ENR California wants to take this opportunity to thank the audience participants at last month’s Best Projects event at the Mission Bay Conference Center at the University of California, San Francisco. With the geographic scope widening last year to the Northwest, Alaska and Hawaii, the audience included AEC professionals from Oregon, Washington and Honolulu.There were 15 Best Projects in 2011 and 19 Awards of Merit.Photographer Tustin Ellison (www.tustinpix.com) captured some of the winners with their awards, so take a moment to see who attended to support their winning projects. See you in December!
Despite the resignation of two key leaders, California’s High-Speed Rail Authority still has the backing of a very enthusiastic governor. Following a scheduled board of directors meeting Jan. 12 in Los Angeles, Roelof van Ark, the authority’s CEO, announced his resignation effective in two months. Board Chairman Thomas J. Umberg also announced that he'd be stepping down as chairman but will remain on the board.The board asked van Ark to “provide advice on the project through the end of the year.”In his state of the state address Jan. 18 to the legislature, Gov. Jerry Brown reemphasized his support of the
After 20 years of effort, the five-member San Francisco Port Commission recently voted unanimously to construct the Pier 27 James R. Herman International Cruise Terminal and Northeast Wharf Plaza. Image courtesy of the Port of San Francisco A rendering of the new cruise terminal and plaza Construction on the $52-million project could begin as early as March, according to Renée Dunn Martin, spokeswoman for the Port of San Francisco, who said the specific start date is dependent on various final regulatory approvals (e.g., a major development permit issued by the Bay Conservation and Development Commission).Last June, the Port Commission awarded
The Federal Transit Administration approved $900 million worth of funding for the first 10-mi phase of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) extension project to Santa Clara Valley. Rendering by FMG Architects BART's Berryessa station in San Jose Rendering by VBN Architects The Milpitas station The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) requested the full funding grant agreement (FFGA) amount. The project has received all of the federal and local administrative approvals, and the VTA says it is now 60 days away from receiving the funds.Construction is scheduled to begin this spring, according to Bernice Alaniz, spokeswoman for the BART
A preferred equity capital investment by the Canyon-Johnson Urban Fund (CJUF) has jump-started the development One Santa Fe, a $160-million, mixed-use project in downtown Los Angeles’ arts district. Rendering by Michael Maltzan The mixed-use One Santa Fe development The project’s team also includes The McGregor Co., Polis Builders Ltd. and Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group (UIG). Locally based KTGY Group, Inc. is the executive architect for the project, which was designed by Los Angeles architect Michael Maltzan. KTGY has already completed construction drawings and the general contractor, Bernards, has commenced predevelopment work onsite. The project is anticipated to be completed
Related Links: Text of the legislation NTSB San Bruno Explosion Report Centers on Pipeline Seam Welds PG&E Faces Blast Aftermath Under a newly enacted pipeline safety bill, oil and gas pipeline companies could face additional safety requirements, and pipeline operators that violate federal rules will have to pay stiffer fines. But the legislation’s impact on safety and industry won’t be clear for many months because its implementation deadlines for key regulations are not until 2013 or 2014. Further, the law gives the U.S. Dept. of Transportation substantial leeway to consider the economic impact of the new rules.Other provisions call for federal
Officials from the Orange County Transportation Authority and Riverside County Transportation Commission last week signed a cooperative agreement to construct and operate a long-planned 8-mi extension of the State Route 91 express lanes system. Photo courtesy of OCTA The SR-91 express lanes in Orange County The officials had also just received word that the project would receive a $20 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant that will support a Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan financing up to one-third of the cost of the $1.3-billion project.OCTA and RCTC have worked collaboratively to extend the lanes since
Even though tablets and smart phones are spreading onto construction jobsites at a swift pace, chief financial officers from major A/E/C firms say technology purchases must come with solid returns on investment as part of that adoption. This was one of many technology issues highlighted during the two-day ENR FutureTech conference held by McGraw-Hill Construction in San Francisco this week. Two panel discussions, “Chief Information Officer Roundtable” and “IT from the CFO Perspective,” on Dec. 13 reinforced the industry-wide movement to bring information technology to the job site and free it from a jobsite’s trailer and home office. But how to
Related Links: Make Way for App Builders in Construction Top Paid and Free Construction Apps Tablets Take Off in Construction Even though tablets and smart phones are spreading onto jobsites at a swift pace in construction, chief financial officers from major A/E/C firms say technology purchases must come with solid returns on investment as part of that adoption. This was one of many technology issues highlighted during the two-day ENR FutureTech conference held by McGraw-Hill Construction in San Francisco this week.Two panel discussions, "Chief Information Officer Roundtable" and "IT from the CFO Perspective," on Dec. 13 reinforced the industry-wide movement
