The upcoming construction of a nearly $47 million middle school in El Paso will comprise one of the last big projects funded by a $668 million bond approved by voters in the El Paso Independent School District four years ago. The new Gabriel Navarrete Middle School is being designed by the Houston-based PBK Architects and will go up at 4400 Elm Street on land leased to the district by Fort Bliss. As planned, the school will serve up to 1,000 students coming from the former Bassett and Armendariz middle schools, which have now been merged. The site is currently the home of the Bassett school. Last summer members of the EPISD board voted to name the school in honor of Navarrete, a Purple Heart-decorated World War II captain who was a member of the Army’s Company E, made up of soldiers primarily from El Paso’s Segundo Barrio. Of the nearly twenty facility construction and renovation projects funded by EPISD’s 2016 bond, one, the Crockett Elementary School at 3200 Wheeling Avenue, is finished, while thirteen other projects are in various stages of completion. Work on the new Navarrete school is expected to launch in early 2022. By Garry Boulard
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The Customs and Border Protection has announced that it is seeking public comment regarding the upcoming construction of some 74 miles of new wall on the U.S./Mexico border in southern Arizona. The 30-foot tall wall will be built across the counties of Cochise, Pima, and Santa Cruz and will be a part of a border wall that is currently underway, also in Cochise and Pima counties. As with the parts of the border wall now being built, the proposed new border will be made up of a series of steel poles, 30 feet in height, and 6 inches in diameter. Plans call for the construction of roughly 24 miles of wall in Cochise County, with 7 miles in Pima County, and 25 miles in Santa Cruz County. Also included in the project, according to an official announcement made by the CBP, will be a linear ground detection system, along with some road construction, the installation of lighting supported by grid power, and embedded cameras. The CBP says that it hopes to receive input on the “potential impacts to the environment, culture, quality of life, and commerce” pertaining to the project. The agency will be accepting comments until April 15. By Garry Boulard Small businesses may not have to submit tax payments this year until July 15. Steve Mnuchin, Secretary of the Treasury, has announced that even though the April 15 filing deadline remains intact, a new ruling will allow “those who owe a payment to the IRS to defer the payment until July 15 without interest or penalties.” The Secretary added that both the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service are trying to ensure that “hardworking Americans and businesses have additional liquidity for the next several months.” Mnuchin also announced that any penalties and interest that would otherwise normally apply during the three-month period will be waived. It is thought that the deferment decision, which will also apply to individuals, will keep about $300 billion into the economy for the near term. The new ruling specifically applies to individuals who file as a small business and may owe up to $1 million in tax payments, as well as both corporations and sole proprietors owing up to $10 million. At the same time, South Dakota Senator John Thune has just introduced legislation asking for a delay in the filing deadline as well. Co-sponsor of the legislation, Angus King of Maine, in a statement, remarked: “By moving the tax filing deadline back, we can offer some breathing room for millions of Americans who are trying to do their civic duty and protect their communities.” By Garry Boulard Construction project completions in metro Denver are expected to surpass the 10 million square foot mark this year, far above last year’s 9 million square feet. According to Patricia Silverstein, president of the real estate analysis firm of Development Research Partners, the most recent completion record was reached in 2018 when the city saw some 11.6 million square feet completed. The reason for the decline to 9 million square feet last year, said Silverstein in a column for the Colorado Real Estate Journal, was due entirely to “declining office and retail completions, which offset a record level of new industrial space.” Also noting that employment in the seven-country metro Denver region had increased by 2 percent last year, Silverstein said, “Current economic data suggests continued expansion at a slower place, as businesses and consumers wait for the outcome of the presidential election.” Overall, the Denver metro area has seen a 2.5 percent unemployment rate, with the largest job gains, according to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, coming in the construction and professional services segments. The metro area currently has a construction job force of around 175,000 people. Industry experts contend that in order to keep up with anticipated project demand, the workforce needs to increase to 220,000 in the next 7 years. Job listings advertised this month by the CDLE show openings in the Denver area for structural engineers, construction project managers, architects, caulkers, and general laborers, among other construction industry-related positions. A survey recently published by the Associated General Association of Colorado shows 77 percent of construction company owners planning to hire more workers this year, with more projects especially anticipated in the education, warehouse, public building, and bridge/highway segments. By Garry Boulard New Mexico’s Premiere Construction/Building Industry Digital Magazine Coming Soon
Dear Members, Partners and Subscribers, As you know, we’re in uncharted waters with the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Construction Reporter is committed to helping our members stay abreast of rapid changes to projects in the bid cycle and keeping you updated about planned construction that may be affected as well. We felt it was important to share with you the steps that we are taking to help keep our employees, partners and communities safe as we continue to navigate this rapidly evolving situation. We have been serving the Construction Community for over 70 years and will continue to do so even during these uncertain times we are facing today. Sarah and I as the new owners want to personally assure you, we are doing everything possible to continue to support you. Our first order of business was to ensure the safety of our staff and then to prepare for the possibility of moving our staff from our offices to their homes. We have everything in place currently for a seamless transition from office to home and as a matter of fact we already have some of our staff working from home at this time, and the system is functioning as expected. We are a small local business; however, we realize the importance of our mission to provide you with timely and accurate reporting and publication of construction news and documents in order for you to continue doing business and providing for your staff and families. We proactively have made all the necessary investments and arrangements to enable us to continue to provide you with the same great timely service we always have whether that is from our offices or from the homes of our fantastic staff. Currently, we are keeping our office open for those of you that rely on us for copies and personal services. We are keeping a careful eye on the situation through a variety of sources and will share any breaking news with you as it becomes available. Here is a link to Federal News Network specifically addressing Contractors Preparations for the Corona Virus. Additionally, this is a link to the CDC. Sarah and I are concerned about your well being in this unstable environment and if there is anything that we can help you with personally or professionally please reach back to us and we will do anything we can to help you, your staff members and their families. We are making what resources we have available to you as we are committed to making it through this critical time the only way we know how, together. Please don’t hesitate to ask for help, whatever the situation may be, if we can, we will! Be Safe, Be Healthy and Together we will emerge stronger than ever. Warmest Regards, Sarah Motsinger, Steve Adams and the Entire Staff @ Construction Reporter Sarah Motsinger & Steve Adams Owner/Managing Partners Construction Reporter, LLC Our Members Build the Southwest - Since 1949 (505) 243-9793 www.constructionreporter.com NM – CO – AZ – TX City officials in Fort Collins, in an effort to see the construction of more affordable housing, are contemplating zoning changes that will require developers to build housing for lower-income residents. The move for what is being called “inclusionary zoning” also includes the imposition of affordable housing impact fees, or linkage fees, that would place a fee on all projects in the city in order to fund other affordable home projects. The idea, very much in the talking stage, has sparked the opposition of several business groups, including the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce, which has said that the zoning change and impact fees will have the effect of making worse the exact problem city leaders are trying to lessen. Instead, the Chamber has recommended that the city reduce upfront project regulation costs for developers, while also allowing for an increase in housing density. According to a study conducted by the Furman Center for Real Estate & Urban Policy, more than 300 cities, towns, and counties nationally have implemented inclusionary zoning policies. Proponents of such policies, says the report, The Effects of Inclusionary Zoning on Local Housing Markets, argue that they require “less direct public subsidy than traditional affordable housing programs,” and are subsequently thought to be more fiscally sustainable. But opponents say inclusionary zoning many times prompts developers to simply build instead in districts without such zoning. Members of the Fort Collins City Council are expected to take up both the inclusionary zoning and linkage fee questions during their upcoming March 24 meeting. By Garry Boulard construction association leader warns against hastily halting projects in the wake of covid-193/19/2020 Contractors and developers contemplating the shut-down of current projects will do more harm than good for construction workers, as well as the economy, argues a major industry association figure. In a statement, Stephen Sandherr, chief executive officer of the Washington-based Associated General Contractors, argued that the nation’s construction firms are “already acting to ensure the safety and health of their employees in the face of the coronavirus outbreak.” Such measures, continued Sandherr, “which include increased hygiene and halting group gatherings of staff, are in addition to the fact that construction workers already wear protective equipment, including gloves, that will help protect them and their co-workers.” Sandherr’s remarks come as a new study published by the Brookings Institute lists the five major industries with the highest risk from COVID-19, none of which were related to construction. Even so, some analysts say that while the virus may not cause the abrupt cancellation of building projects, it will in many cases lead to delays. Those same analysts note that the situation is only made the more challenging by the continuing presence of a tight labor market. These factors, says Michael Keester, a partner with the law firm of Hall Estill, which has offices in Denver, “may very well impact the contractors’ ability to engage an adequate labor force to keep the projects on schedule and to meet their substantial completion obligation.” Speaking with the website GlobeSt.com, Keester, who specializes in construction law, additionally forecasts the advent of new contract terms that will require the testing of employees for the virus, as well as the quarantining of “workers involved in construction projects in operating facilities, especially hospitals and other medical facilities.” Sandheer’s call for the construction industry to keep working was echoed by Carlo Scissura, president of the New York Building Congress, who remarked: “People need homes, and we are still going to need school seats in a few months.” In remarks published in the New York Post, Scissura added: “We clearly need extensions and buildings of medical centers and hospitals. We still need track work and maintenance to continue on the subway system.” By Garry Boulard Partly in response to a series of school shooting incidents across the country, members of the New Mexico State Legislature earlier this year approved capital outlay funding for a wide variety of school security upgrades. Now, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has issued a statement vetoing just over 140 of those projects, while giving her approval to another 119. Security upgrade projects approved in Albuquerque include $75,000 for the Mission and Achievement Success Charter School; $130,000 for the Apache Elementary School; $150,000 for the Arroyo Del Oso Elementary School; and $130,000 for the Collet Park Elementary School. Additional funded Albuquerque projects will see $200,000 for the Grand Middle School; $150,000 for the Humbert H. Humphrey Elementary School; and $208,000 for the Whittier Elementary School. The Governor also approved $441,000 in capital outlay funds for facility security upgrades across the Rio Rancho Public School district; as well as $280,000 for facilities in the Santa Fe Public Schools system. Altogether, the Governor approved $24 million for a variety of school facility projects across the state. Lujan Grisham said she vetoed around $100 million in general fund projects, noting that such projects lacked “proper planning or are not ready to proceed.” By Garry Boulard According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women currently make up around 10.3 percent of the national construction workforce. While that percentage is an improvement over the low single-digits of two decades ago, experts believe the numbers will only increase in the decades ahead, particularly if the demand for new projects remains strong. In fact, more than 275,000 new women workers have joined the construction workforce in the last 8 years—a 38 percent jump. According to a report published earlier this year by the website Big Rentz, women currently make up 14 percent of staff executive positions in construction. In addition, some 13 percent of all construction firms in the U.S. are owned by women, representing a significant 64 percent growth rate since 2014. Writing for the Dallas Morning News, business reporter Mitchell Schnurman noted that major construction firms like the McCarthy Building Companies, are “actively recruiting and promoting women.” Continued Schnurman: “That’s partly to address a deepening labor shortage, partly to bring more diversity to corporate thinking and client interactions, and partly because women are so badly under-represented.” Overall, that addition of 275,000 new women workers has contributed to what is now a nearly one million total woman workforce in the field, eclipsing a pre-Great Recession high of around 950,000. Despite such progress, the Big Rentz report indicated that there remains a pay gap between women and men construction workers, with some 73 percent of women, in a survey, indicating that they thought they were passed over for advancement due to their gender. By Garry Boulard A much-anticipated luxury apartment complex could see construction later this year just to the north of downtown Phoenix. Plans for the construction of the complex at 502 W. Camelback Road have now won a rezoning approval, changing the 4.3-acre site from an “intermediate commerce district” designation to a “walkable urban code” designation. To be called the Broadstone Camelback, the project will include 115 two-bedroom units, along with 104 one-bedroom units and 62 studio apartments, all housed in a massive 5-story brick and stucco building. The project, in a part of the city dominated by mostly one-story stores, is being developed by the Phoenix-based Alliance Residential Company. One of the largest private multifamily development companies in the country, Alliance has invested more than $10 billion in development projects nationally. The Camelback Road site is the former home of Hotel 502, a 166-room one-time Red Roof Inn that was built in 1976. The hotel, which discontinued operations in early 2018, will be demolished to make way for the project. According to city documents, the new complex will also include green space, a swimming pool, fitness center, lounge area, bike storage/repair area, and dog park. By Garry Boulard |
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