congress, of the high number of stalled sites.The 2008 market crash left a wave of project shutdowns in its wake, prompting the New
The New Jersey construction industry got an early Christmas present late last month: state funding for a program aimed at helping military veterans transition out of active duty into the building and construction trades. The $195,000 grant will be available under the state's Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development agency in partnership with the New Jersey Building and Construction Trades Council's chapter of the national Helmets to Hardhats program. The initiative will provide many veterans with jobs in the building trades, which has posted employment gains in six of the past seven months, the state says. But while industry executives
BBL Construction Services, Albany, N.Y., has hired Brett Stevens as business development executive. Stevens will be working both locally and nationally for the firm. AERCO International Inc. has moved its corporate headquarters to 100 Oritani Dr., Blauvelt, N.Y. Previously, the water heater and boiler manufacturing firm operated out of three separate facilities in Northvale, N.J. VIP Structures Inc., Syracuse, N.Y., has hired Glenn Murdock as safety director. Previously, Murdock worked as safety director for Associated Builders and Contractors, traveling throughout the state to engage in inspecting and training at contractor worksites. BrazilAine Brazil, vice chairman and managing principal of
Construction Where Architecture Meets Online DatingFollowing in the well-trod path of Match.com and other online dating services, the American Institute of Architects thinks it has found a way to attract investors to the thousands of industry projects put on hold—send the potential suitors online for a database of the good-lookers. The AIA is compiling a list of stalled projects nationwide that “make sense” to move forward but lack financing.“It's the Match.com for projects,” says Clark Manus, AIA president.Clark believes AIA's initiative will help to shed light on the worthiness of restarting some of the projects that investors have overlooked. As
Construction costs in New York City, which started to increase in 2010, are continuing to rise, according to a review of multiple surveys made by the New York Building Congress. This comes after a decline in 2009. NYBC reviewed a series of surveys including Engineering News-Record’s Building Cost Index, which shows that construction costs in New York City have risen 3.55% so far in 2011 and 2.42% in 2010, after falling 1.94% in 2009.Separately, a survey by Rider Levett Bucknall of the New York metropolitan region finds that New York City construction costs have so far increased by 2.13% in
The American Automobile Association of New York and the AAA of New Jersey filed a federal lawsuit yesterday against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s approved toll and fare hikes. The lawsuit follows a request made by AAA on Sept. 15 to investigate the authority’s act as a violation of the Federal Bridge Act and is an attempt to stop the toll hikes from being collected on the authority’s six bridges and tunnels connecting New York and New Jersey. In addition to the lawsuit, AAA has asked the authority to “turn over the capital plan that stands
The District Council of Carpenters is continuing contract talks with the New York Building Contractors Association and, separately, the Contractors’ Association of Greater New York, says Louis J. Coletti, president of the Building Trades Employers’ Association of New York. The two contracts are the last of the 22 union contracts that expired on June 30. Related Links: Carpenters, NYBCA Likely to Extend Talks Past Midnight Deadline “If an agreement is reached with the BCA, CAGNY will accept the same agreement,” Coletti says.The union reached agreements with the Association of Wall-Ceiling & Carpentry and the Greater Floor Coverers Association on September
The Metallic Lathers and Reinforcing Ironworkers Union Local 46 and the Mason Tenders District Council of New York City filed a multimillion-dollar racketeering lawsuit yesterday against two developers and a bankrupt construction manager regarding Manhattan and Brooklyn projects. Lalezarian Developers and JMH Development allegedly conspired with construction manager HRH Construction to perform millions of dollars of work under a bogus non-union company, Leviathan Construction Management, the unions say. The suit was filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Southern District of New York, says Tom Kennedy, attorney at New York-based Kennedy, Jennik and Murray, who is representing the unions.
NYC officials are investigating why part of a building undergoing demolition collapsed this morning causing scaffolding to fall onto an MTA bus, resulting in minor injuries to 18 people. Part of the structure, at 301 West 125th Street, is still standing although “a large amount of it did fall down,” says a Fire Department spokesperson. The incident is thought to have occurred just before 9:26 a.m. and was brought under control at about 3 p.m., the spokesperson says. The Dept. of Buildings received a complaint about the site on September 7, but its inspectors did not find any conditions that
Associated Builders and Contractors, Washington, D.C. and the construction unit of insurer CNA, Chicago, plan to launch a three-year partnership in January 2012 to advance best practices in the construction safety sector. CNA’s construction unit provides insurance offerings to construction contractors including insurance coverages and claim and risk control services. Under the partnership, CNA will provide ABC with access to its safety resources library, safety experts, and help to enhance the value of ABC’s Safety Training Evaluation Process, ABC says. CNA will also sponsor ABC’s annual National Safety Excellence Awards as well as the safety management track at ABC’s EdCon
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