The construction market is a tricky thing, especially in the current economy. But a look inside California Construction Magazine’s annual list of the Top Project Starts for 2010 can reveal some exciting and interesting insights into work going on across the state. McCarthy Building Cos. and HMC Architects are working on the Kaiser Permanente Fontana replacement hospital project. The new Temecula Civic Center is being built by Edge Construction. Related Links: California Construction 2010 Top Project Starts “The market right now is generally very mixed,” says David Hobstetter, principal with San Francisco-based KMD Architects. “The housing and commercial office markets

When motorists take to San Francisco�s new $1-billion Presidio Parkway in late 2013, they won�t see some of the massive foundation piles placed deep into ground below. But they will feel the support of some of the largest cast-in-drilled-hole piles currently in use. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" �The biggest challenge on this job from the beginning was a requirement to use 12-ft-diameter piles and [insert them with] very limited vibration because of historic buildings in the Presidio,� says Peter Faust, project manager for San Francisco-based Malcolm Drilling Co. �This meant we couldn�t use a pile driver with an

When motorists take to San Francisco’s new $1-billion Presidio Parkway in late 2013, they won’t see some of the massive foundation piles placed deep into ground below. But they will feel the support of some of the largest cast-in-drilled-hole piles currently in use. Ghilotti Bros. is currently working on phase two sitework at Doyle Drive. Malcolm Drilling readies the piles. “The biggest challenge on this job from the beginning was a requirement to use 12-ft-diameter piles and [insert them with] very limited vibration because of historic buildings in the Presidio,” says Peter Faust, project manager for San Francisco-based Malcolm Drilling

Building a mixed-use development in the heart of Encino – generally considered “inland” by Southern California’s coastal residents – wouldn’t ordinarily seem like an undertaking for which you’d need a wet suit. Albert Group Architects of Santa Monica is the designer of the Encino Legado project, while Fassberg Contracting Group of Encino is serving as general contractor. Project engineers solved the water problem by installing a mat foundation system involving concrete walls about 2 ft thicker than in standard foundations, sandwiching a thick waterproof membrane. But nature does have its little surprises. The ongoing Encino Legado development --a $45 million

If the recent sixth-annual Safety Expo: Statewide Safety Training & Construction Management event proved one thing, it’s that construction industry representatives in California crave information. Various classes and demonstrations at the Expo focused on scaffold awareness, safety and new products. As they say during tough times, the better prepared employees and firms will reap benefits down the line. The 140 sessions presented at this expo ranged from forklift certification classes to basic CPR training and from a nine-part series of new green building workshops to Cal/OSHA updates. Presented by the Construction Industry Education Foundation (CIEF) in partnership with the Sacramento

There is a delicate operation underway at Mercy General Hospital in Sacramento that requires steady hands and surgeon-like precision. But instead of doctors and patients, this procedure involves the construction of a four-story, 125,000-sq-ft hospital tower smack dab in the middle of a busy campus with only one tiny access road. The Alex G. Spanos Heart Center tower is the main part of a $150-million modernization of Mercy General Hospital in Sacramento. Redwood City-based DPR Construction is the general contractor on the project, which is currently undergoing �get-ready� sitework. “This is about as tight a site as I have ever

Sacramento may have one of the country’s largest urban infill projects underway, but that doesn’t mean the city’s overall construction market has completely bounced back from recession. “We are at about the same level as last year, which I consider too slow,” says David Kwong, acting director of the city’s Community Development Department. He says the total valuation for construction projects in 2009 was about $350 million, the same figure he projects for this year. The total building permits issued in 2009 was 12,902 and the current total this year is 2,234 as of March 15. Mark Cirksena, Sacramento regional

Veteran builders readily admit that what they viewed less than a decade ago as an industry fad – the notion that projects should be designed and built with a high degree of environmental sensitivity – has become a widely accepted, permanent industry practice. Swinerton is currently working on the Pacific Ridge School, phase 2 project in Carlsbad. The architect is Carrier Johnson. Pacific Ridge School is registered with the certification goal of LEED for Schools gold. Elements include daylighting, passive cooling, solar panels, artifical turf on playing fields, parking for hybrid vehicles and bioswales. Related Links: Top Contractors Firms Listing

As California’s construction industry continues to feel the recession’s pinch, some of the state’s top contractors are tightening their tool belts and concentrating on their company’s individual talents to stay ahead in the game. Slide Show Related Links: Top Contractors in California “The biggest challenge right now is a lot more competition on projects,” says Michael Scribner, president and CEO of San Francisco-based BCCI. “It used to be that we were competing against maybe two or three contractors on a project and now there could be between eight and 10.” Scribner, whose company specializes in interiors work around the Bay

The project team’s task at the South San Francisco Ferry Terminal project at Oyster Point Marina seemed reasonable enough: Design and engineer a ferry terminal off the unpredictable waters of San Francisco Bay and make sure it can withstand a catastrophic earthquake while still meeting the letter of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Oh, and make sure the ferry itself is made of concrete -- and floats. Not a problem, says Bo Jensen, vice president of Oakland-based Moffat & Nichol Engineers, one of the marine engineering firms hired by owner San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority for the