The Colorado State University System has secured more than $171 million in bond financing for a suite of projects that college officials say will transform the Fort Collins campus over the next few years. The bonds will fund construction of new facilities for academics, research and student services. The bond package that supports six major construction projects sold in less than four hours on Aug. 6 and delivered a combined true interest rate of 4.01%.The projects financed in the sale include:• A five-story, 152,000-sq-ft biology building.• A new 105,000-sq-ft medical center that will be built at the corner of Prospect
Paced by continued demand for projects such as new education and healthcare facilities, public safety and government buildings, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) increased in June following fluctuations earlier this year. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine- to 12-month lead-time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects reported the June ABI score was 55.7, up substantially from a mark of 51.9 in May. This score reflects an increase in design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index was 63.4, up
Nonresidential construction spending was unchanged month-over-month in June but is up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis, according to a report released Aug. 3 by the U.S. Census Bureau. Nonresidential construction spending totaled $686.9 billion on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis for the month and increased 9.8% during the year’s first half. “This release represents the largest year-over-year growth during a calendar year’s first six months since the Census Bureau began tracking construction spending in 2002 and serves as further proof of the recovery for nonresidential construction,” said Associated Builders and Contractors Chief Economist Anirban Basu.“Despite the lack of growth on
The job market in the Southwest is looking much better than it did a year ago, with Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada all showing employment growth year-over-year when comparing June 2015 to June 2014 according to numbers provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had improved in June, declined in July. The index now stands at 90.9 (1985=100), down from 99.8 in June. The Present Situation Index decreased moderately from 110.3 last month to 107.4 in July while the Expectations Index declined sharply to 79.9 from 92.8 in June. Consumers’ assessment of current conditions was somewhat less favorable in July. Those saying business conditions are “good” decreased from 26.1% to 24.2%. However, those claiming business conditions are “bad” was virtually unchanged at 17.9%. Consumers were slightly less positive about the job market. Those stating jobs are “plentiful”
New construction starts in June dropped 15% from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $620.2 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. The decline followed an especially strong May, which benefitted from a $9.0-billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal in Texas being entered as a May start. By major sector, nonbuilding construction in June fell sharply as the result of a steep pullback by its electric utility and gas plant category while nonresidential building witnessed a less severe loss of momentum. Residential building in June was able to post a slight gain, helped by continued
Prices for inputs to construction industries expanded 0.2% in June after increasing 1.1% in May. Year-over-year prices were down 2.2% in June and prices have not increased on an annual basis for the past seven months. The last time this occurred was the third and fourth quarter of 2009 when the global economy was still reeling from the financial crisis; however, June’s year-over-year decline in construction input prices was the smallest so far in 2015. Prices of inputs to nonresidential construction industries rose 0.3% on a monthly basis, but are down 3.6% on a yearly basis.“The June figures do not
The first project to reconstruct Interstate 25 through Pueblo officially got underway on July 1. The contracting/design team of Flatiron Constructors and HDR broke ground on the reconstruction of I-25 between City Center Drive (1st Street) and Ilex Street. The project also upgrades a number of bridges south of downtown Pueblo, Colo. The $69-million project consists of:• Constructing new bridges on I-25 over D Street, the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railroad and Gruma Street and replacing two structurally deficient bridges, built in 1959, that cross over Ilex and Bennett streets and the railroad tracks.• Rehabilitating six bridges on I-25 northbound
Developer Wiens Real Estate Ventures LLC (WREV) has started construction on the second of three office buildings in the Arista residential, retail, office and entertainment community. Arista is the 200-acre, transit-oriented development anchored by the 1stBank Center along U.S. 36 between Denver and Boulder. Rendering courtesy of GKK Arista Place II is located along the main street within Arista and will have main-floor restaurant and retail tenants with Class A office space above. GKK is the architect of Arista Place II and Pinkard Construction is the general contractor.Upon completion in June 2016, Arista Place II will be an 82,000-sq-ft, five-story office
The Colorado Dept. of Transportation has selected Kiewit Infrastructure Co. as the construction manager/general contractor to do the permanent repairs in a 23-mile section of U.S. 34 between Estes Park and Loveland.
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