The heavily traveled Interstate-35 corridor is infamous for areas of congestion; fortunately, for motorists and contractors, significant highway funding is speeding along to bring needed relief. Under current plans, the Texas Dept. of Transportation (TxDOT) is investing more than $1 billion to widen the interstate—with more than a half billion in work under way and nearly $400 million in projects scheduled to bid this fall. The agency, which has at least another $500 million in additional work on the horizon and more in planning, has launched unprecedented outreach programs to shape the future expansion of the corridor. After nearly five
Clark Construction seems to have taken to heart the slogan “Everything is bigger in Texas.” Throughout its 30 years in the Texas market, the national firm, which is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., has focused on large jobs. But in recent years that strategy reached a new level as Clark—in a joint venture with Hunt Construction—added such megaprojects as the $730-million San Antonio Military Medical Center. The firm's Texas portfolio has amassed a combined value of $2.6 billion over three decades, with its current projects comprising $1.1 billion of that tally. Photo Courtesy of Clark Construction Clark built a new Terminal
McGraw-Hill Construction reports that the value of Georgia’s June construction starts totaled nearly $1.2 billion in June, an increase of 34% compared to the same period of a year ago. Related Links: Florida Construction Starts Rise 32% in June North Carolina Contracts Take Off in June South Carolina Contracts Decline 12% in June A surge in commercial starts fueled the increase. Nonresidential contracts totaled nearly $676.8 million, or 72% above last June’s total of $393.9 million. Residential contracts also moved up, with the latest total of $366.9 million representing a 19% gain from the year-ago period. The nonbuilding sector, which
A huge boost in the nonbuilding sector propelled the value of North Carolina’s June construction starts total to an estimated $2.2 billion, for a 98% improvement over the same period of a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast. Related Links: South Carolina Contracts Decline 12% in June Georgia Commercial Construction Activity Surges Florida Construction Starts Rise 32% in June New nonbuilding contracts—which include infrastructure projects—totaled more than $1.1 billion in June, or nearly $1 billion higher than last June’s total of $175.2 million.Nonresidential contracts also got started at an increased pace in June, with this category
A significant decline in the value of nonbuilding projects caused South Carolina’s overall total for new construction contracts to decline 12% in June, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast. The state recorded an estimated $648.9 million in new contracts during June. Related Links: North Carolina Contracts Take Off in June Georgia Commercial Construction Activity Surges Florida Construction Starts Rise 32% in June The nonbuilding sector fell 53% compared to the same period of a year ago, for a June total of $113.6 million. It was the lone negative sector for the month, however.Nonresidential experienced a 17% increase in
The value of Florida’s June construction starts improved by 32% compared to the same period of a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, with more than $2.4 billion in new contracts moving forward during the month. Related Links: Georgia's Commercial Construction Activity Surges in June North Carolina Contracts Take Off in June South Carolina Contracts Decline 12% in June All three construction sectors experienced strong, double-digit percentage jumps in June. The nonbuilding sector, which includes infrastructure projects, improved by the highest percentage, 67%, to tally $665.4 million.McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast, estimated new residential starts at $843.8 million, or
SnapShot July 4, 2011 Submitted By: Diane Rutledge, Director of Marketing and Brand,Suffolk Construction Co., West Palm Beach, Fla. To capture the drama of architect Jonathan Parks’ design for the Palm Avenue Parking Garage, Sarasota, Fla., photographer Barry Grossman tried “to treat the structure as a sculptural, artistic form.” The resulting image shows a building that seems to glow from within. The 700-space garage, with a metal-panel exterior, was designed to LEED Gold status and features photovoltaics, charging stations and rainwater harvesting. Photo by Barry Grossman, Grossman Photography, Grossmanphoto.com
On The Scene July 4, 2011 Kenneth G. Simonson In May, Kenneth G. Simonson, chief economist with Associated General Contractors of America, addressed a group of AGC of Greater Florida members in Orlando.There, Simonson said he expects modest improvement in overall construction activity for the rest of 2011, but with a more significant uptick in multifamily— with starts in this sector up 7% in April 2011 compared with April 2010. Retailers are not building new stores, keeping that sector depressed. However, hoteliers are modernizing their properties as revenue per available room has grown, particularly at the luxury level. In Florida,
The Port of Miami is steaming ahead on the Southeast's largest port project—a $1-billion tunnel aimed at enhancing the South Florida transportation hub's efficiency and interstate connectivity in time for an expected surge in oversized cargo traffic coming from an expanded Panama Canal. Inconsistent geological variations—from loose sand to limestone to porous areas in an undefined pattern—make the Port of Miami Tunnel project a “soft-ground” tunnel, creating challenges in design and construction, says the Florida Dept. of Transportation. Related Links: Bouygues of France Starts $1-Billion Miami Port Tunnel “From an engineering aspect, a tunnel [here], because of the geology, is
With an appetite for technically complex and otherwise demanding projects, and several recent, high-profile wins in both the building and civil sectors, PCL Construction Enterprises is flying high when other Southeast contractors are lying low. From the recent success of its building division delivering the Wizarding World of Harry Potter for Universal Orlando, to its civil unit's lead on the bid-build-finance of a nearly $400-million interchange project in Tampa for the Florida Dept. of Transportation, PCL has a momentum uncommon in today's economy.The latest evidence of its hot streak came in April, when the Orlando-based Southeast building unit, PCL Construction