Lauth Finalizes Plans for NASCAR Plaza

Lauth Property Group of Charlotte announced that it has finalized plans as the developer/builder for the NASCAR Plaza in Charlotte. The company will develop a 19-story, Class-A office tower in the city's downtown financial district. The company indicated the building would be integrated with the Charlotte Convention Center, the planned NASCAR Hall of Fame and a 1,000-space parking garage.

NASCAR Plaza will include approximately 390,000 sq ft of office space adjacent to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. NASCAR and other related entities will lease approximately 110,000 sq ft in the tower, including a dedicated television production studio. The remaining space will be built on a speculative basis.

Upon final approval, NASCAR Plaza was scheduled to break ground in late February 2007, with completion targeted for early 2009. That would be almost a year ahead of the planned opening of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

NASCAR Plaza was conceptually designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners of New York. Joint venture firm Turner, Thompson, Davis and Lauth Construction will serve as the general contractors for NASCAR Plaza.

Double-Digit Declines Again for N.C., S.C.

The value of new contracts signed in November for future construction activity decreased by 15 percent in North Carolina and by 35 percent in South Carolina, McGraw-Hill Construction reported.

In North Carolina - which totaled nearly $1.6 billion for the month - only the nonbuilding sector was positive. The nonresidential category fell by 29 percent to total $309 million, while residential dropped by 17 percent to tally roughly $1.1 billion, down from last year's $1.3 billion. The volume of nonbuilding contracts jumped by a robust 98 percent, however. This category tallied about $148.4 million this November, up from last year's $75.1 million.

Year-to-date, the value of contract activity in North Carolina was still 5 percent ahead of 2005's pace, with a total of approximately $23.2 billion. The nonresidential category, at $5.4 billion, is 14 percent ahead of '05, while the residential market is now 5 percent higher with a roughly $15.9 billion total. Despite the uptick in November, the nonbuilding sector is still 14 percent down compared to 2005, with a $1.8 billion total.

In South Carolina, all three construction sectors declined as November contracts totaled about $711.7 million, 35 percent below last November's $1.1 billion. The nonresidential category dropped by 50 percent to tally just $160.6 million for the month. Residential also fell significantly, by 30 percent, to tally about $496.7 million, down from last November's $714.2 million. The value of nonbuilding contracts declined by 9 percent to a total of about $54.5 million.

With the latest monthly downturn, the year-to-date value of South Carolina contracts is now 1 percent behind 2005's pace, with new contracts totaling nearly $11.6 billion through the first 11 months of '06. The nonresidential category, the only positive sector, is just 1 percent ahead of 2005 and is valued at nearly $2.6 billion through November. The nonbuilding category, with a cumulative total of about $975.9 million, is 9 percent behind last year. The residential sector, at nearly $8 billion, is 1 percent behind.