New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) on Oct. 7 killed the $8.7-billion Trans-Hudson River passenger rail tunnel project that was expected to double commuter train capacity between New Jersey and Manhattan. + Image Proposed route was downriver from existing Amtrak tunnel. Christie said he feared cost overruns on the Access to the Region’s Core (ARC) project could cost the state between $2 billion and $5 billion, despite commitments of $3 billion each from the Federal Transit Administration and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. CHRISTIE “I will not allow taxpayers to fund projects that run over budget
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has added New York City’s Newtown Creek to its Superfund list, which prioritizes cleanup and remediation efforts for the country’s most hazardous waste sites. The 3.8-mile-long Newtown Creek, which runs along the border of Brooklyn and Queens, was found to be contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pesticides and metals. One of the most active industrial areas in New York City was adjacent to the creek for many years. This is the city’s second site assigned to the Superfund List. Brooklyn’s Gowanus Canal was added in March. The EPA says the evaluation
Robert Harvey, it seems, is always directing traffic. Harvey, and the organization he leads, the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center, coordinates every move that is made on every job site in Lower Manhattan. More specifically, the LMCCC oversees every project valued above $25 million south of Canal Street from the Hudson River to the East River. All told the agency is managing about 55 million sq ft of commercial and residential construction, as well as a complete road and infrastructure improvement program. He has a direct line to the governor of New York, the mayor of New York City and
It might be hard to believe, but there was a time when Skanska considered itself something of an unknown in the U.S. construction market. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" �We were always kind of a giant that no one ever knew much about,� says Richard Cavallaro, president of Skanska USA Civil, one of the Swedish construction giant�s four business units in North America. �People would ask us, �Where do you work?� and when you�d say Skanska, they�d say, �Who?� � For awhile, it made sense. Once the firm entered the U.S. market in 1971, it began acquiring firms both
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is looking to the private sector to finance the construction of a replacement for the Goethals Bridge, which connects Staten Island to New Jersey. The estimated $1 billion project would be paid for, according to PANYNJ Executive Director Chris Ward, by a private investor or group which would then lease the bridge to the Port Authority. “If the market can’t provide us with a low cost option, then the market will have shown that it can’t respond, right now, to this kind of arrangement,” Ward said. “But we think there is
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection is finding itself in a unique situation these days. With more than $11 billion in active construction contracts and another $3-plus billion in planning and design – with $14.6 billion more on the way in the form of a new 10-year Capital Plan – the DEP has become one of the most important owner-developers in the tri-state area, especially with most private sector building still frozen in place. “Through this down economy we’ve still managed to put out a couple billion dollars worth of work or more a year,” says James Mueller,
Four New York State trade associations representing heavy-construction contractors are suing the state over Gov. David Paterson’s announcement in March that the New York Dept. of Transportation would halt payments on all capital construction projects not funded by federal stimulus dollars. Photo: NYSDOT Governor’s attempt to pressure lawmakers to settle budget triggers lawsuit from contractors, who demand pay for work.l The suit, filed on April 16 in state Supreme Court, alleges the state has violated construction contracts with hundreds of contractors on highway and bridge jobs by requiring them either to continue working without payment or to stop altogether. The
Four New York State trade associations representing heavy construction contractors are suing the state over Gov. David Paterson�s announcement in March that the New York Dept. of Transportation would halt payments on all statewide capital construction projects not funded through federal stimulus dollars. NYSDOT photo As many as 500 bridge and highway projects in New York State are being affected by Gov. David Paterson�s decision to halt payments on all non-stimulus funded projects. The suit, filed on April 16 in state Supreme Court, alleges that the state has violated construction contracts with hundreds of contractors working highway and bridge jobs