When the two-phase expansion of U.S. Highway 36 between Denver and Boulder is finished in a few years, the roadway will be one of the "smartest" and most innovative in the country. The project, whose first phase is one-third complete, will provide four modes of travel in one place for the first time in Colorado—bus, high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) and high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes as well as a separate commuter bikeway next to the highway. Related Links: CDOT Selects Ames-Granite Joint Venture CDOT Selects Design-Build Team for Phase 2 The multimodal, design-build U.S. 36 Express Lanes Project is estimated to cost
The cautious optimism and widespread uncertainty expressed by contractors in recent years have all but disappeared in 2013, as leaders of the region's larger firms say the industry's much-anticipated recovery is well under way. They report more available work, stronger markets and improving fees and margins, which are not yet back to prerecession levels. Related Links: Notable Recent P3 Success Stories in Colorado Institutional, Health-Care Work Lead List of Biggest New Projects "We are definitely excited and upbeat about 2013 and beyond," says Mark Reilly, senior vice president at Denver's JE Dunn Construction. "We have clearly bounced off the bottom
A team of researchers led by Colorado State University engineering professor John van de Lindt has spent the last month shaking a four-story building in San Diego to learn how to make structures with first-floor garages better withstand seismic shocks. “Earthquakes are particularly damaging to buildings with open spaces at street level because they collapse; the first-floor parking makes the building structurally weak and soft,” van de Lindt says. “There are tens of thousands of these multifamily buildings throughout California and much of the U.S., making this a serious safety issue.”Since July, the team has successfully tested a variety of
The Dept. of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden has published a report on the land-use requirements of solar power plants based on actual land-use practices from existing solar facilities. “Having real data from a majority of the solar plants in the United States will help people make proper comparisons and informed decisions,” says the report’s lead author Sean Ong. The study, called “Land-use Requirements for Solar Power Plants in the United States,” was written with NREL colleagues Clinton Campbell, Robert Margolis, Paul Denholm and Garvin Heath.Ong gathered data from 72% of the solar-power plants installed or under construction
The renovated 180,000-sq-ft Cesar Chavez Memorial Building, located at the edge of the Golden Triangle neighborhood near downtown Denver, has been awarded LEED-Gold certification as a result of the $42.7-million modernization project completed last year. The project team was initially targeting LEED Silver. Photo by Fred Fuhrmeister, Time Frame Photography The Chavez Building no longer sits in isolation at the end of the city block but rather serves as a gateway into Denvers Civic and Justice Center and the Golden Triangle neighborhood. Photo by Fred Fuhrmeister, Time Frame Photography The project created a new state-of-the-art building exterior, an aluminum-and-glass curtain
The unemployment rate for construction workers fell to the lowest July level in five years, even though employment has stagnated in the past four months, according to a recent analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. “Although the unemployment rate for experienced construction workers came down to 9.1% in July, many of those workers have left the industry for other jobs, school or training programs, or retirement,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “While the industry has added workers in the past year, employment growth has been negligible recently.”The unemployment rate for workers who
The second phase of the new Castle Rock Adventist hospital opened in Castle Rock, Colo., in early August. The four-story, 219,000-sq-ft building reflects the hospital’s holistic, whole-person approach to health care and wellness. Photo courtesy of HuntonBrady Architects The four-story, 219,000-sq-ft building reflects the hospitals holistic, whole-person approach to health care and wellness. It was planned with evidence-based architectural details. Evidence-based health-care design recognizes the importance in the healing process of patient safety, patient outcomes, the staff environment, infection control, noise attenuation, daylight, views of nature, art and gardens.Castle Rock Adventist is the first hospital designed by HuntonBrady Architects to
Total construction spending cooled in June as residential building hit the pause button, while private nonresidential and public construction also declined, according to a recent analysis of new Census Bureau data by the Associated General Contractors of America. “New single-family and multifamily construction both had rare slowdowns in June, while private nonresidential construction remained stuck in neutral as it has all year and the long slump in public construction worsened,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “For the rest of 2013, private construction appears likely to grow again but public spending is showing no signs of a recovery.”Construction put
The Regional Transportation District and northwest metro area communities took a major step forward in the Northwest Area Mobility Study at the end of July. The group agreed to focus the study on a specific set of transit alternatives that could bring commuter rail and/or other transit improvements to northwest communities sooner than current projections for when RTD can complete the Northwest Rail Line to Longmont. The alternatives include options for phasing construction of the 41-mile Northwest Rail corridor in segments, options to determine whether extending the North Metro commuter rail line to Longmont is better than serving Longmont via
After more than three months of closing eastbound and westbound I-70 for up to 30 minutes at a time, the Colorado Dept. of Transportation has completed blasting operations in the eastbound Twin Tunnel near Idaho Springs. The Twin Tunnels project is one of the first projects under way to improve the safety and mobility along the I-70 mountain corridor. The project includes adding one eastbound lane between East Idaho Springs and U.S. 6 and expanding the eastbound bore of the Twin Tunnels. An estimated 19,700 cu yd of rock has been removed from the 635-ft-long tunnel. Blasting operations began on
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