Photo by Scott Judy The general contractor and the Dept. of Veterans Affairs remain at odds over when the roughly $300 million Orlando hospital project can be completed. Related Links: VA Threatens to Terminate Builder in Orlando Florida Hospital Project on Target, VA Says Illegal Workers Found Hiding at VA Construction Site Perplexed by continuing problems at a $300-million veterans hospital project in Orlando, Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) told officials with the Dept. of Veterans Affairs and contractor Brasfield & Gorrie, "I want answers," as he convened a U.S. House field hearing across the street from the troubled job site
Related Links: Full Text of DOD Memorandum of Understanding Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar signed a memorandum of understanding on Aug. 6 to encourage development of renewable-energy projects on public lands set aside for defense-related purposes and other onshore and offshore areas near military installations.The memorandum sets out the guiding principles for how the two departments will work together to increase renewable-power projects on or near the nation's military installations.In the U.S., DOD installations encompass roughly 28 million acres, of which 16 million acres—previously managed by the Dept. of the Interior's Bureau of
Related Links: VA Threatens to Terminate Brasfield and Gorrie from Hospital Project Illegal Workers Found Hiding At Big Federal Construction Site Officials with the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs in late July told Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) the agency plans to complete a $260-million Orlando medical-center project by next summer and won't require any additional funding to do so.The update by Timothy Liezert, the medical center's director, contradicts the contractor, who testified to Congress earlier this year that the project was more than $100 million over budget and could not be completed until 2014.Nevertheless, Congressman Mica issued a statement calling
The volume of new building construction contracts in Georgia fell during June, leading to a 15% overall decline for the month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction. The company estimated that roughly $1.1 billion in new projects moved forward during the month. Photo courtesy Southern Company Georgia Power's nuclear powerplant project has boosted Georgia's 2012 contracts total considerably, but nonresidential contracts are lagging. Related Links: Georgia Tax Vote Delivers Only Small Boost for Roadbuilders Georgia's Ups and Downs Add Up to a Flat May The nonresidential market dropped the most, diving 30% compared to the same period of a year ago for
A big drop in the volume of new nonresidential contracts pushed Florida’s overall June total down 18%, compared to a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast. The company estimated the value of new Florida contracts at roughly $2.1 billion for the month. Photo submitted by Skanska USA Skanska USA recently broke ground on an Academic Health Center project at Florida International University in Miami. Related Links: Residential Gives Life to Florida Contracts in May So Far, So Good for Florida's Construction Recovery Florida’s nonresidential sector registered an estimated $411.9 million in new contracts in June, 59%
Georgia voters on July 31 widely rejected the state’s pitch for a penny sales tax increase that could have delivered as much as $18.7 billion in funding for transportation. The Transportation Investment Act measure did pass in three of the state’s 12 regions, however, providing roadbuilders a modest boost in funding, estimated by the Georgia Dept. of Transportation at roughly $1.8 billion over the next 10 years. Image courtesy Atlanta BeltLine The ongoing $2-billion Atlanta BeltLine project would have received more than $600 million from the transportation tax to fund additional light-rail lines. Related Links: Georgia Transportation Tax Vote Set
A debate over taxation and government spending is nearing a conclusion as Georgia voters ready for the July 31 election over a penny sales-tax increase that could boost transportation funding by an estimated $18.7 billion. Related Links: Battle Heats Up Over Georgia's Transportation Sales Tax Vote Atlanta BeltLine: Local Architect's Big Idea Reshapes Atlanta Twelve separate regional elections for a special purpose local option sales tax (SPLOST) will help decide the statewide vote over the Transportation Investment Act. If passed, the tax increase would be enacted in the regions in which voters approved the measure and remain in effect for
As hearings into Duke Energy's surprise ousting of CEO William D. "Bill" Johnson wrapped up July 20, a pending repair project at the troubled Crystal River nuclear powerplant remained a leading suspect for the boardroom shake-up. However, it remained unclear whether the North Carolina Utilities Commission would examine the matter further. Photo from Progress Energy filing to Nuclear Regulatory Commission At recent hearings into Duke Energy's merger with Progress Energy, the impact of repair and insurance issues at the Crystal River nuclear plant remained a focus. Related Links: Bill Johnson: Duke Energy Fully Informed About Crystal River Duke's Secret Nuke
Photo from Progress Energy Plant Problems Hearings raised suspicions about the cost of fixing the Crystal River facility. Related Links: Ex-CEO Johnson: Duke Fully Informed About Crystal River Secret Study on Nuke Plant Fix May Hold Clue to Duke CEO's Ouster As the North Carolina Utilities Commission wrapped up hearings into Duke Energy's surprise ousting of CEO William D. "Bill" Johnson, a repair project at the troubled Crystal River nuclear powerplant remained at the heart of the boardroom shake-up. However, it was unclear whether state regulators would examine the matter further.In testimony on July 19, Johnson alleged that Duke tried
