The PeopleForBikes Green Lane Project has selected Denver as one of six new U.S. cities to join its intensive two-year program to build better bike lanes. Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh and Seattle will receive financial, strategic and technical assistance to create low-stress streets and increase vitality in urban centers through the installation of protected bike lanes. The six cities were chosen from more than 100 U.S. cities that submitted letters of interest for the program. Launched in 2012, the Green Lane Project works with U.S. cities to speed installation of protected bike lanes around the country. These on-street lanes
Nearly 2,800 people attended the Associated General Contractors of America convention in Las Vegas in early March. Here are some of the highlights. Photo by The HorvathGroup, courtesy of AGC AGC of Americas 2014 president is Alan Landes, president/CEO of rail and heavy/highway firm Herzog Contracting Corp., St. Joseph, Mo. Photo by The HorvathGroup, courtesy of AGC AGCs annual community project, Horses 4 Heroes, offers riding and animal care programs to veterans, first responders and their families. New Leadership, InitiativesBoosting infrastructure spending will be part of the agenda for incoming AGC President Alan Landes, president/CEO of rail and heavy/highway firm
The Associated General Contractors of America awarded Littleton-based LONG Building Technologies Inc. a national community service award at the association’s 2014 national convention in early March. LONG was honored for donating time and money to a Denver homeless shelter. As a result, the construction firm was one of 10 organizations nationwide to win the AGC in the Community Award from Charities Inc., the charitable arm of AGC. LONG’s employees have been donating time and money for years to the Denver Rescue Mission, which provides meals, rehabilitation, mentoring and housing to thousands of people each year.In 2013 the company provided $10,000
The Colorado Chapter of Society for Marketing Professional Services presented its 2014 Marketing Excellence Awards on February 13. The annual competition is the longest-standing awards program recognizing excellence in marketing and communications by professional services firms in Colorado’s design and building industry. The following members were recipients of individual awards:• Leonardo Award: Amy Hopkins, Espy Marketing The Leonardo Award is given by SMPS Colorado to honor achievement at the highest level the A/E/C industry marketing and business development. This year’s winner, Hopkins, is a veteran executive-level strategic marketer with 25 years of experience in the technical services field. She specializes in
The Associated General Contractors of America recently honored Salt Lake City’s Airport Light Rail extension as the most significant construction project of 2013. The project’s contractors, Stacy and Witbeck and Kiewit Western, won the Grand Award at the Alliant Build America Awards at AGC’s national convention in Las Vegas in early March. Photo courtesy of UTA The 6.2-mile light rail extension connects Salt Lake International Airport with downtown Salt Lake City. The project also earned a merit award in the Marvin M. Black Partnering Excellence category and was recognized as an AGC in the Community Award winner.The Utah Transit Authority
The Colorado Dept. of Transportation recently issued two draft reports summarizing the feasibility of high-speed transit systems in both the Interstate 70 Mountain Corridor and I-25 Front Range Corridor. Both studies—conducted by CDOT’s Division of Transit and Rail (DTR) and a team of outside experts—confirmed that high-speed transit is technically feasible in both corridors, but not financially feasible in either corridor at this time. Map courtesy of CDOT A trip from C-470/I-70 in Golden to Breckenridge would take just over a half hour and travel to Vail would take 50 minutes. “It is clear that we currently lack the financial
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had increased in January, fell moderately in February. The index now stands at 78.1 (1985=100), down from 79.4 in January. The decline was driven by the Expectations Index, which dropped to 75.7 from 80.8. The Present Situation Index, by contrast, climbed from 77.3 to 81.7. Consumers’ appraisal of current conditions improved for the fourth consecutive month. Those claiming business conditions are “good” increased to 21.5% from 20.8%, while those claiming business conditions are “bad” declined to 22.6% from 23.4%. Consumers’ assessment of the labor market also improved. Those claiming jobs are “plentiful” increased
The value of new construction starts fell 13% in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $485 billion, according to McGraw Hill Construction, a division of McGraw Hill Financial. The downturn followed a healthy performance in December, which was the third highest month for total construction starts during 2013. January’s retreat encompassed all three main construction sectors, with moderate declines reported for nonresidential building and housing, as well as a more substantial loss of momentum for nonbuilding construction (public works and electric utilities) after a particularly robust December. On an unadjusted basis, total construction starts in January came in
Prices for materials used in construction and for nonresidential building construction both increased more than overall prices for “final demand” in January, according to a new analysis of retooled federal data on producer prices released by the Associated General Contractors of America. As a result, margins remain very tight for most construction firms even as private-sector demand for construction continues to grow. “Although contractors on average were able to raise bid prices in line with materials cost increases, the results varied widely by commodity, building type and specialty trade,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Several key construction materials,
After consecutive months of shrinking demand for design services, there was a modest uptick in the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) in January. 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 January ABI score was 50.4, up from a mark of 48.5 in December. This score reflects an increase in design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index was 58.5, down a bit from the reading of 59.2 the previous month.“There is
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