Tidewater Skanska/Flatiron Wins Rebuild for Florida Span Hit by Ivan…

Reconstruction was to begin in June of the highway bridge in Florida's Panhandle that was ravaged by a Hurricane Ivan-driven storm surge last September. This time, the twin spans over Escambia Bay will be built 25 ft. high, more than twice the height of the bay's 500-year wave level.

The Florida Department of Transportation awarded a design-build contract to a joint venture of Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, New York City; Tidewater Skanska, Virginia Beach, Va.; and Flatiron Constructors, Longmont, Colo. Ardaman & Associates, Orlando, will provide geotechnical support. The team was to begin drilling 60 test pilings for the $242 million Interstate 10 bridge replacement in June, said John Pohle, design-build manager for the project. Foundation construction is set to follow in August.

Design specifications will hopefully prevent a reoccurrence of the damage in which multiple bridge sections were washed off their pilings. Clearing the bridge-shore interface of the tidal zone is the other major design improvement, according to Pohle. The new bridges, each 3.1 mi. long, will each be 100 ft longer on their eastern sides to prevent approaches from being washed away as they were during Ivan. The added length will allow storm surge to flow under the spans. The new precast segmental concrete bridge will have a minimum 65-ft clearance over the shipping channel.

Bridge spans will be built in phases. The joint venture bid the total project for 862 days, with completion set for Aug. 30, 2007. The span carrying eastbound I-10 traffic is set to finish by Dec. 29, 2006, said Pohle. It will then carry four lanes of traffic, two in each direction, so both damaged spans can be demolished to make room for the new westbound span.

FDOT will award a lump-sum $10- million bonus for the eastbound span completion and transfer of traffic by Dec. 29. It will also award a $133,000 bonus for every day before Aug. 30, 2007 that the entire project is completed, up to $1 million. That will become a daily penalty if the deadline is missed. Source: Engineering News-Record. By E. Michael Powers.

… Then is Awarded $193 Million S.R. 60 Project in Tampa

The Florida Department of Transportation recently awarded the joint venture between Tidewater Skanska of Virginia Beach, Va., and Flatiron Constructors of Longmont, Colo., a $193 million contract for reconstruction of the State Road 60 Memorial Highway project in Tampa. Flatiron is the majority partner, responsible for 60 percent of the contract, while Tidewater Skanska's portion is 40 percent.

The approximately 2 mi.-long project includes 20 bridges and all installations for drainage, signal systems and lighting. Work was scheduled to begin in July and is scheduled for completion in 58 months.

Turner Loses Job Over Rising Costs

Labor and material shortages and skyrocketing costs caused Turner Construction Co. to be terminated from a Florida county courthouse project, say company officials.

The New York City-based contractor was fired May 3 from the Manatee County, Fla., justice center project in Bradenton because its guaranteed maximum price jumped $10 million, to $68 million. The firm was hired in spring 2004 as construction manager. As recently as January, Turner said that the center, designed by HOK, St. Louis, would cost $57 million. But the price jumped to $67 million in April, when design reached 90 percent completion.

Turner blames the sudden cost increase on material price increases, especially in Florida. These include a first-quarter steel price jump and still rising concrete costs, said Wade Milligan, vice president of Turner Construction. "Concrete will jump 40 percent in July," he said. Milligan also noted the huge demand for construction labor after the state's four hurricanes.

County commissioners say they were in "sticker shock" over the sudden price hike. They voted 5-1 to terminate Turner's contract and voted unanimously to enter into negotiations with the second low bidder, Centex Construction Co., Plantation, Fla. Commissioners proceeded knowing that there is no guarantee that they would save money by replacing Turner.

The commissioners, in a May 3 meeting, said the project's price hike is related to high subcontractor bids. HOK officials say costs will likely continue to rise, but not at the rate projected by Turner. Source: Engineering News-Record.

Florida Contract Activity Drops 1 Percent in April

The overall value of April contracts for future construction in Florida decreased by 1 percent over the same period of a year ago, McGraw-Hill Construction reported recently. The total value of new April contracts was estimated at nearly $4.9 billion.

In April, the value of residential contracts improved by 6 percent over last April to total roughly $3.6 billion, up from last year's $3.4 billion. The value of nonresidential contracts decreased by 15 percent to tally $819.7 million, down from last April's approximately $963.4 million total. The value of nonbuilding starts decreased dramatically, too, by 21 percent, to total roughly $450 million, compared to last April's $572.7 million.

For the year-to-date, Florida activity is valued at nearly $20 billion, or about 6 percent ahead of the same period of a year ago. The nonresidential category is down by 14 percent, totaling approximately $3.1 billion. The value of nonbuilding contracts, estimated at nearly $2 billion, is 6 percent behind the 2004 pace. Residential is approximately 14 percent ahead of the first four months of 2004, with a cumulative value of roughly $14.9 billion.

Titan America Holds Opening Ceremonies for New Cement Plant

The official opening ceremonies for Titan America's new Pennsuco cement plant were held recently in Medley, Fla., where guests of honor included Lt. Governor Toni Jennings and Miami-Dade District 12 County Commissioner José "Pepe" Diaz.

The dry process plant is designed for automated operation and features the ability to recover and recycle heat energy and materials not consumed in the cement making process.

"It is one of the largest and most modern cement plants in the country and the world," Aris Papadopoulos, Titan America CEO claimed. "Environmentally the plant has the lowest emissions, per ton of cement produced, of any cement plant in the state."

The plant cost more than $200 million to build, employs 130 workers and will produce 1.8 million tons of cement annually for the Florida construction market.

Clark Building Garage at TIA

The Hillsborough County Aviation Authority recently awarded Clark Construction Group of Tampa a $67.3 million contract to build a six-story economy-parking garage for 5,600 vehicles and an administration building at Tampa International Airport. The structure also will house police, landscape maintenance and parking operations for the airport.

Designed by Gresham, Smith and Partners of Tampa, the parking structure will be constructed of post-tensioned concrete decks and cast-in-place columns that rest on drilled concrete caissons. Over 80,000 cu. yds. of concrete will be poured during construction.

By Nov. 1, 3,371 spaces of the garage will be opened for passengers with completion of the balances of spaces planned for Sept. 1, 2006.

Beck to Build New Residence Hall Near University of Tampa

Beck of Tampa has been awarded a contract to provide construction management services for Kennedy Place, an 11-story residence hall that will house 180 University of Tampa students.

The $15.6 million project is being developed by Anthony Development for the owner, Collegiate Housing Foundation. It will be leased to UT once completed. The project was designed by Kreher Architect. In addition to the residential tower, a single-story community building will be constructed. The new residence hall is scheduled to be available for student occupancy in the fall of 2006.

Developers Joint Venture for Gulf Coast Town Center Project

The Richard E. Jacobs Group and CBL & Associates Properties recently announced the formation of a joint venture partnership for the development of Gulf Coast Town Center in the Fort Myers/Naples area, Lee County. The 1.7 million sq.-ft. one-level open-air center will ultimately feature more than 10 anchors and approximately 120 specialty shops and restaurants.

The first of three phases, including 445,000 sq. ft. of space, is expected to open this fall. Phase II, approximately 1 million sq. ft., will open in the fall of 2006.

Suffolk Breaks Ground on $27 Million John F. Kennedy Middle School

Suffolk Construction Co. of West Palm Beach has started construction of the $27.4 million John F. Kennedy Middle School modernization project in Riviera Beach, Palm Beach County. The new facility will encompass 192,954 sq. ft. and provide 1,446 student stations.

The new campus will feature three new buildings, including a 164,722 sq.-ft., two-story classroom and administration building; a 27,632 sq.-ft. gymnasium and music building; and other items.

Phase One will include the construction of the two main buildings and has a completion date of August 2006. The entire project is scheduled to be complete by February 2007.

H.J. High Building New High School in Viera

H.J. High Construction Co. of Orlando has been chosen by the School Board of Brevard County to serve as construction manager for a new high school in Viera. The facility was designed by SchenkelShultz as a prototype school and will accommodate 2,338 student stations with a total square footage of 298,100.

Project completion is scheduled for July 2006 for a school opening in August 2006.

Stellar to Renovate, Expand School for the Deaf and Blind

The Stellar Group of Jacksonville is working at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind in St. Augustine to renovate and expand Gibbs Hall, a 28,000-sq.-ft. hall dedicated to career-specific training for the visually impaired. Additionally, Stellar has been contracted to design-build a covered walkway system on the campus.

FSDB is the state's public school for the education of deaf/hard-of-hearing and blind/visually-impaired students for pre-K through high school. It serves more than 850 students from across the state of Florida.

Mixed-Use Urbanea Permitted and Scheduled to Break Ground

Urbanea, a new mixed-use condominium community in Miami, which is in the final stages of permitting, has a groundbreaking scheduled for the summer.

The project will include 100 residential units, a multi-level parking garage and 6,500 sq. ft. of neighborhood-oriented retail space. Borges + Associates of Miami is the project architect.

Lakeside Village Mixed-Use Project Under Construction in Lakeland

Design has been completed for Lakeside Village, a 72-acre mixed-use project in Lakeland, Fla. A development of Casto Lifestyle Properties, Lakeside Village encompasses 17 buildings, including 650,000 sq. ft. of retail, restaurants, supermarket, office space and a hotel. A residential component is planned on the north side.

Construction began last fall, with completion anticipated by October. Skanska USA Building is the general contractor. Beame Architectural Partnership of Coral Gables was the project architect.

Condo Hotel Being Added to ChampionsGate ResortWELBRO Building Corp. of Maitland, Fla., started construction recently on the first phase of The Villas at ChampionsGate, a new condominium hotel that will become a part of the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate. Rida Associates, developer, is overseeing construction of the 57-unit condo hotel that will include two- and three-bedroom units. WELBRO, which built the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate, was selected as the general contractor.

$19 Million Eustis High School Expansion Completed

Architect C.T. Hsu + Associates of Orlando and construction manager Ajax Building Corp. of Gainesville recently completed the $19 million expansion of Eustis High School in Lake County, including the construction of four new buildings.

Orlando's Primrose Community Center Project Begins Construction

Construct Two Group of Orlando has started the second of two community center projects awarded by the City of Orlando. The Primrose Community Center project consists of the renovation of a 40,000-sq.-ft. building to accommodate new space for three divisions: Families, Parks and Recreation; Orlando Police and Orlando Fire Departments.