Dubious Deals Launch Florida Road Probe

Investigators from the Orange-Osceola (Florida) State Attorney's Office and Orange County Comptroller Martha O. Haynie are scrutinizing records at the troubled Orlando-Osceola Expressway Authority for evidence of criminal wrongdoing or financial mismanagement related to millions of dollars in roadway land purchases.

"We're following leads and tips, and wherever that takes us inside the authority we will go," says Randy Means, director of investigations for the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office. "That means land deals and purchases and contracts. Where there's a multibillion-dollar expressway authority, there is a lot of money to be made legally. There is also a lot of avenues and enrichments that do not always, as I say, pass the smell test." Means expects his office could wrap up the probe by the end of summer.

Means would not release specific transactions under investigation; however, he confirmed it involves land acquisitions for roadways throughout the Central Florida area. He also his office is probing into the possibility of insider trading and profit making due to road alignments or projections of road locations.

"It's a complex system from conception to pavement," Means says. "We're looking at all of the different steps, making sure contracts were let properly and there weren't payoffs in contracts."

The State Attorney's Government Accountability Unit is collaborating with Haynie and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and sharing information with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Means would not confirm or deny reports that a grand jury has been impaneled to hear evidence from the investigation, saying such matters are confidential.

Haynie has not determined the full scope of her audit. She says she does not want any surprises to surface in future years and plans to take the time needed to complete a thorough review. Haynie began the audit after the expressway authority admitted to paying a local toll foe to "strategically engage the opposition." Since then, other allegations related to a marketing consultant surfaced.

"Nothing is off the table," Haynie says. "We're not driven by what is the most exciting thing to talk about, but rather where the really big dollars are. We're going to be looking at everything the expressway authority does."

Expressway authority spokesperson Mary Brooks issued a written statement and declined further comment. It read: "The expressway authority has cooperated fully with the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office and the Florida Dept. of Law Enforcement, and will continue to assist them in their investigations. We have provided, and will continue to provide, any information the agencies request that is in our possession."

By Debra Wood.

Florida Ends '06 With Big Ups and Downs

The decline in the overall volume of Florida's construction contract activity continued its recent pattern in December, as McGraw-Hill Construction reported the value of contracts for future construction dropped 27% during the month. That number was a combination of a 46% drop in residential and double-digit percentage gains in nonresidential and nonbuilding contracts. For December, the total value of new contracts totaled nearly $3.8 billion, down from $5.2 billion reported a year ago.

The residential sector's 46% decline equated to a roughly $2 billion total for the month, down from last December's $3.8 billion. Meanwhile, the other sectors continued to grow significantly. The value of nonresidential contracts jumped 28% to tally about $1 billion, up from last December's $788 million. The nonbuilding segment improved by 10%, jumping from the $639.3 million of a year ago to the most recent month's $705.1 million tally.

The latest report finalized Florida's numbers for the year. The state's total for 2006 was $62.3 billion, or 11% behind 2005's nearly $71 billion total. Again, residential was the big negative, declining 21% from 2005 to total $41.4 billion. Nonresidential ended '06 12% ahead of '05, with about $13.2 billion of activity. Nonbuilding construction ended up 10 percent ahead of 2005's pace, with a $7.7 billion total.

Skanska USA CM for Shands/UF Cancer Hospital

Skanska USA Building of Tampa has been selected as construction manager of the 500,000-sq-ft Shands at University of Florida Cancer Hospital in Gainesville. Construction began in January with a ceremonial groundbreaking.

The new cancer hospital will consist of an eight-story patient tower and will provide 192 private rooms for a variety of health-care clinics, including diagnostic and therapeutic oncology care. The project also includes the construction of a critical care center for emergency- and trauma-related services, an operating suite of 10-12 rooms and support areas and 800-car parking garage.

Flad and Associates is the architect. The hospital is scheduled to be completed in 2009.

Moss & Associates Awarded $47M UM Project

Moss & Associates of Fort Lauderdale announced it's been awarded a $47 million contract to build a 10-story combined parking garage and central energy plant for the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine.

The 1,430-space garage will be constructed of structural precast concrete and structural steel.

The new central energy plant will include three 3,500-ton chillers and cooling towers. Construction was scheduled to begin in early 2007 with completion expected by mid-2008.

Ajax Building Breaks Ground on Daytona Beach Police HQ

Tallahassee, Fla.-based Ajax Building Corp. has broken ground on Daytona Beach's new $23 million police department headquarters. The three-story, 97,000-sq-ft public safety center was designed by the architectural firms Hawkins & Hall of Daytona Beach and Wilson Estes Police Architects of Mission, Kan.

Site work began in early 2007. Vertical construction is expected to begin in June.

Work Starts on Halifax Landing Condo in South Daytona

W.G. Yates of Daytona Beach has started construction of the Halifax Landing condominium overlooking the Halifax River in South Daytona Beach. The 15-story building features 186 two- and three-bedroom units ranging from 1,531 to 2,296 sq ft.

The developer, Halifax Landing LLC, indicated construction should be completed by late spring 2008.

Avalon Park Starts Construction of Vo-Tech Facility

Developer Avalon Park Associates of Orlando has started construction of a 50,000-sq-ft high-tech vocational education facility adjacent to Timber Creek High School.

The company estimated the cost of the building at $15 million, and expects it to open in time for the 2007-2008 school year.