| New Starts Fall Significantly in All Sectors in August
Skanska Building $150M Cancer Hospital at UF
Skanska USA Building has been awarded a $150 million contract to build a new cancer hospital for Shands HealthCare at the University of Florida’s Gainesville campus.
The project involves the construction of a nine-story tower, which will contain 192 private rooms; cancer treatment wards; and an emergency department with 12 operating rooms. A tunnel will connect the building to existing hospital facilities.
The contractor is anticipating a 2009 completion.
August Contracts: All Sectors Drop by Double Digits
The value of new project starts in Florida dropped sharply in all construction categories in August, resulting in an overall drop in state construction contract activity of 40% for the month, McGraw-Hill Construction reported. For the month, the value of new contracts totaled roughly $3.3 billion, well down from the $5.5 billion in new starts reported last August.
Residential continued its steady plunge, registering a 51% drop compared to last August and totaling just over $1.7 billion. (Last August, McGraw-Hill Construction reported more than $3.5 billion in new residential starts.) While the nonresidential and nonbuilding sectors had been mostly positive to date, they turned down significantly in August. The nonresidential category fell 17% for a total of almost $1.1 billion for the month. The nonbuilding segment, with about $513.7 million in new contracts during the month, was 28% behind the pace of August ’06, when it had experienced $713.8 million in new contracts.
For the year-to-date, Florida contract activity now totals nearly $34 billion, or 26% below the first eight months of 2006. The residential market, estimated at about $16.6 billion, is 48% behind last year’s pace. The other sectors remain positive, though. Nonresidential, at about $10.6 billion, is 11% ahead of 2006’s pace, while nonbuilding construction is approximately 48% ahead of last year with a $6.7 billion total so far.
Moss & Associates Awarded South Beach Ritz-Carlton Project
Moss & Associates of Fort Lauderdale has been awarded the construction management contract for The Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences, South Beach. The company anticipates a December start of construction on the four-building beachfront residential project, developed by Lionstone Development and Fortune International.
The development, which involves both new construction and historic restoration, will include a total of 45 fractional and 141 wholly-owned residences. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. will manage the property.
The centerpiece of the new development is the historic Seville Beach Hotel building at 2901 Collins Avenue. Built in 1955, the 152,438-sq-ft building will have a renovated interior and preserved exterior. The renovated tower will feature the 45 fractional ownership residences, 30 wholly- owned units plus two townhomes with separate entrances.
The project also includes: a 63,109-sq-ft North Tower, which will include 29 wholly-owned residences; and a 93,579-sq-ft South Tower, which will have 25 wholly-owned residences.
RW Armstrong Designing $26 Million Project for Tampa International
Consulting firm RW Armstrong of Tampa was hired by the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority to design the $26 million Cargo and Ground Support Equipment Facilities project at Tampa International Airport.
The company will provide project management and design services for the project’s two buildings.
The 40,400-sq-ft cargo building will be a dock-height facility to accommodate tractor-trailer operations and will consist of individual sorting and office space for freight forwarders. The 53,200-sq-ft ground support equipment building will facilitate maintenance and miscellaneous operations.
“Developing a new site for cargo and ground-support facilities gives us momentum to clear the path for the new North Terminal complex,” said Louis E. Miller, executive director of Tampa International Airport in a press statement.
TOD in Hollywood Selected for National Pilot Program
Sheridan Stationside Village has been selected for a new nationwide pilot program designed to foster smart growth principles and environmentally friendly design. The mixed-use transit-oriented development (TOD) in Hollywood is one of six projects across Florida registered for the U.S. Green Building Council’s new Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-Neighborhood Development certification program.
The LEED for Neighborhood Development pilot rating system was launched jointly by the U.S. Green Building Council, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Congress for New Urbanism.
LEED for Neighborhood Development will integrate the principles of smart growth, new urbanism and green building into the design and development of communities. The goal is to encourage developers to revitalize existing urban areas, reduce automobile dependence and promote pedestrian activity
Sheridan Stationside Village is being designed to be a pedestrian-friendly urban community centered around the Sheridan Street Tri-Rail station. The project’s plans call for up to 1,050 residential units; up to 299,000 sq ft of office space; 300,000 sq ft of retail space; a hotel; and a 793-space parking structure for Tri-Rail riders.
Weitz Starts West Boca Library Project
The Weitz Co. of West Palm Beach has started construction of its West Boca Library project in Boca Raton.
Designed by PGAL Architects, the 20,000-sq-ft, one-story facility is scheduled for completion next fall. The assignment is part of a continuing contract with Palm Beach County's Facilities and Operations Department.
HuntonBrady Designing New Viera Hospital
HuntonBrady Architects of Orlando was selected by Health First to design its new hospital in Viera. The hospital will be a core component of the Viera Health Park, a health park that will bring a full variety of health-care services to the community.
Viera Hospital is an acute care, full-service hospital including emergency, outpatient diagnostics and 100 all-private beds. The facility is scheduled to open in fall 2010.
HNTB Awarded SW 62nd Boulevard Four-Lane Connector Project
The Alachua County Department of Public Works has selected the Jacksonville office of HNTB Corp. to provide engineering services for the S.W. 62nd Boulevard Four-Lane Connector project. The contract, expected to be completed by the end of 2009, includes a corridor planning study, project development and environment study and final engineering and design services
Click
here for more Florida News >>
|
print this page
e-mail this page
