Duke Energy reached a settlement with the state of Florida that allows the Charlotte, N.C.-based utility to keep $1 billion in advance fees collected from ratepayers that would have financed a cancelled $24.7-billion nuclear plant project, while clearing the way for additional funding of a planned 1800-megawatt natural gas plant. Image courtesy Duke Energy Duke Energy announced Aug. 1 that it is ending plans to build a $24.7-million nuclear powerplant project in Levy County, Fla., that was first proposed in 2008. Related Links: Nuclear Resurgence Dims Due to Rising Costs, Low Demand Newspaper Takes Aim at 'Myth' of $20B Florida
International Speedway Corp., owner of the Daytona International Speedway, kicked off construction in early July of its $400-million renovation of the NASCAR racetrack in Daytona Beach, Fla. The project—dubbed "Daytona Rising: Reimagining an American Icon"—is the single largest investment in the company's history. Image courtesy Rossetti The $400-million makeover of Daytona International Speedway will transform the nearly 1-mile-long grandstands section of the famous NASCAR track. Image courtesy Rossetti Design of the design-build project was nearly 100 percent complete at the start of construction in July. Related Links: As $400M Daytona Speedway Redo Revs Up, Other Southeast Sports Projects Get Ready
The Georgia Dept. of Transportation on July 23 named a team of Archer Western Contractors, Hubbard Construction and Parsons Transportation Group as the builders of its $840-million Northwest Corridor project. The public-private partnership project—which GDOT calls "long-anticipated and much-needed"—is being procured via a design-build-finance contract. Map courtesy Georgia Dept. of Transportation The Northwest Corridor project will add two managed lanes to Interstate 75 between I-285N and the I-575 Interchange. North of that interchange, it will add one managed lane to both I-75 and I-575. Related Links: FDOT Officially Names Shortlisted Firms for I-4 Ultimate Project Pending finalization of a P3
Miami Beach commissioners on July 17 settled a high-profile battle of starchitects when it chose Rem Koolhaas and his Netherlands-based firm, OMA, to redesign and revamp the city's convention center and surrounding 52-acre site, estimated as a $1-billion project. Tishman of New York leads the development team, which also included Atlanta-based tvsdesign, which specializes in convention centers. Related Links: Architectural Record: Rem Koolhaas Wins Competition to Redesign Miami Beach Convention Center Is Miami's Condo Boom Already Heading for Overdrive? "We are thrilled to be chosen to develop one of the most significant urban districts in the U.S.," Shohei Shigematsu, director
The team building the 32-mile-long first phase of a $1.2-billion Central Florida commuter rail project, which endured years of political delay, is making its way through a unique set of coordination challenges to get the first trains moving next spring. Related Links: Construction of $1.3B SunRail Project Finally Set to Start Gov. Scott Gives Go-Ahead for $1.3B Commuter Rail Project The $168.1-million design-build-maintain contract for Phase 1—held by a joint venture of Archer Western Contractors, Tampa, and RailWorks Track Systems, New York City—is transforming an active freight line into a hybrid system that is passenger-centric during commuter hours. The first
MORRISPaul Morris has joined the Atlanta BeltLine Inc. (ABI) as the organization's new president and CEO. Morris has almost 30 years of management experience throughout the U.S. and Canada related to transportation, urban redevelopment, natural resource management, public parks and the development of corporate and institutional facilities. Related Links: ENR Southeast's Online People Photo Showcase Southeast People News Previously, Morris served as deputy secretary for transit with the North Carolina Dept. of Transportation. ABI is the organization responsible for implementing the Atlanta BeltLine urban redevelopment project.Craig Kirkwood has joined SchenkelShultz Architecture's Orlando office as an aviation planner and designer. Previously
Southeast contractors, beginning to sense genuine momentum in the region's building markets, are now looking forward to an upturn. But as data from ENR Southeast's latest Top Contractors survey shows, a broader regional construction market recovery remains mostly in the offing. Related Links: The Southeast's Top Starts Top Southeast Starts Reflect a Rejuvenated Residential Market The survey's first indicator of a regional revival is seen in the response rate. Historically, the depth of the Southeast Top Contractors ranking has ebbed and flowed with the industry's own ups and downs. For the latest list, more than 110 firms reported their 2012
By most outward appearances, much has changed for Rodgers Builders since its chairman, B.D. Rodgers, first founded the company in 1963. Now with more than 350 associates across three offices, and a diverse project portfolio, the Charlotte, N.C.-based firm's growth has mirrored its hometown's emergence as one of the Southeast's leading economic hubs. Related Links: Rodgers Builders Named 'Contractor of the Year' Builders Get Ready for Southeast Resurgence Looking deeper, though, it is apparent that Rodgers has deviated little from its origin as a conservative company, with leaders who emphasize an old-fashioned personal approach. At the same time, the company
Claiming the Fluor Corp.-led construction management team that manages and operates a federal nuclear-waste site in Aiken, S.C., intentionally misled it about the status of design completion on a $90-million plutonium and uranium waste-disposal project under way, Baker Concrete Construction Inc. sued the joint venture on June 6 in U.S. District Court there. Photo courtesy Savannah River Site Waste processing facility at Aiken, S.C., site was originally set for completion in July 2012. Related Links: Baker Concrete v. SRNS DOE Looking at Cost, Schedule Problems at S.C. Nuclear Site Baker seeks damages of nearly $20 million from Savannah River Nuclear
The Atlanta Falcons and the Georgia World Congress Center Authority recently firmed up the group of architects and builders for the National Football League team’s planned $1-billion, operable-roof stadium. Related Links: Atlanta Authority Hires 360 Architecture to Design Falcons Stadium $200M Proton Therapy Project Kicks Off in Atlanta The groups announced the hiring of a joint venture led by Atlanta-based Holder Construction, as the managing partner, and Hunt Construction Group, Phoenix, to build the downtown stadium. According to the Falcons, local firms H.J. Russell & Co. and C.D. Moody Construction Co. have joined the joint-venture team.“This joint venture is a
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