The PAC's Second Act

The cast building the Performing Arts Center is pledging to make beautiful music together

The $261 million Performing Arts Center of Greater Miami will feature two separate buildings, the 2,480-seat Sanford and Dolores Ziff Ballet Opera House and the 2,200-seat Carnival Symphony Hall. It's currently 18 months behind its original completion date, but the principal parties are vowing they're in harmony as they face the final half of construction.

By Scott Judy

We open on the second act of a great and still unfolding drama, the building of the Performing Arts Center of Greater Miami.

Act one, which ran longer than expected, was the scene of much strife and consternation. The owner, Miami-Dade County, frustrated with significant construction delays and concerned over its perception of ongoing quality measures, reportedly asked the county attorney to investigate grounds for terminating the contractor, Performing Arts Center Builders, a joint venture of Odebrecht Construction, The Haskell Co. and Ellis Don.

"We are sounding the alarm now," Gail Thompson, project director for Miami-Dade County, told Engineering News-Record last fall. "We're putting their feet to the fire to correct deficiencies and to develop processes to avoid further lapses in quality."

By the end of March, however, as the first act came to its symbolic close with the emotionally charged placement of the last beam of 9,000 tons of structural steel, the principal actors were arm-in-arm - on stage, at least - and they were vowing that the audience hasn't seen anything yet.

"I feel as good about where we are as I ever have," Thompson said this spring. "I feel really good about where we stand with the project and its direction. We're working together."

Even so, the $261 million project is now heading for a spring 2006 completion, or about 18 months behind the original schedule.

Scene Change

Last fall, a couple of new actors were brought to the production, both of whom have since emerged as leading characters. The first was Bill Johnson, assistant county manager for Miami-Dade County and a veteran of other major county projects such as the Miami Heat Arena and construction at Miami International Airport.

The second was Ron Austin of Ohio, who had been working as a consultant to the project's joint venture contractor.

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Johnson had been involved with the PAC project for numerous years and was extensively involved in the design solicitation that resulted in the selection of Cesar Pelli and Associates of New Haven, Conn., as project architect nearly 10 years ago. Johnson stepped away from the project during the construction bid stage.

When Johnson came back to the project last fall, things were about as bad as they could get. Construction was already estimated to be about one year behind schedule, and the potential for significant cost overruns - now pegged at $61 million in pending change orders - hung ominously over the project. The owner and contractor traded barbs in the press.

"There were three legs to the stool, and all three legs had stopped communicating," Johnson said. "Everybody was closed down. There was a lot of finger-pointing. And nothing gets accomplished with finger-pointing. I had to restore a sense of trust between the three sides and open up communication again."

The starting point for improved communications was for the contractor and architect to listen closely to the county.

"I'm the one paying, and I'm the one who wants to be listened to," Johnson said he told the parties. "I'm the owner. So if you want to continue to work with me you need to listen to what I have to say. Simple as that. If you don't want to listen, and you don't want to work with me, then we'll just part company."

Until agreement was achieved on a viable work-out strategy, Johnson told each party, "'No more money for you, Cesar Pelli,' and 'No more approval of change orders, contractor.' The owner was not going to lay back and be a patsy. I made that very clear."

Almost immediately, Johnson hired national construction services firm URS on an emergency basis to assess the situation and point out areas for improvement - and not to point fingers. Instead, the question he needed an answer to was "What does it take for us, as a team, to successfully complete the project?"

PACB - the joint venture prime contractor made up of Odebrecht Construction of Coral Gables, Jacksonville-based Haskell Co. and Ellis Don of Ontario, Canada - was evidently thinking the same thing.

At roughly the same time it brought in Austin to help smooth things out. Austin, president of Ohio-based Final Solutions Management, had worked on several Pelli-designed arts centers in the past and had been working as a consultant to PACB since its pre-bid exploration of the project in the late 1990s.

Austin functions as PACB's liaison to the owner and architect. Like Johnson, Austin is focused on improving communication and is not at all interested in looking back. Listening and improving understanding of the parties' respective expectations is his focus now.

"As a group we are spending a considerable amount of time trying to understand the expectations of the various parties," Austin said. "We're spending a lot of time going through the details and the understanding of the expectations of the owner, the architect, the contractor and the subcontractors to make sure that the ultimate product that is delivered is commensurate with those expectations."

Randolph Volenec, onsite architect for Cesar Pelli, said of the improved communications: "We've continued to try to improve our ability to solve problems jointly, and do it through a series of onsite meetings. The buildings are complex and they're highly detailed.

"We continually have make sure all of the efforts are directed toward maintaining that quality and delivering the building that the county expects."

Lofty Expectations

The concerns were as great as they were partly because of the project's lofty ambitions and complexities.

By any measure, upon completion, the Performing Arts Center of Greater Miami will rise to a level of quality not attained in many other structures in the Southeast.

"We're building two of the finest halls to open in the early part of the 21st Century," project director Thompson said. "We're building what will be the fourth-largest arts center in the country, at the highest level of acoustic excellence."

A premier acoustician, Artec Consultants of New York, is overseeing the building's acoustics, and renowned theater consultant Fisher Dachs Associates, also of New York, is lending its expertise.

Indeed, this is not just another building project, such as a condo, hotel or commercial office facility. The PAC's halls must perform.

"It's always difficult for me to try to explain just how complicated the construction is," PACB's Austin said of these types of facilities. "It is not like any other construction. It's more like building a fine musical instrument than it is a building because you have to worry about things such as acoustics, sight lines, the planning of the theater and the architecture.

"If any of (those aspects) fail then the project is not going to be a success."

Much of the complexity results from the intertwining of the building's acoustical requirements and the need to isolate the halls from the rest of the structure. Acoustical isolation joints measuring 2 in. thick and containing filler material will surround the halls in all directions, isolating them from the rest of the facility. The building is being constructed to the highest acoustic standards.

The design has created a production drama for the structural steel work. "We're building a thin structure because we want it to be intimate," Thompson said. "The steel members need to be thin, but we also need to have clear spans for sight lines. There are a lot of competing issues that show themselves in unique structural configurations."

No two members are the same and unique shapes are common, she added.

Structural steel erection began in November 2002 - 2.5 years after demolition of the site's existing building first started - and wrapped up in March. ADF International of Quebec performed the erection work and earned favorable reviews from all parties for its performance.

However, of the $61 million in pending change orders, approximately $31 million relates to the structural steel work, which was delayed in starting. PACB has contended it was delayed for nearly a year in starting by design complexities. The owner earlier asserted that PACB should have hired the structural steel subcontractor earlier.

Community and Intimacy

The PAC is divided into two separate halls, with the 2,480-seat Sanford and Dolores Ziff Ballet Opera House situated on the west side of Biscayne Boulevard and the 2,200-seat Carnival Symphony Hall on the east. In all, the facility will measure approximately 570,000 sq. ft.

This physical straddling of Biscayne Boulevard reflects the owner's and architect's goal to have the new facility incorporate and connect with the surrounding community.

"This center needed to integrate itself into the city, and be a part of the city," Thompson said. "(The Pelli design) allows the city to essentially go right through the project."

As the structure comes together, the quality of the halls themselves is also becoming evident - a fact that could be a real reason for the positive attitude pervading the project at this time. Both reflect the immediacy and intimacy the PAC will ultimately provide its patrons, and is an exciting element to behold.

Thompson said that when critics of the project tour the site, their remarks often soften at the impression the present construction provides.

"What's incredible about it now is that it has taken the form of what it will be ultimately, both in the exterior and the interior," she added. "You go inside and you see the shape, and you can feel the intimacy and the scale, and the relationship between the audience area and the stage. You're kind of blown away. You've seen nothing like it."

During a tour of the project in March, Thompson indicated that the configuration of the two halls is approximately opposite of traditionally designed performance halls. Whereas other facilities traditionally use one-third of the space for the stage and two-thirds for the audience, the PAC's layout is just the opposite.

That layout will not only provide a heightened sense of intimacy in the hall, it will also allow greater flexibility of the stage, so much so that "dark" nights will not generally be necessary, enhancing the PAC's revenue opportunities. The size of the stage will enable it to be changed easily, either during a single performance or between different shows.

Intimacy is also enhanced by the acoustical need of keeping the floor-to-ceiling height as low as possible, Thompson said.

To get a feel for the emerging acoustics, Thompson said the team recently had a soprano singer come in and perform.

"The hall isn't completed, but the acoustics are spectacular," she added. "The performance made everyone feel charged up and energized.

"Whatever the challenges are, it just makes me feel excited at the prospects of what we're doing and what it will be at the end."

The Final Act

Achieving the vision of the once and future PAC will be the tricky part. The project's next phases will likely test the newly formed sense of teamwork and the improved communication.

"We are at a critical point in the project," Austin said. "When we start the enclosures and we start the interior finishes, it requires a tremendous amount of coordination of material and manpower into a confined space."

The group is attempting to be as proactive as possible. For example, Austin, architect Volenec and representatives from the project's millwork subcontractor, Baron Manufacturing of Pompano Beach, recently traveled to Madison, Wis., to visit with principals on another arts center project.

"We listened to how they did it, what they found were the pitfalls and how they corrected them," said Volenec, who added that the PAC's millwork is still in shop drawings. "We're trying to do everything we can to learn from others who have gone through similar experiences."

Quality-control measures have been ramped up since last fall, with regular meetings held between representatives of all parties involved in the project. This quality-assurance team, said Volenec, "is continually looking at the work that's being put in place and making sure it's in compliance with the documents and the requirements of the project."

Again, it comes down to communication, Thompson said.

"The bottom line with QC is first to make sure the architect's intent and the intent of the acoustician and theater consultant are clearly communicated and understood by everyone," she added.

And for all the strife over budget and schedule, the owner's representative, Johnson, said those two aspects take a back seat to quality.

"The No. 1 issue on the project isn't schedule, and it really isn't even money," he added. "It's quality. How the sight lines work. If we spend all of this money and the acoustics don't work, it's a failure. It's a flop. So the driving factor here for Gail and for everyone else onsite is to ensure that what's being constructed is what was envisioned and what is demanded."

Encore, encore?

During the week of the celebratory steel event in late March, the parties came to an agreement that set May 2006 as the new final completion date. In mid-April, however, the parties were continuing to discuss other alternative plans, including possible incentives and penalties for the contractor completing ahead of or behind the new schedule.

The principal actors are, at least for now, in concert and resolute that they'll achieve the uncompromised vision of the PAC.

"The challenges are equaled by the excitement that these projects build as you near completion, until when you have the opening and everyone is just walking on air," Austin said. "What I expect is a continued diligent effort to get it completed."

Johnson certainly isn't letting any party off the hook. Only $6 million in pending change orders have been approved to date, and he said he is "aggressively pursuing" mediation and the dispute-resolution process to address the various parties' past grievances.

Even so, the story, for now, closes with key actor Johnson remaining confident the quality will be there when all is said and done.

"We intend to complete this facility as envisioned, in a partnership," he added. "We are optimistic and hopeful that our partners will remain with us.

"It's going to be great. It's world-class. It will be a legacy for Gail, myself and for our generation over the next several generations. I truly believe that."

Performing Arts Center of Greater Miami Project Team:

Owner: Miami-Dade County
Construction Manager: Performing Arts Center Builders, a joint venture of Odebrecht Construction, Coral Gables, Fla.; The Haskell Co., Jacksonville, Fla.; and Ellis Don, Ontario, Canada.
Architect: Cesar Pelli & Associates, New Haven, Conn.
Acoustical Engineer: Artec Consultants, New York
Theater Planning, Design and Lighting Consultant: Fisher Dachs Associates, New York
Structural Steel Erector: ADF International, Terrebonne, Quebec, Canada.

Additional Sources:

To review the Performing Arts Center of Greater Miami's "Briefing Document for Agencies and Consultants" Click here for MS Word Document >>

For an expanded version of Southeast Construction's interview with Miami-Dade County Assistant County Manager Bill Johnson, visit: www.southeast.construction.com/features/archive/0406_Feature4.asp

For the owner's and operator's view of the project, visit:

Miami-Dade Government: http://www.miamidade.gov/pac/home.htm
·Performing Arts Center Foundation: http://www.pacfmiami.org/index.html

Past media coverage of the project can be found at:

Engineering News-Record: http://enr.construction.com/news/buildings/archives/030922.asp
Miami Today: http://www.miamitodaynews.com/news/031009/story3.shtml
South Florida Community Development Coalition: http://www.floridacdc.org/articles/030511-1.htm